I put the lt1 out of my wrecked 97 bird into my 92 s10 after it finally broke a timing chain at 260,000+ miles. It would have only cost me about $20 and 2 hours to fix it. I never did anything to the motor other than sometimes change the oil (never @ 3000, usually @ 5-10000). I BEAT THE HELL OUT OF THAT MOTOR EVERY DAY.

My wife's 96 mazda 626 has over 200k on the clock and is still running strong. It has a good power to weight ratio (equiped with the 2.5l v6).

Point: It is a matter of preference not reliability.

 

agreed!

 

I’ve had my 02 Z28 since 10/12/01 the M6 Trans failed at 1200 miles it now has 53000 miles on it no major issues. The only yearly expense I spend is on Transmission mounts, Sway bar bushing, and the Z rated tires I have used Royal Purple 5w-30 since the 1st oil change.

 

The KL is a fantastic motor. I've seen them well over 200k miles. And the few known problems they do have are mostly cosmetic, like HLA tap and friction gear noise. A good kerosene flush will clean out the HLAs to stop the tick, and a new friction gear spring and nut will set you back $20 at a dealer and will fix the issue for good (redesigned parts). It's a pain to install, because it requires pulling camshafts, but once you do both of those things, you're back to having a whisper-quiet KL again.

BTW, if you ever have any issues with that car, hit me up with a PM or check out http://www.probetalk.com/forums . The 93-97 Ford Probe and Mazda MX-6 use the same drivetrain and major chassis parts as your 626 and there are a LOT of very knowledgeable people on probetalk.

 

Thanks to all for your input. He is still hesitant on the idea, but he has faced the facts that I will be paying for it, not him. And I'm hell bent on buying the 98 Z28 i found. It should be a good buy, 6MT and only 47,769 miles.

 

There you go, that's what counts.

I bought mine when I was 21 and finishing college and my Dad's reason for not wanting me to get one was because he said the new Camaro is a girl's car.

 

Anthony, I'm gonna kill your dad. I'm sure you'll understand.