JP2005

ok i have had a 95 camaro v6 which was my first car at the age of 16 then a girl ran into me and totaled that car...17 now...my dad got me a 99 z28...but since that he has quit driving his truck due to problems beyond control...so recently ive been thinking about what kind of car to get here are my picks(in no particular order):

1995-1999 eclipse gsx(somewhat cheap, reliable, good looks w/ aftermarket parts and with tuning VERY fast)
1991-1995 3000gt vr4(very expensive, nice looks stocks and w/ aftermarket, fast stock, and pretty reliable)
1997 corvette(very expensive, nice looks, lack of customizing abilities, fast stock, very reliable)
1993-1997 camaro z28 and/or ss(somewhat cheap, very reliable, good looks, not much customizing ability, somewhat fast)
1993-1997 trans am(somewhat cheap, very reliable, good looks, not much customizing ability, somewhat fast)

opinions on what i should get would be greatly appreciated but now its time for my real question

if i get an lt1 it would probably be around 100,000-120,000 miles + with a high mileage car that i will assume has been raced since lets face it who can refuse to race a fast car... what common problems come with the lt1 engines with high mileage, common mishaps, and also assuming i race like every other 17 year old i have never owned an lt1 so im not quite sure on what to expect



thanks
JP

glenn

I have a 94 Z28 with 87,000 miles that I bought new. I bought it because of 275 horsepower, the world's best 6 speed manual, and it was only $18,500 for a brand new car. Great performance. It's reliable except for one thing, in particular:

Optispark (the distributor) is mounted in a hard to get at location under the water pump. If it gets wet (water pump leak, for example, or if you spray off the engine) it will fail. It costs $299 for 93 or 94's and only $199 for 95-97. Plus the 95-97 is a vented opti that should last longer.

Other things I've replaced over the years: wiper motor, electric window motor, clutch, water pump, opti (twice), spark plugs, spark plug wires (took me 6 hours to change plugs and 8 hours to change wires!!!); shocks; A/C compressor (twice under warranty, but has worked great since 1996), intake manifold rear oil leak, rear end pinion seal twice.

As far as performance, there are some free mods and some not-so-free mods:

Free mods: I've only done the throttle body coolant bypass, I don't think it's worth it to relocate the IAT sensor or take out the MAF screen like some people have.

Not-so-free mods: Best bang for the buck is the K&N inlet. I couldn't believe it, but I picked up a couple of tenths in the quarter; LT4 knock sensor; 1LE aluminum driveshaft (I got this for free because of a problem they had on 94's with the driveshafts); Headers (I'm having MACS put on right now, but I hear this a great mod plus it allows you to get to the plugs and wires much easier); exhaust cut-out.

The 94-97 Camaro Z28 and Firebird V8's are great cars for the money! You list these cars as "Somewhat Fast." I'd say other than the Vette, they'll beat the other cars stock to stock and it wouldn't take a lot of tuning to beat the 97 Vette (stock cars run high 13's or low 14's at around 100mph). Plus, if you list the first year of the C5 Vette with the LS1, another option that would have the same engine but less money would be a 98 or newer Camaro/Firebird LS1.

But you could take a bone stock 94-97 Fbody and with a couple of grand beat the socks off the stock Vette. Most people would tell you that you can buy the inlet ($200); hot cam kit ($500); headers ($500); cutout ($50); reprogram the computer ($100) and be running in the low 13's and around 105 mph in the quarter, maybe even faster. Add a set of ported/polished heads for $750 from Lloyd Elliot and you have a 12 second car for around $2000 worth of mods. Buy the original car for around $6000 and for a total of $8000 you'll be faster than the $20,000 1997 Vette.

Good Luck,
Glenn

Bow94z

Yea what GLenn Said. Im 18 right now and bought my Z at 16 with 99,000 miles on it. Car has 122,000 now and between those miles the car took a hell of a beaten!!!!!
If you maintain these cars mechanicly,they will last....

~DONT GET A RICE ROCKET~


to open these cars up things,like Cold Air intake, Headers, Exhaust,gears etc.... will make these cars move!!

what do u mean by no customizing ability.
They make soooooo much stuff for these cars from exterior-interior...to all out motor work

for audio setups, check out subthump.com for F-body ideas.
They make some quailty Fbody boxes and ampracks

Go with an LT1

ticket_me_redz

Just an observation but since you mentioned a VR4 as "fast stock" and the Z28 and Trans Am as "somewhat fast" I'd just like to say either would out run the VR4 stock. Now with a really good driver, it would be a very good race between the 3 but I'd say the Americans would nudge the import.

My girl has a VR4 and its given her tons of trouble with the turbos and its never been raced. Its really heavy too. Now dont get me wrong, you can make them super fast with very little work but you did mention a stock one.

Just something to think about.

Later

JP2005

on my 99 z28, i got 2 12's in a custom box taking away my trunk and a 700 w rockford amp i know their is plenty of ability as far as system but as far as looks you have a choice of ground effects which kills me when i want a completly new look, and i know the things to make them fast but i need to see real results...

as far as the anti-import statements review the following:

mitsu 3000gt vr4 run 12.9-13.1's stock, the 91-93 got 300 hp and the 94+ have 320...so i see in no way how a stock z or t/a is keeping up

and yes the z28/t/a's would beat the eclipse stock vs. stcok, but with only $1800 - $2500 you can make eclipses 11-12 sec daily drivers, dont believe me...look in autmotiveforums.com

i respect cars for cars not for being domestic or import...but the thing is i need a fast car(since i street race) and i also need a car to get me to school/work and back everyday... the 2 cars ive been really thinking about lately are the eclipse gsx and the z28 and/or t/a

thanks for the input bow, ticket and glenn i just really need to know if theirs any major common problems with the lt1 before i waist around 5000

ArrestMeRed

I was lucky enough to get my car when I was only 16, with a little over 38k on the clock for only $9k. It now has just shy of 80, and it`s tooken a HELL of a beating! 50+ runs at the track each year, for about three years now. Only problems have been the stock trans.,and trans mount but, what can ya expect with the amount of torque and the abuse I`ve given it. Of course I`ve mainttained it to the best of my ability, putting in plugs and wires and all the other stuff. Truth be said, the opti is junk. I`m about to take mine out and throw it in the trash. Customability? Such as body kits and such? This is the last reason why I bought this car. (I thought it looked great and I wanted somthing FAST) But, I`ve since then added a Ram Air hood, and 17 inch American Racing Torque Thrust 2`s, and I think my car is the best looking one around. I`m serious, it has a presence and the rumble of the V8 to go along with it can`t be matched by any lesser of a car. Camaros are equily as bad ***. I`ll probly get torn apart for this, but have you considered a Mustang? Lots of mod and customability there. I just have one tip about any RWD V8 car....FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON`T TRY TO ATTEMPT TO DRIVE IT IN THE SNOW!!! THIS SHOULD BE AVOIDED AT AL COSTS!!! But, where I`m from in Northern Ohio, this is a big issue...we really get dumped on. Also, better tell this dude he has wrong info http://www.fantasycars.com/derek/cars/3000gt.html

JP2005

arrest youre right your *** will get ripped for that mustang statement but to tell you the truth yes i have...i thoguth about picking up a 94-95 gt just because i would have the 5.0 liter and a newer body style but the thing is simply said its a mustang... and they dont really appeal to me that much maybe its because i feel like i see 10989043984732739898241893749838923893894230982389 3249732940239023770201 mustangs a day on the street

Bow94z

"1098904398473273989824189374983892389389423098238 9
3249732940239023770201 mustangs a day on the street"




YUP TOTALLY AGREE!!!!!

Bow94z

common problems, intake leak (easy fix with new gaskets)

OPTI CRAP!!!

im sure couple others out there. overall they r great cars

glenn

JP,
One more thing. The Camaro/Firebird is going to be easier to drive fast than the imports. You have to wait for the turbo to spool up or the engine to build revs while the V8's have power on demand. You are right, the VR4 is a heck of a car, but I'd stay away from an Eclipse. I love watching the tuner cars, but in order to make them fast, you typically make them pretty unreliable. I'm an engineer and I also respect cars as cars, but believe me, it's much easier to make power when you have the cubic inches already.

I slalom (Solo 2) my car and it's one of the easiest cars to drive fast in a parking lot autocross because of the throttle response. I ran a 1974 911S in slaloms from 1984 to 1994. There was a good friend of mine with a 73 911E that I could never beat (would always be a couple of tenths off of his time). The first time out in my 1994 Z28 and I beat him, not by a couple of tenths, but by 3 seconds in a 40 second autocross. He has yet to beat me in my 94 Z28 with his Porsche and he now has a 1986 911 Turbo. The 94-97's are great cars!

Thanks,
Glenn

JP2005

glenn you have to remember as of now i own a 99 z28, and i love domestics as much as the next guy and trust me in my 99 z i know about the power at the touch... also you said the more tuning you make on an eclipse such as one running 12s as a daily driver what reliability do you sacrifice, i guess what im asking for is the drawbacks

and i have also driven imports who take high revs to catch up...

but off the line and in the 6500+ rpm range is where the imports "catch up" if not "pass up" the domestics

but does anyone here have a z or t/a with around 130,000+ miles? if so please rate the cons and overall reliability of such a high mileage car

MonoxideChild

I have a Z with 141K on the clock.

but. the engine was freshend up before anything major happened.

so, only 20K on this freshned up engine. Seems to run well, just need to tune my new cam and get it all setup.

I'd do suspension work on a 100K+ mile car.

panhard,LCA,Springs,shocks, torque arm, then freshen the rear diff up.

replace gears and fluid, get a T/A girdle.

sounds expensive at first. bu tyou get a car cheap enough the upgrades aren't that bad.

I got my car 6K.. I've put over 1500 bucks into it Easy, but I love it to death.

wanna buy it?

tee hee

ticket_me_redz

I have yet to see a stock 3000GT VR4 run the times you say. How can a car that is that heavy, has all-wheel drive and only a little extra horsepower run that fast? Sure, if you are talking quarter mile and launch the thing while its bumping the rev limiter it will haul ***. I'm not anit-import at all. I'm just speaking from experience. All-wheel drive is a hindrance unless you are going from off the line. I've raced two and beat them both. And these were from a roll. Some can be very fast and with the right driver.

Maybe you should read the whole post before you decide to pick out certain statements. I gave the car its props. All I know is that my girl has one helluva time with hers and its in the shop more than on the road. Just trying to give you a heads up.

Later

glenn

JP,
You already know how great the 99 Z28 is. The 94-97 is not far behind and is pretty easy to get back to the 99 performance. Biggest drawback is the Optispark. What a POS!

I just think that after owning a 99 Z28, that you'll be totally disappointed with a rice rocket. It's like comparing apples and oranges. Most people of this board, including me, will push you towards the american muscle. I, by the way, wouldn't mind the 94-95 Mustang GT with the 5.0, I think it's a heck of a car. A couple of my friends have them and they are quick with a little bit of mods.

By the sound of your comments, I'd say you are leaning towards the Japanese cars. I'd say go for it, but I'm betting you'll see a lot of Fbody tail lights at the drag strip.

Good luck,
Glenn

GreenDemon

I'd get the Vette, but of course that's just me. It's a more well thought out car.

Some people that have owned Camaros and buy Vettes say that the Vette is what they've been trying to build their Camaros into for years.

It's certainly more expensive, but there's a reason for it. Less weight, better handling, independent rear susp., etc.

Stay away from the Eclipse (too many on the road) and stay away from the VR-4 (unreliable).

And I won't give my opinion on the F-bodies, you already know what I'm going to say. - we're all gonna say "Get one"