hcbph

It was mentioned, but before buying anything check with your insurance agent.

Back in 1979 I looked at a 1969 Roadster 350-350hp 4 speed. Beautiful car and ran like a scalded dog. I didn't get the car because the seller sold it to someone else from under me. Thing was, I talked to my insurance agent a few weeks later and mentioned the car I had tried to buy. I hadn't looked up insurance before and just for grins he checked it out for me. I was 30 years old, clean record and had 2 vehicles already insured for years with the same insurance company. The car was $3500 and insurance would have been $3600 a year for me as the only driver. I had no idea it would have been that much and that was in 1979 dollars. That was a rude awakening for me, and though I lived in a city it wasn't that large a city. Had I gotten it, I don't know if I could have kept it due to the insurance cost.

antfarmer2

street credit gets tested and it is always a no win in the end.

HeavyLifter

I'm almost 35 and daily drive a 1993 ranger with 200k miles and a 3.slow V6. I enjoy my LT4 Vette when it's nice out and I can take it out on drives where there are less people and I can enjoy the power and performance of the car more than on typical side streets and highways. I have a lead foot, and have since I got my license at 16 - so the slow daily driver keeps me in check

1993C4LT1

Go for it man. I bought my first C4 when I was a sophomore in high school. Can you work on your own car? If so, that will be a huge savings. Get the best C4 you can afford.

BrandensBeast

Much agreed, my truck's got a 3.5 straight five. Not bad for a truck but the vette will feel like a race car in comparison if not driven daily!

Bandit's C4

Well... it may look inexpensive initially - however there is no such thing as a cheap Corvette part.
Paint is a whole different budget. Insurance is a whole different matter.

Just a FYI - driver side airbags were a stock item in 1990. Dual side airbags started in 1994.

Street cred is a no-win matter... today's cars have more power compared to a 20 year old Corvette.

Rikmann

That's exactly why I chose the '96 Vette. It has the more safe features

patriotpa

You'd be much smarter getting a 1st car that has cheap, plentiful parts and is easy to work on. I can guarantee that you'll break it.

Rikmann

I've read that C4 vettes are easy to work with, and they are the cheapest and most plentiful vette

MatthewMiller

I don't know about insurance costs, but agree that the condition of the car will mean a lot in terms of cost of ownership. However, I'm going to demur from some here in terms of power and safety. Folks, we're in the days were a new base V6 Mustang or Camaro is in the same power range as an LT1/4. And the Vette still has ASR that will save drivers from some bad consequences, as well as good ABS. It may not be super practical as a daily driver, but the OP is in high school. How much practicality does he need?

My advice? If you want a C4, get a clean and well maintained one. Put good tires on it (good=grippy). Enroll in a Tire Rack Street Survival Course and start learning how to really drive and control/manage the car's dynamics. Maybe start autocrossing to hone your skills and get your competitive urges out in a safe environment. Then roll like a boss on the street, not racing or doing other unsafe things; because you know you've got a bad *** car and you know how to drive it. Then, down the road, when you need a more practical car, you have the option to keep this as a fun second car.

MatthewMiller

Oh, I just remembered one thing. Emissions. Check your state laws. If you are in a state like mine, a 96 will have to pass a scanning emissions test. The 96 Vettes are bastard children because they are the one C4/LT year that had OBD2. That makes it harder to tune and data log them. If you can find a clean 94 or 95, you may be able to avoid a lot of hassle for years to come.

BrandensBeast

I can tell you from first hand experience. I've owned my car for about a month now and they are NOT easy to work on compared to simple car's like a civic or jetta hell even my friends saab, interior wise the corvette is extremely cramped if you have to get to stuff (even with the seats and carpet out!) and just really uncomfortable positions you have to work in to get to things, especially on a corvette, but hey if the car doesn't need a lot of work so be it, still have yet to see pics! I also recommend you don't get a car that will be over your head knowledge wise and experience wise, my circumstances are different since I have a very reliable daily driver and have time to learn and work on my vette.

DinoBob

No other wheel with airbag will easily fit. Forget this.

trilkb

I completely disagree lol. This car is the easiest thing ive owned to work on. I love the access to the engine and suspension parts.

The last two cars I owned (at the same time) included a 1992 3000gt vr4 and a 1992 dodge stealth rt/tt. Those cars are notorious for being hard to work on and problematic, so maybe im just loving the corvette due to prior experiences lol. I did a timing belt and water pump AKA 60k service on the vr4 twice in a month, and its literally a 8-10hr job. You dont even want to know the hell it is to get a transmission out of one. Ill take the vette any day of the week. But I do want a white stealth turbo (for its AWD) to sit next to my white 95 corvette, then I can drive that in the snow.

I still say get a fbody. Find a clean WS6 or SS, they have more street cred then a C4. The C4 to me in stock form is slow, it will get up and go when you put your foot down but Im used to 10 second street bikes though so its all relative. But hey its your life, if you can truely afford a 96 c4 then and its what you want then by all means get one. You shouldnt worry about reliability and parts, if you want the car then get it and deal with the problems as they come. If you can afford to buy one, and insure it then do it. The hard part for a young buyer is coming up with cash to buy the car so if you choose you can have basic insurance. When I was 19 or so I wanted a c4, I was driving a 2000 lincoln LS V8 at the time and my insurance rate on my dads policy actually went down with a 1993 c4 lol.

1993C4LT1

He probably says it hard to work on because of his age. I figure I'm 2 years older than him, and my first C4 was the first car I actually worked on. Comparing a plug.and wire change to a Civic makes an LT1 C4 seem hard to work on. But it's doable for the most part when fixing something on these cars.

ccrvtt

It's a Corvette, fer cryin' out loud!

Everything else is just a car...

ETM

I drove my `95 from 2007 through the spring of `15 pretty much as a daily driver. It only had 32,500 on it when I purchased the car. It was a fun car to drive when it was running well but I did have a lot of repairs along the way. You name it I probably fixed it or had it repaired.
I`m sure there have been others who have had a better experience but that was mine. I still have mine and plan to drive it on the weekends, nice days maybe the occasional trip.

HAD2HAV2

A 1996 Vette is a good place to start. Make sure you find one with as low of millage as you can afford, be prepared to work on it, and be able to buy parts to keep it running. That’s how I started my Vette fix back in 1982.
I went to a community college at 23 to learn motor fixin’ so I could work on my own Vette. That doesn’t work with these brand new Vettes. Good luck.

Brackneyc

IDK about cheap and plentiful. At least not in my area. Most seem to be beat all to hell, or severely overpriced.

I would have loved a Vette as a first car, but no way I'd ever suggest one to a kid as a first car. When I was a kid, I thought like a kid.

Insurance will kill you, and unless there is another dedicated car for you to drive, it won't matter if you keep it in your parents name. The company will want coverage for you "just in case." I had to sign a disclaimer that my now 21 year old son would never drive mine, and if he did, I was not covered for ANYTHING which would happen if he was driving.

Vetteblack-96

Just thinking about "street credit" shows an immature attitude.......not a good
thing for a young guy and his first car.