im thinking about getting a c4 and i was wondering what i should look for in buying one, are they reliable, what goes wrong with them etc.

thanks ^_^

 

Too broad. Narrow it down for us (and fill out your profile a bit more, name, city, state, what you drive now, blah). What do you like? What are you looking for? What will you do with it? Where do you live? What's the climate? When will you drive it? Will you modify it, race it, etc.?

OK?

 

well actually i would like it for a daily driver...(ever since i drove one tuesday lol and found out ow nice they are to drive), they are surprisingly cheap (at least to me (around 4000 to 5500) i have no real specifications, i would like that targa top thing, im in salt lake city, utah, so the weather ranges from really hot to cold, but i did some research on the price and on insurance and found i could afford one (the corvette for me was one of those unatainable cars that i really wanted, but now i found out i can get one ^_^ ) right now i dont have a running car (in my name) so i drive my moms malibu, or our truck (my vehicle is a 77 vw bus, but im working on restoring it..and it stopped running lol, but im going to fix that) i was just wondering if there is anything that goes bad on them that i should look out for(trouble spots) when im buying (ie engine transmission etc.) and like i said im just going to use it as a daily driver, nothing special...maybe put it in a few car shows etc.

 

Buy the newest, cleanest example that you can find, but that won't put you in the $5000 range. From 1984 to 1996, there were a fairly wide range of engines, each with a few quirks. For example, the L98 (85-91) water pumps would almost always go out between 50,000 and 65,000 miles, but in the price range you are looking at, they will have already been replaced, and hopefully upgraded. Overall the C4s continue to be a bargain, but find a nice one, or you'll spend a lot of money "fixing it up". Good Luck!!

 

Depending on how the C4 was taken care of will say a lot too.
I would test drive a few first so you can get a feel for a few different years.

 

From a recent post to another with the same intent. And, I would especially add: prowl the C4 General & Tech/Performance forums to get a feel for the kind of problems to look for.

Welcome aboard Joe, buckle your seatbelt-you're in for a wild ride!

Firstly I'd reccommend you get the following books:
"Cor-'vette Specs" by Mike Antonick, ISBN 0-933534-51-5 and
"Corvette From the Inside" by Dave McLellan, ISBN 0-8376-0859-7.
Read both cover-to-cover a couple of times and THEN think about getting a C4. Don't be in a hurry! C4's are still fairly expensive to buy and VERY expensive to maintain. The car/price you mention seems like a fair deal. That scares me 'cause fair deals are rare in the speciality car market, especially from a speciality car dealer. You gotta do your homework BEFORE you lay your money down.

There are a lot of good C4's out there at decent prices but also a lot of junk. By all means, check any out that you can get to and drive them to get a feel of what a C4 is. If you haven't owned and driven high performance cars before, you're in for a suprise. The C4 is probably as close to a race car as the average "joe" will get. They not only go like a bat-out-of-hades but can stop so quick your eyeballs will buldge and turn tight enough to put your kidneys in the passenger seat.

So have at it and enjoy the trip!

 

alright so they are pretty good cars right, will they cost alot on tune ups and parts? (i can do pretty much any maintenance except tune ups)

 

What year C4 did you drive?

I was looking for one in the same price range that you were, around $5000 or so and didnt want one with too many miles. I found my '85 with 107K on it for that price. I made sure that it was well taken care of by the previous 2 owners. I've had it for the past 3 months and only minor things have gone wrong. The parts have all been pretty cheap though. I've driven it just about everyday since I got and I love it. The great thing about the L98 engine ('85-'91) is that its based on earlier Chevy small blocks and its easy to work on.

Good luck on finding the right vette for you.

 

i drove a 1990, it was loaded too, leather, power seats, power windows, heated seats, heated mirrors, targa top, it was niiiice he barley drives it too so it was really clean, and drove awesome (or at leaast it seamed like it lol that was the first vette ive ever driven) except its tranny was going it was having a hard time shifting around 2nd gear(it was an auto) and the brake pedal had a fairly long travel before the brakes worked (atleast compared to other cars ive driven)

 

I purchased a 1990 Convertible (with an aux hardtop) with 75,000 miles on it 2 months ago in Florida where I live. I paid $8,000 and it was in great shape. It just needed some minor detail freshening up - new emblems, buffing, water pump, etc. My biggest problem was a VATS (Anti-theft) problem that took a while to solve. I thought that it was a steal, especially with the hardtop. I wanted a 1990 or up because of the interior change in '90. I thought they looked a little more up to date. I also wasn't real wild about the "bread loaf" on the passenger dash of the earlier C4's. Florida is rampant with Corvettes, so there is a lot to choose from here locally. I would search E-Bay just to see the prices that the year model you are looking for are fetching. You can also see pictures of several year models inside & out this way to see what you like. I found my car on E-Bay, and then contacted the seller and made a deal. Good Luck - I sold a 1957 Cadillac Fleetwood 75 to buy my Vette (my first) and I haven't regretted it.

 

You missed one book
"The Heart of the Beast"

 

I have a 90'.
Gotta mention the Bose system. Lots of problems with them in various years. The CDM boxes and amps go up quite often. But once rebuilt, should be okay.
That's my one big knock.

 

I can't agree that C4's are extremely expensive to maintain.
If you get one with major problems, then yes, it will cost more than fixing the same problems on your mom's Malibu, but Corvettes are not any more fragile than any other Chevy. In fact, I think they are tougher than the average car.
The only maintenance I've had on my '96 in over three years (other than tires, brakes, oil, filters, etc.) was an air conditioning valve. Pretty reliable, I'd say.

For $5000, you'll be looking at older/high mileage C4's that will certainly require a willingness from you to turn some wrenches/buy some parts...especially if you want all systems functioning. You can easily drive a car without a working AC, a working radio, water-tight seals, etc....so much of maintenance expense depends on what the driver can live with....or live without.

I say this to keep you from being frightened away from an early C4 Corvette. You can probably get a much nicer Toyota Corolla for your $5000 than you can a C4 Corvette, but the Corvette is not just a different car, it's a different world.

Good luck on your decision. We are here to help.

Larry
code5coupe

 

BOSE AMPs fail a lot. I'm getting really good a removing the speakers from my '88's front doors. Once you get them out it's easy to replace the amp.

 

Having searched for over a year before I purchased my first Vette a year ago, the most important thing that I can tell you is to drive as many C4's as you can prior to buying one. This will allow you to feel the difference in driving different years; L98 vs LT1, Auto vs M6, 2.59 rear vs 3.07 etc.

Although my wife & son each have a car, the Vette is my only car and thus a 50mile/day daily driver. If you are going to use this as your primary car my suggestion is (as you've already been advised) buy the newest lowest milage car that you can find.

I would have to say after owning and maintaining 8 different vehicles over the past 30 years that the Vette does require more maint and at a generally higher cost (for parts) than many other vehicles Yet my 95 A4 costs really no more to maintain than my 96 GMC Yukon did for the 140K that I drove it.

Take your time and have fun test driving as many as you can prior to buying (I drove 6 vetts prior to buying mine & glad I did)

 

As stated above, buy the newest, cleanest Vette you can find and/or afford. Best advice I can give is to not rush into anything...and by all means take a bunch for test drives....as all Vettes are different...some are rattle traps...some may seeem quicker than others. Unless one strikes like a bolt of lightning...be cautious and don't commit to buy for the sake of owning one. In the long run you will be sorry for buying in haste. If you see one your interested in...check with the Forum for advice. Good Luck

 

And this has happened...with excellent results.

Larry
code5coupe

 

Thanks--I'll look into it.

 

No doubt!


Also, the '"newer is better" argument does NOT hold water - it is about how the car was maintained more than that


Good luck -

 

Best advice offered here so far