half as much trouble twice as fast, end result is the same amount of trouble!

 

I am truly sorry for my disparaging remarks. I didn't know we had so many responsible young people getting into the corvette scene.
My experience here was what I was referring to:
I was at a light with my 86, and a young guy pulled up next to me, maybe 19, maybe 20, it was a 87 or 88 corvette, not really sure, hard to tell with camaro wheels on it.
The red paint was faded and cracked, and the right window didn't look straight and it was 1/3 down, the hatch window tinting was all bubbly, and the left window was all the way down, 113 degrees outside, the left door rub strip was missing, and one headlight was up.
The arm out the window had all tattoos, and double earrings and shaved head with "babe" tattooed on the left side of his head over his ear.
Loud Loud rap music blasting, and no gas door.
This guy pulls up, looks at my corvette, and revs his engine a few times, and then burns rubber pulling away. The smoke boiling out from under the car, and engulfing all the front runners from the light.
I pull up against this guy at the next light, and he gives me a thumbs-up, and laughs. He did the same burnout for the next three lights.
I was pretty disgusted with that guy, and moved over 3 lanes so as not to be associated with him should a cop suddenly appear. At last I don't want a ticket for engaging iin a contest of speed. I have three of those over the last thirty years, and another one would be financially devastating in today's climate.
I was thinking "today's youth" where are we going ..............
I do burnouts occasionally, and not with 20 or so cars around that I could bash into should something go wrong, but I was affected.
This sort of thing never affects me usually, but I could just feel a seething. Not that I cared anything for the car or that guy or his family, or whoever, but that I might be dumped into the same catagory, and so might be corvettes of any vintage.
granted, my 86 looks almost new, but it's noisy, and has the same body style, but it was just a strange wierd feeling that all is lost.

 

I think it's great some young guys are into corvettes, so many are into the "tuner" cars

 

 

I can assure you, me and my car don't fit that description.

 

I am 33 years old/young and i had always wanted a vette...for some reason i never thought id get one so i never really looked. Then in july i started really LOOKING...Boy did i see some junk out there but i finally found exactly what i was looking for. Then my wife was freaking out thinking that insurance was going to be high...called my agent and it was less than $40 a month for full coverage i couldnt believe it! needless to say i am proud to finally be a vette owner and hopefully always will be

 

Just had lunch with an old friend whom I haven't seen for a few years.His 17 year old is in hospital(no insurance) with pins in his legs,a very bent Yamaha he can't make the payments on(there goes the credit) and a pending court case.Bet he wishes he'd let him buy a vette

 

Yeah i know what you mean. The first few cars i owned were nothing speical. But to me they were, why? Beacuse mommy and daddy did NOT pay a dime for the car or the insurance. I had to work hard and earn the money. Im not saying that all of the younger generation is "Given" a Corvette or other car by there parents. One easy indicator of a spoiled kid is a nice Vette that they run into the ground. Fed with a "Golden spoon" is a understatement.

 

well, my first car was a '37 ford pickup with a "souped up" flathead running a 55 t-bird 4 barrel steepletop carb, offy heads, 3/4 cam, domed pistons, a lincoln zephyr three on the floor, anson sprints, 4:11 rear end, and black naugahyde seat with black carpet, and shiny black dash with a crank-out windshield, 40 ford smoothie bumpers, and dark metallic blue paint.
The nova was my second car. wow what a difference!!! a real spring at each wheel, and G-70 X 14 redlines, black bucket seats, a real back seat!......now you can guess why I went a little crazy back then.
I was fixing them up from day one.
Some kids just don't get the better is better thing.
I am encouraged by some of the younger vette crowd. maybe, just maybe our younger corvette owners might have some influence on these kids, and steer them in the right direction. i go to car shows, and see beat to death imprts with just one modification: a fart can.
Don't know for sure, but are these kids the ones that want to be like us, and only associate speed with noise? Hence the fart tube?
I would like to share the hot-rodding bug with them, but I guess I just can't relate.
It would be 2 cool to have an under 25 vette club and actually see them respect the car and have fun with a good attitude.

 

My first car was a 92 Hyundai Scoupe, neat little car, but impossible to find parts for. After the trans went for the 3rd time, I had it hauled to the junkyard.

Bought a 97 Cavalier in 2000. Had it payed off 2 years early.

I wanted to trade it in and get an Evolution. Had a good amount saved for a down payment, and had the one I wanted ligned up in Orlando (i live in tampa) , a brand new, gunmetal grey Evo 9 MR.

Got the financing in order, and called my insurance lady.. and had a heart attack on the price. Was looking at almost $900 a month with payment and insuance. While I could afford it, I wouldn't be able to afford to enjoy the car.

So I began to think, and thought about a C4. I Always loved the look, and I grew up with them.

I started looking around a bit, and found a green 96 on auto trader at a chevy dealer about 45 mins away, no pics on the site.

About a week pased and I kept thinking about it, it was more than I wanted to spend, but it was also a lot newer than the other C4's I was looking at.

I went down there, and they had it in the back lot, waiting to be sold to a wholesaler. I went back there and it wasn't even washed, it was sitting there filthy.

I looked it over, needed weatherstrip, rear carpet, and the paint was looking very tired. Guy gets the key and I fire it up, and a smile appeared on my face.

I look all over the place, and finally find how to pop the hood, and I look and see this filthy dusty engine... with 2 words starring at me..."Grand Sport"

I giggle, and tell my dad what we were looking at. I take it for a small spin around the lot and fell in love instantly. After the salesman and I spent 5 minutes figuring out the E-Brake, I went in to begin the haggle.

Took about an hour, but I got him down where I wanted it. Went into the finance office, and wrote a check for my Corvette.. that felt AWESOME, to pay cash for such a machine.

Driving it home there were some rattles from the back, later determined to be missing screws in the cargo trim. But i felt like a fuc*ing rock star on that 45 minute trip home.

I will never forget on the way home, at a stop light there was a Civic with a giant muffler next to me, and I just BUST out laughing.

Brought it home, without telling my GF of 8 years 1 word, cause I knew she was coming over that day.

She was pulling into my driveway and called me from her cell phone... "NO WAY!!!!"

That was October 5th, 2006. Don't ask my anniversary with the GF.. I have no idea

My vette still needs paint, a few peices of weather strip, and the carpet. But I have replaced several things, modded a couple, and drive the hell out of it every weekend.

Still have my Cavalier for the DD.

I'm 24, was 23 when I bought the vette. Best 7500 I ever spent..

 

Todays youth is not a lot different than when I had my first car, a 73 camaro I bought myself at 18. (1976 ) I upgraded just about every part on that car, by the time I was done it was pushing 350 h.p. on the eng, add the 75 h.p. shot of nitrous and it kicked butt. Now, take the rusted out hulk of a 67 mustang that was my DD in the winter during those days, I have a pic of a big ole 8 pt whitetail buck I shot draped over the trunk. Think that would be sacriligeous today? Imagine what the blue oval die hards thought of me. (not to mention the anti hunters) By the way, its not just the young guns that are lured by the low cost of getting into a C4. Count me in on knowing a good value.

 

My cars:

1997 Dodge Neon 2dr SOHC 5sp. - Bought from aunt at 62k miles w/ blown headgasket for $400. Replaced gasket and some preventative parts. Now has 91k miles. Has been an awesome car. Spot on reliable, and still looks great to this day. Now is my dad's DD.



1973 Triumph GT6 Mk3 - Bought out of newspaper for $440 w/ 51,100 miles. Drove it when it was nice out, and fixed it when it wasn't nice out. Put about $500 into it, drove it to 51,990 miles from 2004 - 2006 and sold it for $2k.



1991 Lincoln Town Car - Was given. Had 75k miles and a spun main bearing. This failure happened in 1994, and the car was stored inside under a cover until 2004 when it was given to me by a friend of my dads. Got the crank ground, cleaned the engine of it's peanut butter grade oil, and put it back in. Now has 98k miles and has been very inexpensive to run, on par with the Neon other than it gets only 20mpg. See above picture from while the engine was out. My current DD.

1998 Toyota Camry 5SFE Auto - Bought out of paper for $500. Had 143k miles and a rod knock. Rebuilt top to bottom, head resurfaced, bore job and crank grand. Replaced the seat covers and carpet, had entire interior out and cleaned every piece of plastic. The PO smoked pot in the car and ruined the carpet and seat covers. Still needs a paint job, but I only had $1500 in it. I gave it to my mom in exchange for her Saturn, which I sold to my sister for a break even deal. Don't really have pictures...

1987 Corvette Convertible Auto - Bought from Corvetteronw February 06 on the forum for more than any of the other cars I've bought. Had 45k miles, paint was 3 years old and perfect, no rock chips and no damage from poor details. New top in 01/02, new wheels and tires still needed to be mounted. Nothing needed other than windshield weatherstripping, a digital dash pane and due to a carbon fiber stick on kit; new dash plastics. Still needs two pieces of dash plastic and windshield weatherstripping. Both come this winter. LOVE the car.

 

I am a member of Majestic Glass Corvette Club and over past years and also, in a few other clubs, this topic has generated much discussion. The conclusion to ALL of these discussions has been, "How do we encourage today's young people to be interested in muscle cars and especially Vettes."
This I'm sure has encouraged most all members to take time explaining their Vette "Way Of Life" to younger people at every opportunity. We encourage them to have their pictures taken seated in out cars, take them for rides, invite them to one of our member"s Corvette shop for some hands on, etc, etc.
IMHO, it's the responsibility of all Vette owners to share their pride of ownership and friendship it produces, with all who will listen. Who knows? Maybe someday one of them might pass on buying a $2500 Vette and buy yours for cash! "...Where there's a will there's a way.. IF YOU WANT PROOF CLICK ON THE LINK TO OUR HOME PAGE IN MY SIGNATURE "

 

I was living in Miami when 2 fast 2 furious came out. Shortly after the movie came out there was a 17yo kid that totaled his parents brand new c5 and was killed in the process along with the passenger. The parents said after the accident that they did not know he was going to see that movie. If they had they wouldnt have let him take the corvette that night. I was surprise at the parents comment about the movie. Couldnt believe they tryed to blame it on that. As if the kid never raced the car befor that night.
My dad never let me take his vettes out by myself. I am glad he didnt. I did enough damage to my car. My dad also use to take me to empty parking lots and let me do donuts and learn to take turns. Driving a vette takes resposability and knowledge.

 

When I was about 13 I decided no matter what I would have a corvette as my first car! when I was 16 and had saved 6500 dollars I purchased My fathers vette from him. My brother had recently seized the motor. Who knows how? Anyways as part of the deal my father helped and funded the Rebuild! He even encouraged porting the heads(himself) and a hotter cam. He retired from owning his own body/paint/customization shop So I ended up with an awesome car! I owned it for 3 years before I was t-boned by a large van and nearly died. After recovering I had to have another vette. I purchased and 84 and had nothing but problems.Sold it and drove a geo metro for a while.

Now Ive just recently purchased my 95 with cash.
Corvettes are a huge part of my life and I think everyone is entitled to own one. I got a lot of crap from adults when i was a teenaged kid driving an awesome vette.

 

I'm just like you, albiet 37. I'm just now thinking about picking up a C4 that I never really was in a position go get before, and I posted about it and the first response I got was an attack by THE ESTABLISHED C4 ENTHUSIAST telling me I didn't appreciate the car. What a load of . These cars have been closer to my heart than any vette before or since (will ultimately get a C6 for reliability and good weather DD duties). Nice to see that the attitudes are much better in this post. And I'll second the good wishes to all the younger owners of these cars that appreciate them.

 

When I was 17 I bought my first car/corvette which was a 1984 coupe for $3650. I bought the best Corvette I could afford (actually it was a project car rather than a good driver). I bought it on February 19, 2005 and sold it on May 22, 2005 after it stopped running and needed thousands of dollars put into it including paint, engine work, exhaust, weatherstripping, interior (carpet, door panels, seat covers, digital dash needed rebuilt) ball joints, and the list keeps going on in on. Insurance was another reason I sold it because to insure a 17 year old on a Corvette meant a lot of money. So now after finishing up my second year in college I have decided I will wait and wont buy another vette until after I get my degree, my loans payed off, and get a little more financially secured.

 

Well the way I see it, some kids in high school in the 70s were driving today's coveted mid year 63-67 corvettes, chevelles, camaros, and the list goes on. Different times, now they're driving C4s. They get my thumbs up for having good taste in cars as long as they drive them responsibly.

 

I'd like to throw in my 2 cents, back in 1969 I was nineteen and worked in a garage I drove a 1964 dodge polara, I wanted a vette so bad but knew it would never happen (strict parents) I lived at home and had to live by there rules, I also really admire the young of today wanting a vette over a honda, suburau, etc. these are the younger generation with taste, I've finally bought my 1994 four months ago, kids are all gone just me and mom, and it was well worth the wait! We went for a pizza last night parked next to a Subaru wrx the fellow said cool car, I'll bet it cost alot? I said not really you could have two of these may be even three for what you paid for the wrx.

 

Very well put, and kudos to our young members for having the maturity to drive one with dignity and like you said(for having the class and good taste),Some of the old farts like me are just jealous,Shoot,when I got my 84 this year one of the first things that popped into my mind was I wish I had one of these when I was in school. But then a dinosaur would have stepped on it and ruined my dream.