Daredevil95

Hi, I'm thinking of buying a 87-89 vette for a daily driver. I avg about 200 miles a week or less. In the past I owned a 87 vette back in 1989 and a 94 vette up until a few years ago when it got rear ended and deemed totaled. That car had a built LT1 and was more of a weekend car and the 87 back in the day was mostly stock but, very reliable. I'm wondering; 30 years later could/should I make a C4 a daily driver? I'm thinking it will hold up to avg driving with AC working. I have a few other cars I could drive if a problem arises so, minor problems are ok but, will it be like a older BMW/Audi as to working on it constantly and seeming forever? I'm looking to spend 6K or less and should be able to get a decent C4 under 100K. Any advice will be appreciated.

JrRifleCoach

Generally speaking it would be best if you possess a good general aptitude of auto repair.
Otherwise some repairs might be costly.

Otherwise....why not? Its paid for and besides repairs, gas is your only expense.

aklim

The more miles you put on it, the more work you are going to have to do. How finicky are you? Do you insist on a good paint job, good carpets, all systems working or are you willing to put up with some issues? Notice I said good, not perfect. So if, for example, the ABS has issues, are you willing to convert to non-ABS or are you willing to scrounge for junkyard parts that might not be much better than what you have? Are you able to do everything on your car or will you have to rely on "specialists" at the dealership that drew short straw to work on obsolete stuff? Only you can answer those questions.

You are going to be able to get engine and transmission parts relatively easy. The rest, you are at the mercy of junkyards (while supplies last) and aftermarket suppliers (for as long as they find making the part profitable). I already have it and spent way more than I should have and till I have run it into the ground, can't buy a new shiny toy. I won't get what I have put into it even after counting depreciation from playing with it. So if something happened to it, would I jump in again? No. Would I run out the clock on it? Sure. When I bought it, the answer was different. Make if it what you will.

Daredevil95

Thanks for the replies. Yes, I do all my own work which includes rebuilding motors or build whole cars from bare shell to driving so, yea, I've been around the block and I know what ya mean, if we can't do our own work it will be costly. Yes, I know it won't be perfect but, I'll try to get a decent C4 and enjoy. I recently got rid of a E39 BMW and that car was a PITA! Just about everytime I started it up there was a problem and it gave me PTSD.....LOL. I'm trying to buy something decent and not have payments and I always loved my vettes and never complained when something went wrong....most of the time(opti-spark!). I figure chevy 350/700R4 should be as reliable as it gets and GM wiring concerns me but, I'm not afraid of it either. I want the car to pretty much start up, Ac cold and be on my way.....I'm thinking it should be no problem. I'll do all the maintenance soon as I get it, plugs wires, cap, rotor, coolant, oil, trans service and rear fluid change and look at the waterpump and thermostat and change depending on how old they look. I'll check the AC with a gauge and make sure everything is a go and if not, find the problem and fix. I miss not having a vette an especially on long weekend trips. I'm guessing it should be ok?

The Thomas J

These cars aren't daily drivers. They weren't that reliable when they were new. Now that they are all classic cars they won't magically become more reliable. I have mine for almost 3 years and have replaced or fixed a laundry list of mechanical failures. The previous owners before me has similar issues and I have replaced or fixed a few of the things they had fixed prior to my ownership. I love the car and lately, since I sold my BMW convertible a few weeks ago I have been driving it much more and guess what happened? On that first over 90* day we had my radiator blew. Had to replace that and the thermostat. A C4 Corvette is best suited as a weekender, not a person's primary transportation. It's just too risky.

1bdvet

I wouldn't recommended using any C4 has a daily driver. They have aged well, but things will go wrong and leave you stranded, no matter how good a mechanic you might be today.

QCVette

I daily drove my '88 all year, even in the snow. I had a 100 mile per day commute to work. In about 2.5 years I put 45k miles on it.

It was great. It made me enjoy the drive to work and actually look forward to the long commute.

My '88 had the 2.59 axle and I got about 30 mpg on my nearly all highway commute. We looked for it because I wanted some good fuel economy and this was my first "economy car" that got better mileage than my other cars or even a 4 cylinder S10. The "economy car" was how I was able to convince my wife that this was a good idea.

The car was pretty reliable too. It is getting older and some things failed like the antenna wouldn't go down all the way, the headlights made some noise when turning, the rear wheel bearings needed replacement, and other age related thing like wear on the seat, mufflers rusted, etc. However the car started and drove fine every day

I bought the car specifically for a daily driver so I looked for a nice car, but was not concerned about perfect and didn't plan to restore it, just a nice driver. I found one that had a few minor cosmetic issues at a pretty good price with the idea to drive it a few years and then get rid of it to do it again with another car. I sold the car with about 115k on it for within a a couple hundred of my purchase price, so it was one of the least expensive cars I have had.

I sold it because I wanted a 6 speed. I got a '94 and did about the same thing with it too. About 2.5 years and about 45k miles.

It was also a great daily driver for me. I also sold it for nearly what I paid, so it was a very inexpensive car for me too. On the '94 I replaced rear wheel bearings, half shaft u-joints, rusted aftermarket muffler eliminators, one front seat lower section with a junk yard replacement due to split leather when I bought it. The big problem I had was I hit a deer on the highway at about 65 mph. It came over the hood and the headlights flipped him over the roof. It was an exciting few moments! A couple of body shops (long story) and it was good again.

In short, I think they are great daily drivers and if you can do some minor work yourself they are quite reliable and inexpensive too. However, if you plan to restore or keep a perfect one, it will be a money pit. I had to constantly remind myself that they were "drivers" and that I could cut some corners instead of the "best" for it.

Good luck with your choice.

aklim

Any car can leave you stranded. Sure, the L98 and 700R4 is pretty common. Much of the rest of the car may not be. So how much patience you have to wait for a junkyard to pull the parts or how willing you are to do without becomes a question the owner must answer. I'm running out the clock on my car and the next iteration will a newer model that has less issues. Looking at maybe a C6 at that point. Is that the OP's thought?

confab

Will you get fired? If you have a little flexibility in when you arrive where, maybe you could do it.

If every trip, arrival and departure times are important? You might be creating problems for yourself.

These cars are really old now and things happen. I honestly don't know if a random garage you might be forced to use during a trip can properly diagnose or repair a C4 at this point? That goes double for the OBD1 cars.

Whatever you decide, good luck!