95tealconvert

I remember for years all the older muscle cars being unloved. Few had any concept of the older cars being collectible back in the day. I had a neighbor back in the early 70's that liked the 1955 to 1957 T-birds and I remember him telling me he was going to look at one that was being sold for $3500.00 and he figured he could buy it for around $3K and he did-it was a very nice car.

Keep in mind that most figured a 1950's and 1960's car was used up when they got close to 100 thousand miles and in reality they were pretty worn out by then so most at that point were sold cheap to teenagers who either jacked them up in the back or lowered them. I remember how many big V8 cars were sold cheap during the oil embargo or wrapped around a tree because they handled like crap with the old poly ply tires.

AgentEran

I have to agree with you here about the 2.59.. Ive had 3:45 ratio before and ive gotten really used to the 4:10s I have now. The 96 auto I picked up recently has the 2.59 and I really dont get why they had this option?! its quite horrible imo. And whats worse is it costs, at least me, about 2k to have the dana rebuilt and gears swapped

Having 3.45, 3.73 or even 3.90 would really wake that car up.

rocco16

Very true.
Another reason the C4 didn't inspire shock and awe is styling. The C3 was over the top. The C2 was a spaceship in its day. Even the C1, mild by today's standards, was avante' gard in the fifties..
The C4, in comparison, was bland (even though many, myself included, consider it handsome).
The C5 started, slowly, to come back to icon status, style-wise, and the C6 and C7 ramped that up measurably.
All in all, both in power and in styling, the C4's were not noteworthy among Corvettes. That's why they didn't inspire lust when they were new and don't inspire lust today, generally speaking.
The cars that have high collector value inspired lust when new, and that carries over.

v8vette84

I disagree that the C4 was "bland" when it came out. By today's standards sure but when it came out it was a "spaceship". Every magazine of the time raved about its looks. I wasn't born yet when the 84' came out but I have read the old articles about it. The 84' had every bit of "shock and awe" when it first came out as every other gen. The only difference now it that cars are getting so "busy" with their vents and black trim pieces and scoops, etc. it makes the C4 look "bland" by comparison.

Tom400CFI

I totally . The '84 was virtually space ship, in '83/'84. It was a fighter jet, for the street. Furthermore, it was an outright extrovert in every conceivable way.

barchetta1

Completely wrong in my opinion; all of it including the comment about the c5. Sorry.. just my opinion and didnt want to retype it all.

The reason the c4 is not going up in value: No rust so no real attrition like a steel car. Same thing happened to the c3.. just now chrome bumpers are on the upswing. c4's need to become scarce. They sit in garages and arent crashed. Just look at how many garage queens are on the market. Hell $12k will buy you one with less than 25k miles for crying out loud.

FASTAZU

The C4 ZR-1 was the car that turned around the performance corner for Corvettes and brought them back to a world class sports car.


I suggest you go do some homework on Corvette history.

84 4+3

The only C4 dad liked was the ZR-1 and grand sport. He was in high school in 84 and said he was never thrilled about it. It has grown on him now but he always liked the 3rd gens and fox bodys better.

That being said the C4 was the safe body style. Some of the prototypes were strange to say the least. Heck take a look at the 82 vettes. By then the change from C3 to C4 wasn't that drastic when compared to a chrome bumper to the C4. The poor C3 got mutilated towards the end with the body kits.

FASTAZU

While were on the C4 subject, how about what the C4 challenge cars did to the racing world...kicked out because they were to good. The C4 suspension alone was a leap ahead in technology starting with the 84.

These are just a few gains the C4 had, all lead to the advances of the later C5-C6 generation.

aklim

A lot of use of the past tense in the past. History is fun but realize that it is in the past. Top dog today best enjoy his/her day in the sunshine That day will be over sometime. When the day is past, it's past. Stop trying to live in the past

bac22

Say what?!? It was very radical for the time, I was in High School myself and I and every other friend drooled over the C4 when it came out!

And if anything the C4 defined the modern day sports car while saving the Corvette brand...if the C4 didn't sell well then GM was going to retire the model (or put it on hiatus that the Camaro suffered from) as they were suffering with mediocre C3 sales.

Respect or no respect, it's history in continuing the Corvette line and defining today's' sports car can't be denied.

cohoskip

My 86 has a 3.07

Tom400CFI

And as I pointed out in post 57, the '84 was also the car that turned around the performance corner for Corvettes and brought them back to a world class sports car. People have a hard time remembering what cars were like back then, but C&D GUSHED OVER THE '84...in '84.

In reality, the introduction of virtually every Corvette generation has been "the car that turned around the performance corner for Corvettes and brought them back to a world class sports car."


.

aklim

Yes, it's history no argument there. But the question is "What have you done for me LATELY?"

aklim

Yes because it was the hot kid of THAT Era. That was the time to strut your stuff. That time has passed. The torch has long left that time's hands.

FASTAZU

WOW read what I posted, not arguing about what is better in newer cars as they are by far superior to past cars and should be!! History is what leads to advances.


You missed the point, countering what rocco16 posted..... That is all.

81c3

Id say the torch is still shining bright on this ole C4.... I dont care what the C7 can do.... this car is timeless and is outstanding over any newer Vette imho...

JungleCat

Also Corvettes were a more of a stand-alone American sportscar back in the’80s. Nowadays, everything is fast and Corvettes have a lot more competition. I bought my ‘86 mostly for the nostalgia, not because I couldn’t afford newer or faster cars. If I get tired of it, I’ll just sell it and move on as I did with the ‘80 Corvette I used to own.

Tom400CFI

Uh. Right. We WERE talking about the car in the context of "THAT Era". Right? The clue was in the text; "the car that turned around the performance corner for Corvettes..."

^That is talking about the era when the car came out. Not sure who said anything about an '84 vs. a C7. I don't believe that I did. If I did, please quote where I said something like that, so that I can fix it.

pologreen1

It is funny how we all are so used to progressing so fast and having things be the "new" "Bigger" "Better" item, that we lose all relationship to what something was when it was the newest latest and greatest.

70's Fake gas crisis was to import cheap economic cars and trade with other Countries, which drove up the interest in old glory days cars, and the fact that the C5 came out and then offered the Z06 and people bought them like nuts showed that consumers will pay more for more.

Youtube has shared the experience of high HP cars and that has raised the bar and interest level for everybody and seems like everybody wants to be the guy with the cool car these days, when in the old days a few had them.

I can say I drove an '88 vette and an"88 mustang in the mid '90s and the vette felt like a super car compared to the GT, in all ways.