In 1978, I bought my first Vette, a 1970 LT1, Mid 80's bought a 73 and finally in the late 80's bought a 75, all coupes. With a family of 3 boys growing, and all that stuff, I sold my Vettes. I have always missed them. Now all alone, last fall I decided it was my time to buy another Vette. A friend who is a diesel mechanic had a nice 1987 coupe. He had done a complete rebuild on the engine, 700R4 and drive line. With the economy, he lost his job and had to sell his 87. I bought it.
Presently, I am putting in new carpet, seats and a few other things. The car is beautiful, it runs strong, handles great, its very plush. I love the Clam Shell when working in the engine compartment. But now my concerns, and the reason for this post.

Being retired, I take a lot of road trips. My favorites are Northern Maine, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. I love the back roads, far from the inter states and cities. I am past my old days of high speed. I dont need to light up the tires when the light turns green. I dont need low end grunt. Just want a snappy car that I can depend on.

With my proper maintenance, my previous C3's never failed me or skipped a beat.
Nothing like a 350 with a Rochester for simplicity and reliability. I would take any of my previous Vettes off the beaten path and know they will bring me home.

Every time I drive my 1987, I see yellow flags flying. I worry about the Technicolor
Dash going west. I worry about a fuel injector quitting. I worry about the computer failing. Under the dash is enough wiring to wire a air craft carrier, hooking up all the plush trinkets.....that are not needed in a true sports car.
Ok, I am a older guy who likes and knows Carb'ed engines and diesels. I fear all this fancy stuff on the 87 will leave me high and dry some day off the beaten path with repair parts hard to find and get her going. I have even considered Carb'ing the 87, and installing analog gauges.........duh ?

My question. Are my concerns well founded, or is the 87 even more dependable than a bone stock 350/Rochester driving into a 4 speed manual. My 70,73,75 were very spartan, easy to service.......well a lot easier than the 87 LOL !

With what I shared above, should I keep my beautiful 87 or Trade or Sell it and get back to a C3 1970 to 1974. I am going to post this in both the C4 and the C3 forums to get a good cross reference of opinions.

Thanks Guys
8Valve

 

Yes, sell all your cars and buy a bicycle not too much technology to worry about there.
Seriously.. you are worried about nothing get AAA and call it done or buy another C3 and keep them both.

 

You fear what's on a 1987 and it's 2010...haha. Sounds like your a bit behind...lol. I personally don't think buying a C3 is the answer. Maybe upgrading to a well maintained LT1 C4 will give you some driver confidence!

 

Before I bought my '89, I set out to purchase a C3. This was in 1998. (I thought the C4s were too plain.)

After driving three C3's, I almost abandoned the idea entirely. One of the C3's wouldn't start and the other two were SO noisy (rolling down the road) that I seriously wondered if the passenger door was ajar!

Before I left the last car lot, the saleman talked me into driving a '93 LT1. The experience was night/day. I fell in love instantly and wanted it right there. At the time I couldn't afford $20k for a "hobby" car though. My budget had to cover another car for the winter months.

I looked and looked until I found an 89 stick with 14k miles for $14k. Because I liked the 93 so much, I converted to it's bumper style. Because I missed my original choice of the C3, I added side pipes and other 70's styling cues.

The one thing I don't miss is a carburator. EFI is quite reliable. It's no more likely to leave you stranded than a carb. Sure, it's possible to lose an injector but you can lose a spark plug or wire as well. Seven cylinders will get you home. And, a lighting/wiring problem can happen with analog guages too. Keep in mind LEDs last forever while light bulbs don't.

I'm not saying nothing can go wrong with a C4 because it can. And, they can be more difficult to diagnose because of their complexity. But, it's that complexity (technology) that makes them what they are. They handle and ride better. They get better mpg. They are more technologically advanced. So is the C5 and C6. Plus, you can kinda make a C4 look a bit like a C3.....

See!

 

The C4s are not that hard to work on if you have good help and advise. If the '87 was maintained well it should be perfect for you.

 

C3 is older and unless completly restored less reliable than a C4
unless you want to dump a bunch of money turning a C3 from a slow carborated corvette (exclude the early C3's) into a daily driver i would stick with the C4. dont get me wrong the stylings of some of the C3's are hard to beat even when compared to some of the exotic sports cars. I have owned both and from my experience the C4 is a much better daily driver, a much more all round modern car. oh yeah did i mention a stock late 70's early 80's C3 is extreamly slow, mini van slow... are you a mini van guy?

 

keep the c4 , ur crazy if u go back to a c3 , i think there the ugliest vette's made...imo

 

I had a 70 convertable. I now have a 86 coupe. Would not go back. No issues with the 86. My son just drove it from Camp Lejune to Maryland and back in 100 degree heat and heavy traffic. No issues at all and the temp never went over 220. What more do you want?

 

I also own an 87 and I've had it for 17 years. It may not be perfect but it has been pretty reliable. Every now and then something will go wrong, but thats an issue with my 1999 Audi, too. Age = possible problems.
But, if you go back to a C3, IMHO, you will lose the superior driving experience of the C4. I have driven a couple of C3's since owning my C4 and they felt archaic!
Since you indicated you like to take road trips, the C4 should be a MUCH better ride than a C3.
My C4 has been all over the place from week long vacations to track days at Lime Rock Raceway. From daily driver to Sunday cruiser. After 124,000 miles it still looks great inside and out.

 

You are retired, so try a C5 for more power, and more luxury.

 

Nothing beats the simplicity and fun of an old sports car..but if the C4 has been maintained well, it should be a very competent and reliable DD. If you think an '87 C4 is bad, check out the tech in modern cars..absolutely bonkers. Stuff you can't even work on because you need special tools and equipment. Some new cars don't even have dipsticks and drain plugs anymore. The C4 is relatively simple by today's standards..but there's still a handful of things that can go wrong if the car isn't maintained properly, as I've found out multiple times the hard way.

Either way, these cars aren't cheap. Go with whichever one you feel more at home in, because you only live once and the difference in up keep cost won't differ much.

 

Winnah!

 

All things mechanical have problems from time to time. A well rebuilt 1987 should be reliable. I feel about cars like I feel about women. If you like her keep her, if you don't dump her. Keep life simple.

 

Both cars have good and bad points.

I have had more C3's that C4's Including a new 78 and a new 79 and I have redone several early 70 models.

I like my 90 but from a mechanical and electronic point of view , I find the C3's easier to work on.

To me getting out of my C3's was easier than crawling out of the 90.

I was looking for a 79 when I came across the 90. Most of the late 70 cars I saw were pretty well beat up.

 

I decided on a c4 after a lot of research between the 3 and 4. I like the look of the older 3's but they can't compare to a 4, C-4's have no rust issues as well. I would go for a 92 or newer.

 

just curious, what rust problems do C3's have that C4's do not?

 

The older ones that I looked at had a lot of rust all over the place. Several websites where pretty helpful pointing out areas that where problematic in this regard.
http://corvettec3.ca/rustpics/index.html

 

Thanks for all the responses. Having worked in high technology for 31 years, I know some technology is good, some well....less than good. We are from the Government and are going to tell you how to build your cars LOL.

From all the responses, it sure sounds like the C4 may well be the best Vette for my road trip and fun needs. I have two trips planned to northern Maine and one to Nova Scotia this summer/fall. By the time snow flies, I will know if I like the C4 or not. I would not make any sell/trade moves till spring.

All the positive responses for the C4 both here and on the C3 forum beg a question. I have been away from Corvettes for about 21 years so please bear with me. If the C4 is such a great car, so much improved over the C3's, why are they so dirt cheap, even for nice Vettes. Yet buying a nice C3, you better have real deep pockets. What am I missing ? Is it body style of the C3 that commands the higher value ?

Thanks
8Valve

 

Because to most the C3 people they are too complicated and/or not real muscle to the everyone else they are too slow.. they are the step child.. a place the C5 will soon inherit. The problem is badmouthing from mostly people who have never driven or owned one.

 

Mostly it's over supply. C4's made in good numbers for 13 years.