C4 Corvette

To say the interior is a little dated is like saying Melissa McCarthy is a little chubby.

 

A friend of mine has a C4 Grand Sport...the rarest of the C4 series. I think the later C4s have really aged pretty well.

 

I think they are a great value. Certainly a different experience when you drive them compared to a modern car (they are a little creaky), but you can get some nice C4s cheap...

If it's not a daily driver, go for it! I would like one myself, definitely on my "list".

 

IIRC the '84 Crossfire Injection model is probably best avoided as it is slightly less powerful and a little more trouble-prone. Since many examples from the late 80's are cheap, may as well go for the newer model years.

The '90 ZR1 and the '96 GS (blue w/ white stripes, red interior) are the two I personally would find the most interesting, but they are not cheap.

At this moment there is an '87 Callaway turbo on Ebay for mid-teens. Those are rare and interesting models for sure, the first time you could order a Corvette from a dealer with non-Chevy performance parts and a warranty.

 

At that price level the C4 is a great car; I had a '95 and loved it and frankly the new C7 interior has gone full circle in some ways, but with better materials. But I like my Dodge pickup, too and don't get all worked up about interiors. That car should have the LT1 and ZF trans I am pretty sure and they are robust, reliable cars.

 

I had an 85 at 18. Really liked the look of the car, but its performance and interior was totally junk! A 928S could smoke it badly in a race. Both on the highway and from a stop light. Now that I'm older, I really hate Corvettes! For around the same money or a little more I'll sell you my 89 928S4 and guarantee its better overall in everything.

 

From a looks perspective, I would consider a 1990+ but not an 1989 or earlier.

1989 and ealier concave butt


1990+ convex butt


Not sure why but I think the concave butt makes the car more dated

 

My first Corvette ride ever was in an '85 back in '85 ... in the snow.

I always thought the exterior styling was great but yeah, the interior was terrible in the 1980s GM tradition. Hard squeaky plastic and the world's chintziest digital instrument cluster.

 

It was an o.k. car. Still like the looks on the outside. The interior however is one of the worst ever in a car. It was ruined even more because my Dad had a new 928S4 at the time. Even though it wasn't fair to compare a $40k new car to a $110k new car.

 

You are selling an S4 for $5K? If so..please PM me.

 

No I'm not selling yet. But the current Canadian pricing isn't much more then $6k U.S with exchange.

 

i think some of the ignition parts are getting hard to come by

 

I paid $20k for a ZR-1 (C4) with 19,000 miles on it. It has 405Hp stock! That's 5 more ponies than my 360 Spider! My TdF Blue 360 Spider is currently for sale, check 'Ferrari cars for sale' section. My ZR-1 isn't going anywhere!

John

 

Refreshing honesty. I will say I am surprised that the 928S4 is worth so little; are they expensive to maintain?

 

Maybe but I suspect it is easy. I have a 1954 and a 1965 Corvette ande so far it has been easy to get stuff.

If you meant body parts you may be correct. I have not needed any so I do not know.

Best

Lee

 

i think the opti spark ignition stuff is...

i wouldnt see why everything else wouldnt be a dime a dozen.... the cars are all over the place for sale cheap.

 

Few in the mid teens here. But most sell between $7500 and $10,000 CDN here. These are not show cars but decent drivers. Decent paint and interior. Higher miles, but still good cars. People though are starting to ask a little more.

 

This is a pretty good article on optispark replacement and modification for pre'95 to keep the moisture that can kill them out. MSD also makes an aftermarket replacement.

Opti-Spark Options

 

I converted all of my classic cars to an inductor or field effect switch to eliminate the points.
This makes the cars easier to start.

I have not looked for points for decades so he may be right and they are hard to get. Classic cars or Ecklars may be a good place to look for this stuff,

As a side bar I have also converted my 1954 Corvette to a 12 Volt system. It also helps starting and night driving. I was also concerned that it nay become difficult to get 6 volt parts.

Not sure if that hurts the value of the car or not? I am curious what the forum thinks? I kept all of the 6 volt stuff including lights and stuff.

Best

Lee

 

Some will cry that you have bastardized the car, others will see it as an improvement. You can always change it back to the really dim 6 volt system when/if you sell. Personally I couldn't discount it because I remember the 6 volt system (and converted to 12v) & you have the original parts.