Im a huge fan of 93-96 Verts.  I would NOT buy this car. The miles are high, you have work and big work coming up.  I've seen 95s with 1/2 the miles for 3000.00 more.  3000.00 that wont cover your topend rebuild in 10k miles..

Kevin-

Rebuild of what? 

Glen-

I'm standing at the line ready to jump...I just have this anchor holding me back...Mike   I guess all of us Vette addicts need one; they just get really annoying at times!


kkfinch2008-10-14 08:34:10

  at a 109,000 how do you know that it is going to cost big $$$$$ i have a 94 that had 203,000 mi have not spend over $600 on it now it has 229,000 so karen if you like it bay it

Jim - After woerking for a vintage dealer, I've seen more cars then most. We pass on 8 of 10 cars and its not because of price. LT1s typically need the top ends gone thru around 125k. Remember, most people beat the crap out of sports cars or are negligent on maint work.  I owned a 94 Z28 from new and babied the car. I lost a cylinder at 52k and had the motor replaced under warentee. KeBo2008-10-14 12:00:36

Karen,

My opinion won't help because I am somewhere in the middle. I have owned several C4s and LT1 cars. I am very particular with maintenance and oil changes. If these engines overheat just a little you likely get intake and/or head gasket seepage. The top ends can get a little tired in the 125K mile area. Most of that is due to cooling problems or lack of oil changes. If the car were exceptionally clean, I might consider a $9500 offer. I simply think that in 10k miles or so, yo will be spending money on the engine. I think Stingray Jim make a good point, yet I think it is an exception to the norm.

Scott

So, are the LT1 engines not as good as others?  Scott, when you say "overheat just a little" do you mean entering the red zone on the temperature gauge (if these have a red zone....I don't remember what the gauges looked like!)  The current owner did say he had a problem with overheating. They did some work on the engine but discovered the root cause was the coolant (orange stuff) clogging all the lines.  He says he hasn't had any issues since they flushed the system and used "regular" (green) coolant.  Of course, he's only owned it for a little over a year.  I get a good feeling from the owner.  I've walked away from some just because I got a bad vibe from the person selling the car.  He says he's firm at 10K.  He'll keep it if he can't sell it for that. 

By the way, I still haven't convinced Mike.  But, I do learn alot every time we talk about these various cars!   He gets back Thursday and we'll discuss it more then. 
kkfinch2008-10-14 16:39:58

[QUOTE=kkfinch] So, ...........  He says he's firm at 10K.  He'll keep it if he can't sell it for that. 

By the way, I still haven't convinced Mike.  But, I do learn alot every time we talk about these various cars!  .........................[/QUOTE]

Karen

Here are a couple of examples as to why I wouldn't buy the vette your looking at.

It is too high for the $$$. See this ad for a comparable vette for much less. $8900.00

Lower miles but gorgeous... A little more

Low mileage / low $$$ Collector

These are a few examles that are out there that I found in 10 minutes.

If you want to buy something find what you want in the price range and get all that you can.

All of the folks here have made good points. All of these cars can be a gamble. I bought a 93 like Stingrays and it is on its way to 200K miles. But I had to work on it and there was alot of frustration before it was turned around.
I paid $3500.00 for it and it is being driven locally daily.
Would I hop in it and drive it to the next gathering.... Nope.

If the stealership would have done the work on it that I did I would have spent at least $1000.00. But then I paid next to zero for it so it was worth a gamble.

Ask Kerry how he feels about working on the C4 - LT1 They certainly are no picinic!

If it were me I would spend a little more and get a car that hasn't had a need to be wrenched on yet. Is that a guarentee that you won't nope. But at least you won't have to pay to fix somebody else's mistakes. My bet would be that you won't have too.

The only way I would buy that car is if I knew the owner and I knew the dealership / mechanic that did the work. Otherwise me and my $$$ would keep right on searching.

I hope this makes some sense. I certainly am not trying to offend you. Like the others I just want to see you something that will make you for years to come!


Tuxblacray2008-10-14 17:44:56

Drove really REALLY well.  The overheating problem was supposedly that the original owner read "100K mile coolant" (orange) as meaning it actually lasted 100K miles - regardless of time.   Engine looked clean but the tailpipes were rather sooty/greasy.  I was concerned about the commonly problematic valve guides.   The '77 will likely need engine work soon for the same reason.