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85 Z51 4+3 Opinions......Please

3JsVette

Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2004
Messages
22
Location
NYC
I have had a WTB thread for a while and have not found anything as of yet but I came across a '85 Z51 4+3 with less than 85K and a clean Car Fax (not that that means much). The car has one repaint that is nice driver quaility and very presentable but not concours. The interior is in good condition with minor wear on the leather seats but no cracks and the carpet is in good condition with no abnormal wear or holes. The glass is good. The weatherstrips while not perfect do not need replacing. The front brakes have been upgraded to daul piston calipers and 13" slotted rotors. The wheels/tires have been replace with reproduction ZR1 17x9.5s and older but like new 275/40 tires. The exhaust consists of Hooker headers and a B&B S/S cat back exhaust. I pulled the oil cap and stuck my finger inside the valve cover and no sludge. The idle is stabile. I dove the car for 20 plus minutes through local and country roads. The engine felt strong. The brakes stopped straight and quick. The car handled very well and rides quite hard over bumps as you would expect from an early Z51 car. It was by no means a rattle trap. The trans shifted smooth and the overdrive works. The clutch grabs as it should and shows no signs of slipping. The headlights rotate and light as do the signals and the rest of the lights. The 2 major negatives are the A/C does not work (which the owner disclosed up front but said he never tried to fix it as he's a windows down person) and the throttle body binds a bit (more than driveable but noticable). 2 other livable items were the L/S seat belt retractor needs help to retract and the L/S P/window is slow. Overall I would say it's an above average nice driver quality car (3+) an I tend to be picky.
I know it's hard enough to put a price on these cars even with pictures but based on my description being acurate what would you think a fair price for both buyer and seller to be?
Thanks for any and all opinions.
 
You are aware that the '85 ECM is a one year only? I believe there are also other one-year items in the engine accessories, only of import if you need them. 85k is about the time a lot of components need replacing; suspension, etc.

I am picky, too, especially with a car that has performance modifications. I won't guess on pricing; sorry. :w
 
WhalePirot - Thanks for the reply.
Yes I'm aware of the unique ECM. The prices of these cars are all over the place. There are lots new owners claiming they bought "nice" cars for less than 6K. I'm just not seeing it. Everything I've looked at that's in the 5K range has major needs and/or is way over 100K miles. Again I'm not looking for "show ready" but I am looking for "driver ready". I'm also not a "stock" guy and the mods this car has are bolt on and name brands besides being things I wanted to do as well.
Maybe this is the one...........thanks again.
 
Cars

I guess I'd say I'm one of those guys that found a nice car for under $6000. You need to think outside-the-box to find things at times. If you see one on the street that looks possible, leave the owner a note on the windshield. Doesn't cost anything and more times than not they may not be interested, but nothing ventured nothing gained.
In my case my insurance agent also has a dealers license so I started checking out the car auctions. I found a good candidate at the N.M. car auction and had him bid on it for me. I ended up with a 86 L98 Convertible with a Tremec 5 speed for under $6000 which I flew down and picked up, but I could have had shipped home to Mn. It's not perfect, I have an interior light relay to replace, had to replace the clutch master and slave along with normal things expected on a 27 yr old car. Dealers may auction off a car that hasn't sold off their lot, needs repairs or doesn't "fit" their dealership image (which is what happened in my case, 86 Vettes don't go well with Lambo's, Ferrari's and Porsche's). Thing is, it had 76K on it when I picked it up, it drives and nothing is a show stopper for me plus the former owner had done alot of upgrades to the tranny, brakes etc already. If I wanted something perfect I would have spent at least twice that amount and may or may not have had less issues. Big thing to remember though with auctions, typically when you buy it, you've bought it - good, bad or otherwise it's yours so do your due dilligence ahead of time.
If you watch car ads etc, it will be higher. One other thing, sometimes people think about selling before winter so they don't have to store a toy over winter. Now is a good time to watch. Also consider a WTB ad, you might happen to luck into something. Also be aware things like divorces can force a car onto the market that otherwise might not.

Just some thoughts.
 
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hcbph Thanks for the reply. You make a lot of good points and offer some sound advice. I have had a WTB thread on this forum for months as well as that other Corvette forum. I have also followed Craig's List and the on line auctions as well as the Corvettes for Sale websites. You would be surprised how narrow the search gets when you want Z51/standard transmission with less than 100K. I know there are lots of fish in this sea but not too many Z51s in this area. I really don't want to start changing springs. At almost 30 years old just about all thses cars will need something and I understand and accept that.
Thanks again!
 
Just a thought

Some dealers (usually smaller ones) may buy a car for you at a car auction (for a fee), including nation wide. There are several C4 Vettes listed for auctions today and tomorrow. No, typically they won't list all the options, usually have pictures and a basic description of the car and visible defects. Condition, mileage, etc can vary all over the place but the auction website typically list the average historical price gotten for comparables.
96 in NY with LT4 and 41K miles, averaged $8900
95 in Mn with 50K miles, averaged $9000
94 in Mn with 60K miles, averaged $6400
91 in NC with 62K miles averaged $5500
89 in Omaha with 84K, average $5100
91 in Baltimore with 161K average $1500
There's around 15 manual shift Vettes (being you listed wanting a stick shift, there are alot more automatics) around the country going on the auction block this week on just the one auction site, including some ZR1's and a Calloway. Who knows what they'll go for, but it's a starting point.

All those are manual shift cars, coupes. I have no idea if they have the suspension you want or not.

I've bought a Vette and a Van this year via car auctions. I think I did OK. Both needed some things but I got a better vehicle at a better price than I could have done elsewhere. Some dealers will buy cars for a person, typically adding a fee on top of the car, paperwork (taxes, title, etc) and it's yours where bought (and your responsibilty to arrange to ship it as there are companies that will do that or drive or trailer it home) and you need to pay the dealer at the time of purchase typically. I've done it successfully a few times now and can't complain. I did my research up front and was ready to accept what I got.
The thing is, if you buy it, you've bought it. You can't go have a 'do again' if you don't like it or have buyers remorse.
One other thing I didn't know till this year. My agent arrange for a 'transit warranty' policy while driving it home. If anything had broken enroute, it would have covered it minus a deductable. Cost me about $150 but was worth it with a 1300 mile drive looking me in the eye. Didn't use it but had it just-in-case.

That's my outside-the-typical-box thoughts. Hope it helps.

By the way, this is what I got for under $6000 plus fees and getting it home

86 Convertible, L98 engine, 5 speed Tremec, upgraded suspension and brakes

Paul
 
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Paul
Looks like you got yourself a nice car at a very good price. Outside the box for sure. :thumb
 

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