LT4 Lt4 Automatic

[great dane]

Does anyone out there know about the corvette plant in 1996 making LT4 AUTOMATICS in collectors edition? I keep reading about they did not make a LT4 AUTO.Well i have one

 

[Tuna]

LT4 and auto - not supposed to have happened from the factory.

However, there are those that convert the LT1 to LT4 specs.

How long have you had your car?
What does the RPO list show?

 

[Vettelt193]

There were factory pilot cars/test cars made LT4 auto, but no production cars. If this car is real, it is worth some $$$. I heard none of the pilot automatics were sold.

great dane, can you post the VIN number?

 

[B17Crew]

I’ve seen it twice...

great dane,

Somewhere at home, I have a brief article on the “one and only” LT4 auto that was sold. I’m at work so I’m going from memory.

There was a paragraph that had said the car was ordered by someone high up in Bowling Green, I think it may have been an engineer at the plant. This would have to mean there is documentation somewhere within the halls of Bowling Green.

I have seen this car twice, both times at shows in Ohio. The first time was at a dealer show in Marysville, Ohio, at Roby Chevrolet.

The second time was at the Corvette show put on by Bob McDorman Chevrolet in Canal Winchester, Ohio. McDormans’ puts on a Corvette show every year, this is where I actually got to speak to the woman who had brought it. She was very nice -- I don’t think the husband and wife owners are trying to pull anything. They seemed to be on the up and up. They had an Ohio license plate that read LT4 AUTO.

B17Crew

 

[great dane]

LT4 AUTO.

Well it looks like B17 CREW was right on the money.I now own the one and only LT4 AUTO.You should have been there when i got it.The husband and wife owners went to byers chev. to trade the lt4 auto. in on a brand new vet on the showroom floor.Byers which is in dubin, ohio took the vet in on trade and put it on the showroom floor.The salesmen told me when he took the plates off it read LT4 AUTO.He also told me that they had a hard time priceing it because lt4 auto was not in the book.So the lt4 auto sat on the showroom floor for weeks until i got there.I went to the dealer to buy a new trailblazer for my grilfreind,when i saw the vet on the showroom floor.The salesmen told me about the vet like B17 CREW did,so my grilfreind bought me the vet right off the showroom floor this vet is clean head to toe.You 6 speed owners should drive this LT4 AUTO.Thanks for the informationB17CREW.

 

[Vettelt193]

From what I understand, that car is not a factory LT4 auto. The owners swapped out the LT1 for an LT4. The VIN will tell us for sure though. From what I remember about this car is every article etc. about it is carefully worded to make it sound like it is a factory LT4 car without saying it came from the factory with the LT4.

 

[jplay]

i saw "the only auto lt4" at a car show in missouri, the older man who owned it drove in from ohio, he said the original owner was a bowling green employee. the trans was not a stock one because of the torque produced, and the computer had been reprogramed at the factory for more power. he had a big sign in front of the car and it said 400 or over horsepower, i think.

 

[Vettelt193]

I saw the car in Florida... this guy must have driven that car all over the country just to go to Corvette shows.

I did a search through the forums here, and found a few posts about the car. The one person that seems to be most in the know about LT4's and Grand Sports in general has a web site (hasmarks.com) and he explained this car is not an original LT4/Auto car. The title of the thread is GS mystery vette revealed.

 

[B17Crew]

You are welcome great dane, congratulations on your purchase.

Wow, this car HAS seen a lot of Corvette show duty. One thing for sure is that this car is generating a lot in interest.

Vettelt193, thanks for the thread reference, maybe great dane can contact the Corvette Museum and have a build sheet ordered. It may shed some light on the car, or it may not. No matter what the cars origins are, each time I saw it, I could see that it was a well cared for specimen, it was owned by Corvette enthusiasts so it should provide years of pleasure for great dane.

From what I understood, the LT4 was not offered in auto form because of emissions issues and GM did not want to pay to have a one year only option emissions certified.

Anybody out there know who the original owner is or who the engineer is that had the car made?

great dane, are you able to contact the previous owners and acquire any paperwork or documentation?

B17Crew

 

[FX GS]

WHOA!!!! Great Dane, you said your GIRLFRIEND BOUGHT you the car. If she has a sister, please e-mail me and set up a date.
Thanks in advance.

 

[Johnbtcb]

There were factory pilot cars/test cars made LT4 auto, but no production cars. If this car is real, it is worth some $$$. I heard none of the pilot automatics were sold.

great dane, can you post the VIN number?

There were NO 96 LT4 Automatics, test cars or otherwise. The LT4 was designed from the beginning to be a 6spd.

I have seen the CE here in Columbus. The VIN says it's an LT1 as does the emission system. This car left the factory as a LT1/auto.

I do believe someone in BG had this car built as a LT4/auto, but it wasn't in the factory. It was built in someone's garage as any of us could do.

 

[B17Crew]

Johnbtcb,

Thank you for the VIN info, hopefully I’ll get to see this car at a show just one more time. I was not aware that this car was putting out over 400 hp!

B17Crew

 

[Johnbtcb]

Johnbtcb,

Thank you for the VIN info, hopefully I’ll get to see this car at a show just one more time. I was not aware that this car was putting out over 400 hp!

B17Crew

Hi B17, I hadn't heard that one either.

This IS a sweet car that has been lovingly cared for. It's just not a factory oddity as some would have you believe.

 

[B17Crew]

i saw "the only auto lt4" at a car show in missouri, the older man who owned it drove in from ohio, he said the original owner was a bowling green employee. the trans was not a stock one because of the torque produced, and the computer had been reprogramed at the factory for more power. he had a big sign in front of the car and it said 400 or over horsepower, i think.

Johnbtcb,

the above quote mentioned that hp was @ 400 for this car, I'm going to keep an eye out for it at Corvette shows, I'd like to find out what all has been done to get it to the 400 hp mark.

B17Crew

 

[Hutch]

Factory or not, who cares?

GreatDane -- congrats on your purchase (or rather, that of your girlfiend). I've followed the history of this car since near the beginning and its great to see it in the hands of an enthusiast again.

It is not a "factory production" car. That much is certain. However, its equally certain that it is very unique and from what I could tell when I first looked it over a few years ago, very well done. The BG employee(s) who performed the swap off-site made good use of their "inside" knowledge.

Transplanting an LT4 into an original LT1 auto really shouldn't be that big of a deal except for PCM issues. But with enough smarts, patience, and LT1 Edit, that can be cured too. Putting an auto trans into an original LT4 car would be a whole 'nuther level of difficulty, though. :crazy

Bottom line is... who cares if it's "original" or not? As long as no one tries to pass it off as such, its still a very cool and unique custom Corvette. Enjoy it! :cool

And while I appreciate the offer of a test drive, I think I'll stick with my trusty ZF 6 speed cars.

 

[Gorgon]

Re: Factory or not, who cares?

And while I appreciate the offer of a test drive, I think I'll stick with my trusty ZF 6 speed cars.

Well said. LT4 or not, I'll keep the ZF.

Leon

 

[vette ed]

saw the car in col, Oh...jim & kathy are great people

 

[kenwa]

We may be seeing lots of LT4 automatics. GMPP now sells the complete LT1 to LT4 conversion kit:

http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?part=NAL-GMP3287-2

 

[Hutch]

We may be seeing lots of LT4 automatics. GMPP now sells the complete LT1 to LT4 conversion kit:

http://store.summitracing.com/partdetail.asp?part=NAL-GMP3287-2

Cool, but there's more to a factory LT4 than a top end kit. Click here for the differences between an LT1 vs LT4

And 425+ HP with only the addition of a GM Hot Cam is a bit optimistic, methinks.

 

[AutoLT4]

Well, I did not think I was that old, but as someone put it an older man drove it to Missouri for a show. All of you are right, I was the owner of the car. I live in Ohio and did drive it to Florida for an Ecklers show and another at the Cape. Did not really drive the car except to shows in the area and it as been to Mid America Funfest a couple of times so a lot of Corvette people have seen it. It was in a couple of magazines over the years and has won its share of awards.

I purchased the car from an engineer at the factory who with some help from others there built it. It did not come down the line as an LT4 with an automatic.

It is all stock including transmission. However it does have a 3000 RPM torque convertor that is not stock. The stock one would not handle the power to the stock transmission.

As someone else put it, it does generate a lot of interest. I ran it a few times at Bowling Green, Beach Bend and beat LT4 6 speed and 3 C5's so it does run.

Great Dane has contacted me and will be getting with me soon as I have other items he might be interested in.

JP