LT4 Newbie Introduction

[mshouck]

Hey everyone,

I thought I'd introduce myself. My name is Mychael, I'm a 26 year old living in Houston, TX and have just started my career. I've been in love with Corvettes since I've been a little kid, and I think its finally time to start my search. I think I've settled on either an LT1 or LT4 Collector Edition.

My heart tells me LT4/six speed, but in my 26 years I've probably logged maybe an hour of drive time with a manual transmission, so its probably safe to say I've got some apprehensions about it. I'm basically joining this forum to learn as much I can.

I joined ZR1.net years ago when I was a kid because I saw a ZR-1 and wanted to learn about them so I recognize a lot of posters on this site. My current wheels is a 94' Chevrolet Silverado reg cab, stepside that has become an extension of my body. 268k miles to date.

 

[upinsmoke]

Welcome

Welcome to CAC from a fellow Texan. I hope you find the car of your dreams. This is a great site with a lot of good people and information on it. My vote is for the 6-speed, Welcome again

 

[XLR8]

Hi Mychael and welcome to the You've definitely come to the right place for all the info you need to search for the Corvette out there waiting for you.

The first place I'd suggest you start researching is our Tech Center. There's an encyclopedia's worth of info in that section alone:

Corvette Action Center | Tech Center

Another suggestion would be to post questions in and read up on the C4 section of the forums:

1984 - 1996 Corvettes

As for manual versus auto, a few things to consider...
the LT4 only comes with manual transmission, LT1 auto or manual
Will the Vette be your daily driver, because IF it is, do you travel in a lot of stop and go traffic... you may not want the manual if there's a tremendous amount of shifting in your daily commute.

There's also a handy checklist in the Tech Section for shoppers:

Corvette Action Center | Tech Center | Buying a Corvette

Hopefully this will give you a starting point for your journey to land yourself in a C4!

Good luck!
Jane Ann

 

[mshouck]

Thanks everyone! Yeah I'm definitely interested in 1996 MY cars so LT4 means six speed. The car will be my daily driver, and my commute is mostly inner city. I know about 6000 CE's exist, but what is the opinion about long term collectability of the LT1 cars? Is the drivetrain the biggest factor, or do options like suspension and seat color important as well? Roger's in Orlando told me that the right LT1 Vert could be as valuable as an LT4 coupe. Any thoughts?

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[LT4CE]

Thanks everyone! Yeah I'm definitely interested in 1996 MY cars so LT4 means six speed. The car will be my daily driver, and my commute is mostly inner city. I know about 6000 CE's exist, but what is the opinion about long term collectability of the LT1 cars? Is the drivetrain the biggest factor, or do options like suspension and seat color important as well? Roger's in Orlando told me that the right LT1 Vert could be as valuable as an LT4 coupe. Any thoughts?

Sent from my PG06100 using Tapatalk

I'm obviously not going to be 100% objective about this, but I don't see that an LT1 vert could be as valuable as a well maintained LT4. I think KBB values alone are several thousand higher for the LT4. Down the road, there should be something a about it (other than being a vert) to make it stand out from the crowd in terms of collectibility and value, if it's going to have an edge over other C4's.

And in terms of collectibility, the LT4 and CE combination should be about the best for the C4, short of the GS or ZR-1.

Of course, all this is just my $0.02 and is in no way supported by any data.

Regardless of which way you go (LT1 or LT4) I'd recommend the six speed. You'll get the hang of driving it pretty quickly. I hadn't driven a stick regularly for quite some time and was able to pick it up again pretty quickly. I think for a young guy like yourself, getting the hang of driving a stick should be no problem. There's probably a lot of posts here at CAC with pointers.

 

[mshouck]

Yeah, the 6 speed CE is definitely what I'm leaning towards. I like the idea of that now and a GS or ZR-1 later.

Mychael
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[mcich7781]

Easy Shifting Six Speed

As a first time owner of a 96 LT4 Coupe I was surprised how easy the six speed is to drive. To me it's intuitive helps the driver truly enjoy the mechanicals of the car. Don't fear the manual unless you are always in traffic or live in hilly city.

 

[jrose7004]

Welcome to the CAC!