What now?

[November Soul]

Here's the deal, currently I have an 86, but I'm itching to upgrade to something newer.

I have a budget of about $20K, plus maybe another $5K or so for trade-in of my 86.

I've been looking at early C5s, but I like the low-end torque of the L98 C4.

I'm after something that's a bit more comfortable than what I already have, and faster too. It needs to launch just as good though - as that pinned in the seat feel is the most important part Any ideas on what I should/could get for that kind of money??

Cheers!

 

[Mad-Mic]

will this be a daily driver?

 

[RedRagTop]

If I were to upgrade I think I would grab a 96 330HP rag. Had a bud up here sell his account in a stock market jam before I could talk to him, he let it go for $22K Canadian.
Polo green over tan leather
Ouch.

 

[hawaii-5-lo]

hey there,
i hab an 89 for 3 years and raced the heck out of that car,great car,i love my 99 thou,dont forget the LS1 actually has more torque than an L98.there is a problem however,on a bad track(LIKE OURS)you have to take off on idle or there will be to much tire spin.when i race Da Hawaiian Punch(L98) he usually pulls a car lenght right off the line,because i have to baby the gas until 2nd gear then i will pass him,if the track was in good shape, i could bring the rpms to1200 or so and blast of the line,i get better traction on the street.on the highway the c5 is tuff because no more traction problems and mines an automatic.try to get a 99 if possible,lots of little changes.later,Todd.

 

[c4cruiser]

If you like the looks and the feel of the C4 then the best bang for the money you have available is a ZR-1. While most of the horsepower is on the higher end of the RPM scale, the torque band is flat - lots of it and stays there!

Some folks say the 90 model is the one to have. The 375HP rating is probably conservative and some of the 90 motors put out more HP than the 405HP as was advertised in the later models.

I got to drive a 90 on an extended trip and it's absolutely amazing how quick you can go from say 60 to over 100 and not really realize it.

There are a lot of ZR-1's out there now and the prices have dropped over the last year. An excellent 90 or 91 should be in the $20-$22K range. The LT5 motor is dang near bulletproof and if you follow the maintenance schedule, you should see over 200K on the motor before you have to think about overhaul.

At a seminar in Monterey last August, Doug Rippie suggested that the best deal is to find a 90 or 91 that has been abused and try to get it as cheap as possible. Ship it off to DRM for one of his LT5 rebuild/upgrade package where DRM upgrades the motor with the later GM LT5 components and blueprints everything. For about $9K for the DRM500 package, you get 450HP and 415 ft/lb of torque. Or spring for the $27K package to get 383CID and 550-600HP and 500 ft/lbs!

 

[November Soul]

I forgot to mention

This is will be my daily driver. My commute is about 15 miles each way with about 30% town driving and the rest highway.

so the most important things are launch, and handling in the twisties rather than top speed.


Keep the comments coming - thanks guys.

 

[vetteguy]

96 LT4.