Good morning! It’s Friday, and today we’re going to do something just a little bit silly, inspired by my observations of cars on the road during my first week here in Maryland. We’re looking at two examples of almost the same car, but there’s a reason for it. Just bear with me for a minute.
I had a feeling that yesterday’s love-it-or-hate-it Civic was going to have more detractors than admirers. That’s fine – those of us who like it just won’t let you borrow it. So there. The purple Miata won the day handily. I’m still not sure it’s always the answer, but it’s not a bad choice at all.
But I’ve already done the scruffy Miata thing. I have no desire to do it again. If I ever went looking for another NA Miata, it would be a nice clean example, preferably an LE in black with a red interior. And although a lot of you panned the Civic as a “kid’s car,” I’m on the far side of 50, and I feel no need to care what other people think of what I drive. I want something I can find in a parking lot.
As a car guy, I can’t help noticing what vehicles are around me in traffic, or parked in the driveways I pass, and I’m sure most of you are the same. In my first week here on the eastern shore of Maryland, one car has jumped out at me, over and over again: the Chevy Corvette, particularly the late C3 and early C4 generations. I’ve seen half a dozen or more on the road just in the past week, and one guy near me has both a C3 and a C4 parked in his driveway.
But what I don’t see are very many Corvettes for sale around here. And that gave me an idea: What if one were to, say, buy nice-ish but cheap Corvettes out West, drive them across the country, and sell them at a profit to Vette-starved Marylanders? So I found two likely candidates, both C4s, one coupe with a 4+3 and one convertible with an automatic. Let’s see which one you think would be a bigger hit on the East Coast.
1985 Chevrolet Corvette – $5,000
Engine/drivetrain: 5.7 liter overhead valve V8, four-speed manual with overdrive, RWD
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Odometer reading: 163,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives great, driven almost daily
The early C4 is the car that pops into my head when someone says “Corvette.” I suppose it’s that thing where whatever is new and exciting during your formative years remains your favorite no matter how old you get. I know this isn’t the best Corvette – though it’s far from the worst – but it’s always going to be my favorite.
I’ve actually driven a car almost identical to this: white, with the Doug Nash 4+3 manual in it. It felt like a rocketship at the time, though I know my current Chrysler 300 could blow its fiberglass-clad doors clean off. Corvettes aren’t really about ultimate performance, though; it’s feeling fast that counts. You sit low in this car, and that hood seems impossibly long, and the squeaks and rattles and shakes over bumps make it feel almost alive, somehow, and a little bit dangerous.
Being a 1985 model, this Corvette benefits from an L98 multi-port fuel injected version of the standard 350 V8, putting out 230 horsepower. It runs well, the seller says, and they drive it “almost daily.” I guess that explains the odometer reading. High-mileage Corvettes aren’t common, which is a shame, because they’re meant to be driven. This one has a new starter, and just passed a smog inspection, which suggests that the engine is indeed healthy.
It looks clean and well cared-for, too. C4s often end up with trashed interiors, but this one looks nice inside. The seller says it could use a repaint, but that’s kind of the beauty of white cars; they look presentable even when the paint isn’t in great shape.
1988 Chevrolet Corvette convertible – $3,500
Engine/drivetrain: 5.7 liter overhead valve V8, four-speed automatic, RWD
Location: Las Vegas, NV
Odometer reading: 90,000 miles
Operational status: Runs and drives well
For the first couple of years, the C4 was only available as a coupe with a removable targa roof. It allowed the sunshine and fresh air in, but it was no substitute for a real convertible, which finally returned to the Corvette lineup in 1986 after eleven long years. The C4 makes for a handsome convertible with the top down, but you’ll have to take my word for it, because this seller only posted photos of it with the top up (who does that?).
This one has a TH700R4 overdrive automatic transmission instead of the 4+3 manual. I’ve driven an automatic C4 as well, and honestly, I could go either way on the transmission. The manual is fun, but the automatic feels more at home. But I feel the same way about Camaros and Firebirds, too. GM just does automatics I like, I guess. This car runs and drives well, and has “lots of new parts,” but that’s about all the information we get.
It looks like it’s in acceptable condition, if a little bit rougher than the coupe, particularly inside. I quite like the stripes on this one. I’m getting a model kit vibe from it, and that’s not a bad thing, though I never was any good at applying those water-slide decals. I always tore them.
I’m not as fond of the aftermarket wheels. I don’t like black wheels in general, and these look particularly cheap and tacky, though I know they were probably pretty expensive. Ah well, I suppose you can’t see them from the driver’s seat.
Now, I’m not saying that I’m going to fly back to California and buy one of these two to road-trip back here and sell. I’ve had my fill of cross-country drives for a while. I’m just saying someone could do so, if they were so inclined, and I bet either one of these cars would sell for close to double the purchase price around here. And if not, well, you’ve still got a Corvette to tool around in. Which one is your choice?
(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)
Am I the only one who think that the convertible roof seals would be toast?
Coupe all day for me.
The coupe is the easy pick here. I’m not a fan of most convertibles unless they’re designed as one from conception.
The automatic is unfortunate but, convertible. Wheels are easy to change. And it’s not like it’s hard to find parts for Corvettes.
Definitely the 85 Vette…it’s a stick, in better shape, and just looks better
“It runs well, the seller says, and they drive it “almost daily.” I guess that explains the odometer reading. High-mileage Corvettes aren’t common, which is a shame, because they’re meant to be driven.”
High-mileage?
For an ’85?
163,000 ÷ 39+ years old = a little over 4,000 miles a year.
Fuck Doug Nash LOL
didn’t that transmission suck?
the Basic 4 speed part is fine, the Electrically engaged OD portion is sometimes finicky. but not terribly difficult to sort. I would take a manual vette over even the pretty reliable 700R4 auto any day though.
At one point there was an issue with 4+3 parts being unobtanium. Hopefully resolved. Love the tilt clip.
Not a fan of either type of Corvette, but if forced to choose then I’ll take the ’85. We don’t get all that much convertible weather around here (it’s either too hot or too cold or too rainy), so that part’s not a draw. And manual always wins over automatic.
The manual is an objectively better car, but as a recent seller of a 6M Z51 ’89 C4 there are exactly two camps of C4 buyers. The first wants an absolutely pristine unit and will talk about C4s as if they were true exotics. Neither car meets the “niceness” levels required a so that’s not your target audience. The other is newly divorced midlife crisis man with caviar taste on a ramen budget. They want to invest nothing to make it better but they want to feel like the first group. That gives the vert the upper hand.
I, too, had a 6-speed manual ’90 Corvette and absolutely loved it. It’s the best bang for the buck I can think of, though I did regret that it was a convertible: there was no real trunk to speak of.
https://imgur.com/gallery/6-speed-convertible-90-corvette-is-radwood-approved-jsp9emv
We once had a family scheme to buy European cars in Pittsburgh where they were cheap and drive them to L.A. to sell. We spent a lot of time in St. Louis and Albuquerque waiting for parts. This might work with Chevys. Good luck.
I woud love to own that ’85.
That is all.
Definitely the ’85 coupe with the manual, that ’88 needs to go to the junkyard in the sky at this point. I had an ’88 TransAm with the L98 350 and 700r4 and I’m sorry the 700r4 neuters that engine’s already barely adequate power, and it’s a weak POS to boot, mine lost 3rd and 4th gear out of the blue with only 105K on the clock. And I know a couple other people who had 700r4s crap out with relatively low mileage.
I’ve always wondered if I would’ve kept that car longer if it was a stick (i know, it was never offered with the 5.7). Also unless you have a garage and love a ragtop who wants to deal with the extra maintenance and the even weaker creakier structure-which based on reviews and assuming it was like a slightly better version of my firebird it would be really bad even by the standards of the time.
It’s funny that the story I remember is that they didn’t sell the 350 with the manual because it couldn’t handle it. Damn, at least it would have been more fun. Friend of mine had a Formula 350 swapped to a manual. Don’t know which transmission as I think he bought it that way, but that was a great car. Nice blue color, too. If they were more my thing, I would have bought one years ago when they were dirt cheap and done the swap. I guess at this point, might as well go LS, though.
Probably true-I thought about trying to manual swap mine and everyone said the T5 transmission it came with was really weak. Otoh the mustang used the same transmission in the 302 fox bodies-they did have less torque though so who knows. F bodies tend to get abused pretty badly so it’s possible for a caring enthusiast the t5 is no problem. And yeah at this point the move is totally an LS, even a 5.3 truck LS would be a huge upgrade over the L98 and if you can get an LS1, LS2, etc with a T56 you have a geniunely fast car that has a cool unique look and surprisingly good handling, though 0 steering feel.
Mustangs were several hundred pounds lighter, so maybe that made enough difference with the transmission? Or if they had a shorter a rear end, that would put less internal stress on it. Or Ford just had lower standards for durability!
Super easy vote for the coupe: little interest in full convertibles (plus the coupe is a targa, which I do like), coupe is a manual, seats are better, and the higher mileage, good condition, and originality all point to a good driver that was cared for. I’ll take that over an extremely low mileage old car nearly every time.
As someone who LOVES Corvettes, these are both pretty sad examples. The 85 because it’s an 85. The 88 because of what has been done to it. It’s been neglected and those wheels are hideous. With a gun to my head I’ll go 85. At least it looks like it hasn’t lived in swamp despite being used “more”.
High mileage corvettes are *incredibly* common – a quick cL dig this morning shows over a dozen with 100,000 miles. Sure, a lotta old farts tool them around and polish them with cloth diapers but many go on to live successful lives with second (fifth) cheap bastard owners like me :).
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As a bald man convertibles are never the answer for me.
Also those wheels make it look like the car has been lifted.
They really are awful wheels aren’t they?
I’ll take the 85 coupe. I prefer manuals over the auto. It also looks better maintained. The 4+3 gets a lot of hate but it’s really a decent transmission. Takes some getting used to, though.
I’ll take the white Vette.
4+3 Corvette for me as well. It also looks like it’s in better condition. And I prefer coupes over convertibles.
Agree. They’re both going to leak, whether it’s from the T tops or vinyl roof, but new seals are much cheaper than a new top