Old Camaros and Firebirds?
 

How do they hold up? Insurance isnt much more than on Tbird....

Ive had a ton of them. Here's an 87 I bought the end of my senior year. Easy to work on, and most generally easy to find parts since there were so many of them.

Here's an 84 I had before the black one. I actually won "Best Car" in high school with this believe it or not. Check out the GT stickers on it. They were on it when I bought it and I never bothered to take them off. Some chick puked in the back seat and I couldnt get the smell out so I sold it 2 weeks later. I seen it a few years ago in the junkyard wrecked, full of mud and the doors and hood missing.

Here's a more recent 87 I had with 37,000 miles and Tuned Port Engine.

what do you mean by old? Maybe I misunderstood your question.

I've got a real nice late 80's Camaro- Pro/steet roller for sale, add your engine and trans and have a ball.....

Old....as in older than me, still young though ;)

Hotrod, dont want a big project.

Team Baja, any years to stay away from? TPI had how much hp?

Get a '93 - 97. The LT1 Rocks!!!! Better yet......... buy mine.http://mywebpages.comcast.net/fauser2/DSC00294.JPG
1996 Z-28
6-Speed
47000 miles
Leather
Bose
T-Tops
K&N
Flowmaster

Dont have that much $ Wish I did though :(

Am Selling my 93 Thunderbird LX with 157,xxx miles, NADA low is 1900, mid is 3000, am trying for 2500. Selling goped for 400. Will have maybe 3k.

I would stay away from those Crossfire engines they used in Camaros and Corvettes in the early eightys. I think that motor was from 82-84. Big time dog of an engine. I forget how much HP from the TPI. Mine was only a 305 but ran like a raped ape.

You can offset bore the Crossfire throttle bodies, bump up the fuel pressure, add high ratio rockers and they pepped up nicely.

So many folks hate them that they are a real steal. Plan on new intake tub gaskets on them (3M 4200 is almost a must on the top plenum plate), and the above mods and you'll run as well as a TPI at a much lower entry fee...

As fas as OLD Camaros, I thought you were talking '70 thru '72...

I forgot how young you are Hyper!!! When you said older I thought you meant 1972 and older good old american powerhouses. ;)

Here's the REAL Camaro
 

When men were men:

i got the best of both worlds

1971 Camaro with 1990 IROC drive train :cool: :cool: :cool:

im also doing a 71 TA with 90 Vette running gear. engine, trans and suspension. gotta love that fuel injection , only way to go. :cool: :cool:

When you said "old" I thought you meant mid to late 60's and early 70's vintage.
I don't consider 80's models old......yet.

A word of advice, stay away from those that have "T-tops". You'll regret it when they start to leak and make all kinds of noise as you drive. Any car that's of uni-body construction that has the top cut up will flex and twist like mad.


This is when Ford, Shelby, Hollman-Moody and others showed the europeans how to win races.

worlds fastest 1970 Camaro 6.82 @ 206 mph.

Can replace the seals. What about those frame strengtheners from Jegs?

I had a 1987 IROC-Z when I was 17. Practically worked to pay for the car and insurance. Parents had to give me gas and contraceptive money. :D That car really rocked. It was a 350 TPI. Back then it's only competition was really just the Vette. It was black with the IROC-Z in gold. Similar to the one below. Never had a problem with it even though I beat the $hit out of it.

Another

Late 80s with 305 TBI and 4L80E automatic. They run FOREVER.
Put over 250,000 miles on mine, still ran great when I sold it, still see it driving around town. The 305 is understressed, the 4L80 is actually used in 1 ton trucks. With hiway gears they get 22mpg, at 75mph, only 1900 rpm.
Parts are REALLY cheap and easy to replace. Junkyards are full of used body panels, cheap. Downside is the old AC system. R-12 freon is expensive.
My $0.02
Gary

If you promise to never drive it on a public road, you can swap out the R12 with Duracool (a butane mix). It's cheap and cools better than R12. It's illegal, though, to use it on public roads.

Something to do with explosion risk.

mcollinstn
Ever hear about the Hindenburg?
Gary

A pic of mine the day before new tires:

1987 5.7/700R4
Bought it with 86,000 miles.
Sold it with 120,000 miles, and still running stong.

Another cool car from this era is the 83-88 Monte Carlo SS. I had 3 of them. Here's the first 2.

Re: Here's the REAL Camaro
 

Nice Chuck!!! Big Mark Donohue fan. Friends with his son Dave.:D

Tommy, if I were you though... I would look into a Grand Am.
I have owned 4 or 5 of them, including an Olds Cutlass Calais; same car, and my sister had a Buick Somerset; same car.

They all ran very well, except the 89 with the Quad-4 motor. It warped the heads blew the fuel pump, and ended up junked. I sold every other one of them without a loss, including the 1997 Grand Am GT that I had bought new. My sister's Buick had a V6 and put nearly 200K miles on it, with 1 upper rebuild.

If you can find one with a V-6, 1988-1997 or so, or even a Tech-4 motor, you will be fine for several years. Stay away from the Quad-4; they are terrible. There are THOUSANDS of Grand Ams out there, and they are very convenient to find parts for. They are sporty, handle well with the GT package, and the 4 banger or V6 will save you some cash on insurance.

TeamBaja, now you went and done it. I will ALWAYS be partial to the Monte Carlos of the 80s. My first car was this 1983 Monte Carlo with a 305. I bought it when I was 15, and was working at an Auto Dealer. My father and I rebuilt that car, and he was mad at me when I got rid of it. (Practically gave it way in a REALLY stupid move). Now I kick myself EVERY DAY I see a pic of it for getting rid of it. Notice the very rare factory T-Tops. I had it painted and all the emblems and hood ornament shaved. We bumped the 305 up to a 327, added a Holley, and it REALLY ran. Here is a pic when I was in the Air Force, with the really cheap tires on it, that I could just barely afford:

look for a 87 or newer f-body they have better parts (roller cam, 10 bolt rear end, better 700r4) and the 5.7 was an option
I have had 3 of them all of them with Paxton superchargers they all ran good

I had an 88' IROC-Z.. that car was AWSOME! Did not owe me a thing when I traded it in on my dodge truck. That was in 98, and only had 89K miles on it.

Black with gold T/A wheels on it (the honeycomb stlye)
350 TPI 700R/4
NO bodywork on it...
Clean car... Dang, wish I still had it now..

I used to beat the CRAP out of that car, and it just ran and ran...

It looks nice! Great Color!

Yeah, I wish I had some of mine back. I loved the white 84 I had. It sounded great. Its loud with burnt out glasspacks and sounded mean. People with built cars always tried to race me, but a stock Monte Carlo SS wasnt too fast. I would tell them yes, but I only race for money and wager at least $100 or more. Luckily no one ever took me up on that!

I also liked the Choo Choo Conversion El Caminos! Those were sweet, but they are way out of my price range these days, even in rough condition I seen one bring $7000 at the Columbus Auto Auction!

BTW Hyperbaja,
Check with your insurance co. if that cost is an issue. American Family automatically doubled rates for the IROC version. That was even for years where the IROC used the same 305as the RS.
I went with an RS convertible.
Gary

I was lucky enough to drive on a dealer tag till I was about 19 or 20 and avoid paying for insurance. Dad wasnt too happy about me taking my cars to the dragstrip and racing with his dealer tag on the back. I thought it was cool!

Not getting an IROC, the state farm insurance is also 2x as much. For a non IROC TPI it is only 100 more/6mos than the t bird and it is a car i like a bit more.

Buddy of mine has a '68 RS with a 383 Stroker. Mean car (even though it is an auto). Another friend had a '69 Z/28 (a real one, but the 302 had been long gone) with an LT1 350 with a Chevy 2nd design offroad solid lift cam and a 4 speed. JEESH we had fun in that car. It burned to the ground when it caught fire on jack stands and had to be pushed out into the driveway.

Several friends also had fast T/A's and Formulas. SD455's, 455HO's, 400's with Ram Air heads. They were fun too.

As far as butane being used as an AC refrigerant, I'm not sure if it's any more dangerous than 134a. 134a is marked as nonflammable, but will feed an existing fire. It also transforms straight to a toxic acid vapor when in the presence of a fire. R12 was far "safer" to motorists than 134a.

Hindenburg disaster would have been much less of a disaster had it been filled with helium, but the intense heat from the burning of the aluminum-coated canvas fabric it (and the gas bags) was covered with was the reason so many people were incinerated. Had it been hydrogen in nonflammable bags, it would have just made a huge fireball and dropped the passenger compartment onto the ground.

Dang, why am I defending the Hindenburg? I have no vested interest to promote butane as a refrigerant. I just have several older R12 vehicles in my collection and I have found it to be simple, cheap, and effective.

I don't know where I get off talking like a Hindenburg expert. I've only seen the same tv documentary that all of you have seen...
Sorry for the rant.

Tommy,

I had a Buick Grand National when I was 16. It was awesome. They are hard to find, but you could step into one easily for your price.
It came with a factory Supercharged V6, and hauled ass. You will smoke lots of Camaro's and TA's.

"Rockets to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds and squirts through the quarter-mile in 13.5 seconds at 102 mph"

Here is the engine. It was an extremely popular car and they were limited.

Click here for all you want to know about them.

mcollinstn
No more Discovery Channel for you.
Gary

Cig 28/38...
How lucky were you to have a GN at 16? I would have wiped myself out at that age with that car.

The pics and link you posted are of the GNX though. The GNX was one step past the GN, faster/quicker than the GN, as it has an Intercooler for the Turbo. Also, much more rare and expensive than the GN. My boss at the dealer had a GNX, and it was the cat's ass. He did not even let his wife drive it, much less any of us. He also had a 1990 454SS pickup. That thing was a nice ride too.

If you had an actual GNX, you gave up a very rare car worth big bucks now! There were only 547 produced! Check out the Grand Nationals on EBAY. Usually there is a GNX or 2 on there. Ive seen them bring close to $40,000!


Here is a current one.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6137

Over $30,000 and reserve not met! :eek:

Re: Re: Here's the REAL Camaro
 

Then we have a mutual friend. Go here , and then you MUST go to Watkins Glen on September 5-7 for the MD tribute. Dianne and I are going up on Labor Day Weekend and taking the BatBoat with us for a week of boating and winery visits on the Finger Lakes. Then it's on the the Glen and (maybe) a ride in a 917/30. (Never been in anything with 21" wide rear tires before....) I can't believe that those cars are now 30 years old.