C4 Update (UPDATE(UPDATE))

"JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7" (jayzayeighty) 05/18/2014 at 10:35 • Filed to: None

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I bought the car! (Crappy SR20 below, cloth included.)

Long story short I lost the seller's number because my phone was baked in the sun for over an hour as we chatted and went for test drives. It was an awesome beast of 80s Americanness and drove really nicely. Mild cam job, rebuilt Doug Nash 4+3, new exhaust, new seats. So despite the fact that I used my dad's phone to get in touch with him again, he reprogrammed the phone to get a new one and the number was lost. Last night, I drove down to his house and put a note under one of the windshield wipers with my info. I can now only hope he gets back to me.

UPDATE: just got a call from the guy, deal's going down today

Brian Silvestro > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 09:54

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Xentron Holy Reaper of Worlds > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 10:04

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C4 Update (Update?)

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Brian Silvestro 05/17/2014 at 10:04

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I know! And of happened as I wrote this post on my phone.

BeaterGT > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 10:08

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It's meant to be!!

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Xentron Holy Reaper of Worlds 05/17/2014 at 10:15

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Haha yes. Prepare fore an Update (Update(Update))

crowmolly > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 10:21

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Congrats man!

Be sure to get any paperwork and such from the guy, like a cam card, receipts, etc!

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > crowmolly 05/17/2014 at 10:51

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Thanks! I definitely will. I'm taking a mechanic friend and I have the Carfax, but it drove nicely and was clean underneath and under the hood.

crowmolly > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 10:56

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Yeah, the reason I say that is because the previous owner might move, change phones, etc so you lose contact and if you want to change heads, intakes, etc you will want to know what's in there. As an example, if I had known there was a good aftermarket cam in my last smallblock I wouldn't have torn it down thinking it was stock-ish. I knew it was aftermarket but did not know lift, duration, etc. and the guy said it was pretty small. It ended up being a Comp 292h. Not huge but not small, and the engine was out of tune so you couldn't go by sound.

JCAlan > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 11:29

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4+3 is the strangest thing. You're in a manual, you stomp on the gas without changing gears, and the thing shifts into passing gear. WTH just happened.

Nighthawkwill7, Hoon Depot Manager > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 11:39

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Frank Grimes > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 13:26

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how many hp? also do you have smog checks?

Jayhawk Jake > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 14:01

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So jelly....I want one of these bad

Axial > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 14:35

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Welcome to the crazy side of the Corvette club!

Also, haters gonna hate on the 4+3, but it's tons of fun and still adds value to the car.

Axial > JCAlan 05/17/2014 at 14:37

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Just turn the OD off when you think you'll be moving around. OD is for cruising. Letting it do its own thing is actually harmful to it anyway.

Frank Grimes > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 15:53

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you should become an accountant and change your name to don

http://regularshow.wikia.com/wiki/Don_(char…

TheD0k_2many toys 2little time > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 17:07

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First order of business

jkm7680 > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/17/2014 at 17:24

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Awesome! It looks great.

Brian Silvestro > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 10:40

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DAT CLOTH THOUGH

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Brian Silvestro 05/18/2014 at 10:41

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Really makes the car, right? I think I'm going to do a bolt on cloth mod to the (whatever you call the area that should be a trunk but isn't)

Brian Silvestro > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 10:43

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I mean why wouldn't you? It completes the design.

signintoburnerlol > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 10:54

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What does SR20 mean?

Agrajag > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 11:20

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Most excellent.

Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 11:27

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Awesome! I prefer these much over C3's. Glorious 80's styling.

whoarder is tellurium > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 11:28

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Oh yes, that C4 goodness.

My first suggestion:

PS9 > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 11:47

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get ready for the 'her dorp the pussshh rodz brah' from your import friends.

McMike > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 12:05

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"freshly washed!"

RotaryLover > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 18:44

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One day in my life, I'll get one!

Jayhawk Jake > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/18/2014 at 21:15

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Niiiiice.

I really like the C4, it loos fantastic.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/19/2014 at 12:00

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Aww yiss :) I do like new oppo car purchases.

I also have a bit of a soft-spot for the C4 'vette. Perhaps, being from the UK, I've been distant from a lot of the stigma that has been attached to C3 and C4 Corvettes. Personally, I think they're really cool. There's a lot of cool tech that went into the chassis construction of the C4 as well. Things like honeycomb-filled chassis members for added strength.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires 05/20/2014 at 09:39

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Yeah, there's definitely some general negativity surrounding the C3s and C4s, but the C4s are solid performers. They are well engineered, and while build quality is not ideal, the sound and incredibly typical 80s touches make up for it.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > RotaryLover 05/20/2014 at 09:41

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You should! They will be cheap for a while, although your NC is awfully nice compared to one of these rattling, gas-guzzling vettes.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > McMike 05/20/2014 at 09:43

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Exactly! Twice, because I couldn't get the door to close during the first try...

RotaryLover > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 09:43

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Not as much as you think...Soon I'll do a review and explain why.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > PS9 05/20/2014 at 09:44

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Those people with their overhead cams, trying to make power over 4k RPM...

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > whoarder is tellurium 05/20/2014 at 09:46

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I would definitely be considering a nice pair of seats if the ones in the car weren't new leather ones. I'll ride them out until I get some money together—after that, those Corbeaus are looking nice.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > RotaryLover 05/20/2014 at 09:47

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Ah I'll be sure to read it.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Yowen - not necessarily not spaghetti and meatballs 05/20/2014 at 09:48

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Thanks, the 80s styling really ties the 80s interior and 80s engine together!

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > signintoburnerlol 05/20/2014 at 09:49

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SR20 just means a photo. I didn't have any good pictures of the car.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Jayhawk Jake 05/20/2014 at 09:54

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Thanks man! I need to deal with a few scratches and chips and check out a couple Viper-esque panel gaps, but this one's in pretty good shape overall.

Jayhawk Jake > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 10:26

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You'll have to keep us posted on how reliable it is. What year is it and how many miles does it have?

I'd like to get a Corvette at some point, but I'm leaning early C5 because I've heard the LS1 is more reliable.

RotaryLover > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 10:35

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I'm surprised that you didn't buy a Supra lol. Why the Corvette tho?

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Jayhawk Jake 05/20/2014 at 11:25

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It's an '85 with 133k. This has the L98, one of the three engines put in the C4 and the most reliable. While it's down on power due to a dearth of torque over 4k RPM, it's easily remedied by an aftermarket/LT1 intake, hotter cams, headers, and an aftermarket exhaust. The LT1 is also a pretty reliable engine but is plagued by opti-spark issues. The L83 was '84 only, and was a really weak powerplant with its terrible fuel injection. Up to (I think) 1988, the manual option on corvettes was the Doug Nash 4+3. It's a neat transmission with auto overdrive on the top three gears, but it's unreliable. The one in the car I bought is rebuilt, but it's best to go with a later car with a ZF 6 speed. Still, neither Optispark or the 4+3 are as bad as people think they are. The LS1 is a fantastic engine, but by all accounts the C5 feels worlds apart from an early C4, with one being a modern classic car and the other being pretty modern across the board. Keep in mind, though, that I couldn't have a C5 for even twice what I paid for the C4. Either way, you'll end up with a reliable, fun car.

Jayhawk Jake > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 11:37

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Early C5's are starting to come down to $15k or so. As someone with no mechanical experience on cars whatsoever, I'm a little intimidated by the C4 even though they are much cheaper than the C5. I could still go either way though, but I'd definitely want the later C4's with the ZF 6 speed.

BiTurbo228 - Dr Frankenstein of Spitfires > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 11:41

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I do love incredibly 80s touches. My XJ40 has the brilliant if finicky LED computer display for various diagnostic things, and I definitely want another of the same to replace it :)

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > RotaryLover 05/20/2014 at 21:34

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Haha if it weren't a question of $5,000 vs $35,000, I'd be sitting behind the wheel a twin turbo Toyota as we speak! Even a kinda crappy N/A is 2.5 times the cost of the corvette. I saw it sitting on CL, had to see it. Once I drove it, I was hooked.

RotaryLover > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 21:41

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5k ?????? They still go 10k here :( and for 10k you can get a 4th gen JDM Supra in NA form here.

JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 > Jayhawk Jake 05/20/2014 at 21:48

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C5s do present a pretty good value. However, I got this pretty nice example for $5,000. For $10,000, you can have a really, really nice 6 speed LT1 or L89 C4 (although I must say I prefer the pre-facelift styling for sure). The L89 is known to do over 250,000 miles, and rarely have problems. The reliability really isn't a problem, despite the age of these cars. You just get so much character for whatever slight performance and dependability sacrifices you make with a C4. Intake, cam, and exhaust, and the performance is comparable to a C5. Anyways, that's my take on the matter—as someone who used to like the C5 so much more than the C4, I was definitely pleasantly surprised.

Jayhawk Jake > JayZAyEighty thinks C4+3=C7 05/20/2014 at 22:49

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I'm still keeping my options open of course. It'll probably come down to driving both and deciding if the C5 is really worth the extra money.