I Bought a Corvette Without Really Trying
Good things rarely fall in your lap—or, at least historically, not into mine. More great deals on project cars and motorcycles have fallen through my fingers than I can count. So imagine my confusion when I put in zero effort and the perfect project still ended up in my driveway.
I’ve spent a solid two years working on a variety of Honda XRs and my Chevrolet Corvair. There were a couple small detours to assist some friends, but the vast majority of my projects as of late have been pretty simple air-cooled engines and their associated systems. Somewhere along the way, I began to think about bringing a waterpumper into the garage. I’ve also been wanting a “modern” car that I could use for activities for which the Corvair is just simply not suited without significant modifications and compromises. I began a passive search for a solution that would not break the bank.
One option that rose to the top of the pile was a fourth-generation (C4, or 1984–96) Corvette. The C4 has been the butt of the joke as far back as I can remember. These Corvettes aren’t particularly sexy, but 1980s cars are a sweet spot of sorts: they boasted enough technology to allow dramatic increases in capability and comfort but were not yet touched by the many complicated systems found on today’s cars. It was a transitionary time. Many components of the C4’s chassis were computer-designed, but the car itself carried no computers. A C4 has all the benefits of modernity without its complications, making it especially appealing if your plan is to modify the car in a way that would make any factory computer panic.
Which is, of course, my plan. Leaving well enough alone has never been my strong suit, and to be honest, I’m tired of not owning a car that is capable of a burnout. Not that I really need that in my life, but I’ve learned from my KTM 950 Adventure that a little excess seems to be the perfect amount. I would have loved a first-generation Dodge Viper, but I missed the bottom of the market on those and have since watched their prices sail away, far out of my reach.
A smart man would buy the best C4, also known as the generation that followed it in ’97, the C5. Even a base C5 would be killer for anything I want and would ask very little in return. Much like Vipers, though, the right C5 has gotten tough to find, and the prices are swinging up. So I stuck with the C4, partly on the encouragement of fellow editors Sajeev Mehta and Andrew Newton, both who have hands-on experience with both early and late fourth-gen Corvettes. On a Monday, during our annual team gathering a few weeks ago, they stood over my shoulder as I scrolled through for-sale listings and outlined my dumb idea to snag a cheap C4 and turn it into the perfect medium-horsepower toy and grand tourer.
That’s when the ad appeared: A sleek black coupe, framed nicely in a front 3/4 shot. The price set the hook: $2000. The car looked as though it was cared for, but it had certainly been used. Dirt sat in splotches on the black paint, where it had collected in small puddles of morning dew after being blown around by the summer breeze. The exhaust hung slightly askew, in partially out-of-focus photos. The catch: The owner had put in a new battery but the car was not powering up at all. It was a near paperweight of a car, and it was just 2.5 hours from my home in Traverse City.
The project was right, the price was right. The timing was decidedly not right. Even in my afternoon-cold-brew-induced excitement, the emergency safety switch in the back of my brain tripped. I had no space in my garage already. Between the arrival of winter in just a few months, and the promise I had made to my lovely wife to clear a space for her to park inside for the season, I was in a literal corner. Sajeev assured me it really was the right car for my wants and needs, but I held fast: I needed to sleep on the idea before I even sent a message. There was no need to be pushy on something I didn’t need. Maybe someone else needed this deal more than I did.
Tuesday, on the four-hour drive back home from our editorial offices in Ann Arbor, I revisited the idea. I’d be an idiot, I decided, to not try to grab it. The car would certainly be sold before I could mosey down to meet the seller, so why think about what would happen if I did get it? As far as the parking situation went, if any of my vehicles would be exiled from the garage during the winter, it would be the one that had the least material to rust. Corvair: steel. Model A: steel. Corvette: fiberglass. The choice was clear.
The next day, freshly rested, I sat on the swing in the backyard with my wife.
“Are we doing anything this weekend?” I lightly prodded.
“We should go kayaking Saturday. The weather is supposed to be really nice.”
“Yeah, let’s do that. What about Sunday?”
We’ve been together long enough that she probably already knew what was coming. She played along anyway.
“Nothing that I know of. Why?”
“I think I’m going to buy a Corvette.”
“Hmmm … Okay.”
There’s a reason I married her.
Still sitting there on the swing, I typed up a quick message to Ron, the seller of the Corvette. Knowing the chaos of messages Ron was likely getting, I kept the message clear and direct: I know what I’m buying, I have a trailer and cash, and I can be there Sunday, late morning or early afternoon. It was the laziest I think I’ve ever been when trying to buy a vehicle that was likely to have plenty of interested buyers. I clicked send on a Wednesday. The car was surely going to sell by Sunday.
Ron’s response was delayed. As expected, he was inundated with messages and interest. He promised to let me know if the Corvette was still available come Sunday. Fair enough. I forgot about the whole thing until Friday night, when Facebook told me that the price on the Corvette had dropped from $2000 to $1800. Suspicious, I sent another message to Ron.
When I read his reply, I could feel his exasperation through the screen. I repeated my offer: He could list it as pending and I would be there Sunday, easy transaction. That sounds nice, he said. Suddenly I was shuffling around town, grabbing a trailer from a friend and stopping by the bank just before closing time to prepare for my Sunday morning road trip.
The trip went so smoothly that I thought the universe was screwing with me. Ron was a kind gentleman who had bought the coupe, an ’85, in 1988 and drove it over 100,000 miles since. The tires are date-coded 1997 so he must have racked up a lot of those miles in the early part of the ownership. The car appeared to have been stored for a number of years and was exhibiting the symptoms of improper storage: a coolant leak, and the aforementioned total lack of power. It was perfect. I winched the Corvette onto the trailer and headed back north, smitten with victory.
The C-4 corvette has three fusable links hanging off the battery cable on the starter this might be a good place to start checking. The factory manual has excellent information on power distribution and ground locations. I’ve had bad luck with new parts from all the aftermarket suppliers so be careful and measure before you install parts.
Good tips! I had been reading about the fusible links and have my fingers crossed it’s something so relatively simple.
Kyle,
Have you heard of the northeast Corvair conference?
They run track days for Corvairs and other vehicles are welcome as well.
I’ve done events with them at Summit Point and VIR though I haven’t heard from them in a few years.
Their events are (or were) very enjoyable and laid back.
Very interesting! Cannot say I’m familiar though. Even with those tracks be a good trek for me, I would be curious to keep an eye on the happenings as I never know when I might have a weekend and a trailer available.
This should be a great car. The 85 has TPI, much better than the Cross Fire in the 84. And, the Doug Nash 4+3 in the 85 will actually allow you to shift from first gear to second gear with the override, whereas the similar transmission in 84 did not allow that. One of my neighbors has a black 85 automatic that I pass by every day. Great cars for sure.
lots of warms fuzzies in the comments which is nice and i concurr.
immediately:
– install emergency hood release cables (diy, google, easy)
– service the OD pan with non-syn atf. U can suck out fluid, and replace. I use a pump to add an extra half a lite/qt through the cooler line at the rad cap.
if you do those 2 things, everything else is easy to recover from 👍
Hot tips! Thanks for sharing. Will have to get this car up in the air soon to see if that OD can be saved.
My red 1988 C-4 convertible was bought new by a cousin and never spent a night out of doors during his first 104,xxx miles driven. Following his passing, I’ve added approximately 51,xxx miles, much of it cross-country touring with the major clubs. Once inside, it is surprisingly comfortable, has all the creature comforts for distance driving, and is more than capable of spirited driving – and surprisingly, returns better than 28 mpg while maintaining 75 mph on cross-country drives. Regrettably, there’s not available space for my wife’s mobility scooter or rollator, and it would seem weird for the ‘Vette to pull a small trailer, or to put it in one, so more of our travels are with the ’54 or ’41 Caddy convertibles or the ’37 Roadmaster Phaeton. By the way, despite being an unrestored original, it also was awarded AACA First, Senior, and Repeat Preservation.
I inherited my ’94 C-4 Coupe from my uncle when he passed into Corvette heaven. Total mileage on the car is 68,000 of which I am responsible for the last 12,000. I have owned this car for 4 years and it has cost me nothing but oil changes and new headlight actuators. I LOVE THIS CAR. I am a member of our local Corvette club. We usually bring 30-40 cars to shows and I wouldn’t trade mine for any of the others. 300 bhp and a 6 speed make for fun driving. I have even taken her to Sebring for a track day. What a blast. Don’t knock it till you try it.
I still far prefer the C4 to the C5, with the C5’s oversize rear end. The C4 is like a dart in comparison – low, sleek, and fast in appearance. Their reasonable prices make them even more attractive.
I totally agree. Apparently we are in the minority, though.
A tip to any new or prospective C4 owners, ignore what (some) shop manuals tell you about removing the battery. The lower body panel between the door and front wheel well comes out with a couple of bolts (10mm if my memory is correct), whole operation takes maybe 5 minutes. And do buy new pucks for the headlight mechanism, they will deteriorate and the fix is very simple.
This tip on the battery removal is a good one!
I think you are going to be having some fun with this one. It’s a good way to get something different and a good companion to your Corvair. A friend of mine had one of these and had lots of fun.
The Corvette does seems like a perfect counterpoint to the Corvair for a lot of things. Hopefully that will be true in practice as well.
I bought a 1995 convertible in Reno at an auction during Hot August Nights. It had about 67,000 miles on it. I really enjoyed the car and the only items that required work were the stereo and we had to replace the heater coil. Actually, they were pretty technologically advanced for their time and place in automotive history. A good book for restoration or any owner is the Collector’s Originality Guide Corvette C4 1984-1996 Falconer/Mann. Enjoy the ride. My girlfriend reminds me I was there to buy a pickup.
Kyle, I’ll be closely following your adventures, as I also own a 1985 Vette. I was 10 years out of high school when I finally decided that I wasn’t getting anywhere on my “drive and talent” so I had better go to college and get a credential. I sold off my small collection of muscle cars (at early 1980s prices, bummer) spent a semester in remedial classes for what I should have learned in high school then got a bachelor’s and master’s degrees. I supported myself all those years with work around campus and buying and selling a few cars. When I finally got out, I was driving a $500 car and wanted a fun car ASAP. I had learned to live cheap in college, so I cashed my first 2 paychecks for living money, then stacked my uncashed paper paychecks on my desk (which drove my finance MBA boss crazy) until I had enough cash to buy a 5-year-old Vette in 1990. I have had many more desirable cars over the years and now have several muscle cars again, but somehow for 30+ years the Vette always stays. Since its worth nothing why sell it? P.S. – The same boss years later sent me a story of a man who was buried in his 1985 Corvette, same color as mine. Hey, its cheaper than a Costco casket! Just Sayin’
Have owned a lot of cars still do a 1988 c4 corvette was the worst car I ever owned
I had a C4 for 10 yrs., and before that a C3 for 10 yrs. Good luck with the new project car. I would say a few words of caution about tools: get a FSM from Helm, don’t cheat on the other FSMs. If Gordon Killabrew (foryourcar.com) is still in business, he can be an invaluable source of info as he was the Head Line Technician at BG till ’93. I had a ’90 ZR-1, the wiring was tender, and I lost count on how many relays a C4 had, so get the real FSM. Other than that, as a driving machine the C4 was the last of the analogue corvettes. It’s not the nimblest car, and the front end is not pointy, and if yours is a ZO7 car ….well, you have my sympathies. The steering was my biggest complaint on my ’72: too slow, the C4’s was just right but there’s too much weight on the front. My C3’s (LT-1 car) brakes were better IMHO. I hate sliding calipers. But at night on a good road, you’re in another world! My C8 is a better overall car than my C4 was a better overall car than my C3, but they each have individual traits in the common blood line. Save The Wave!
No ZO7 in 1985. Z-51 Performance Handling package suspension option only and with greatly reduced spring rates from 1984 Z-51 so the car could be driven without sacrificing teeth or a kidney. Z07 adjustable suspension started in 1991, ran until 1995.
Had one, improper storage left the car a total mess. Stored in a barn with 30 other vehicles, guess which one the mice chose? Yup ate entire wiring harness, and I mean all of it. No choice but to sell it. Just to keep from looking at my mistake, a mutual friend gave me 1000.00$. Lesson learned.
My neighbor down the street felt “sorry” for me during my latest stint of unemployment and decided to increase my misery level by giving me his non-running 94 6 speed coupe. It’s non-running because he left E10 gas in it for 7 years… Fuel pump and pickup found in the bottom of the rusty tank. And all 8 injectors completely blocked. No worries 😎 . Soaked the injectors in laquer thinner – good to go!
Dropped the tank and started scraping out the gunk… Then a 30 minute muratic acid soak and the tank is usable. New pump & pickup and only $125. She runs! Then it doesn’t… the PO swapped in an electric water pump and a new aquaspark…but it just failed again.
Of course everything else is s disaster. Interior is sun roached. 80% of the clear coat has peeled off. And of course it’s painted totally rad 90’s seafoam blue-green! 🤮 I want to drive it for a year but a guy makes a kit to swap the C4 suspension into my 1950 Chevy 3100 truck…
Seems like a good recycling plan…
That car sounds rough! Also a great project though. Or donor for other projects. Regardless, sounds like it’s not boring!
Free cars are far from free. Old Chinese curse: “May you live in Interesting times”
Old ratty C4 projects make life “interesting”