New Member With Questions

[Katie]

Hi, right now I have a Cavalier Z24, and I'm going to be selling that and I'm looking at getting a 94 or 95 V6 Camaro (5-speed). So my question for you guys is what should I look for? What normally goes wrong with that year and motor? Any help would be much appreciated. :D

[wantmorepower]

You will probably find ones with the 3.8 to be a bit peppier than those with the 3.4l engine. Look for 96 and up models.

[camaroman1181]

yes, agreed... try and find one from 96 on. they had the 3.8 which on the whole is a much better motor with a lot more potential and tuning possibilities. If you do go with a 3.4 however, check the standard things, condition of clutch, oil consumption, anything but oil on dipstick, anything but antifreeze in radiator(murky stuff, stop leak, green or brown colored antifreeze). the 3.4 isnt a bad motor, as it seems to last quite a while. just be careful that you dont get something with too high of mileage and in decent shape. check out kbb.com for prices so you dont get ripped off as well. should be able to get a decent car with lower mileage for like 4000 or so. As far as stuff going wrong, i've had 2 different 95 3.4 now and havent had anything major go wrong with either. In fact, the only thing that i've done to both is routine maintenence and change the window lift motors. good luck

Phill

[Nachius]

How much you looking to spend?

I have a 96 auto with quite a few mods and low miles I'm selling.

As far as that goes, I'd get a 95+ 3.8 (yes there are a few 95s with 3.8s).

[GreenMachine]

I have a 3.4l and I wish at the time I would have held out for a 3.8. I have invested a lot of money just to hit a 15.7 with my car. Not bad, but dang, if I threw a cam into a 3.8 and the rest of the mods I have, I would be in the mid 14s.

Besides, 3.8s have obd2 computers, you can custome tune your car. [img]graemlins/burnout.gif[/img]

[Katie]

I'm not really concerned with going really fast. I'm past that stage in my life really.

The ones that I'm looking at are a 1994 V6 (3.4L) 5-speed. It has 129K miles on it, which are all highway miles because the kid went to college about 400 miles away from his hometown. It has aftermarket exhaust and few other things on it, including full stereo. He is asking $4400, but I'm sure that I can get that one down. This car was also stored every winter.

The other one is a 1995 V6 (3.4L...I believe) 5-speed. It too has aftermarket exhaust, aftermarket stereo and a few other things. It has 88K miles on it and he is asking $4500, and he said hes pretty firm on that price.

Nachius: Sorry, I really want a 5-speed....my 1st car was a 5-speed and I miss it really bad...and ever since my fiance got a 5-speed....I've been jealous! LOL!

Which car do you think is the better deal?

[wolf]

if your z24 is a 95+ (quad 4) its faster than a stock 3.4 camaro

4500 is also alot for a 3.4( got mine for 1000, but it had a collapsed lifter,easy fix)
4500 you should bealbe to get a 3.8 5 speed, hell i've seen 93-95 z28's go for 4500 -5000

5 speeds are nice(i won't get a auto car if I can avoid it) also, its been my experiacne to stay away from cars that have been "tinkered with" (modded) if possible.

[Katie]

Yeah I have a 98 Z24 auto. Actually, my car with nitrous only hit a 15.0....they are not that fast.

The only problem is, is that I can't find anything in my price range in my area. :( I found a 1990 Camaro RS for $1300 that I like a lot....but I don't know if I want a car thats only 5 years younger than me! LOL!

[wolf]

Originally posted by Katie:
Yeah I have a 98 Z24 auto. Actually, my car with nitrous only hit a 15.0....they are not that fast.

The only problem is, is that I can't find anything in my price range in my area. :( I found a 1990 Camaro RS for $1300 that I like a lot....but I don't know if I want a car thats only 5 years younger than me! LOL!

a stock 3.4 5 speed runs 16.8, if its got goor traction, I got a 17.3 spinning first & second( crappy tires & wore out suspension)
I hear ya about not having good local deals, I had to travel a good distance to get 2 of the 3camaros i've had(my iroc I only had to go down the road :D )
you just gotta be patent, and don't settal, make sure its exzatly what you want ;)

[BiH]

she never asked which motor is better 3.4 or 3.8 :rolleyes: and to all of you that think the 3.8 is the best well grow up
let her pick what she wants

[grayman]

If both are similar quality then go for the one with 88K miles.

Don't be surprised if you need to start replacing the engine accessories like: water pump, starter, alternator, battery, brakes. Ask them if they ever flushed the radiator too. Otherwise you should plan on doing that. Get all the fluids changed and you should be good to go.

Oh, check if either seem to be leaking water into the
interior. smell for mildew. If it has t tops you can fix or have fixed the seals easily and affordably. most of these cars don't seem to have a problem...but every once in while...lake F-body.

Good Luck.

Next week we can go over your future engine mods, ok? [img]graemlins/banana.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/banana.gif[/img]

[Katie]

BiH: Thank you for saying that. I'm currently on 3 different J-body messageboards and everyone one of them has been ripping on me for wanting to get a V6 instead of a V8....sorry but I think that going from a 4 cyl. auto FWD to a V8 5-speed RWD is a HUGE change, and I'm not sure if I'm ready to do that yet...especially in Iowa! LOL

grayman: Thanks! I know that both of them have had the alternator and battery changed. The one with 88K miles has had the water pump changed already. My fiance is a mechanic so I know that he will go over it with a fine tooth comb before we buy it and make sure we get them down if there is problems or something. We will definitely be checking brakes and fluids and such. A friend of mine used to work at a Chevy dealership and she said to definitely check the gaskets around the windows and T-tops (neither of them have T-tops) because she said she saw a lot of Camaro come in with that problem.

wolf: The problem with waiting until I find exactly what I want, is that I need to have a car by this summer that is reliable. Right now my Cavalier really isn't reliable and this summer I need to drive back to my hometown probably every other weekend by myself. I feel comfortable driving my car when my fiance is with, but if I'm by myself...no way! My home town is about 98 miles away, so driving 200 miles every other weekend...I'm wanting something safe to drive.


My next question is if you guys think that I should stick to a older or new one. There is a 1990 that is for sale that is GOREGOUS! I really want a white 5-speed Camaro...and that is the only one I found....other than a 2000 which I can't afford. So should I go for a 1990 or should I get a 1995 and deal with the color? Which holds up better? My sister used to have a late 80s early 90s Camaro and it was a really nice car, until she rear ended someone with it and totalled it out.

[Katie]

I didn't know if you guys would want to check it out...but here are the links on AutoTrader for the 3 cars I'm talking about.

1990 White Camaro RS

1994 Green Camaro

1995 Purple Camaro

[grayman]

the 1995,

if the '94 motor starts getting old...your options are limited.

with the '95 your 'mechanic' will have a lot more to (not have to) work with.

the 94 with 130,000 miles should last a while but the better resale and "longer use before something MAJOR may have to be done" award goes to the '95.

That third gen is very affordable. you may want to test drive both types, however. I know you are not buying a dragster, but you may still want to test drive both types...the 3rd gen vs a 4th gen.

[Katie]

Thanks grayman.