Rust... I hate the rust that plagues my vehicle...

 

The thing I don't care for is how flimsy the frame is especially being a convertible. I have inner and outer subframe connectors welded on and still think I may need a cage or roll bar.

 

I don't like rotating the tires on my gta
I don't like that its 4600 lbs
I don't like the intake that comes stock on the car
The 9 bolt isn't my fav
The flex in the weak unibody
My slow window motors at 64k miles
The hatch struts
The stock cooling system settings
The 700r
The price of a good lockup converter with stall
Heavy doors (bushing replacement)
Rear stock ride height
Crappy foam spoiler
The rear tires keep going bald
And what is that smell in the interior??

All this aside I love my car and would rather drive a gm vehicle than push a ford.

 

There's 4600lbs third gens? o.O

 

I hate the BS excuses that GM used as to why they didn't equip our cars with some options.
No manual tranny with the L98.
The whole t-top fiasco with the L98 in certain model years.
As the 3rd gens came closer to the end of it's life cycle, the cars came less equipped.

 

My no option manual 2.8l, even though yo may say the 2.8l has power.... it has enough power to kill you, I HATE MY ARMRESTS, easy to crack dash pad, annoying vibrating metal on metal noise from the muffler.

 

the grand cannon of a dash pad that i have

 

She's too damn reliable but suspension sucks....

 

did anybody mention that the frameless glass on the doors dosent seal up worth a darn expecially on the t-top equiped cars. It also will give you a nasty gash on your face if you get into the car thinking the window is down.
but hey the styling is cool.

 

I think he was referring to 3600lbs.. which most IROCs and GTA's came around there stock more or less..

Stock rears (9 or 10 bolt) are crap, but they are lighter than most aftermarket alternatives and put less drag on the drivetrain.

Unibody can be re-inforced with frame connectors (easy, relatively cheap weld-in mod)

Window motors are cheap as well but i agree the design is bad..

I think most of these things can be fixed though with work and money. Unfortunately GM didn't design these things in the car in the first place

 

lots of creaks and rattles, weather stripping is all shot, exhaust scrapes on speed bumps no matter how slow I go, a lot of the interior (center console, doors, etc) rips at the seems, apparently gm thought it would be a good idea to put open rears in formulas, 700r4 shifts insanely slow, after replacing on headlight motor the other broke, I'm now having issues with the drivers side window motor, wing is all cracked and faded, brakes sucks, speakers sucks, and the electric mirror adjusters don't work.

but just like everyone else, I love mine! the torque makes up for a bit of the horsepower lack and it handles very well.

oh, and I hate that I have to hold the hatch open with my head when its cold. lol

electric locks barely work as well. unlock works perfect, but to lock I have to hit it half a dozen times

 

hey i was wondering aboout that, i didnt know anything but one time i was riding along the highway donw here in mex, and all of the sudden it wouldnt race more.... weird is there a way to take it off????

 

I got a few, No T Tops, No Options base model, heavy doors, my speedo needle shaking (I find it kinda funny)

 

go to pep boys or autozone / parts stores and they sell replacement shocks for the hatch for like $25, only buy one because when you do both they are too strong and the hatch flies up 50mph when you open it and its hard to close, so just repace one and youll be golden!!!

 

go to pep boys or autozone / parts stores and they sell replacement shocks for the hatch for like $25, only buy one because when you do both they are too strong and the hatch flies up 50mph when you open it and its hard to close, so just repace one and youll be golden!!!

 

That has to be one of the strangest explanations I've heard for why not to buy both shocks.

 

Most of your problems are a result of parking the car outside (or prior owners parking outside)...

Its funny because my 88 IROC has none of your issues..no creaks or rattles, original weather stripping is perfect, I had the exhaust replaced with a flowmaster which never scraps on speed bumps, I had one rip in the drivers seat but had it reupholstered with original fabric from sms and its been golden, I have a posi, 4 wheel disc brakes, new infinity speakers, JBL subs and an amp--the system rocks!!, electric power mirror adjustors work perfectly and so do both windows...Tons of power from my L98 and even my electric hatch pulldown works (so do the hatch struts)..

Point being that your car sounds like it needs some maintenance! My car is now 24 years old and has 115k miles on it and overall Im not having any of the problems you are...

 

hes right though, two new shocks on my 84 and watch out, don't wanna take that one on the chin

 

I am in total agreement I love my 1988 Camaro, I have a pair of Infinity Reference 4x6a in the front that produce 150watts and some walmart speakers in the back the only thing mine needs is the a pillar panels adjusted a paint job and my 2 seats reupholstered other than that she is a solid car

 

basically my main complaint is how slow my 2.8 is but w e.and my headliner sags down which really rattles me,and yes i to can feel every bump on the road,but wut do u expect with performance/stiff suspension...and i dont have as many creeks and squeaks as other ppl make it sound,but that maybe lack of lubrication or maintenance.and something really stupid that others may not be aware about is that when i was bleeding my brake lines,the rear driver side drum is strangely built so that it is not possible to bleed it.other then that i love my first car!

 

Over all my biggest complaint is my thirdgen isn't the only one left.

 

Haha that'd be legit I never thought of that before.mine is defs one of the coolest rides in my area of the city but having the last one would kick ***

 

Not sure if this one was mentioned yet... but the extremely small back seats...... I mean really... my gal and I used to fit back there..... now that we're both in our mid 30's .. you just look back there and laugh at how we used to fit back there!!!!!

 

They will definitely turn heads! Mine does even with her crappy paint job, broken off spoiler and bullet hole
OH! and the driver side lock is popped out.

It adds character =)

 

Have you replaced the headliner? I assume its original and 20+ yrs old! Replace it and thats one less thing to complain about!

The 2.8 has always been a joke of a motor. If you replace the headliner and drop in a 350 it sounds like you will be a happy camper!

 

Haha so dam true. I just put in new struts because I thought that would help, but sadly I really didnt notice a big differece, and those were 20 yr old struts!
I dont know what to do, new caster camber plates? I just want to not feel like im running over small animals on my way to work every day. And don't get me started on the freeway.

Rattles,
broken plastic gear in my rear hatch motor,
no positraction
weak blower for AC
leaky air duct system
wheel center caps that you can kick off (probably why nobody has any)
weak center dome light and no other helpful lights (I did just find a rearview with reading lights )

heavy A** doors
crawling out of the car when parked tight/ falling in when parked tight
speedo only going to 85 (makes me feel like its a tractor, not a sports car)
The way my tranny shakes my dash to he** for no reason when feathering the clutch (still unknown) :/
Having a Trans Am with out power windows, locks, or a defroster
Oh and I hate spilling drinks in my passenger seat! It was a dr pepper tonight haha!

 

No cup holder, no glove box, 305, tiny back seat and scraping the bottom. I've been a lot more careful about scraping since I ripped my muffler off in july.

But these things are like minor complaints there's really no reason to not like your thirdgen

 

Where to begin!
-a 305 that somehow only makes 170hp yet has terrible gas mileage
-a suspension that is too limp in corners yet too hard for pot holes
-the ridiculous weight and long doors
-the lack of a proper chassis
-the cooling system that works better if you decide when the fan is to be on

I still wouldn't trade it for the world though!

 

I don't like the lack of available parts in the aftermarket or GM. The cars in a bit of limbo. Too new for restoration parts and too old for most parts to be stocked by GM. Not fun spending time of eBay and the likes to find another 3rg Gen go down and everyone canibalizing the parts. But despite all the complaining, I guess we all like it, otherwise we would have sold them off long ago.

 

I ain't not like da weight distribution. MUCH too light in the rear. I use the well back there to jhold several large rocks, especially in the winter. Oh yeah, the lack of glove box is a good one too. Cheapo lettering inside is another one, but in general I really like it, even with the V6 and auto.
my86bird

 

The 3rd gen squeaks and rattles, Lack of a single cupholder, Dropping the fuel tank (PITA) the list goes on and on...

 

I don't like the "rubber" spoiler, lack of cup holders, heavy doors, crappy headliners and the headlight motors that never work.

Overall though, I like my Trans-am. It needs some work but it will be cool when it's done and I'll have fun restoring it.

 

I don't like

Hood doesn't line up when closed

The gap between the hood and front bumper

PITA to change a fog light bulb

My cluster and the dull looking light

The automatic shift

Sunglasses holder with the loop in my rearview mirror

Door guard trim

Bottom strip decal

Paint chipping on hood

Rough idle when its cold

I love my iroc and I have fun working on it. I want to fix her up and make her a strong, durable car


Radio antenna

 

Mine doesn't have all these problems either, but mine just rolled over to 56,ooo miles. When I bought the car it had a lot of squeaks and rattle in suspension. Had it oiled and now very quite. I still have the original paint stickers on my inner doors. The thing I hate about it most is the two tone color!! Black top in Az is brutal. Everthing else can be fixed pretty easy.
You guys are funny, i like the hatch comment! Just put one on, because it would fly up at 50 mil... lol Whats wrong with the hatch motor?

 

The stiffness of the accelerator. I drove mine for the first time in 1.5 years last Saturday and I pressed the gas pedal and it didn't move, I've gotten used to the spongier/springier gas pedal in my DD that I really had to give her a good push to get her moving.

That and the complete lack of support of the seats gets tiring after an afternoon in the car. Seats look great, but the support is crap, but then again I've got 150k miles of butt time.

 

wow thats funny mine was extremely sensitive you would give the slightest push and the rpms would go sky high, my dad was driving it out of the school parking lot and by accident he spun the tires since he wasn't used to the sensitive pedal, my principal was standing there starring at him while he left the parking lot spinning, i hope my trans am has a sensitive gas pedal so the same will happen :-)

 

if its v8 it wont be as sensative as the 6, never really got why but the 6's are almost cerebraly touchy cars put so fun to drive

 

it was an amazingly fun car to drive even though she only had 150hp, but she had brand new everything, 600 suspension system, rebuilt tranny, new stage 2 clutch and pressure plate, brand new stereo and centerlines. now I have my T/A which I still owe $200 on it, never got to drive it once haha.

 

v6 cars are more fun in anything but straight lines lol, also cheaper at the pump

 

I wish there was more leg room, seems nobody thought about the 6'5" fella when they made these cars.

 

i just took a hammer and pounded back me seat on the rail, it turns out, it has still a little way to go but it stops before that point.

 

The cheap plastic fasteners that hold the interior trim pieces in place.

 

Isn't that the truth. I was tinkering yesterday in the trunk, at least three of them just spin freely and do nothing to hold the plastics in place. What a terrible materials idea.

 

the interior panel rattle, oh god. between that and my door rattles....

 

gap between bumper and body, doesnt look flush at all. the hood is such a crazy tight fit, just painted and its already been scratched from the hood. steel wheel tubs make it retarded heavy. that and the car is so beautiful that i hardly want to race it once its finished being built

 

Why does everyone complain about their 3rdgens being too heavy when I looked up the weight on my 1982 Z28 everything I found said 2900 to 3100? And why so much hate toward the 305? You don't want your 305 I'll take it and have it putting out well over 300HP and 300 pounds or torque.

 

Some things I really hate would probably be:
-My shitty drivers seat(need to find a new one, really)
-The seat belt plastic piece that snaps into the headliner always fall off.
-No cupholders (the worst)


I still love my RS though<3

 

I hate how I havn't finished painted the thing D:
The other things I hate would be the cheap plastics in the interior, the door rattles, the ride hight on my RS, how I've had to rebuild the 700r4, how much I paid for it, how the tiny sub 100 rwhp engine never seems to run quite right. And I hated that ugly airbag steering wheel. And all the rust.... Oh the rust.

But it all goes toward the magic that makes it special, the abusurdity is what lends it soul. Something that a much more powerful, quiet, or sensible cars lacks. (Like the truly good 98 Windstar I've been driving, much better overall than my RS, but none of the soul)

 

Ok i'm lost, what is PITA?

 

Pain In The ***