When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
ConvertiblesDiscussed here are problems and solutions to convertible specific questions, including difficult to find part numbers and other convertible tech help.
I am looking for a 5spd TPI vert or a 350 ASC vert. I will consider a firebird as well as a camaro. Condition is paramount as it needs to be truly investment quality. Bright red is the least preferred, but condition is everything. Willing to pay market value. Not going to pay unrealistic prices. If I was willing to pay those, I would go to a retail dealer. Use your peers valuations as a guide & I will be more than fair. My “Holy Grail” would be a 1988 5sp IROC vert in metallic maroon called flame red.
Last edited by txsilverado; Jan 7, 2018 at 05:46 PM.
Reason: More details
I read the details of your post. Pretty car. I was specifically interested in what you paid as I want to maintain a reasonable expectation of what to pay. There is a clean 4X,000 mile red one close to me. However, it’s a bright red 305 auto. Not exactly a rare example.
Exactly, you buy them because you love them & love driving them. And if you buy one that's pristine with low mileage as an "investment", you'll either leave it in the garage and never drive it, or you'll drive it and never recoup your investment.
If you like the cars, I'd suggest getting the nicest one you can realistically afford for the best price & simply enjoy it - it may someday be worth considerably more than you paid for it, but that may be a looooing time in the future. Or you may be completely disappointed with the fickle nature of prospective buyers of classic cars.
Good luck! I love the flame red and found after years of looking I went with a fully loaded, mint 305 TPI car that had everything I wanted except the stick shift.. I love driving it and looking at it though.. I’ve owned a 350 and a 305 stick shift and it’s really not all that different.. I would definitely check out the car PurelyPMD put up.. that formula is sweet!
Verts in general are rare enough where a 305 TPI Auto will be an investment..
Here is that same car on Ebay. That is a really good looking car and it is rarer than the 1988 model IROC convertible which had 3,671 built that year. Only 1,294 IROC convertibles were built in 1990. This is an investment car in my opinion.
The year doesn’t matter that much price-wise.. all verts are very rare compared to production.. dealers use the individual year numbers to make it sound more rare but doesn’t matter that much price and condition-wise..
87 25th anniversary is more rare than the 90 Vert and many are flame red and 5-speed.. they pop up a couple times/year.. similar price to all the rest of them..
All the verts bring about the same money..
I prefer 88-89 because they have the updated rims/decals but still have the 80s steering wheel and don’t have the yellow “90s” gauges..
The year doesn’t matter that much price-wise.. all verts are very rare compared to production.. dealers use the individual year numbers to make it sound more rare but doesn’t matter that much price and condition-wise..
87 25th anniversary is more rare than the 90 Vert and many are flame red and 5-speed.. they pop up a couple times/year.. similar price to all the rest of them..
All the verts bring about the same money..
I prefer 88-89 because they have the updated rims/decals but still have the 80s steering wheel and don’t have the yellow “90s” gauges..
Your right about everything you said. The determining factors are the preferences you want in one particular year versus another. I have had my 2 convertibles a 1988 and 1989 for 25 years and I chose them specifically for options, color, and the condition they were in when I purchased them.
The rarity factor didn't play into it as much as what I was looking for in a convertible IROCZ.
