hi i went to test drive an 87 IROC Z w/ my dad yesterday (we're lookin for my first car)...and i fell in love with it.

-66,000 (what seem to be original) miles
-the body was nearly flawless...beautiful
-ran excellently, small exhaust leak though (has 1 mod, a shift kit)
-AT, no t-tops, interior was in very very good condition

there were 3 problems with the car....needs new wiper motors, the radio doesnt work, and the AC doesnt work.

the guy was asking 5,500 for it...and my dad called him yesterday and got him down to 4,500. my dad doesnt think it is worth more than 4,000. i am really torn because i love the car, but yet NADA for the car is 3,900 and the car does have some things wrong with it.

i do not know if an IROC of this condition would command more than book value...i would think it would, but i am not sure...and i really want the car. i want to know how much you think the car is worth, from waht i have told you...

(just to let you know, i will be paying for $2000 of the car...the rest will be payed by my dad....who is an ex-GM mechanic and a chevy enthusiast by the way).

thanks

 

4000 sounds about right, it all depends how much you want it i'd go a little bit higher but.......

 

i do have a question... how is this one priced, compared to others you guys might have seen (of similar miles and condition). i mean i know what book is, but lets face it...you never find cars listed for what they're techinically worth.

if i know that this one is a good price...i might be able to sway my dad into paying 4500, if the owner wont take 4 g's.

 

well i'm in canada but one in similiar shape up here , and the currency converted into canadian, 4k usd is roughly what they go for around here(roughly 5 to 5500 k cdn) so i'd go for it but not much more then that if you really want it pay the man 4300 to 4500

 

I picked mine up for $4400. It needed a rear manifold seal (leaking pretty bad), a tune-up and a few other minor problems. With 142,000 on the odometer. I dont regret buying mine. Good luck!

 

oh i forgot to mention its only got a 305 in it. not that it matters to me, because its still fast.... but i just realized i forgot to say what kind of engine the car has.

 

i was going under the impression that it was a 305 i still stick with my 4 grand maybe a bit higher if you reallyy want it

 

Heck, I paid $4500 for mine, and that was with109K on the clock, a broken tranny mount, poor paint and a shredded top! I don't regret it one bit, either. I say offer to pay your Dad the other $500 and go for it.

And welcome to the board!!

 

If it's what you really want then buy it. Sometimes you have to pay a little more for a car you really want, or risk having to waste time finding another. The $500 extra dollars isn't going to do you much good when you still don't have your wheels.

 

I think cdartz has a good point. When I was thinking of selling my Iroc (AC doesn't blow cold...I think, in storage the last 2 years, only 64k, t-tops, 5sp w/G92 and busted power antenna), I wasn't going to let it go below 5k...but that doesnt' mean I'd get it. Bottom line, it is worth what your willing to pay and how bad that fella wants or needs to sell. Since that car has a couple minor problems, you might want to try to push for 4k, but in the end $500 shouldn't break the bank if it is THE car. good luck!

 

The way I see it.... if its worth that much to you, then thats what its really worth. Remember the old saying... Its only worth what anyone is willing to pay for it.

But book value really doesn't mean a whole lot sometimes. Its just a baseline to start from. If the prices compare similarly to other similar Camaros in more or less the same shape in your area, then I'd say it might well be reasonably priced. If you really need to lower the price though, you can usually use the fact that its got a 305 and not a 350 against the car. I did.

Some sellers also drive up the price from the start, knowing that any buyer will try to pull it back down. It may be listed for $5,500, but he may only really want $4500 for it, knowing that if he jacks up the price to start, he might be able to get what he really wants for it, instead of having the price driven through the floor.

Just my $0.02

 

a mack6,
I definitly know how you feel i am also looking at an iroc as my first car. I think maybe you should hold off another 2 weeks or so, i know you may not want to hear this, as i did, but it is good in the long run. For some dumb reason my father and mother are really bending A$$ over heels for me. I am from new jersey, and we have allready looked at 2 allready and going to look at another over my school spring break. The first was West Virginia. a 18 hour total drive. it sucked big time! then 2 weeks ago we flew out to Minnesota to look at one but still wasnt the one i was looking for. next we are going to chicago to look at one. I guess you could say were alike and go jumping to the first one we see, but it definitly pays to keep your eyes open and hold off, because the one in Ill. has only 36,000 miles, all original and only 2 owners. just keep your eyes out, and tell your family members and friends, as i have fouund a few that had either 305's or pieces of crap, but still they are out there. Also i wanted to bring up the 305 and no t-tops. i have never driven a 350 yet but my dad has. he has also driven my neighbors 305 and says they are completely different. alot more power, aand really the same price range. The t-tops on the other hand would be cool as anything, cruzing home from school drive pass everyone rev the motor and drive off with the roof off!!!! I dont want to discourage you in anyway, and i myself jumped tomany of them, but just look at your options. there are over 1000 iroc on auto trader about a dozen go through ebay weekly, and also your local paper. they are out there you just have to find them. albert III

 

Impatients may get you into something that will bite you in the butt...
I dont know the car, but from the sounds of it the car needs a little work. I know from experience, that if you buy a perfect 3rd gen for about $7000 (I know its above your budget) you will save more money than if you muy a POS that needs alot of work done to it... Take it from me, I bought my first Formula for $1100 and after a complete go through I had about $10,000 to make it as good as I could. I put another $10,000 into mods, and I am where I am now... I could have bought a 4th gen which would have been faster than it is now, but I like my 3rd gen.

My advise is to be patient, trust your dad on this, I think he might have a little experience in buying cars. There were more than a million third gens made, and there are some gems, and some junkers...

From my experience, I would hold out for these minimums...
--- TPI, a must have in a 3rd gen, forget the Throttle body (anything that looks like a carburator, or a V6.
--- I like T-tops, sometimes they leak, but I got mine to be dry so it can't be that hard.
--- IMO a 350 is a big Plus, BUT, be careful of 305s being sold as a 350.
--- A 5 speed can be more fun, but hard to hold your girlfriends hand while driving.
--- I like creature comforts, so I like all the doo dads, and gizmos, I would never go for a race car (1LE for example) because there to barron, I like my AC, power windows, Cruise etc...
--- Look for a car that has not been repainted in the past 5 years. If it sais fresh paint, smile and walk away, it may or may not be a sign of many problems lurking underneeth. If the paint is more than 5 years old, and shows no rust, then you might be ok. Unfortunately with the youngest car being 12 years old on this board, many of our cars have been repainted. Or ask to see if there were pix of the car BEFORE the paintjob...

hope that helps

BTY, get a Formula...

John

 

i wouldnt get a POS anyway. my dad wont let me get anything thats repainted...anything with a new engine...anything with mods. so basically wahtever i do get, is gona be bone stock and beautiful. the question is though, is it this one...

 

I see a few guys from the Northeast have posted looking for a clean IROC. Don't forget guys that Carlisle has alot of shows and the Chevy shows bring mostly Camaros. Be patient and you'll find a nice one.

Like what was mentioned before, it's easy to find a car that needs work and is cheap now, but the final price will be much higher than trying to find a clean, low mile car for more up front $$. The cleaner car is enjoyable now, not 2 years from now when you finally get it "almost" finished.

 

yea my dad is takin me to carlisle, i think its in late april.

anyway, things w/ the iroc fell threw. my dad wasnt willing to pay more than 4,000 and well nothing happened. we've called about like 2 or 3 trans am's since then, but none have been good enough to go see. ill keep you guys posted.