Hey Guys,

Been out of 3rd gens for a long time. Had my share a while back--an 82 and 83 Zs, 86, 87, and 89 T/A's. Loved while I had them.

Anyway, not sure if this is the correct forum for this question, but searching through the forums, I think this is the best fit. I'm looking for a car for my 16 year old son. His budget is $6k or less (his own money from jobs). Since I haven't had a 3rd gen in a long time, I haven't kept up on what real values are. I looked this car up on NADA, KBB, etc, but would like a real-life opinion or two on a car we're considering for purchase.

The car is a 1988 black IROC with gray interior. 95K miles. 305TPI auto (I prefer the 305 for my 16 year old). Drivetrain looks original and non-molested. Pretty loaded up on options: PW, PL, power mirrors, power hatch, Delco-Bose, t-tops. Interior looks original and well kept (no stains except as noted on headliner). Driver's seat is showing a bit of wear on left bolster. Headliner is a bit discolored up near t-tops and starting to seperate a bit in some areas (but not sagging yet, just ripples). Otherwise interior is very nice. Exterior has nice original wheels with new tires. There has been paint work but fairly decent (I'd call it a 5-10 footer). No evidence of significant damage; all panels except drivers fender and door line up nicely. No rust (stored winters). Looks like stock with all decals in place. New brakes I'm told. Fresh flush of fluids and I confirmed by checking coolant, trans fluid and oil, all look fresh. No leaks, started right up. Ran good with no check engine or other probs except idled a bit high. Only non-working items I found were temp gauge and power mirror switch was intermittant; even power antenna worked.

Sorry, no pics, but to put in perspective, the car would look very nice in pics anyway. The paint work and interior issues are minor enough to not show up in pics. I've looked at a lot of cars in pics and then in person to have a good feel for condition.

Of course my son loved it and is ready to put down his hard-earned cash. I'm trying to help him make sure he does the right thing. The seller is asking $6200/offer. Again, this falls pretty close to what NADA, KBB, etc are saying, but I'd like a real-world review.

Thanks,

As a comparison I picked up this car in December. It's an 88 IROC-Z 350 and is in about the same condition the car you are looking at is. About the only major difference is this car hasn't had any paintwork that I can see. I paid $4200 but looked for a car like this for about 6 months. Any questions, please ask.

You could always compare with the cars being sold in the for sale thread, just to reference.

Yea, kinda tried that. Been in the classifieds here, other forums, ebay, autotrader. It's really hard to tell because prices are all over the place, which is expected considering these cars are 20 years old and values vary a lot based on condition.

I've been back into 2nd gens for a while and by experience I can kind of tell the value range of a 2nd gen based on year, miles, model, originality and basic condition. I don't have that feel for 3rd gens because I haven't owned one in so long. I'm just trying to get that kind of input.

Thanks Rumblin, that gives me a good point to work from. Nice car!

yeah nice car

Well just off the bat, $6200 seems a little too pricey for an (im assuming) stock 3rd gen. Having never seen the car, I dont know how it looks and could not judge it off a description. I know for 6 grand, I would expect a relatively flawless vehicle.

Yea 6200 is high for those miles and being stock. I paid 3500 for mine with a small fortune in mods. Only downside was it needed a paintjob.

Thanks guys. That's the input I am looking for. I kinda had the feeling the asking price was some on the high side, but as I said his price is inline with NADA and other guides. However, I think those guides haven't kept up well with values in the current downturn.

Is there kind of a consensus on how much difference in value there is between a 350 and 305 car?

People that try to sell a third gen with the 350 TPI try to jack there price up more because the 305 TPI was more of the common motor in IROCs and trans ams. 6200 is somewhat high, i cant dictate the condition of the car, but even though mine is 91 T/A with 350 TPI had every feature you can think of accept leather seats, had all the power options, had the N10 Dual cats and i only bought mine for $4500 with only 69,800 original miles.

That is a STEAL!

It depends on many variables. Rumblin bought his car in December. It's now spring and the value of these cars will always increase in the spring, especially one with ttops or convertible. If the car is clean, runs well and doesn't need anything major, like paint, then I'd say the price might be inline with todays values. The cars in the PNW seem to carry a higher price. Subroc paid $3500 for a car that needed a paintjob. A good paint job on a fairly decent condition car can cost $2500 putting his cost to $6000. I know people will argue and say you can get a cheaper paintjob, but why. If the car is near perfect, an Earl Scheib paint job will decrease the value of the car. I say offer them $5500 and see what they say. These cars are starting to increase even though the economy is poor. People concerned about the economy aren't looking at getting these cars as daily drivers or for collectibility. A clean car will start costing more as time goes on now that the 5th gen is released.

came with original owners manuel and documents to lol. But i had to get a new distributor and tps for the car when i bought it though, so not everything is perfect, and then spent 300 bucks on just stupid fitting bolt on my ac to get fixed and they charged the system without asking me which shot it up to 300 when it would of only been 180 bucks But yea i had to pay for a lot of new parts because everything was still original on the car that were never changed. GET THIS at 72K i realized that it still had the stock spark plug wires lol i was like wow. Surprised they were on there that long and they were still kicking.

I agree try offering 5500 for the car.

Thanks for the compliments guys! I am so happy that I bought it!
I agree with the fact that I bought the car at an oppurtune time and values will be going up now that Spring has hit. Whatever happens, let us know how it turns out!

In the Northeast, with those miles, I'd say its solidly a $5,000 car but not a dime more...and even that would be a little high. I've seen identical 87s with about half the mileage for $6k. I just found a super-basic 350 87 IROC with 49k for $6,900! If the idiot would return my email, I'd be able to set up a time to actually go look at it!

And indeed, keep your kid with a 305 TPI...that's enough power, and even that might be a little much! My 5 speed 305 TBI '91 RS is about as quick as a 305 TPI/A4 IROC, and I'd say that's a good power level for a first-timer.

I took my Z28 out for the first ride of the year today, and I was thinking about how in the world could a kid handle an LT1 for his first car. And with LT1s going for third gen money now, I have a feeling the attrition rate on 4th gens is about to hit new highs

Well it didn't turn out. After talking with my son and doing some additional research (and thanks to all who repied here), we decided to offer $5200. I thought it was still a bit too much money, but as I said, it's my son's money that he earned soley from his job. I'm here to advise him and help him not make a huge mistake on his first major purchase. My son really liked the car and made the choice on what to offer.

We called the seller and made the offer--no go. Now here's the funny part: I guess our offer (which I did in a respectful manner) pissed him off. After saying "no way" to me, I said ok and we said good-bye. No big deal, right? He felt his car is worth more than $5200, and I respect that. The deal was closed at that point in my mind and on to the next car. But it must have gotten to him because he calls me back 5 min later and just has to say that my son and I should keep shopping that we're way too far apart and we're just wasting time in a pretty pissed off tone. I thought, ok, well I thought that's the way we left it when we had the first phone call. I just said "ok" in a cheery tone. Jeeze, some people take things a bit too seriously.

Haha thats funny I cant believe he took the time to call back

My first car at 17 was a 70 SS Chevelle with a BB 396......the first time I hit the gas I blazed the tires by accident......I survived and still own the same car 21 years later.......


Thats a shame.....but some people are just a little off. I've met my share, believe me......lol. Keep looking, you'll find the right car for your son! It's nice to see someone so young interested in cars like these!

You offered a fair price for the car.....who knows, if he sits on it a little while he might call you back....crazier things have happened.