Hey guys I know this might **** some folks off.... but are the 1LE cars really a big deal?? AC delete? Radio delete...ok??. As far as performance wise yeah i guess u get more power, but most guys on here are upgrading with better parts anyway. As far as the naked eye can see its the same car! So am I just crazy,,, or maybe i wish i had one? LOL

 

IMHO yes they are...Maybe if you are racing it makes a difference but on the street my 88 IROC has absolutely no problem staying with and stopping equal to a 1LE. Have done it several times w/o a problem.

 

A little lighter with some cool bonuses here and there. They're so much more valuable because they're rare. I doubt they cost taht much more new.

Things like lightweight spare tires, those really cool front brakes... they're all part of the package.

 

Was the 1LE a 5.0 or 5.7?

The 1LE is a race car; however, all things being equal, I'd guess that the 1LE braking system--compared to the old Delco-Moraine iron calipers and their 10.5" rotors--would be superior on or off the track.

At any rate, maybe the answer to the OP's question is that it's in the eye of the beholder. Would it be cooler to say I own an RS, an IROC, or a 1LE?

JamesC

 

Just remember one important fact. The 1LE is NOT a Camaro car model but just a extra cost RPO option. So that being said, I would rather say I own a IROC-Z then say I have the 1LE option and get a blank look.

 

I believe it was either a 5.7 auto or 5.0 manual. I dont think they made 305 Auto 1LE's, but I may be wrong.

 

Everyone who counts will know what the 1LE is . Here's a tidbit:

https://www.thirdgen.org/forums/cama...-original.html

JamesC

 

I was asking flippermtc what he raced, a 5.0 or 5.7.

JamesC

 

Factory race car. Take it for what it's worth.

 

It would honestly be up to the beholder...

The 1LE is a special package that appeared in 1988, and was available until 1992... actually they made the 1LE until 2002. The intent was to make a car for racing. The cars were originally born from the Players Series in Canada, IIRC in order to compete the cars had to be "production vehicles." Ultimately all 4 wheel brake cars ended up with the rear brakes from the 1LE cars starting in 1989.

There are some myths, like T-tops were not available, and Air Conditioning was not available, but there are a few, VERY FEW examples with either, or both. There is a JY Formula 1LE with AC that lives in Florida for example, I want to think it even has T-tops but I do not remember ... There are also the B4C cars that were used for special police service that had the 1LE and A/C, but none of those had factory T-tops.

Are they special? yes,
do they make nice daily drivers? only if you live in the north where the temp is lower because the vast majority do not have AC. I guess it would be what your willing to live with.

Are they cool? sure are, they also stop a bunch better than a non 1LE factory car.

John

 

In my experience the real benefit of the 1LE brake upgrades is not how short they stop the car on a single hard stop, but how well they continue to stop the car after ten hard stops. They are much more resistant to heat, which is what you need if you are running lap after lap on a road circuit. In fact, the hotter you get them, the better they seem to work.

This is the reason the 1LE package was developed in the first place. The stock IROC/J65 brakes were overheating, fading away to nothing and boiling their brake fluid in the SCCA Showroom Stock and Player's Challenge races back in the '80s. Read about the history of the package and you will see this mentioned over and over.

As for A/C delete, when you spec a car for racing it helps not to have an extra 75 pounds of weight over the front wheels. On the street it doesn't make that much difference, but in competitive road racing every pound counts and weight distribution is important. And you're not going to be running A/C during a race anyway.

A stock 1LE is just negligibly faster than a regular IROC in a drag race (close enough that a better driver could win in either car). But that's not what it's designed for.

As for being overrated, that's in the eye of the beholder. Personally, I like the potential collector interest and exclusivity of the package. I have the money for a 1LE so that's what I bought. If I were on a tighter budget, I would have gone a different route. Lots of people here prefer to make their own package with more common IROCs and they have my respect for that.

My view on collectability is that you can take a base '69 Camaro and make a '69 Z/28 clone that is better in every way than the original, but it still won't be a '69 Z/28.

To each his own!

 

As far as performance ,you can say this about any supercar made taht came with all kinds of special equipment in their time(COPO Camaro, LS6 Chevelle, RA4 Judge/ TA, GSX Stage 1, SD Trans AM, HEMI Anything, You fill in the blank)
These cars were pretty impresive right out of the showroom and most of them very rare. But at the same time, like you said people were upgrading their not so rare Muscle Cars with better equipment and were able to beat any of these cars.
Qouting TOM1LE "As for being overrated, that's in the eye of the beholder. Personally, I like the potential collector interest and exclusivity of the package." And all the cars above packages.
I like my 1LE's stock performance, and yes there are many cars that are faster and stop better with $$$$$ brakes but knowing that is 1 of not many makes up for it.

 

1LE's are all about the brakes. That's "the thing" about the 1LE; Always has been,..... always will be.


There is nothing on any stock 1LE Camaro that any other (similar optioned) Camaro, RS, Z28, IROC, or IROC-Z owner would want to install on their car,... except for those Brakes ! 89 Wasn't just the first year for the front brake that was specific to the 1LE,... but it was the first year of the PBR rear calipers as well. 1989 was a HUGE leap forward in the area of Braking for these cars !!!

 

Baffled fuel tank? aluminum drive shaft?

 

Both came in other models.

My 1990 V6 Firebird has baffles in the fuel tank, I believe it was standard started in 90. The alum driveshaft was found on a lot of the GTAs and other heavier Thirdgens.

 

 

speaking of fuel tanks...is it possible to replace your own fuel tank and get one that is "baffled" out like the 1LE cars?

I find it kinda annoying that at 1/4 of tank of fuel, my car while corning a ramp hesitates as the fuel in the tank shifts which ever way it goes away from the pump....
It would be cool if baffle out your own tank..since i would consider it and because i'm planning on replacing my sending unit as well...pump is only a few years old...but i believe there is even a special fuel pump by design for the 1le cars...have to look up the parts numbers in comparson to the stock parts...

Also about the 1LE brakes...a buddy of mine told me that i do something like this or even convert to 4th gen brakes...I'm not really keen on the idea since it's pretty pricey and it takes away the originality of the vehicle (if it wasn't equipped with it)...however stopping power would be very nice and i do plan on hitting some tracks in the nearby future! The more i do things to my car like take away the air pump and air pump tubes...the more i think my car is starting to be a resto-mod. which wouldn't be a bad thing because if it looks stock but isn't, people wouldn't know what you did to your car unless you tell them what you did to your ride, right?
anyways back to topic...

 

Yea just get a baffled tank. It will bolt right in where yours is...just dont ask me how to find one cause i havent a clue lol.

 

The fuel pump is the same, baffled or not. I believe now all aftermarket tanks are baffled, but you could also ask one of the vendors about that before you order. I am sure 1A Tony would be happy to answer your question.

 

1LE is just history of the thirdgens. Same as in the late 60's. The better production line parts came from racing. An all original late 60's Z28 is worth more purely from a collectors point of view. There is a bunch of aftermarket parts available today to make a waaaay better car.

The 89 1LE's will soon enter the collectors arena. They were fastest of the 89's ... off the production line ... and more so with the factory racing prom. It's just cool chit. I almost have all the "race" parts for a players race car available from GM. I find it plain old neato!

My 1988 "1LE" brakes are very cool. They were the first to come on the production line on the Player's cars. The caliper mounts are hand fit, unlike the later mass produced (LOL ... mass = limited production).

Historically speaking ... 1LE's are just cool stuff. Each to their own. If I was building a "race" car, I'd start off with a plain jane car and add stuff. BUT a 1LE car qualifies as a "vintage racer" now, which is even more cool to be racing along side the 50, 60, 70's vintage racers.

... ok I'm bias ...

Mark.

 

If you modify your car, consider a plastic tank from a 98-02 f-body. Yes, a lot more work to install/retrofit in with the thirdgen fuel lines but worth it. No way it can rust, better fuel pump, and the fuel pump sits in something that looks like a cup that fills up with fuel, the charcoal canister is on top of the tank, and the tank physically bolts in because its the same size. They are actually easier to physically bolt in because the filler neck on them is just a rubber hose.

 

Was the 1LE option overated?

At the time they were produced,
no! they were all that and a bag of chips!

But that was well over 17 years or more ago.

The 3rd gen was just starting to get some hp and torque from the TPI engines.
Handling and braking seemed to be more of a concern than the competitors (Mustang).

Today, a 1LE optioned vehicle kept in a "factory condition" without modifications is worth more than other 3rd gens due to the limited production numbers of these vehicles for each year accordingly.
That will be the case when a person becomes one of those numbers matching fanatic ( most of them drive me up a wall).

As far as the brakes, by the time you get all the parts for a 1LE set up, for not too much more $$ you can go baer or wildwood and have superior braking.

The baffled fuel tank came on later model 3rd gens, due to the complaints of non 1LE 3rd gen owners. It is nice to have.

The A/C delete gives you access to the passenger side of the engine.
I live in the south and no A/C sometimes sucks.
Down to night driving with the t-tops off during the summer.

If you do not intend to modify your 3rd gen and want a limited number optioned 3rd gen, then a 1LE optioned car is for you.

 

If you want A/C then get a 89 TTA. It has the same brakes and gas tank.

Dave

 

Or an RS with the B4C "Special service" Package... Or a Firehawk... Or the 92 JY Formula with AC, T-tops AND 1LE that is in Flordia...

John