A guy stopped in my work today to tell me about this car for sale about 35 miles from me. He brought pics, and I took pictures of the pictures, and he had a hand written breakdown of the options. I found it really weird. A yellow, hard top 86 IROC-Z, LG4, 5 speed, with posi, 4 wheel disc brakes, and 3.23 gears. Also no A/C, or body side molding. It was a Canadian car so the odometer is in kilometers, but the car has 56k MILES. I was told the car is absolutely immaculate, and original. The owner has 29 cars, and all are the best of the best as far as condition is concerned. He wants $17,000ish. I thought the car was worth around $13,000. What do you guys think?








Also, another dude stopped by the shop today and showed me pics of a red, 1987 IROC-Z, 5.7 car that just got a full on restoration. New rear quarters, etc. That car is about 40 miles from me in the opposite direction of the yellow one. I thought it was cool to see pics of someone spending a ton of cash to restore one... evidently the car has some sentimental value or something.

 

That's a cool car. I think your 13-ish K is a more realistic price.

 

56K miles and it's an 86 with an LG4 and you guys think it's worth $13k? Seriously?

Maybe it's just me but I don't think my 87 Iroc with 61k miles, L98 and ttops is worth $13k. I'd expect the mileage, year, and low output 305 would really hurt the value.

Edit: Serious question, when did 50K+ mile LG4 Irocs with no options crack the $10k barrier? Last time I looked a LG4 Iroc with under 100k miles was a $8k car in minty condition.

 

You'll pay a premium for yellow my fine fellow.

With that said, I personally wouldn't go over $10K and that's assuming it's M-I-N-T, but $13K is not a crazy price for it either. $17K is the, "it's not really for sale" price.

 

I'm not sure the general populace would pay a premium for yellow, but maybe I just need to look for the 'Yellow paint' check box the next time I look up book values.

 

It is supposedly M-I-N-T. That's why I thought he might actually get a little more money out of it. The owner has a great reputation for being extremely picky, taking excellent care of his stuff, and having the nicest stuff you can find.

 

Yellow is a great color on both Firebirds and Camaros IMO , I’ve only seen one yellow IROC around me and it was in excellent shape and it had eyes. That being said the less desirable engine does matter so 17k might be high. 11 or 12k is probly right but after seeing that MINT Trans am for only $12k with like 10,000 miles for sale on here the other day...

 

Wow love the Yellow. I looked for 6 month for a yellow 1 before I purchased my red 1. $17,000 is way high. I would agree $13,000 is more like it. Not being and LB9 Car.

 

Yeah the Trans Am market has been falling way short of the IROC'S...

 

I could see the less desireable engine not being a big deal to many people looking for these cars. Even the L98 and LB9 feel pretty slow compared to even 90s cars and 90s cars feel slow compared to new cars. People aren’t buying 80s sports cars for the performance... TPI engines do look nicer at a car show though.

I do know many people looking for mint yellow IROCs. It does seem like people will pay a little more for the right color sometimes. I think a yellow, 5-speed in mint condition checks off a couple boxes for a lot of people. There are some people that would prefer driving a manual LG4 over an L98 as well.

If it’s a real IROC and it’s M-I-N-T it’s worth something...

I wouldn’t think you could get top dollar in this current economy though...

I wouldn’t pay it, but I bet someone out there would pay $15k for a yellow 5-speed...

 

Love the Yellow. I looked for 6 months for a yellow 1 before I purchased my red 1. $17,000 is way high. I would say $12,000 to $13,000 since it is not a LB9 car. Yellow does add some to price. their is a nice white 1 on ebay that keeps coming up and not selling high bid was $14,600. They should have taken it last few time it has been around $11,000 range.

 

The combo of 165 hp LG4, 5 speed and 3.23 gears wouldn't bug me that much.

 

Me either. I wouldn’t mind finding a mint black with red LG4 with a stick someday... Especially an 85 with the Lear Sieglar interior!

 

You guys are funny. For every person that is attracted to a yellow thirdgen, there is another that doesn't dig it. For every person thirsting for the 5spd, there are five more that can't drive a stick. It sounds like personal preferences are driving opinions more than any sense of logical objectivity. Can we not agree that 1986 was the ugliest Iroc? Or that the LG4/5spd was the base drivetrain? Y'all need to stop watching Barrett-Jackson, throw caution to the wind and leave the house once in awhile for some fresh air. An LG4 is still a "well that's too bad" and back to the search results, engine.

 

I’m not looking for a yellow one, but I hear quite a bit of people saying they are. There’s probably more people looking for them that there are yellow ones out there which increases demand.

I hear a lot of people looking for flame red GTAs lately too...

Just what I hear and notice...

 

Unheard of.

 

Well that's the thing, not everyone has to like them - just a few have to like them A-LOT! Which they do. You're not going to plug "yellow IROC" in the NADA guide and get a price. Folks either want them or don't. Those that do, really want them. I have a waiting list of people who want to buy my yellow '85 should I want to sell it, (which I don't). Those people WANT a yellow IROC.

 

Hate to say it but id buy a C4 with even lower miles with a REAL engine for the kind of $ this car would bring. It would be a great car to drop a healthy 350 in and keep it looking stock-ish but someone will pay 10k-12k I think but it wouldn't be me.

 

They must not want to buy it bad enough. Money talks, everything has a price, etc. If they wanted a Yellow Iroc bad enough, would they not make you an offer too good to refuse?

 

I keep going back and forth on what I want my "next" Iroc to be.....if even an Iroc, -although it probably will be. Stock, project, survivor, I dunno. ....but I will say I'd prefer it NOT be an 86, and I'd LOVE LOVE LOVE for it to be Yellow. I know this didn't help the conversation one bit, but I'm glad I could be a part of it!

 

Not for sale. I know some people say that coyly. But not me, those who know me know it's not for sale. Plus, my particular friends are too sensible to offer insane numbers like that.

 

I used to LOVE the yellow IROCs. As a Steelers fan it just agreed with me. But yellow is like blue is like green. 9/10 days you love it. 10th day, you're like what was I thinking?!

 

Yellow was trendy in the mid-late 90s to mid 2000s. It got played out pretty quickly on Corvettes and Ford Rangers. Aside from being a mild oddity, I don't really see the attraction anymore.

 

I feed my wife to a tiger for yellow 87 L98.

 

LMAO!!

For a yellow, 87, L98......I won't tell her you said that

 

My personal yellow IROC pecking order.

1) 1987 LB9 5 speed.
2) 1985 L69 5 speed.
3) 1987 L98
4) 1985 LB9
5) LG4 5 speed
6) '86,'87 peanut cam LB9
7) All LG4 autos.

 

...truth be told....I agree....I'd prefer the 5 speed.

 

Wow, this thread ended up being a lot more entertaining than I would've expected.

This car, if not for barely being an IROC, having a 5-speed, and, to some, being yellow, with its mileage, is worth about $8,000, tops, mainly because it appears to be in very good condition. But for "originality," a 3rdgen like this? Forget it. It's 1 of 2.36 million, and not a desirable "1," at that.

What it IS, though, is a good foundation for a project car, turning it into a fun driver, or something "more." No fear that you'd be 'destroying' a relic because, LOL, it ain't! And isn't that exactly what you're looking for, Abubaca?

We all knew you'd get another one. Isn't one reason you sold the 89 is because it was no longer a project, finished, nothing more you could do it it? Come on, you don't really want to keep busy in your spare time by making brake caliper decals, do you? So here you go, a solid car that meets your criteria: yellow and a 5-speed. You didn't say if you wanted a hardtop or T-tops, though. You wouldn't really need an L98, and no worries about chucking the LG4, because you'd just build something else anyway, right? So this could be your next 'Project 3rdgen,' AND you could keep your wife, too.

I think yellow cars from the last twenty years are HOT, especially with black wheels and other black accents. But they're yellow, REAL yellow, BRIGHT and bold, flashy, not dull and milky like the yellows from the 60s and 70s that GM used on 3rdgens. My dad had a milky yellow Malibu Classic in the 70s. Eh... not that there's anything wrong with that.

 

Is this the same car that was advertised in Canada for a while with an L69 air cleaner and advertised as an L69 for a while?

 

Nope, not the same car

 

LAFireboyd you are right if it was a 1 in 2.36 million car it would be worthless. These cars have become classic though. They made probably under 400 Yellow IROC-Zs and as you said it’s a “HOT” color for sports cars. I don’t give a crap about yellow but I know guys that are obsessed with yellow for some reason. It’s a thing.

They probably made less than 4000 yellow IROCs. For a desirable color they didn’t make many.

If the car is as mint as the original post said you have to understand horsepower isn’t the biggest factor in collecting cars. If the car is one of the few hundred left in yellow with a 5-speed the type of people to pony up $12k or more aren’t looking for LS swaps or track times. They are looking for untouched time capsules and something that stands out.

How many other yellow, 5-speed IROCs are for sale right now? Color matters. C4 corvettes are literally a dime a dozen, however a turquoise 1992 with an LT1 auto and 22k miles went for over $20k at auction. If it was red, black or white it would be $9k cheaper. Mint car desirable color. Not desirable to everyone but if you were a car dealer you should be aware of the colors that move cars. When I worked for a dealer and would pick up cars at the auction I would often think he was buying ugly colors but he’d tell me, “this color is hot, it’ll sell fast.. watch!”

You’d never get this car for $8k. He’d probably get $17k if it was TPI though.

 

But it's NOT tpi. It's an LG4. With no AC, no T-tops, etc. The only thing it's got going for it are the stickers on the doors and the **** yellow paint.

Just because it's an Iroc (which sell well), and it's yellow (you like yellow!), and it has a 5spd (you like 5spds!), doesn't make up for the bad year, lack of options, and the steaming turd under the hood. You've gotta look past what YOU LIKE, when considering what everyone values. You can turn the thread into a yellow Iroc circle-jerk echo chamber™, the sun is still going to rise tomorrow and 99.99999% of the world still isn't going to give a ****.

 

I never said I wanted a yellow IROC... just know a lot of people would jump on one. The paint and the stickers are really what has raised the prices too. The Monte Carlo SS from this era was also a turd with an automatic, but find a mint, original one and they sell for more than IROCs...

I’m not arguing that if you know your stuff this is not a super special car... I’m arguing that bankers I know that have extra money and think IROCs are cool and like yellow sports cars would take this car over a red L98 in a heartbeat.

This isn’t about “knowing about thirdgens”... It’s about knowing about sales...

Even guys that know nothing about IROCs know they didn’t make a lot of stick shifts either... People get really excited to see a stick in these cars...

 

Wow,entertaining thread to be sure,
Why no love for 1986 Iroc?
I happen to have one lol
Shawn

 

Hey, I wonder too!

 

I should have scrolled down before posting. LOL!

 

I'd go for a 1986 L69 5 speed yellow. They made a few of them in yellow ...

Mark.

 

Well I would too. It didn't make my list because I've never seen an '86 L-69, let alone a yellow '86 L-69 - but if I did, I'd put it at number 1 on the list.

 

It was the lowest horsepower year and had the third brake light up on the hatch...

They are all pretty low horsepower though.. we’re talking cars from the 80s with under 250hp...

People want them for the looks and the sound of the V8...

I think it’s pointless that they made so many different versions of the same looking car... It wasn’t even that much more money to get more performance, but people didn’t know and GM made it pretty confusing.

Most people looking are going for the color they want first and will let some other things slide. I could have that car sold for $12k and know a buyer that’s been looking for a yellow stick for a while. I know another guy that wants a yellow automatic for his wife because she can’t drive stick.

Both are hoping for “pandemic deals” but are in the under $14k budget range...

 

I had a very similar IROC back in the 90's, except it was black. 86', hardtop, LG4/5-speed, no A/C and no options. It was about as bare bones an IROC as you could get. It handled well and looked good, but that was about it. It was my first car, so I overlooked all of its downsides at first, but I got tired of it pretty quick. It wasn't very fast (that was important to me back then, maybe not so much now) and driving all summer with no A/C really sucked.

As a fair weather cruiser, for a good price, sure. It would be a good candidate for an engine swap, or at least just put a nice sounding exhaust on it and enjoy cruising around.

 

Yep they made them. Only pic I could find. I think they made a few for the 86 Players series. I'd have to go and look at all the Vins and RPOs to tally it.


Photo Credits - Gridworks!

 

Another pic of a 1986 L69 Yellow ...


PhotoCredit Autocourse.ca

 

Wow, awesome! Thanks for posting!

 

Not at all the same thing. A L69 Monte Carlo SS was the best that body was stuffed with, it wasn't the base example like this Iroc. Also the Monte Carlo dropped off the map in 1988 just when things were getting good in thirdgen land, they've had longer to appreciate.

Anyone who would pass an L98 car because it's not Yellow to buy an LG4 car has got to be a frickin' idiot. The difference between the base LG4 and the L69 was night and day. The difference between the LG4 and the L98 is like that island with the spear hurling primitives stuck in the stone ages going up against the 2020 USMC. They're not even in the same league.

 

It's not just that. Just as there's a quantum leap in performance between a LG4 and L69, there's another from an 86 LB9 and say an 89-92 G92 LB9 or L98. Further, the entire car is refined roughly every two years of thirdgen production, and sometimes just from one year to the next. An 86 compared to an 87 is bad enough. When you're shopping for a thirdgen and keep an open mind, you are comparing that 86 with up to a 92. The 92 is generally less rattly, safer, more comfortable, easier to work on, faster, etc, etc, etc. It's almost like they aren't even the same car. People don't like to hear it, they get butt-hurt over it, and wail like babies, but it's the truth.

My first thirdgen was an 83, second was an 87, third was a 91. Two more 91s later, I followed up with a 86 LB9 Trans Am and it was a shock to the system. Going back to working with an early car was a major pita. Since then I've had two other 86s, an 84, and another 91, enough parts from donor cars to practically add a few more to the list. I don't really even think about anything earlier than about 89 anymore. I only keep the 87 for nostalgia, and the potential for the markets to just keep climbing. It's pretty much a constant headache working on the car and keeping it driveable, there's always something it needs.

 

I can attest to that. I went from the 86' LG4/5-speed Iroc to my 89' L98 GTA. The L98 was a monster compared to the LG4. The LG4 really wasn't a bad motor, it just didn't match the rest of what the Iroc package was.

 

I agree with every word you said Drew... I do know a few people that are dead set on yellow IROCs and have passed up other better optioned cars because they just love the car in yellow and that’s what they want to see in their driveway...

People be crazy...

 

I'd buy car purely on color if that was the one I always wanted. For me the copper color or gunmetal grey were the ones I wanted. While I keep an eye out for the combo of options ... if I found one that was "good enough", I'd buy based on color for sure. Far simpler to change an engine out than a paint job. And really if it was an LG4 .. you can only increase the car's value.

It really comes down to price and what you get for it.

Mark.

 

For $17k that yellow Iroc with nearly 60k miles should come with an LS1 already swapped into it.

I have my personal preferences, but really I tend to buy the thirdgens that find me. I haven't really been actively looking for another thirdgen since buying my 87 Iroc. I'd pretty much stopped looking when my Formula fell in my lap. After that they just seemed to find me. The gunmetal gray 91 Firebird was in a junkyard I drove past 4 times a day on my way to and from work. A few were cars people emailed or called me about, a few others showed up at auctions. I've turned down several that were offered cheap, and still need to dump at least one of the cars currently sitting around. The 87 is the logical choice to cull from the herd, but the 305 RS is a close second. If totaled Irocs and LG4 Irocs are worth the insane numbers some people are coming up with, the market is probably about right to start cutting the fat.

 

I'm no longer looking, either. I'm not sure what will hit that switch again. For a long time, I'd buy one car which interested me, spruce it up, have some fun and sell it the following year and then find another. Last summer I bought an '87 Mustang LX notch, which was purposely misrepresented to me, lost interest the moment I got it, sold it immediately and took my lumps. After that, it sort of took the wind out of my sails and haven't looked since.

Regarding yellow, I have long tradition with it. My Schwinn Continental 10 speed was bought with the first $350 I ever made. I specifically wanted a yellow one and still have it. My 1990 VW Corrado G60 was also yellow. My 1979 304, 4 speed, AMX was yellow and of course my 1985 IROC-Z.