I am about to buy a thirdgen at a dealers auction.

Out of all the engines and trannys available,what should I look for for RELIABILTY? I'm going to be driving to Texas from florida and I dont want any problems...how are the Camaros at long distance travel?

Thanks.

 

The problem is not with camaros, but with buying a car at auction and then driving so far. Will you have any downtime? If the car is in good mechanical condition then you shouldn't have any more problems with a camaro then any other car.

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89 Iroc-Z LB9 305 TPI auto 2.73 posi:
3" Dynomax "cat" back,K&N filters, TB bypass, 3" pipe in place of cat, cleaned and flow-matched injectors, 180' thermo, mild ignition mods, synthetic oil, kicker sound system, soon to attempt engine swap...

 

Yeah after I get it its gonna be looked completely over and a full tune up,the works. I cant wait to go cruisin...

 

Well.. I've never seen an engine more reliable than the 305's and 350's in camaros. But of course it all depends on previous owners and how they treated it.

As far as tranny's go, I've heard that the TH700r4's are somewhat weak and sometimes prone to breaking.. But I've only had two camaros. The first one's tranny was original with 200k miles on it and rock solid. Then again the second's tranny broke after only 60k miles. Who knows.

They're definately reliable, but I don't know if I would trust a car I just got on a long distance trip. Maybe it gets horrible gas mileage? Maybe it overheats if driven too long? There could be many other quirks that don't pop up until you take that long trip and something leaves you stranded in the middle of nowhere.

Anyways, there's my two cents.

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89 iroc-z 305 tbi
everything stock, except for a mirror that fell off

 

Cars at dealer auction typically have a warrenty. In Cali, there are three classes of vehicles that go down the line: Best class has a dealer warrenty, usually thirty days, the next class has been through a multi-point inspection, but may not have a warrenty. Last class is pretty much as is. Inspect carefully the no-warrenty cars. As far as reliablity, these cars can sometimes nickel and dime you to death. Again, if it has been maintained, that may not figure into the picture. Good luck.

 

The 305's pretty much cant be beaten as far as reliability. My 91 305tbi has 200,000 miles on it, still running strong. As far as the trannys, i know the later model 700r4's ( i believe 87+, maybe 89+) are stronger...mine still shifts great after 200,000 on it. no slipping. From what i hear, these things can take a lot of abuse too (although i wouldnt recommend it.) Some people have TRIED to kill their 305's and havent succeeded