Hey, I have been looking at a 3rd gens for awhile for my first real car and had a few questions. I was wondering which cars had airbags because my parents will not want me in a car without airbags. Also did they ever have passenger airbags? Also when did they start putting intermitten wipers in? Ive been looking at 350 or 305's with 5 speeds and it looks like to get a good one i should be willing to pay around $5000-6500? Does that sound about right? Thanks

 

91-92 have driver airbags, both camaro and firebird. Our cars never got passenger airbags, at least not in the US market. I think delay wipers were an option for all years, my 83 had them. 5 to 6k should definitely find you a nice, reliable thirdgen.

 

90's had an air bag too (right?) They changed the dashes a bit then...thought the air bag wheel came out then too

 

Thanks for the replies, what would it take to put airbags on a car without them?

 

a HUGE bag of cash. This is not some thing that can be feasiably retrofitted to a vechicle that did not come with air bags in the first place.

 

Damn I was afraid of that, what triggers the airbag in an accident? Maybe I just wont tell my parents that they dont have airbags..

 

Possibly, I'm not sure if the 90 model cars got them or not. I know for sure than 91 and 92 do though.

 

I don't know what your relationship is with your parents. This issue isn't worth losing the trust of your parents just because you lied. They'll find out the truth at some point. If you're buying the car all by yourself, that's a better point to discuss as to what YOU want to buy. Driver's side airbags were required for cars built after September 1, 1989.

 

90-92 had a driver side airbag. As a general rule, don't lie to your parents. They aren't as clueless as you might think.

 

Thanks fellas that's all i really need to know for now.. that's too bad though because i fell in love with the irocs.

 

that try to find a 1990 iroc they have airbags

 

I don't think that this is correct. my wifes 93 Cavalier didn't have any air bags.

 

**** dude with 6500 dollars you can MAKE the car have airbags

 

not to mention if you think about it...i've read that air bags have a life span of 7-10 years...going on 20 years of age...are they even "worth it?" I mean yea it's piece of mind to parents, i get that, i've had to talk my rents into letting me behind the wheel of a non-air-bag car in the past, but with that age it isn't even guaranteed to work. Just on the issue. I respect parents in their wishes.

As far as $6500...ur guaranteed to find something that you'll like.

 

I think for $6500 you should get a nice 4th gen 93-97, they have passenger airbags, plus an LT1, and you can get a 6 speed trans, with a 350 engine. IMHO its a WAY better car, if I had the cash, I would have one, but I live within my means, and my toy is only a 3rd gen haha. Good luck, do LOTS of research before you settle on any car. Dont fall in love with it before you buy it, be skeptical, that seems to help in making a rational decision about the vehicle you are looking at.

 

The reference was for thirdgens.

 

Thanks everyone for the answers, i will continue to look for 3rd gens, but i will focus my efforts towards 1990 or later.. The reason I was looking at the 3rd gens is because the insurance is cheaper than most new cars, the insurance of a 4th gen would be quite a bit more.

 

My mother just said that she thinks that my car needs ABS. She also said I should not be worried about performance. She drives a corvette..

So when did cars start getting ABS and is it really that much of an advantage if you have 4 wheel discs? Also does anyone know if the fox body mustangs had more safety features than the same year f bods? I know it is a ford.. What other cars could I look at for the same $5500 price range that maybe have more safe things but arent complete dogs?

Thank everyone for their input it has been helpful.

 

not 100% sure but the abs was put on cars in 94 so ur not gona get a third gen with um and i dont thik they help much eny way and the mustange dont have eny more safty then the camaros/firebirds that i know of

 

Thanks cameron, does anybody out there know for sure if the 3rd gens got anti lock brakes? Sorry for all the safety questions but my mom is getting strict on this stuff. Another thing is I was wondering if these are well made cars because I dont want to end up putting a bunch of money into it. I know that depends on the car. Thanks

 

if they r well takin care of there great my rs has 288,000 miles on it and still runing strong but u gota watch it cause alot people beat the **** out of thses cars and dont take care of them

 

Third gen f-bodys are great cars, but if safety is your primary concern for your first car, you should probably get something else. I'm not trying to deter you away from the cars. You can always get a nice little safe car, and after you have a year or two under your belt of driving get a nice clean 3rd gen with that money you have saved up. The money you want to spend could buy you a sweet third gen if you shop around. Also, it would be better to experiment/hack up a car that you dont like and learn from mistakes before you get a model that you are really after.

 

with the hacking up a car u dont like first cause my camaro is my first car and i dont really want to tear into it cause i dont wont to break eny thingthats y im tryin to buy antother one that i can tear into and if i mess up somthing o well

 

thank you for sharing your wisdom chevy it was helpful. I am going to drive my families chevy blazer for awhile to get the hang of the road. I know I will get bored of that quick because it is a slow piece of trash. I think that after that i may not need abs maybe not even airbags after a year of experience..
Thanks everyone and do the TBI cars have much potential? Because I see they are a decent amount less expensive than the tpi cars. Are there many mods that you can do to wake up the tbi without a whole bunch of mods?
Sorry for all the questions, let me know if im asking too much
thanks

 

the tbi car dont have much potentail the ones with the most r the 350s. tbi is what the 305s got and they dont have much to work with u could make them have alot of power with alot of money and time but its just easyer with a 350 and all those got the tpi.and no ur not asking to meany ????s thats what this web sites for and y we all r hear to help people and to get help

 

A 1992 Z28 is probably going to be the best in terms of stock power/horsepower of any Thirdgen. You should be able to get one for cheaper than $6K.

Check Craigslist, I always find good Maro's for cheap there. I got my 1992 with 150K needing just a minor tune up and flywheel for $1,000.

 

ya craigslist is good im lookin at geting a rs there for 500$ on there

 

Thanks i looked on craigslist but there arent too many in my area ( maryland ). I was looking at wondered if there is much of a difference in ride or handling between the rs and z28/iroc.

 

keep saving your money and go for a 4th gen camaro , my buddy got a super clean 97 LT1 6SPD camaro for 7k, 100k miles, 18'z06 rims, borla cat back ABS and all the other safty crap u wanted....runs like a raped ape......for your budget you can geta real good stock car, dont get a third gen unless you are prepared to sink money and time into it, they are old and in need of maintnance and some decent work to make them pretty fast otherwise you will be joining the ranks of the other teens with 305 tbi camaros asking if there car will beat a honda.... ive got about 5k in my IROC and shes not even street driven yet...

 

Okay quick story of mine. I bought my 1988 iroc-z right when i graduated from high school. I loved it to death. I had the 350 tpi with a 100 shot of spray.

Within two weeks my injectors went, then other misc. stuff. Now i have pulled the motor and tranny out and im building a monster.

Be prepared that typically when you want to go or if you do go faster stuff will break also. You willl always want to go faster than what you did before too. Its and addiction. SO thinking on those terms remember what you will getting into down the road. Abs are useless IMO. doesnt make anything fun.

These cars are awesome and easy to work on. its a great learning tool.

 

I dont mind working on the thing every once in awhile, but i dont think that I will need to "sink" money into a 3rd gen.. I was hoping to drive it and replace a couple things.. and upgrade some. Also I was looking at the supercharged pontiac GTP. Does anyone have any opinion on those cars. I think it might be too much power through the front wheels. Thanks

 

Just buy a 3rd gen thats had alot of work done with bills to prove. These are the car that people have sunk alot of money into but can't recover the costs---they are sold at a loss.

Mines been dead reliable after a bad MAF burn off relay.

GTPs have some torque steer but I don't believe it to be notorious. GM has put 300hp in FWD.

 

just find one thats has low miles and is well taken care of