chief455

After over 30 years in the muscle car hobby, I've only driven 2 Corvettes. A 1970 350 automatic, it was so slow and clunky I was turned off for years. A 1976 with modded motor. It handled pretty tight - liked it, but was again, too slow.
now - I've driven 60's,70's, 80's, 90's and new Mustang, Fairlaines, Torinos, Roadrunners, Dusters, GTO's, Firebirds, etc, etc
How would you describe/compare the C4 driving experience?
I'm prepared for slow at my current age and know how to make things faster - but, getting in/out - filling up with gas, 5 hour drives for fun, how do they rate?
And - how is wind noise with the convertible?
thanks for input!

pologreen1

wind noise is not bad for me.
I have had 22 cars total, and been in many.

I had a coupe like the vert better.

SQUIRMIN VERMIN 84

ha... looong time ago! favourite was my '54 stude lowboy 5-window coupe with a stude 289/4bbl/paxton supercharger. first time I hauled down a vette and beat him (a 1961-131 mph), on rural end of whittier blvd in l.a. back in 1966!

ok, old story but it DID have a vette in it!

note: I was young and stupid back then! never considered the terrible risk of streetracing!
youngsters, don't do this! ain't worth it! find a track! more fun, less risk!

jonzcustomshop

my 90 vert has made driving a car fun again, every time I drive it is just awesome.
the other day I drove the wifes 03 grand prix, my moms 01 caddy, my 65 chevy truck, and my vette, besides having to crawl out of the vette(getting in is n.b.d.) the vette was the best!

UK guy

well i own a 64 Madison, 68 Cadillac, 70 Daimlar, 71 Mk3 Ford Cortina, 86 Vet, 93 Mercedes sl300, 2003 Dodge Ram Hemi, A Renault Van and the wife's got a 2009 Audi tt

the most comfy is the Dodge

the best handing is the Audi

the cheapest was the Madison

the most fun by far is the Corvette ! More smiles per mile than any other car i've owned and i've had 82 other cars !!!!

RetiredSFC 97

I've driven everything from the early chevelles, the t birds, roadrunners, GTOs, chargers challengers, camaros and cadillacs and some I have forgotten about.

The Corvette is by far the best driving experince I have ever had.

But I did love the other cars as well.

The closest thing to the corvette was the camaros for me.

My Dodge Ram is comfy for a PU and I love my STS but I can't seem to get comfortable in it. I also feel like I am falling all over the place in corners. But it will run with the Corvette on the open highway all day long!

Blackhole

*65 Mustang-worst handling car I ever had
*70 Roadrunner-2nd worst handling car
*75 Formula Firebird-Great cornering average braking no power (350 ci)
*80 Trans Am-Also no power (301ci) but 22mpg
*79 Trans Am-WS-6 -6.6L plenty of power great handling great brakes
Other daily drivers that don't count (pickups, SUV)
I loved the way the 2nd generation Firebirds handle especially on the edge of traction, the built in oversteer scruffs off speed in corners and lets you slide around the turn with great feedback, My 85 Vette just keeps holding on till it lets go and I get that oh s**t neck strain when it grabs again, much more violent recovery.

Joe C

i've driven all kinds of cars over the past 45 years or so. my first drive was my uncle's 59 buick electra 225. i was about 14 or 15, and my two cousins and i lifted the keys from my uncles coat pocket, not just once, but a couple of times for a quick joy ride. we were damn lucky, we didn't get into some serious trouble. corvette wise, my first drive was my brother-in-law's, 1967, 427 L89 roadster - yep a real aluminum head BB. the year was 1968 - back then, nobody really gave a ratsa$$ about any collectability or anything - it was just another corvette. over the years, i've had a 62 corvair (my first car), a 63 impala, three fords including a 1971 mustang, a 67 sunbeam alpine, a couple of VWs, 2 buicks, a chevy blazer, a couple of pickups, a jeep, a couple hondas, and seven corvettes.

azrocketman

I purchased a new 1986 Mustang GT hatchback. Good acceleration but it would plow straight during an autocross. The car cost me around $15K. I purchased my '86 convertible in July from the original owner. The Vette listed for almost $35K. I have not autocrossed the Vette yet but I suspect it will do better than the Mustang. Acceleration seems somewhat better for the Vette. Ride and comfort are comparable. I'd say, comparing then new costs that the Mustang may have been the better value. One sure thing is, the Vette is horrible for cargo space compared to the Mustang.

I still own two 1966 Corvairs with 110 HP engines. Quarter miles are best timed with a calendar. Handling is very good and will give pony cars of similar vintage (except Z28s and Boss 302s) a run for their money. The Corvairs are fun to throw around on a handling course but they do not have the thrills of a higher powered car.

Steve

Vette Daddy

Over the years, I've had a bunch and driven even more. I have 53's with the six poppers and C4 six speeds. My favorite car was a 1966 GTO. Loved it. It was a one owner car that was nearly perfect. 389 4 speed. I bought a 96 CE, red interior AT. That was the best handling new car that I ever purchased. Very nice and tight.

I test drove a Porsche 911 a couple of years ago. VERY nice. It paled in compaison to the test drive in a 2008 Z06 though. THAT was the fastest car I have ever driven. I want one really bad!!!!!!

My 90 six speed is probably my most fun car. It's my parts getter car. Just a $5500 daily driver that you don't have to worry about. One heck of an Ebay purchase.

RetiredSFC 97

The 66 GTO is one of my favorite cars. My BIL had one and I used to dream about buying it from him. Ha, never happened.

389 4 speed with 3 deuces, which are a pain to keep timed together.

Vette Daddy

They're great cars. I've made a deal on a 69 GTO conv in trade for labor on a project I'm doing for a real nice guy. Can't wait to get it!!

Jon Hekking

Many cars, but's here's the top 5 (other than my vettes);

1. 1965 Impala SS 409 4sp car; power, power, power! (just don't try to turn or stop)

2. 1967 GTO 400HO 4sp car; lot's of power, better handling

3. 1977 Trans Am 455 Auto; nice cruiser

4. 1965 Caddy Eldorado; Sweetest ride

5. 1998 Mustang Cobra; too bad it was a Ford

RedVette84

69 GTO (400/4spd) and a 73 Roadrunner (340/slap stick auto) with custom paint. I did have a 67 Post Office Scout with a half of a V-8,right hand drive,two wheel drive,ten gallon tank (got 8 mpg) and had absolutely no power.

Low12s

427 67 Camaro, 1970 Z28, 73 Vette, 80 911, 85 Vetter, 05 vette

motorjunkie

Sporty / Muscle cars:
84 300ZX Nice comfortable (scary handling from trailing arm rear susp.)
84 Mustang GT. T Tops. Hatch rattled like mad. TRX package. Handling nothing to brag about
86 Toyota Mr2 Anemic, sprung oil leak.
74 Datsun 260z Cool car lots of fun, lots of trouble. Maybe it was a lemon.
90 and 92 Ford SHO- Interstate cruise missile. Multiple 145mph speed runs. Fastest Cross country run in the 90, average 87mph 300 miles!
66 Galaxie fastback factory big block: Stump puller "magic carpet" handling
87 635 CSi BMW=This was james bond's BMW. Low on power, High on finesse.
92-94-95 E36 3 Series BMWs. Razor handling fun to drive, decent power. Interiors were crap. They run forever, electrical gremlins expensive hard to find parts were the downers (My Second Favorite Driver's Car)
65 Mustang: Terrible understeer! The worst I have ever experienced
68 Mustang: Much Much better. The later cars had better geometry
79 Trans Am. 403 big block. Fun Fun Fun. Doughnut Mosheen
84 Corvette. Almost as fast as my Brother's 91 and cheaper. Closest thing to race car handling of any car I have driven.

Driven, not owned
94 Pontiac Firehawk: Fast and tight
95 Trans Am auto: Not as fast or tight
82 Corvette. Muscle like the Trans Am but more finesse.
81 Corvette Black on Black 4 spd. This car was lots of fun. Like the 82 but the 4 spd brought a whole new flavor. Both of the c3s were my brothers and they were noisy on the highway, lacked the refinement of the C4
98 BMW M3 Even more razor like precision than regular 3 series, more power, crappy interiors, not enough torque
98 LS1 Z28. Fast like a Corvette, but handling not nearly as tight. Great interstate car
91 C4 auto. A few choice mods and this car would burn the house down. Still return 27 mpg highway. Awesome.

Enough for now

chief455

Cool replies - glad I asked!
I too have had hundreds of cars and driven most everything except foreign exotics.
I am a Pontiac man after being stricly Ford into my 20's.
The sexy lines of a '67 Mustang fastback, '69 Mach 1, - timeless. But - no brakes, predictably poor handling and the window fell into the doors, ***** pulled off, just cheap. But my 302 solid lifter cam/4 speed 70 Mach 1 was feared by all back in 1980
My best friend had a 25 year owned, twice off the frame with a black 66 GTO 4 speed - converted me to Pontiac.
I opted for a '69, built it all the way up to 600+ hp on pump gas, then went into pro street '70s Firebirds.
So - the vette, even if challenged in power or reliability - just has an addictive driving appeal?
do they just feel like a kid on a go-kart? what is the attraction?
I'm torn between my 9th verision of 4th generation Firebird or a '90 vette convertible right now.
the 'bird has mods so will be faster with LS power and handle well - plus easy to get out of and holds a jacket in the back. And with 8 before, I know what I'm getting into. Same cost for either car....
Why am I still looking at the old vette?

VetteTheWorld

First lets say I love driving my C4. Other performance cars I have driven include a 2007 Mustang GT, 1994 Corvette, another 1991 Corvette and thats about it. Compared to the Mustang the Corvette was 10x better. Other non-performace cars I have driven include: 08 Civic, 03 Jetta TDI, 04 Pilot, 83 Nissan Truck, 98 Beetle TDI (Powered by Vegetable Oil), 08 Accord, 04 Camry... I have only had my restricted license for 1 year and i would say I have driven some good cars in that short time period. Corvette=Best

mazdaverx7

the cars that i currently own are:

84 Corvette 37K Light Bronze 4+3
05 RX-8 Sport 34K Brilliant Black 6spd
80 RX-7 LS 61K solar gold. 5spd
85 RX-7 GS(with 13B EGI) 143K ocean blue 5spd
85 RX-7 GS 150K ocean blue 5spd
85 RX-7 GSL 114K sparkling black 5spd
88 10th Anniversary RX-7 96K crystal white 5spd
92 Camry SE 125K 3VZ-FE 5spd
63 Ford Falcon 99K 170 I6 3spd completely restored
88 F-150 124K 5.0L 5spd 4x4

i'm partial to the Vette over most but i can say that the 84 is an engineering marvel and a well build car. its got its issues but its extremely reliable and extremely fun..even if it is the so called anemic crossifre. i love the car and wouldn't change a thing.

96 Vette CE

Cars i currently own;

1996 Corvette CE

2000 Dodge Dakota 4x4 4.7 liter engine

2000 Toyota Celica GT

Cars i used to own;

1969 Mustang w/351 engine

1970 Oldsmobile Cutlass w/455 engine