Jimcol711

I have a 1992 coupe that i LOVE. Its got 126k on the ticker but runs strong and has been ultra reliable. Its i great shape and has been a joy to own for the last 5 years. Its sitting quietly in storage now but I am at the point where I am strongly considering selling it or trading it to obtain a comperable car WITH a backseat.

As it happens to most of us, we end up with a kid (or kids!). I have received no pressure from the wife to ditch the car altogeter but the fact is, it sits idle the majority of the time for no other reason than it doesnt have a backseat. No joyrides, no grocery runs, no road trips, all because we cant pack the kiddo in the car. Finding time to drive it by myself has gotten nearly impossible and so it sits, taking up space and not much else.


What to get though? Whats out there that would be comperable in cost, performance, maintenance, fun-factor, etc, to an LT1 vette?

I am not a fan of the 80s/90s/early 2000's Camaros or Firebirds so thats out.

Have the late model Camaros come down in price yet?

I am not opposed to Mustangs but it would have to be 2005+ as i do not like any of the previous body styles and even that surely is not in the price range of a high miler LT1.

What else is out there? I am also not opposed to going older than my current car although obviously reliability, performance, and overall comfort then become an issue again, more so than corvette anyway.

Any thoughts?

Jbws86928

I ran into this issue a few years ago. It is perplexing because you want to put the child in a car seat and have them ride up front. I say go for it and drive very safe. Best of all possible worlds. Vette with your pride and joy riding with you. I did wait until she could walk and talk. My daughter is now 13 and REALLY enjoys going to shows and riding in the vette. This is a tough call.As far as anything comparable good luck on that.

Texas Stinger

If you can live with 2 extra doors, Impala SS. If not how about a built up G body or 70s F body.

Jbws86928

Good Call !!

dukeallen

I take my 4 year old with me often, and he loves it when I tell him we're riding in the Corvette

Jbws86928

I used to tell folks that I had the only vette in the midwest with a baby seat !!! As far as I knew back then. At 16 you will hear " Dad, can I drive the vette ? " Got 3 years to hear that !!!!!!

96 Vette CE

If you're looking for a car with a little performance that will seat your wife, child, and yourself, I would be looking at either an Impala SS or a Ford Taurus SHO. They are comparable in price range to your '92 and have a back seat.

FOURSPEEDVETTE

If you decide on a 2006 or later Impala SS, be sure to check for hidden rust areas under all the doors, problems with the steeing locking up while driving, repeated inner rear tire wear on the rear wheels and front brake rotors that need replaced every two years because of severe warpage. I was told the front brakes were poorly designed for the weight of this car right from the Chevy dealer! I just traded my 2007 Impala in because of on going gremlins like these. Only the Impala SS and the Impala with the V8 police package seemed to be prone to most of this. Good luck.

cv67

armysnipe

I don't know what price range your looking for, but I love my 2012 SRT Charger Superbee. It's a four door supercar with lots of room for a family. I've had it on a NASCAR track, a road track and even beat a C6 3LT trim in the quarter mile at Milan and its rated at 185MPH, 470 HP, 470 TQ. The only downside is I got it in black and I'm forever cleaning it. Also when I went around the road course I had three people in the car, in the rain, only slid once and got up to about 90MPH at Gingerman. So the brakes and traction control are top notch. Having both is a blast. Maybe one day I'll make the vette a road racer only.

Slow_Lane

Yes I read your post...but I am going to go against your wishes here and reccomend either a 93-2002 F body or a 99-04 Mustang. The 4th gen f body will be the most similar to your Corvette in terms of feel and performance. The Mustang is a fun (and cheap) car to mod. Set up right all are nearly as fun as a C4 to hoon around in. I had a 88 formula, a 94 formula and a 04 Mustang GT during my daughter's childhood. She's grown now and out of the house so I bought the Corvette. Chances are you'll be most happy with a rwd american V8 car. Of all those cars the Mustang is the easiest to live with and our daughter took many trips in the back seat of ours well into her teenage years. The fact that she and my wife are both short helped.

There are other options...a later model mustang or the charger mentioned above. Both would be great if you want to throw some cash in.

A convertible version of any of the above cars would allow you to load the family up and go for a cruise any time and it would probably be something they look forward to. F bodies can be had with t-tops too.
The Impalla SS is a wild card I suppose a Mercury Murauder might be cool too.

Bottom line is there is no car that offers the looks, performance and all round goodness of a C4 Corvette for the price of a C4 Corvette. I think those cars come the closest while having a back seat.

Slow_Lane

Must be. I bought my mother an 09 V6 model which she just traded for a new Ford Edge but the darn thing was flawless. The only repairs were faulty TPMS sensors and the tail lights quit working due to a short in the wiring. Both were easy fixes. We drove a 5.3 SS when she was shopping but well she's my mother and while she likes features the six banger was adequate for her. Me, I would have bought it just for the V8 soundtrack

Impala Balko

I vote for Pontiac G8 GT or GXP if you wanna spend the money.... The G8 GT will hang with the LT1 C4's in the acceleration department.... Or you could look at the Trailblazer SS or 04-06 GTOs, GTOs can be had for under $20k with reletively low mileage and they have plenty of room inside and perform very well.

STL94LT1

You can pick up a 2004/05 Cadillac CTS-v for $16-18k. Four door, 6 speed, and C5 Z06 LS6 engine.

89L98TPI

I second the CTS-V. LS or nothing

JohnTVette

a babysitter

csthews

If you want a loaded family car with a lot of cool add-ons and decent pep, the Pontiac Grand Prix GXP. Paddle shifters and heads up display are both pretty cool.

MRANT212

I have an 08 SS with over 140k miles on it. Cheap car now to buy used. Only issues I had were the rotors which I corrected (EBC drilled and slotted rotors with red stuff pads)and a couple of sensors etc. Trannys are a weak link. Had issues with mine and GM bought me a trans at 112k. Car runs strong, ton of room and 21 mpgs!! I would have gotten a G8 but my prior car couldnt hold out till the G8 was introduced as they kept on pushing the intro off.. The G8 is amazing but on the resale area its big bucks compared to an Imp!! You didnt say how much $$$ you were looking to spend...a CTS-V is a rocket...even the older generation. Sometimes you can find an STS-V for a decent price too....469hp on that one.
I may go with the current CTS-V as my next car but a preowned one.

cv67

CTSV are pretty nice could see it would be easy to be spoiled driving one. Got a little bit of everythign going for it.

Churchkey

Good choice, a buddy has one & loves it.

Early Stangs with the 4.6 v8 are a PITA & under powered. If you like that body style get a 03-04 Cobra with the blown 32V mill, 400+hp, IRS, or 03-04 Mach 1 also 32v mill without blower. 05 to 10 Stangs are still 4.6 motors. 2011 up are the 400+hp 5.0's, 6sp & are a joy to drive.