joe_gold

I'm looking at first cars and noticed a C4 for sale down the street from me. My parents don't want to buy me one because they think that they are very unsafe. I can't seem to find any crash ratings for these so so any of y'all know how safe a 1985 C4 would be?

jdjenk

Extremely poorly

Its a 35 year old automobile, it doesnt hold a candle to anything new in terms of safety

ghlkal

FWIW https://www.corvetteforum.com/articl...e-c4-corvette/

yakmastermax

If you're trying to convince them to let you buy a C4 Corvette, and you're arguing about crash safety performance, you've already lost the argument lol IMO.

Good luck. I would focus on trying to communicate to your parents your own sense of independence, and your own sense and awareness of the responsibility that you take on driving ANY automobile down the road.

joe_gold

Yeah they seem pretty set on no Corvettes or cars similar to it, so I may try for something else. They seem to be interested in some other classics though so I may try for a classic muscle car or land yacht.

pedricd

If going for a C4, try for a 90+. You will get ABS, airbag and traction control (ASR).

oh and absolutely no convertibles… you want that roll bar of the coupe.

Tom400CFI

Do HPDE's and auto-x's. Learn how to avoid finding out how it will do in a crash....b/c it won't do well.

convas

Tell them it’s either a C4 or a motorcycle

I can still picture my mums face when I came home with a motorcycle

convas

why would they say yes to a classic muscle car and not a corvette?

joe_gold

It was a 1980 el camino specifically. My mom thought it looked nice and it was in good conditions because it had sat in a garage for since the 90s

FAUEE

A c4 will do better in a crash than most other cars from its time frame. It has a large front hood for a crumple zone, and the frame makes more or less a safety cage, and while not up to modern standards, it's very stiff for its time frame of the 80s and early 90s. The frame is stiffer than your average non sports car chassis up to like the mid 00s at least.

That said, it sounds like they just don't want you to have that car. I suspect it's less about safety and more about their perspective. You're not gonna fix that.

yakmastermax

Wise words

hawk454

I remember this crash from when I was in high school. See YT link for crash at above 100 MPH with C4 corvette.


Car splinters and ejects driver...but he has no life threatening injuries.

I traded street-bike for corvette for the wife. It is safer in that aspect...

vader86

Having totaled one, I will say that it can keep you alive. But if you get T-boned on your side by a taller car/truck, which most are now, it may not be a pretty sight.

Nowhere Man

that would be worse

the problem with C4 is how low they sit in relation to all the SUVs and trucks on the road

FAUEE

In fairness, that goes for most cars now. Ever seen what happens when a camry gets hit by a suburban? Not pretty for the camry people.

Hell, our new expedition is probably dangerous to someone in my tbss, and that's saying nothing of trucks or lifted vehicles.

Nowhere Man

true but newer cars are built with more safety in mind and with higher standards for trucks and suvs.

FAUEE

Yeah, for their occupants. If you're on the receiving end, you're SOL.

C4NC_Hillbilly

Preach it Lord Vader.

Railroadman

ANY car that sits for 25 or 30 years is NOT safe to jump in and drive. The tires age from sitting, various seals and gaskets dry out. Brake lines can rust out from moisture that may have been in them. Brake pistons can seize up. If there was any gas left in the lines or tank, it's probably sludge by now. And so on.

You don't give your age but obviously you're still young. As others have suggested, the best way to get their OK is to show responsibility - good grades at school, not getting in trouble, holding a job even if it's part time. And a whole lot of other stuff like that.

FWIW, back when I was a teen (not long after the last dinosaur passed away) my parents told me repeatedly I would not get the family car for cruising. I could use it to go to the store, or maybe run errands for them, but nothing recreational. They said if I wanted a car, I could earn my own money. So I did - I worked a fast food place, then when I was 18 I got a railroad job and took a bus to and from. Eventually I bought my first car - a '59 Vette. They were away on vacation, came home and it was in the driveway. They never raised a single objection. And BTW, the car, and the insurance, were in my name, not my parents. No idea what your family set-up is like, but sooner or later you will be at the age and position to make your own choices. Until then, play by the rules, get your education, and save up your money. (that's mugs of root beer, presuming you are under 21 )