Importing a '96 CE

[Brooklinite]

Can anyone tell me if a '96 requires any modifications when importing from US?

[Trixie*]

I'm assuming you have checked the admisability against the liston the website : www.riv.ca. I just imported an 08 vehicle and the dealer made sure all the "I"s were dotted and the "T"s crossed. Dealing with the US side of customs went very well but I guess depending on your port of entry, everything must be in order. Seems our Cdn customs will search for any excuse to make it a difficult process. That particular website will pretty much tell U everything U need to know. And to be sure, they will check absolutely everything!

[Brooklinite]

[quote=Trixie*;1563510685]I'm assuming you have checked the admisability against the liston the website : www.riv.ca. QUOTE]

I have now! Thanks, that's what I was looking for.

[McFence]

Hello there everyone - I was having issues to be able to post.

Thank you Brooklinite for getting this started.

I used to own an 88 but got distracted for a few years by the alure of ATV's and Motorcycles. I appologize, and I feel the shame for it!! hehe

Anyways, here is my decision. I can spend 20k max and from what I am seeing I could go with a 98 c5 or any c4 (except grand Sport or ZR1) and one question I have is because the 98 is still the beggining of the c5's is there any reason to avoid them similar to say an 84 - everyone says never buy the first year or 2 of a new model. So opinions on that please.

Is there anything about a mid 90's c4 vrs a c5 that is cheaper to mod or easier to work on??

Basically I am wondering if it's better to stay at 12-15k with a c4 then go to the max of my cash with a c5.

As far as bringing one from the states I found this - hope this link works

http://www.tc.gc.ca/roadsafety/impor...list/VAFUS.pdf

If I am reading it correctly it is saying anything gm from 92 to 2007 mfg'ed before sept 1 2007 is good for canada except for 08 vettes and z06's due to bumpers. There is a 96 silver at a dealer in Texas at 16k with 39k miles that I like and other then getting the paperwork in order I am not seeing any issue with brining it into canada and getting it liscenced. One question about plates - alot of american cars do not have a place for the front plate - is this just a punch out piece or does having a front plate really matter - will I get nailed if I don't bother with that??

Sorry for the newbie questions - hoping to get some good input.

Thank's everyone.

[CDN/AZ LT4]

All 96's have a built in front licence plate area in the front bumper. The '96 C4 came a same colour contoured plate piece that covered the plate location if no front licence plate was required. I had a '96 CE with the LT4 option....great car...wish I had kept it...good luck!

[McFence]

Here is the ebay add I am interested in.

http://cgi.ebay.com:80/ebaymotors/19...QQcmdZViewItem

At 300hp this is not the LT4 correct??

Salesman says super clean as photo's show - but that's always up for interpretation.

Is 16.5 a fair price for a 96 CE like this at 60k or so on it?? The good news is with the computer display there is a function that switches between imperial or metric so no dash changes!!

To my knowledge whenever I see this model in a Cdn autotrader in the summer it's over 20k - useually 25k - so is this a good deal, a be afraid it's to good a deal??

I'd much rather buy from Toronto area where I can see and drive it, but I put a post in the South states asking if someone could inspect it - I'm just not sure about going so far to buy something that I can't drive myself.

[Patman]

Originally Posted by Vetterman555

Anyways, here is my decision. I can spend 20k max and from what I am seeing I could go with a 98 c5 or any c4 (except grand Sport or ZR1) and one question I have is because the 98 is still the beggining of the c5's is there any reason to avoid them similar to say an 84 - everyone says never buy the first year or 2 of a new model. So opinions on that please.

The 84 Corvettes were very troublesome, I owned one and it was a nightmare! I was only 21 years old and wanted a Corvette so badly, but got in way over my head. With the C5, it didn't suffer from the same problems that the early C4s did. My 98 has been super reliable! I bought it with 52,000 km on it and have driven it daily for 3 1/2 years now and have 144,000 on it now. It's only needed two repairs so far, and the last time it was in the shop was two years ago! So that's one bit of proof that you don't need to worry about the early C5s.

The best thing you can do is go out and drive both of them. Some people prefer the C4, they find them a bit more "racecar like" while the C5 might seem a bit too refined for them.

[CDN/AZ LT4]

Yes, the 300 HP is an automatic, all LT4's are 6 speed standards. I think the 96 C4 were the best of the C4's, quite different from the C5 and certainly the C6's. I love my C6 but climbing into my former C4 felt like I was getting into a cockpit. The convertible had a little cawl shake but I still loved it. The C4's are affordable and good value. Hope it works out for you.....perhaps it's worth keeping a eye out for an Ontario car....there are bound to be some sellers as the Visa bills roll in or guys wanting to trade up to great priced C6's over the next month or so. It's still at least 3 months away from good driving.