Why is it so hard to find a nice lt1 car now?

[david068513]

I'm not looking to buy till I sell my car right now but damn you can't find one for a decent price. 1 year ago I bought a 96 z with 44k miles for 3500 and the car was mint. I found one with 85k miles for 7k and one with 70 k miles for 8,900 and one with 55k mikes for 10 that's a vert. Really that much? That is ls1 area. It's pointless! What happened?

[Chris]

I am in the same boat as you, I was in the market till I realized everyone thinks they are sitting on a gold pile of shit. I was completley ready to buy a lt1/3rd gen to start as a project again next year but people are just crazy. So unless I find a hell of a deal I am now looking else where for a project car. On a side note I dont think you would find me paying that much for ls1 even unless it was lower mileage

[Blubird]

It's not 1997

[CamaroGirl]

well, it's no lt1, but i've found an 87 Z for 2500 in mint condition.
i've also found a 4th gen lt1 for 4000. really good deals just kinda fall into your lap when you're not looking. seems to be how things work out.

[david068513]

I am in the same boat as you, I was in the market till I realized everyone thinks they are sitting on a gold pile of shit. I was completley ready to buy a lt1/3rd gen to start as a project again next year but people are just crazy. So unless I find a hell of a deal I am now looking else where for a project car. On a side note I dont think you would find me paying that much for ls1 even unless it was lower mileage

I can understand some third gen prices, they are getting pretty old, a rare low mile rare model can be worth money, but a everyday auto no option z28 lt1 car is 8k no thanks.
I'm sure I'll find a decent one but everyone thinks they are worth more then other styles now. Idk why.

[CamaroGirl]

I can understand some third gen prices, they are getting pretty old, a rare low mile rare model can be worth money, but a everyday auto no option z28 lt1 car is 8k no thanks.
I'm sure I'll find a decent one but everyone thinks they are worth more then other styles now. Idk why.
see, therein lies the issue. once people start putting money into a car, be it maintenance, or aftermarket goodies, they automatically think the car is worth that much more money. the bf's parents had a 95 vert, auto, lt1, completely bone stock, 150k, and they wouldn't let it go for less than 10. i kept telling them they were dreaming, they'd NEVER get that. believe it or not, they traded it in on an h3. dealership gave them..wait for it...12 GRAND on TRADE in. sight unseen. my guess is either they had a sale lined up or they really wanted to get rid of the hummer. either way, stupid.

[david068513]

see, therein lies the issue. once people start putting money into a car, be it maintenance, or aftermarket goodies, they automatically think the car is worth that much more money. the bf's parents had a 95 vert, auto, lt1, completely bone stock, 150k, and they wouldn't let it go for less than 10. i kept telling them they were dreaming, they'd NEVER get that. believe it or not, they traded it in on an h3. dealership gave them..wait for it...12 GRAND on TRADE in. sight unseen. my guess is either they had a sale lined up or they really wanted to get rid of the hummer. either way, stupid.

Mods make the price less IMO most people dont want a modded car. People are stupid. You can't buy a 3k car and put 10k in it and think it's worth 13k..

That dealership Just lost a lot of money

[Chris]

I doubt that dealership lost any money. They know what they have to do to make a profit and they just let the customer think they are getting a good deal.

I am personally looking for a Jeep,2500HD Chevy or Subbie as my next project.

[95formula383lt1]

I'm asking 6500 for mine, its modded... a lot. I'm not trying to get my moneys worth back i know i never could even with a folder of receipts that double my asking price. I find amazing deals on craigslist all the time, cheap mint lt1 cars even cheap ls1 cars. On craigslist you gotta take into consideration that not everyone knows how to spell so use key words like camEro, fire bird (instead of firebird) TransAm (instead of trans am). that's how ive found the deals that i have had in the past.

[Chris]

The last car I bought my blue lt1 camaro, there was nothing left to do on it short of going boost or an engine swap. I paid 6k for it with 30k with of receites and when I say there was nothing left to do to it. I think I coulda put a cage in it. There was nothing else I could buy to bolt on. Shit I even sold it for 5500 and I blew the t56 in it. My lt1 transam I had was hotcammed with pretty much nothing done to it (latter it got a built transmission but I wasnt really out anymoney on it) I paid 3k cash for that car and sold it for 4500 after I kept having issues with it among other personal issues with the car.

[david068513]

I'm asking 6500 for mine, its modded... a lot. I'm not trying to get my moneys worth back i know i never could even with a folder of receipts that double my asking price. I find amazing deals on craigslist all the time, cheap mint lt1 cars even cheap ls1 cars. On craigslist you gotta take into consideration that not everyone knows how to spell so use key words like camEro, fire bird (instead of firebird) TransAm (instead of trans am). that's how ive found the deals that i have had in the past.
See I understand your asking price cause of what's done to it. I'm talking about stockish, lightly modded cars that people want a bunch for. There is one on my local craigslist with 215k miles with cam and exhaust and wanted 6500. I mean that's crazy. If it was low miles I could understand that price. I'm looking at mild bolt on cars and the prices are crazy and most are autos! I mean really?

[SoulReaver]

Do you guys think 5000 is too much for my car? Seriously. All opinions welcome. 110K on the clock.

[Chris]

Do you guys think 5000 is too much for my car? Seriously. All opinions welcome. 110K on the clock.


A true ss car ? Anymore details on it ?

[~chipsahoy~]

Do you guys think 5000 is too much for my car? Seriously. All opinions welcome. 110K on the clock.


No, but then again I haven't seen it in person. I would say your car would fall into that $6500+ category. It looks clean as hell, and was tastefully done.

My car is going up for sale in the spring. I'm not sure on the price yet, but I need the money to finish my basement that way the wife can get off my ass about having kids. FML...

[SoulReaver]

A true ss car ? Anymore details on it ?

Yeah it is a real SS. Mods are mostly in sig. I don't think there's too much more than that. I have the SLP hood off the car and in my garage to prevent damage, if any. I'm trying to preserve that. I did the ls1 brake conversion, which of course is a big plus. The car has a VFN 3 Inch SS on it right now. I'm about to upgrade the interior a bit. SOme of my LED's are flickering, so I'm gonna re do those. I'm also redoing the floor mats. The original SS mats have seen better days.


No, but then again I haven't seen it in person. I would say your car would fall into that $6500+ category. It looks clean as hell, and was tastefully done.

My car is going up for sale in the spring. I'm not sure on the price yet, but I need the money to finish my basement that way the wife can get off my ass about having kids. FML...

My car is going up in the spring too, if not sooner. I'm trying to get a good accurate price on it. I'd really love if someone on the forum picked it up. I thought 5000 was a very fair price. I originally thought 6500-7000 but then thought nobody would pay that for a 97 LT1. Lol. Guess I was wrong!

[Chris]

Id be interested at around the 5k price range. Not anything anything above it though. Theres a big difference between what people think it is worth and who is actually in the market.


Can you shoot me some pictures and more info on it? I may be looking to pick something up come spring next year if you still have it around.

[KissMyWhtSS]

Randall - I'd sell it with the stock hood/wheels/tires for $6500 obo then sell the hood/wheels/tires separately to gain another $700-1000. What are you looking to replace it with?


To the OP - I'm assuming there aren't a whole lot of nice LT1 cars in the winter because most of them are off the road for the winter, and if their owners are thinking about selling them they are waiting until next season when they will be worth more. Keep a steady eye out, and don't rush into anything. They are only going to get cheaper unless it's a particularly rare model (Firehawk, WS6, Pace Car, SS, etc.)

[~chipsahoy~]

Let me put it this way: It is always best to start high and work your way lower, rather than starting low and selling...then wondering "what could have been."

While you may come across high prices on cars, you need to keep in mind that the economy is tough and those selling their rides are looking for every penny they can muster. If someone wants to pay $8000 for a car that you deem isn't worth it, then that is their problem and not yours. Keep looking and the right little "gem" will pop up within your financial range.

Good luck, and when you find the right car post pics so we can see!

[Rob]

I'm thinking of selling the WS6 but I doubt I could get what its worth in this economy. 65K miles on the car, about 17K engine(replaced under warranty due to pickup falling off...4 bolt mains!), trans was replaced under warranty around 30K miles or so. I ordered the car and sold it in '01 to a buddy of mine. He put 2500 miles on it in the 8 years he owned it. Then I bought it back almost 2 years ago. I've put about 4K miles on it since.

It has mods and has normal wear for a car that was daily driven the first 5 years of its life. Last time at the track it ran 12.4 but that was back in '01. Still love driving it but it usually just sits in the garage next to the goat.

Just rambling on...

[jaysz2893]

mine is worth more wrecked than together thanks to collector insurance. Otherwise I have not noticed ppl selling them so high as OP said.

[QC97Z]

I bought my '97 Z28 in April of 2008. Had 71,XXX on the clock, M6, T-tops, bad headliner, interior was about a 7 or 8 out of 10, paint/body about an 8 out of 10. Drove 5 hours to Indianapolis to get it, paid $8,500 for it.
It's hard to find a good shape LT1 M6 with a T-Top anymore. The ones you find are beat to hell because (no offense to the younger guys) the 16-21 year old crowd bought it and abused it.

Call me a fool for paying "too much" for my car, but it depends on what you think it's worth. I wanted a lower mileage LT1 that was mostly stock. This one just had a K&N CAI, MSD 6A box, Borla catback, and a Centerforce clutch. That's really not very modded...considering everything is an easy return to full stock except for the clutch.

Now I've got well over 25K in extras on the car, and it's still stock-looking. I've done everything as top-notch as possible, making everything look like GM would have wanted it.

[Blubird]

my car will be 18 years old in april.do you guys really expect to find a "low mile" lt1 these days ? who cares how many miles are on it,my car could have 500k and i wouldnt care.i bought my car to drive it not for it to sit in the garage as a collectors item and being affraid to drive it and put miles on it...by what you guys are saying "hey i want to buy a 67 camaro but i wont buy it unless it has low miles and im not gonna pay more than 5k for it..hell! they only cost 2k brand new!"

[jaysz2893]

well on that note I paid $7,000 for my car in 2001. It had 39K mies and was absolutly stock down to a paper GM air filter. I must say though as the LT1 got less desirable over the LS1, I have seen a lot of young guys rat them out pretty bad.

[faust]

hell i bought my 95 off the show room floor and in the last 15 years. i have enjoyed every one of the 151,000 miles the wife and i put on it.

[AChotrod]

I paid 11.5k for my 96 Formula WS6 almost 3yrs ago but it was almost bone stock(had a B&B catback) M6, hardtop with cloth and 27k on the clock.
I also know where there is a bone stock 97SS with 19K for 12.5 if anyone is interested.

[Camaro_94]

Do you guys think 5000 is too much for my car? Seriously. All opinions welcome. 110K on the clock.

Seems like it would be a good deal on the buyers end to me, thats if its clean and has no problems.

From what I've seen, there are a TON of good deals down south on cars. 99% chance of my SS being gone by the end of the week, and I've seen some unbelievable deals down in Texas. F-bodies, Mustangs, Vettes, Etc. And theyre all clean and rust free too.

[CamaroGirl]

my car will be 18 years old in april.do you guys really expect to find a "low mile" lt1 these days ? who cares how many miles are on it,my car could have 500k and i wouldnt care.i bought my car to drive it not for it to sit in the garage as a collectors item and being affraid to drive it and put miles on it...by what you guys are saying "hey i want to buy a 67 camaro but i wont buy it unless it has low miles and im not gonna pay more than 5k for it..hell! they only cost 2k brand new!"
pretty much

[Captain Dirtymax]

i seem to be able to find a lot of cheap LT1's around here. there was a guy selling a CLEAN LT1 T/A a few weeks ago (70k mile LT1, auto) for $2500 with a bad fuel pump. i can find them under $6k all day long here.

[david068513]

Hmmm in north ga I couldn't find one. Most are Probley holding to sell them around tax time though plus it's cold.. No snow here but about once a year so most the cars are daily driven. Maybe I'm not looking that hard since I'm trying to sell my Third gen and won't have the money till it's gone.

[BIGT94z]

you just have to search search and don't be afraid to go 1000+ miles. i searched for 6 months for mine when i knew i wanted to get back into the lt1 game. all the local cars had 120k+ miles and wanted 6k+ for car's that looked rough or abused. i paid 6800 for a 95 m6 with 90k miles, bolt on's, gears, mint leather yada yada yada. flew to phoenix and drove the car 1200 miles home in 1 day. when you have the funds just search eventually something will pop up. These car's are getting some age on them so its hard to find a clean low mile chassis

[DopdBrd]

I'm with AC on this, bought mine around 4 years ago with a LE2 kit for 10,500. It has went through some changes but now the stock motor is getting put back in it and it is going back to stock. Has 89K on it and is a true WS6, I'd like to get 7,500 out of it.