1986 Corvette - 4+3 manual

Entirely respectable driver quality car. 82k miles, 4+3-speed manual transmission

Dark red metallic / black interior

Car is about 80% sorted out. Purchased in January 2016 and I've been working through it steadily since. Runs just fine and doesn't absolutely need anything right this minute, but there are some areas that could use some attention.

Cosmetic -

Paint is pretty good, looks like a good quality respray in the not too distant past. A few nicks here and there. Interior was redone by a previous owner in black (not graphite) with new carpets, door panels, and seats. Looks good, but some of the hatch trim pieces could be replaced. I replaced the passenger side dash pad with a flat panel.

Mechanical -

Good parts first. The cooling system is pretty awesome. If you've driven a stock C4 you know they run hot and watching the coolant temp gauge climb while sitting in traffic will drive you nuts. I went the complete overkill route on cooling with a double row DeWitts radiator, Spal fan, FlowKooler hi-flow pump, new hoses, 180 thermostat, and throttle body coolant bypass done. The cooling system on this car will never be a problem ever again no matter what you might do to the motor.

This was not a Z51 car but did come with the Bilstein shocks from the factory. Shocks recently replaced with brand new Bilsteins and the car is just transformed. Feels awesome. I also fitted a set of the 16x9.5 Z51 spec wheels, the tires are good, brakes are good, and the rear suspension was dropped 3/4" just cause I think the wheel arch gap was a bit much.

Car has long-tube headers and the exhaust sounds great. When I purchased it the check engine light was basically on all the time and the car was running very rich in "safe" mode. Didn't take a lot to figure out that the previous owner used headers that didn't have a fitting for an oxygen sensor! This isn't just an emissions thing - without the sensor the car would not be able to monitor air/fuel ratios so the ECU would go into safe mode and that was killing performance. So... O2 sensor fitting was welded in and that solved part of the problem. Car would run pretty well for a bit but then once it warmed up the CEL would come back on and the power would go flat again. A quick paper clip code flashing diagnosis revealed the spark advance module and knock sensor were suspect. So with those things replaced the now the car runs really well and pulls hard. That did not take a lot of money or time to square away. I have really been surprised by how easy this car is to work on and how easy it is to find affordable parts and performance upgrades.

Clutch and trans are good and solid, serviced last year. One thing that still requires sorting out is the +3 OD solenoid control though. Previous owner seemed to enjoy disconnecting things! I just drive the car around town and never liked the OD feature anyhow so I left it alone. When the trans was serviced the guy said the OD unit looked fine.

Car had/has a small electrical drain. The disco dash was sent out to be refurbished and that solved 80% of the problem but if the car sits for a week the battery needs a trickle charger. Also have a very solid knife switch on the battery that solves the problem cleanly.

EGR air pump was removed and a high quality pump delete pulley was installed. Looks nice.

AC blows cold and has not needed a recharge since I bought the car.

Not so great parts:

Engine could use a good detailing. I have a nicer set of valve covers that will come with the car if you want them.

Radio - It's a Bose system and a couple speakers are out. I'd replace the whole thing.

Come buy this car! If you are looking for a manual transmission C4, you have probably noticed they seem to be either collector quality low mile cars at pretty high prices or cars that have been beat to hell and might just need to be parted out. This car is right in the middle. Reliable, sorted, not quite stock, and ready to go or a great platform for some more mods. Heck, buy the car for the cooling system alone! Asking $3,900 as a way of saying the car isn't a POS but I'm not delusional about what the car is worth.

I will include a nice black indoor car cover, service manuals, GM service manual on CD, a nicer set of OEM valve covers, and a new reproduction steering wheel if you want any of it.

Two sets of keys and clear title in hand, plus I'm a terrible negotiator. Just wave some cash in front of me and watch me cave on my asking price! Ok, that's not entirely true but I have enjoyed the car and now I find myself needing the garage space for the next project and I'm more interested in finding a good home for the car than extracting every last dollar from the sale. Come take a look if you are interested and I'm sure we can find a mutually agreeable sale price. Message if you'd like more photos or details.