84 corvette

onya · July 14, 2003, 08:23:15 PM

I have been told not to buy a 84 corvette, is there a problem with them. I have seen plenty for sale, what should I look out for in that year model.

Brutus · July 14, 2003, 08:41:21 PM

I think you'll find that many people tend to steer away from the first year of a new model. The 84 was the official first year of the C4s and as such has the ensuing enigma attatched to it.

johnny86convert · July 14, 2003, 09:23:35 PM

ONYA.....they haven't got a good rep but if you find a good one, it should be a good price $23,000 to $ 28,000

77CVT · July 15, 2003, 08:31:00 AM

I'm with brutus! 68's have the same rep.

A vette is a vette!

Vette Obsessed · July 15, 2003, 11:25:20 AM

There is nothing wrong with 84 Corvettes if you ask me. The main downside is that the crossfire injection motor isn't as modification friendly as the tune port and LT1 motors.

There are still bolt ons you can do to a crossfire but if you want big hp you need to do more drastic changes than you would need on a tune port or LT1.

There isn't anything wrong as such with 84's except they got a bad name with some people for the crossfire motor and hard suspension on some cars.

84's had a different lcd dash display (just different characters). The Z51's have a supposedly hard ride but with the 16" wheels I don't see that much of a drama myself.

I think there are some bargain 84's out there that would be ideal if you wanted a nice reasonably priced Vette to cruise around in and enjoy.

Brutus · July 15, 2003, 05:50:40 PM

I have no idea why they are called "crap" fires, but some may think there is a viable reason.:22

SAVette · September 09, 2003, 10:15:32 AM

There is nothing "wrong" with the '84. Most of the people who say "don't buy one" have never owned one. They just heard it from someone who heard it from someone else in the pub one night. To own one is to love one. The fact that the '84 can be considered "bad" only shows how much they improved during the C4's life. I remember when the '84 was released. The fanfare and the hype. This was a clean-sheet design and it was hailed as revolutionary. Remember that it is still the same car now as it was then. The world may have moved on in terms of technology - hell, I think a standard V6 Commodore generates more power now - but when compared with what else was available in the early 80's, it was a rocketship.

There are no actual build or design failures in the car. There are design points that fell-out-of-favour, but no flaws. There are three major areas in which the car is attacked:

1. The suspension is too hard. Yeah, and? If you want a nice supple ride, go and buy a Statesman. I like the ride, and they handle extremely well.

2. The Digital Dash. Personally, I prefer gauges, they are easier to read. But I can live with these. Rumour has it that they are unreliable. Well, mine are nearly 20 years old and working fine. You'll find their most common faults end up being lighting and/or earthing. Be careful with these though. I believe that they can be expensive to have fixed.

3. The Cross-Fire FI. Yep, can't argue with that. It's a crap design. It's major short-coming is in it's port design. They are only about 2/3 the size of the inlet ports in the heads. And it is not possible to make them match without LOTS or grinding and welding. And it is a TBI "wet" manifold design. Outdated and forgotten technology today. There are aftermarket manifolds available, such as the X-Ram (www.x-ram.com) but the choice is very limited.

Remember though, that it is still a 350. It has potential. You could spend the extra money and buy '86+, but even those were not ball-tearers. You'll probably still end up spending a heap of money making it go hard.

Buy one because you want one, not because the "experts" approve. An '84 is not as good as an '86, that's true. But that in turn is not as good as a '92, and a '96 is better again. That's called evolution. While you're at it, just buy an '03, coz they're better again.

What I'm saying is it is a Corvette and always will be. It is a milestone model in every way. Everyone will try to tell you that one model is better than another, and everyone will have their favourites. Buy an '84, and if it's "reputation" makes it cheaper for you, then that's a win for you. You'll enjoy driving it as much as I enjoy driving mine and never regret your decision.:luv

77CVT · September 09, 2003, 10:47:39 AM

A guy in our club managed a 13.7 @100mph with his '84!

Nik · September 11, 2003, 12:35:07 PM

when the 84 was released, it was the fastest car at accelerating on the planet.

Ausrs · September 11, 2003, 06:59:41 PM

cross fire injection is not that popular with the usa camaro guys either
think it may have something to do with the fact there is no aftermarket stuff available to improve the induction

Stingraynut · September 11, 2003, 10:51:00 PM

Vette Obsessed and SAVette gave great explanations.

I researched last year why the 84 is so unpopular and as everyone has said, it's always hearsay – the only big differences being the hardest C4 suspension and the crossfire engine.

Personally I targeted 88/89's as being the best value in my price bracket and am happy with my 88, although I'm thinking that there won't be many old parts on it by the time I finish fixing everything.

BUT - during my info gathering excursions, since I bought my 88, I''ve detected a trend, a tide, which is saying to me that the 'classic' C4 will not be the 89 or the 90 or the 96 – I reckon it's going to be the 84 – and all the people who bought 84's currently at the low end of the price range, will have the 'keeper' and be asking $50,000+

Simply – they were the first C4 – an astounding leap forward in technology.

Geez, I hope I'm wrong and that my 88 will hold it's value....

S'nut

SAVette · September 12, 2003, 11:21:27 AM

Buying a Corvette is not like buying a new family car. Different things become important. I can't imagine that, when compared to any modern sports-car, a '58 Vette does anything particularly well. But I know which one I'd rather have! How often do you hear someone about to purchase a '69 Convertible say "nah, I think I'll buy the RX-8 because the air-conditioner works better"? Not often, I'd bet.

My point is that they are all Corvettes. And people like us buy them BECAUSE they are Corvettes. IMHO, there is NO SUCH THING as a bad Corvette. From '53 to '03, they are ALL highly desirable cars. Every single one of them. But every owner will have their personal favourites. Some are just lucky enough to be able to AFFORD their favourites. The two at the top of my wish-list are a '72 Big Block 4-Speed Convertible, closely followed by any ZR-1. But I'll probably have to wait until I win X-Lotto before I get either of those. And when I do win lotto I'll probably get both, but I will definitely keep my '84!

The '84 Corvette is bagged as being "the worst" but it does most things better than many other Corvettes, so figure that one out, I can't.

It's only real issue is the CFI and there is plenty of room for improvement if you're willing to spend a bit of time and money. And at the extreme, you can simply chuck the CFI and install the factory TPI from a later Corvette or F-Body. But if you do a bit of research, many people say the factory TPI is not much chop anyway. So even if you spent the bigger dollars and bought a '86+ Corvette to get really big hp numbers you'll still have to spend lots of money of the standard TPI. Bigger base and runners or junk the lot and buy one of the after-market manifold available. Either way, you might as well have started with the CFI in an '84.