| Author | Message | ||
     Xl1200r |
Long story short, my girlfriend's new brother-in-law has a car for sale and I want to buy it, but I'm having a hard time figuring out what it's worth. It's a 2002 Camaro SS 35th Anniversary Edition. I know it has some SLP parts (like the center mount exhaust), but I don't know all the details. 49,000 miles and he's asking $11,000 or best offer. It needs 4 tires (all dry-rotted), and there's something up where randmoly, the parking brake, ASR and ABS lights will come on on the dash, but everything is running fine. Not sure what would cause that or what it cost to fix. A quick glance on ebay shows a number of 35th Anniversary cars for sale, typically with very low miles, going for around $20k or more. But, looking at the sales history on ebay, many of the high-priced examples aren't selling, and low $20s seems to be the highest they're going for for a very clean, stock example with no more than 10kmi or so. But this one has some miles on it, and needs a little bit. The prices are all over the map, though I feel like the $11,000 he's asking is pretty fair all things considered. Anyone have any thoughts, or can tell me anything about these cars? I'm reading that 3,000 were made for the U.S. and 150 or so for Canada. I also read that the center mount exhaust means it has other SLP goodies and is rated at 345hp from the factory. BTW - this is a twin to the car, just the one I'm looking at has a bit more miles on it: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/35TH-ANNIVERSARY-T- TOPS-ONLY-9000-MILES-V8-LIKE-NEW_W0QQitemZ15036049 4021QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item230 22f0fc5&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245 | ||
| Bcordb3 |
The EBay add recommended getting an independent survey done on their car. Sounds like a good idea to me. It will cost you a few dollars for the survey and could save you thousands. It also would be a great bargaining tool. Who said Laize Faire (I think) Buyer beware. | ||
| Froggy |
I'd kill for an 02 Trans Am SLP Firehawk in Navy Blue with T-Tops. You lucky bastard your gonna love it.  Not sure what would cause those idiot lights off hand, but my Monte Carlo does the same thing once in a while if one of the wheel speed sensors gets gunked up. | ||
| Xl1200r |
Froggy, I've already driven the car a bit - I know I'm gonna love it, too. I'm going to swing up to take a better look at it today, make sure there' no tears in the seats, scratches in the paint, and look for door stickers to get more of the SLP data. | ||
| Firebolt020283 |
i loved the 4th gen f-bodies so much i have had 3 of them. a 99 firebird formula a 99 camero (v6) and a 99 firebird (v6) | ||
| Crackhead |
It's just a chevy, it's not like it is a Mustang.  jk | ||
| Xl1200r |
It's just a chevy, it's not like it is a Mustang. Yeah, 'cause if it were a Mustang, it would need to be at least 8 years newer and still be slower. | ||
| Phelan |
Lol, right... When's the last time the mustang had a base V-8 that had over 300 hp? Sounds like a good car, but I wouldn't give more than $9500. Not trying to sound like a douche, but these cars don't hold up the way a late Grand Prix or Impala will, and I think the market is gonna continue to go south over the next couple years. | ||
| Bhillberg |
I had a 99 Z28. The idiot lights probably mean nothing. I had mine in under warranty to get the entire guage console replaced. They said it was common to have glitches and it is basically a circuit board that is easier to replace than fix. That is not a bad price for a SS. 49k? Those are pretty low miles if you ask me. The engine is solid as a rock. The tranny is not. The rear end is glass. The only problem with those cars is if you do much more than bolt on goodies then you will shred the clutch/tranny and at the time I had mine (4 yrs ago) those were pricey. Then if you replaced it with a good one you would break the rear end. Then after you put a pricey rear end in it you would have to have subframe connectors or you would twist the body. With bolt ons and spirited driving all of this would hold up fine. With heads/cam or more or HARD driving like constant burnouts and seeing a lot of redline you would shred it. I drove mine pretty hard, not killing it though and it held up fine, mechanically. They are rattle traps though and you will probably notice a ton of creeks and rattles. The SLP exhaust is good stuff. SLP was the company that GM contracted to make the Z28's and Firebirds into SS's and Trans Ams. That particular exhaust though I don't believe came on an SS stock. So looking at the door probably won't tell you what it all has on it. The usual "bolt on" mods were a cat back exhaust, intake lid, power programmer, if it is a stick then the 2nd and 3rd gear lock out disabler, lower thermostat, chip to make the fans come on sooner, and sometimes a Mass Airflow Sensor. The car can handle all of that fine. There is a good forum LS1.com that has a lot of knowledge but a lot of internet Tyson's on it as well. PM me if you want to know much more about it. I lived that car for the 4 yrs I had it. | ||
| Bhillberg |
oh, and tires are $$$$$!!! on that car!! Another thing on the tires is just go with some good performance ones, good wet and dry. If you get into the sticky drag radials in the back you might as well start saving for a rear end. And don't even think about looking at that forum at work, or in front of anyone who could get offended! It has a lot of knowledge on it but the crowd there gets pretty raunchy at times. (Message edited by bhillberg on August 06, 2009) | ||
| Cochise |
GO FOR IT!! | ||
| Xl1200r |
Took a look at the car tonight - not sure how I feel about it. The exhaust is stock - It's the "center mount" exhaust performance package from SLP that ups the power to 345hp - says on the SLP door sticker. No dings in the bodywork (since it's mostly plastic), but there's a lot of chips. I also noticed the left front fender had a slightly different paint finish and newer-looking headlight on that side. Passanger door doesn't line up quite right, though not bad at all. The exhaust tips sag on one side and are pushed in a little on the other - not sure what could cause that. Looking through the recipts in the glove box, there wasn't much I found alarming until there was one where one of the previous owners brought it because the passanger door wasn't aligned correctly. The shops response was that the door was fine and the body was misaligned due to an accident. So, the car, overall, just needs a little TLC. But the accident history spooks me a bit, mostly because I can't tell where it was hit. The left front has a new headlight and new paint. The right side door doesn't line up, and the echuast in the back is all crooked. I'd probably still buy it, but he'll have to give me a hell of a deal. It's amazing how far south some of these cars get. If I don't end up buying this one, the damage is already done - I'm hooked to the point that I'd rather have a clean 2002 F-body than a new 2010 Camaro. That's the story. | ||
| Froggy |
Carfax time! Perhaps it can give more details? | ||
| Bhillberg |
The exhaust is probably sagging due to the fact that it is a singl in, dual out configuration (Y-pipe). It's hard to tell if a hanger is the problem or if the Y-pipe is corroded or something. I am not saying you are wrong, just don't remember the center outlet coming from the factory. SLP did do the package that made it an SS, so maybe they could have done a special order. It is also possible that the SLP exhaust that you saw on the door sticker isn't the same that is on there. That could be a very good reason for the exhaust "dipping" to one side, inproper install? The SLP package that made it an SS as far as performance goes is the intake lid, cat-back exhaust, different spoiler. I didn't include the ram-air because studies have been done to show that at speed it is not functional on the SS due to the aerodynamics of the car. The air actually flows right over it. The ram air effect was minimal on the T/A's | ||
| Bhillberg |
another option if you are not set on this paticular car is go a few years older, into a 97 with the LT1. It didn't have as much horsepower stock but could achieve it with some basic mods. It had more low end torque and a throatier exhaust note. The only difference really between them on the appearance was the front end. Still a sharp car and it is cheaper to mod. | ||
| Ratbuell |
The SS's with the SLP pack *did* come with the center exhaust. I don't remember the name or the RPO code...but it was a performance package available right from the factory. My dad owned one...for about an hour. Then mom got home. Apparently, according to the neighbors, there was a quite energetic "what the hell do you need *that* for???" discussion, after which my 78 year old father was smart enough to take the car back to the dealer (whom he knew personally) and exchanged it for a Monte SS. The six speeds are stout...but the bellhousing and clutch is undersized so cooking clutches is not unusual. Rears are also small for the power; keep the tires as the 'weak link' for spirited runs. Run a carfax, pull a fender if you can get away with it, jack it up or drive it onto ramps (watch the chin spoiler!), and check it out. Minor damage with a hamfisted sheetmetal assembly can look more major than it really is. Sounds like a reasonable deal to me....but I'll stick with my turbo 4's | ||
| Easy_rider |
Cooking clutches happen in these because you can be lazy and not shift, but the engine has enough torque to drive through the clutch rather then jerk or die. I may have made that error in judgement in my '97 once or twice. The clutch smell cured me fairly quickly! | ||
| Bhillberg |
I remember reading over and over on the forums when I had mine that the clutches were too week to handle much in the way of upgrades. I also think that the entire 2nd and 3rd gear lock out had to be tough on them. Obviously the way many people drive them is hard on them too... much like buells | ||
| Xl1200r |
Not sure what year they made the switch (I think 2001), but the 6 speed cars got the Z06 clutch, so maybe that was the fix? I'm thinking I might call up a buddy and see if I can get the car up on a lift where I used to work and take a better look. | ||
| Limitedx1 |
buy it because you want it, not because you want it to be worth something...... i bought an 02 WS6 with the intent of driving it and driving it! people hound me constantly why am i driving it? cause thats what its for.  that price is a steal for an ss with low miles and CME. that exhaust alone on todays market could be sold upwards of 1000 dollars if it is stock gm slp original parts. get used to creeks and clunks thats just the nature of the f-body. i wouldnt change my decision for anything, basically the fastest bang for the buck on the street are ls1 powered f bodies. just with headers, off road y pipe, slp loud mouth exhaust, air intake lid, k&n and a tune, my car put 355 hp to the wheels mustangs........please, a civic is fast with a super charger...........there isnt a GT in my town that even comes close to hangin on the back fender | ||
| Xl1200r |
Oh, I absolutely want it - the fact that it's a 35th Anniversary edition doesn't really do anything for me. I, too, know that in 3 or 4 years the car will break the 100kmi mark with me owning it. I do want the car, just not sure if I want THIS one. The driver's seat even tips to one side - how would you even fix that? A new seat frame??? I think some careful touch-up work would get the paint 99% of the way there. The embossed "CAMARO" on the back on these cars is supposed to be Silver, but it looks like someone tried painting it black with finger paints or something. Good news is there is a set of silver letters in the car for it. The driver's window isn't tinted, but the rest are. There's just a lot of things going on that would need to be addressed just to make it a 'nice' car in my book. Good news is the price is down. Bad news is it still needs these things. I am 110% CERTAIN that the exhaust is factory original, no question. The SLP door sticker says something to the effect of: "Centermount exhaust 345hp package" so it's legit. | ||
| Limitedx1 |
paint and touch up work is free, it just takes time. tint is minimal and can be scraped and re done, the seat can be fixed im sure, a bolt of nut just probably came out of the bottom. the thing that gets me is the price. if it is mechanically sound and all parts intact it is well worth the cash. that car should book for closer to 20, just like a limited edition buell it should be worth more but there is nobody out there looking for them. a 35th car and a ws6 will always be sought after in years to come. but for the price your getting it for it would make a perfect driver that you dont mind driving in the rain also there are many tire options out there for these cars, you do not need to put eagle f1 back on it. im going with nitto in the back for my next set, though mine are 11" wide. | ||
| Xl1200r |
The driver's seat even tips to one side - how would you even fix that? A new seat frame??? You know, I just looked at pictures of one with only 4,200 miles and the driver's seat is crooked in that one, too - so maybe it's nothing to worry about. | ||
| Limitedx1 |
check this site out ls1tech.com even by just reading threads on that site you can get a feel for stuff. there are alot of people with no car experience on there as well, so take everything you read as what it is, a forum. but there are also some of the smartest f body people in the world on that site. | ||
| Xl1200r |
Rain??? HA! I live in upstate NY - this will be my ONLY car! Good thing I only live 1.5 miles from the office and work from home! Tires will likely be some sort of all-season just for the fact that they'll need to be good in cold weather, light snow, etc. Oh, and I agree - the condition means I won't feel bad about ruining it. Mechanically, it is all there (aside from the lights on the dash, but that must be a sensor or cluster issue). Engine sounds great, everything feels tight going down the road. (Message edited by xl1200r on August 07, 2009) | ||
| Limitedx1 |
upstate ny huh..........these cars will not move in snow......unless you have studded tires | ||
| Froggy |
If you are still on the same set of tires by time the first snow comes in a few months, your doing it wrong | ||
| Limitedx1 |
 the culprit in the background and my buddies gs 500 lol | ||
| Xl1200r |
Limited, where in the 'burgh are you from? Dad grew up in Braddock, grandparents live in Plum, and I have aunts in both East Liberty and Squirrel Hill. I went to school downtown and lived on the North Side and Mt Washington while I was there. | ||
| Easy_rider |
these cars will not move in snow The traction control will do you just fine up to two or three inches. (Message edited by Easy_rider on August 07, 2009) | ||
| Xl1200r |
This thing was rearended, which explains the crooked exhaust. I'm also hearing rumors that it has a salvage title, which makes it a no go for me. I'll have to spend a little more cash, but I'll get one of these cars yet. Lots of nice examples in the $15,000 ballpark. | ||
| Malott442 |
Yeah, if it was rear ended, def a no go. The only steel on that car is the rear end. I just sold my 99 SS last week. The lights are most likely from a front wheel sensor, though it could be from the speed ring in the rear end. A scanner will prob narrow it down. Tell him 8k..... That's all its worth, unless it's salvage. Then its a 6k car. It's only been a week but I miss it kinda. | ||
| Xl1200r |
$6k was what went in my head when salvage was mentioned. At that point, I won't touch it - too hard to sell down the road. |
