The C4 Corvette Is Better Than a Scat Pack - I Own Both

I always laugh when someone says something negative about the C4 as they compare it to a new car. My 89 Corvette is 35 years old but I wouldn’t try to compare it to a 1954 model which is 35 years younger. Likewise I wouldn’t compare a 1954 to a 1919 which is 35 years younger too. Point is, a lot changes in 35 years & when people dish on a C4 they aren’t making realistic comparisons & definitely not appreciating it for the cutting edge technology developed for it which lead the way to today’s powerhouse vehicles. That said, the C4 is still quite capable & fun to drive, especially with a 6 speed. This summer I will be teaching my twin daughters how to autocross in my 89 Corvette, which is the same car I drove my wife to the hospital in to deliver our twins in 2001!

Vette all day everyday. I was 13 when the C4 came out and I remember my buddies and I losing our minds any time we saw one. At first they were super rare to see and when you did, it was like standing next to the future.

Excellent choice, can’t go wrong with a C4. As a C4 ZR-1 owner, that LT4 is no slouch. Congrats!

Matt, I think you made the correct choice on getting the LT4 as it suits your needs better than the Dodge. I personally have owned every generation of corvettes except for the C3 and earlier. By far my favorite car to drive fast was my 2017 ZO6 but the most enjoyable ride has been my C4 LT4 Z51 I purchased last year. Looks exactly the same as yours on the exterior. Mine has the red upgraded interior configuration which is so unique and simple you can’t not appreciate it enough for its generation. Driving this classic car brings a smile to my face each and every time. Your won’t see another better example of 90s American auto technology out there for this price point. Enjoy your beautiful car and disregard the haters.

I negotiated a test drive in a C4 as part of the purchase of a used 93 Accord. It was a late model polo green convertible. I mashed the gas pedal to the floor, it launched, and the salesman screamed like a little girl. It was a hoot to drive, and a dream come true at the time. People forget how revolutionary the C4 was back in the day. It looked so futuristic. It handled better than almost anything else. Later models corrected dash quirks and they really got the SBC 350 about perfectly dialed in. They sold a jillion of them so they’re not uncommon and the price point that is within reach of teenagers is why people look down on these. What you said is true, in terms of fun per dollar, nothing comes close to Corvette. All the later ones. For the price of a new minivan you can be driving a C7 convertible. Nobody has brought power to the masses like GM.

It’s a death trap for sure lol . Just picked up a super clean 94 z28 6-speed with 60,000 miles for $4500 . Refreshed the entire suspension and added koni yellows and did the clutch . LT1 cars are super fun .

Like has been said many times .. its more fun to drive a not so powerful car at its limit than to drive a wicked car at half its potential 😁 this is why people love the Miata

I loved the comparison test that Car & Driver did in their 2014 December issue. Between the Camaro, Mustang and Challenger. The Senior editor said the Camaro was a great track car, the Mustang a great road car(and the Challenger a great SUV). Oh and I have an almost identical C4 1996, LT-4 Torch red like yours and I love. A couple of years ago I kept asking myself "Does GM know what a great car they made with the C4?".Almost identical - but mine is fully loaded with 42,674 miles.

I have a 95 and it handles amazingly. It’ll turn on a dime.

Bought a C4 Collector Edition LT4 6 Speed two years ago. At 21 years old i figured a C4 would be a good first sports car. Taking a clean C4 to a car big city car show was eye opening. I might have had club parking with a line of 20 other corvettes. 10 of which were C8s! I was the only C4 there, and got just as much attention! 3,000 lbs and 330 HP, you can NOT get better bang for your buck. There are are absolutely fantastic. There aren't many cars that are over 25 years old you can still daily driver like there C4s!

My 1997 Cobra I bought 7 years ago with 120k on it went 13.5@104MPH, 2.08 60', only mods were exhaust and 4.10s, on street tires. Then I found a mocked up Procharger kit for my Cobra on engine stand that was never ran, he decided to go turbo. Got the kit for 3500$, they go new for about 7k. Only makes like 6-7lbs boost due to being custom kit (undercut impeller) for 96-98 Cobras that had crap factory cast pistons (keeps boost low). I had to get supporting mods, aka 60lb Siemens injectors, tune, etc...Car made 400RWHP on a Mustang dyno (Mustang Dynos generally read 10%ish less than a Dynojet). Stock Cobras are in the 270-280ish range. Took it back in Nov 2022, went 12.2 @ 116MPH, 1.89 60'. My car probably makes similar HP to the SCAT, but being 100s of pounds lighter is a huge difference. First video I've seen from you, I like! Keep it up!

I was not expecting this. That you would like an older Corvette over a newer Scat Pack. I saw the thumbnail and assumed it was to say how much better the Scat was. My experience is this; I bought an '04 C5 Corvette in 2021. It's kind of rare in that it's torch red with red sport seats and red carpet. Another thing is it's a base model and does not have most of the stuff other C5's have. It does NOT have heads up display, no active handling, no memory seats, no auto dimming mirrors and no "tilt and tele" steering column. I'm glad it does not have these things because all this stuff is discontinued from GM and when it goes, it's gone unless it is found new old stock which I doubt, or 20+ year old used off eBay. I have seen a few C5's with heads up display and the bezel is usually dry rotted and cracked when seen through the windshield, it looks crappy or it doesn't raise or lower due to broken gears. The "mag ride" shocks for selective ride equipped C5's are over $700 each to replace, if you can find them. And to retrofit regular shocks and fool the computer is not plug and play on some years. The auto dimming mirrors crap out and turn bronze and hard to see out of. They are several hundred dollars each to replace. The tilt and tele steering column breaks and wobbles or gets stuck in a bad position. All this looks cool on paper when the ad says "loaded with options". But do some research and see for yourself that an older base model is better for the "long run". It's just less components to break and attempt to find a replacement part. GM's not making this stuff any more, not for the C5 and definitely not for the C4 Corvette. So my example of a C5 has a nice smooth dash all the way across, brand new Bilstein shock all around. Adjustable power seats with air bolster and lumbar support driver and passenger. Regular tilt lever on the under side of the steering column that clicks and locks in place. Nice clear mirrors that won't turn bronze ever. I plan on keeping this car and driving it for a few years and it's nice to know that there is less to break and attempt to source replacements. The reason I was set on this C5 even though it already had 97k miles, was the clean red interior. I had seen a C4 with red leather seats and red carpet and door panels years ago and thought it looked so GT. Like a Gran Turismo tourer.

I own a completely stock 96 LT4 BASE with 15k miles that. No power seats, Manual Heater controls, Torch Red, Red Interior. The guy you are referring to might be me? I do have a spare tire though. Interestingly enough, I sold a 2017 Mustang GT that I bought new and bought the C4 (in 2020). Don't regret it AT ALL.

LT4 for the win

My 19’ shaker with seats out, drag pack, diff brace, 170 t stat, and fuse pull ran 11.8 here in Texas. They’re fast when properly prepped all things considered.

I drove a Challenger. Felt like I was driving an 85 Chevy pickup. Way up high, hood sets up like a table, aerodynamics of a barn, and way too heavy. The engine is fighting a lot of things that don’t make sense for a performance car, so it needs a ton of power. Chrysler engines are notorious for suckin down the gas: my Dads 2 barrel 318 Ramcharger got 11 mpg at its best. There are much better options and you don’t have to look far. Challenger does look good, but they’ve been out for 16 years? Form over function baby! Harley-Davidson has built a business on that. My 5.7 WS6 ran low 13s 25 years ago and it was barely rated at 300 HP. 28 mpg on the highway. Only problem is 99.99% the back seat was not occupied. Once I no longer needed a back seat, the next day I got into a Vette. 7 liters and still knocks down 26 mpg on the highway, and can run an 11 sec 1/4 with zero mods. 90% of the time it’s just me driving, wish I could take the passenger seat out. Difference between a commuter car and a sports car is indescribable. Never looking back.

Beautiful 96 LT4 you have there.. I had a 96 LT4 all were 6spd's with 71,000 miles on it. ( Purchased it in 2018. sold it in 2021 ) I also have owned a 99 SS Camaro LS1 6spd ( I purchased in 2001 i gave it to my Mom in 2006 ) I know the Corvette is lighter than the camaro but everybody talks about the LS1 running circles around an LT1 ( and that is true ) But the LT4 is a different story. The LT4 I had, pulled so much harder than that LS1 could even dream about ( Both were stock ) I would still have the LT4 but I was on a trip out of town when the cooling fans had an issue and warped the heads and hurt the bottom end.. The C4 LT4's are a lot of fun.. Just watch your temp gauge.. l ol. Another thing if you ever have to replace the clutch chevrolet and aftermarket companies no longer make a dual mass flywheel and those can't be resurfaced.. I had to have mine converted to a single mass flywheel and the gear chatter was pretty annoying, but I still miss that car with all it's quirks ( Wide tires on all 4 corners like to make it a floatation device on wet roads.. lol ) Have fun and take care

Congratulations on the car. I own a white 96 LT4 with the same options you have. I changed the cam, added long tube headers and a few other things and the car performs nice. In the process of upgrading the ignition to coil over plug . Good luck with the car!!!

I bought a very clean 2003 C5 Z06 for $20K a little over 2 years ago from a private seller, I had to go to North Carolina to get it, I live on Florida. I ended up putting an A&A T-trim supercharger on it along with other upgrades, it currently makes 634 RWHP on 93 octane. Personally I would have opted for a C5 over the C4, the chassis is stiffer and I never liked the high door sills on the C4, and the LS engines are easier and cheaper to modify. Back in the 90's when I was shopping around for a sports car after my 280ZX died, I opted for the 300ZX Twin Turbo over the C4 after driving my father's C4, he ended up trading in his C4 for a Twin Turbo Z after driving mine. My younger brother went with the Supra Twin Turbo, which is what I should have went with because that car is so tunable, but I liked the Z's looks better back then and I didn't know the tuning potential of the Supra at the time.

More content on this car plz! This car has so much more character than that Challenger and looks so different compared to everything else on the road. Im in the market for a Corvette currently but i was born in 1988 so the C5 is the one thats nostalgic to me but the C4 is awesome i just dont want to deal with OBD1 and the 96 6 speed models are priced completely differently than other C4’s lol