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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 9:56 am 
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Small Block

Joined:Wed May 13, 2015 12:06 pm
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Car Details:i am thinking of buying a 1969 camaro
Hi All I am thinking of buying a first gen Camaro from the USA to the UK. I was wondering what the car is like as a daily driver as I be handing over my current car. The car I have been looking at is a manual 4 speed but I was wondering if any one had any major issues in the UK or are the solid runners. Can any one give me some advice and what to watch for ect ect. Thanks


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Need Advice on first gen car

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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 10:31 am 
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Big Block
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Joined:Sat Jun 28, 2014 6:55 pm
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Location:Croxley Green, Hertfordshire
I recently drove my friends 1st gen, to be fair it's a drag car rather than a car designed for road use or daily driving but it was like an antique barge, whilst I'm confident it wasn't the best example for comparison you have to remember that unless you are prepared to put a lot of money in to bring one up to modern day standards you are driving a vehicle designed nearly 50 years ago using 50 year old technology, old brakes, old suspension, old noise levels and steering etc. I would love a 1st gen but it would have to be a very well modernised one if it was to be used regularly, sorry I can't be of more help but I'm sure a few first gen drivers will be more use and along in due course to help with your query

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1997 30th Anniversary SS SLP
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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 10:59 am 
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Small Block

Joined:Wed May 13, 2015 12:06 pm
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Car Details:i am thinking of buying a 1969 camaro
thanks for your input I seen the Camaro that I would like and it still a 50 year old car but has been restored with a later engine and has no rust. Its the gearing I am concerned about as its a 4 speed manual what is it limit compared to a car with 5 speed apart from the obvious the extra gear.


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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 11:40 am 
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Big Block
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Location:Croxley Green, Hertfordshire
You could always swap the rear axle gears out to get some better economy or cruising speed if your not bothered about traffic light races, I would be more concerned about suspension and steering than the engine if you want a daily driver, depending on what engine has been fitted 5 speed manual boxes are quite common and cheap if you wanted to upgrade

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1997 30th Anniversary SS SLP
1993 GMC Typhoon


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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 12:00 pm 
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Big Block
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Joined:Fri Mar 19, 2010 1:35 am
Posts:2566
Car Details:79' camaro road & track day toy. 383 stroker, 5 speed TKO trans, lots of suspension stuff, 13" Vette brakes, 18" wheels.
Location:Luton
As TwistedSanity says.. it's a 50+ year old design, but it's a good design (they didn't change much for the 2nd gen) and these cars were built as daily drivers back in then day, so it will be fine for use as such... whether you'd want to chance leaving it in multistorey carparks, supermarkets run etc regularly is up to you.
Re the gearing, you could drop a lower rear gear in like 2:56 or 2:73, which it may come with anyway (mine did), which will give semi low revs on the motorway.. Ideal scenario is an overdrive or 5/6 speed conversion..
Standard brakes and steering I think are ok, unless you plan on if kept in tip top condition, and if the geometry is set right with some subframe connectors and decent tyres it'll drive well.

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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 12:15 pm 
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Small Block

Joined:Wed May 13, 2015 12:06 pm
Posts:9
Car Details:i am thinking of buying a 1969 camaro
Thanks for that, is there any way I can list parts to find on the gearing. I know understand the car is 50 years old so fuel runs will be a lot more than expected. The car it self will be replacing my current car so I know cars from the 1960s to 1970s were built to last.


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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 12:15 pm 
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Small Block

Joined:Wed May 13, 2015 12:06 pm
Posts:9
Car Details:i am thinking of buying a 1969 camaro
Thanks for that, is there any way I can list parts to find on the gearing. I know understand the car is 50 years old so fuel runs will be a lot more than expected. The car it self will be replacing my current car so I know cars from the 1960s to 1970s were built to last.


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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 12:30 pm 
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Big Block
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Joined:Tue Feb 23, 2010 12:40 pm
Posts:3245
Car Details:'79 Camaro, 350 V8
Location:South Bucks
TopCat on here has 2 1st gens - one a racecar (track and historic classed, so needs to be driveable on the road) and a stock, convertible. Hopefully he can chime in on the use of it. Evilzee on here also had 1st gen for many years (recently sold) that i've had the pleasure of being a passenger in and it was a 4 speed and very capable of maneuvering the roads.

The suspension is surprisingly good on these cars - uprated springs, good shock absorbers and new bushings bring them up to date very well. You don't need all of the tubular a-arm, coilovers etc. especially if using daily. These cars also used toc ome with poly / ply tyres so putting radials on there will help just on the standard setup. Go for some good tyres and you're even better off.

4 speeds tend to have a close to 1:1 4th gear, there is a website somewhere (can't remember if off the top of my head) that lists all of the tranny gearings, so can help give you an idea of RPM's. The rear end will also make a difference to the gearing, so worth finding out what it has. I see a lot of people going for 4.11 rear ends to help on acceleration but it does mean you're turning over some high rpms on the motorway. I would say stick in the low 3.x range. I saw a 2.73 rear axle a few weeks ago and was quite tempted by it... for a daily driver that won't be raced and acceleration isn't key, a lower gear rear will help you on the rpms and fuel consumption. The nice thing about v8's is that they have enough torque to still move the car quite happily even with low gearing :)

I would say that for reliability, Fuel Injection can help and it can also help with mpgs (important if you plan on using daily). I don't mean to be saying that carbs are bad - i have carb on the 2nd gen and FI on the 3rd gen, more so in regards to tinkering - using it every day, all year around, temperature changes etc. FI can be more reliable and require less attention. It depends on your mechanical know how and confidence. If you're using the car day in and out, several times a day for daily needs i.e getting to appointments, sitting in traffic etc. you may notice a difference between the 2. Not saying there's anything wrong with carbs, they're part of the classic car being a classic car and they'll probably be fine most of the time. As i mentioned, if you're mechanically inclined, it probably won't bother you either way... you may infact prefer a carb as it allows you to easily tune it and it declutters the engine bay, gives you less paths of things when troubleshooting etc.

If you can, get one with AC. I know it's often the first thing that get's ripped out (weight saving and delcuttering) BUT if you're using it daily... you will miss it. The weight doesn't make that much difference (it's a daily so 0-60 times don't really matter) and you're not gonna be messing about with the engine all the time, as you'll need to make sure it's gonna be driveable in the morning, so you'll only be doing basic maintenance. Trust me, my third gen is my daily driver and it has no AC. It gets hot in the sun! I really wish it had AC. And i say this again because you plan on having it as your only car... so all the things that come with that. Sure, you can man up and deal with sitting in a hot car in traffic BUT when you have a passenger, they will not appreciate it so much. Plus, if you're going somewhere, do you really want to turn up covered in sweat and dehydrated? This is all coming from 1st hand experience :)

For a daily driver, i would prefer a relatively unmolested one. You don't want to be dealing with a car that's overlowered, has tyres that rub, over loud exhaust, a baking hot interior etc. If you wanted a 1st gen for weekend fun, then sure, no need for AC, you can deal with a stiff and bumpy ride etc. For daily use, you really want something that's mostly stock. You are already gonna have the issues of things like getting in and out of car parks due to being on the opposite side of the ticket machine lol, so you want to minimise the issues you face. Again, i'm coming from a perspective of day to day use. A lot of people use their cars only in the summer and just on the weekends so can afford for things to be different, don't need to worry so much about reliability etc. My second gen is customised and has things changed etc. and that's fine, i don't need to use it every day and if something doesn't work right it doesn't matter, i can take as long as i want to fix it. My 3rd gen, it's being kept stock and just being maintened as i need to be at work every morning etc. Also, if you'll be driving around in todays traffic, make sure it has disc brakes up front :thumbup:

Engine wise, whilst we all would love a big block because they sound great, they are thirsty and weigh a lot. Even with a 350 / 383 stroker It's tough to get a good performance engine tuned to where you also have good MPG's. Evilzee for example had a lot of work and a lot of tuning and it got good mpg's whilst giving you brown pants, but a looot of work went into getting it there. There are a lot of fast cars with poor mpgs and when you use it 5 times a week vs. 1 day a week... you will realllly notice the fuel consumption difference. Like i was saying earlier, you'll get folks out in the states running nice numbers on the dyno and they'll take it to a meet once a week and say something like it gets 10mpg, oh well at least it's fast... and it's tempting to want to have those dyno numbers and ability to beat anyone away from the lights... those mpg's are mulitiplied at least 5 times per week and will make a noticable difference. Of course, i'm saying all that, but you could be earning enought for it to not make a difference in which case, ignore all that and have fun lol. I went from a 1.2 litre clio, getting 45 mpgs and £15 a week on petrol, to a 5.0 FI and getting 28-30mpgs and £25 per week on petrol. A noticable difference but still pretty good (most people report 20-25 mpgs). I would hate to have you get an awesome 1st gen with a built engine but getting 10mpgs.

I hope none of that has come acroos as negative! and i also hope it hasn't been taken the wrong way! I just want you to be able to have a 1st gen that you can use daily and keep doign that all year around so these cars don't spend all their lives in garages :)

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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 1:12 pm 
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Small Block

Joined:Wed May 13, 2015 12:06 pm
Posts:9
Car Details:i am thinking of buying a 1969 camaro
wow what a download of information ha ha thanks for that it was not negative it was honest truth which is why I put the question out there. I seen a unmolested version on eBay USA item number 191577938942 and 161703715187. I would like to change it to fuel injection but can live with the old ways for now. All I am trying to do is get an idea on the cost of one of these as I know I be paying a good price (hopefully) for a car that can do the around of doors trips. When it comes to shopping and other things I will be more tempted to keep the car well secure so be would be getting alarms and Immobiliser fitted for the added protection as well.

On the gearing can you recommend where I can start looking just for final figures

Cheers for that raw bit of knowledge it is appreciated and once again it was honest not negative that's what I am after.


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PostPosted:Thu May 14, 2015 2:21 pm 
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Big Block
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Joined:Sat Jun 28, 2014 6:55 pm
Posts:808
Location:Croxley Green, Hertfordshire
The parking bays in multi storeys and supermarkets don't fare too well for big old yanks, I can't get out of the door of my 4th gen in most spaces as they are designed for smaller cars so without my blue badge I couldn't take it into town or consider using it as an only car

_________________
1997 30th Anniversary SS SLP
1993 GMC Typhoon


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