hello,
i'm new to this site. my first post.

i'm interested in buying a 94 camaro z28. however, i had a few questions, and thought who better to ask then the die-hards?!
so here goes...

are there any drastic differences between a 94 and, say, a 95 or 96? in other words, is it worth spending the extra money for a year or two difference? how do you guys find mid 90's camaro's for things breaking down? are they bad or pretty good? also, what is the bolt pattern on the wheels of a 94? is it the same for all years? what is the STOCK tire size? 225? 235?

thanks.

 

The engines are all basically the same, however:

94 has the old style Optispark, you can replace it, but it is a bit of work and a little costly. If you can find a 95 for a similar price and you like the car, GET IT.

96s have OBD II PCMs (computer/engine management), which is costly to mod. Once you get into headers, if you want to run without the CATs you need O2 sims, so basically OBD II stuff is just a little more PITA once you get around to modding, if you plan to.

I myself have a 94 with the 95 timing cover/TB duct/Opti conversion.

 

on my '93 with 98,500 miles, these are the things I have had to replace since I bought it 3 years ago and 30,000 miles ago.
Opti-spark, plugs, wires, O2 sensors, radiator, brakes/rotors, tires, transmission mount, headlights, power window motors, battery, shocks, and a new exhaust (nothing wrong with old, just wanted better one) All these things can be expected with almost any car though. I take good care of the car, change the oil every 3000 and really don't drive it hard all the time. The Z is the most dependable car I have ever owned.

 

ok thanks for the heads up.
but does anyone know the wheel bolt pattern for mid 90's z28's? (i assume it would be the same for all years, but...) and what is the stock tire size?

 

I am pretty sure the tire size is 235. Is it an automatic or 6 speed? If you tell us how high the speedo goes then we can tell you if you have a governor on it or not. With more info we can also tell you what gears and so forth. I would say the best year would be to get a 95..............not just cause i have one. But it is the first year with the vented opti( which you want). and it is the last year of the obd-1 computer. If what you mean by bolt pattern is what lug then they are, then they are all 5 lug star bolt pattern. And 93 to 97 all have the ame enging(LT1) but in 97 i think they came with 10 more HP(285 i think) and a dual cat set up. Hope we answered all your questions and good luck.


Chris

 

I seem to recall in the Fbody FAQ that the stock tire is a 235/55. Most people run a 245/50 as a replacement, if you feel like a lower profile tire a 245/45 is available, but with the already small wheel it makes the wheelwell look a bit naked, even with the car lowered it just looks dinky.

Bolt pattern is 5x4.75", stock wheel si 16x8" unless you get an SS. 17x9" are available at reasonable costs and will accomidate a 275 wide tire, anything larger than that is usually going to cost some dough.

96/97 cars with dual cats are supposedly making about 10 more HP from the dual cat setup, the tradeoff is not worth it to me. If you dont think you'll ever mod the car though, your more likely to find a lower miles 96/97 car so maybe a whopping 10 HP would make it worth it. These cars should do over 200k miles without problems other than sensory or distributor related issues.