I'm savin up to buy a 93-97 trans am and I want to know what you guys think of the LT1s, which year should I aim for? Any problems I should look out for? And most importantly, which mods should I do? thanks

 

Yes, get a '95. '95 manual tranny cars keep the single cat. '95 autos had dual cats as well as all Z28's after '96. '95 is the last year of OBD-I programming. So if you're planning on some serious mods OBD-I will be a lot easier to work with. In '96 they switched over to OBD-II.

'95's also got hardened pushrods, '96's and above did not. So yeah, '95's are what you want if you're planning on mods.

'96 and above also have two additional O2 sensors after the cats which can cause your computer to throw codes when you put a catback on there for example.

Some problem spots which have already been mentioned are the opti spark. Generally when the waterpump goes out it drips water onto the opti which causes it to fail too. But all in all LT1's are badass. They're awesome engines and last forever.

 

The 96's don't throw codes when you put a catback on it. I don't know who told you that, but it's not true. If you have emissions testing down there in Houston, the 96 is better since you don't have the sniffer test, but rather a computer check.

 

I bought a m6 95 trans am, they are awesome! I'd def. try for a m6, autos aren't as fun IMO. t-tops are also great! 95 is the year to go for!

 

i like 94's. (i wonder why). If you can, try to get an m6 so you can have a fast "bulletproof" setup. These trannys are TUFF.

 

Where do you get your information?? A OBDI car is not any easier to mod than a OBDII. I don't understand why people think that OBDI is easier. OBDII just monitors more things on the engine. I'm not exactly sure which are monitored, but yeah.
If I were you I would find a 97. It would be much easier to find a low mileage 97 vs. a 95 or lower. I woudl go out and find the type of car you want with the lowest mileage.

 

95

 

IMHO 93-95 is best. I dont like the ob2, but they are still great. Just find a nice low mile 6 speed and dont worry as much on what year it is.

 

Autos are still fun too. In some situations I'd much rather have auto.

 

My TA is a 95 with a single cat (A4)



NICK

 

Make sure you look for different trouble signs when you buy it. If you have the chance compression test the car and that will give you a general idea of what kind of shape the engine is in. The opti spark sucks, that is just a hit and miss, however if it does go out it is pretty simple to replace. Good luck and your makin' a good decision.

 

Correct me if im wrong, but I thought it was better to have dual cats because it will allow half the exhaust through one cat and half through the other, whereas a single cat all the exhaust has to go through one cat therefore making more restriction. I'm not 100% sure but i thought thats why the dual cats were rated like 285 hp instead of 275. It just sounds to me like you make the single cat out to be better, although once you start modding it really wont matter anyway. As far as obdII being harder to modify, i dont really agree with that, although there is a kit or something so you can change it to obdI.

IMHO I would go as new and with as few miles as possible, and get something that hasn't been modified much or beaten on.
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I would also say 95 or 97 depending on what you want. If you want the new style dash and interior go with a 97. If you want the older style go with a 95. Granted the 2 cat setup did give it more horsepower, but who the hell leaves those on. I have heard if u r gonna go all out on mods as well, you should do it with obd1 cuz there are less codes to throw. The drawback to 95 is the aforementioned obd2 dash plug and obd1 computer. Makes getting the car scanned a bitch monetarily.