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JoshParsons84

How do people feel about an 86 model Monte Carlo? Take it down to the block and and then take the block to a machine shop and have some work done to the head? Fully fuel injected motor though?

Or even the Grand Prix that looks like that too, or Cutlass?

venomclan

JoshParsons84 wrote: »

How do people feel about an 86 model Monte Carlo? Take it down to the block and and then take the block to a machine shop and have some work done to the head? Fully fuel injected motor though?

Or even the Grand Prix that looks like that too, or Cutlass?

I had an 84 SS. Nice car but the engine 305, 4 barrel, was not powerful enough for the weight of the car. You can soup it up well as my buddies did with theirs, but at the end of the day you still just have a 305, and not worth dumping all that money into imho. I then bought my Corvette and that car was a world of difference, lighter, better handling and more power.
Venom

MSALLA

JoshParsons84 wrote: »

How do people feel about an 86 model Monte Carlo? Take it down to the block and and then take the block to a machine shop and have some work done to the head? Fully fuel injected motor though?

Or even the Grand Prix that looks like that too, or Cutlass?

Great car, bad motor. The hot set-up is to pull the 305 and replace it with a big block. If it was me, I would find a small block 350 or the big guy 454 from an 80's truck. Do all your work to that motor and scrap the 305 in the monte.
The monte is not a car to go carving up corners with but it's a great muscle car.

audiobliss

Ditto on that.

Yank the engine, opt for a big block, and go tearing up the drag strip with it! Would be tons of fun!

shack

The bowtie guys think they are classics. I think they are fugly.

JoshParsons84

MSALLA wrote: »

The monte is not a car to go carving up corners with but it's a great muscle car.

See that's where I think I would have to stray from it then, because #1 to me is handling. Sorry, I love the sound and feel of a monster sounding V8 motor but if it can't go around a curve at 80 then it's not the car for me. Maybe I was wrong for the old classic style? So as far as for handling am I best to stay with today's imports then? Can the American Muscle's handling not hang with the Japanese Imports? Not worrying then TOO much about the motor what would some great cars for handling?

edbert

I say go with the Cutlass just for the sleeper factor. I borrowed one from a guy for a few days in college. That thing was banana yellow with a white vinyl top. Even if it was restored and looked clean, no one would expect you to blow their doors off when you open up the big block you put under the hood.

audiobliss

JoshParsons84 wrote: »

So as far as for handling am I best to stay with today's imports then?

Whao, whao, whao. Let's back up a minute. TOTALLY irrational conclusion here...let's not be rash...;)

Just because the Monte Carlo isn't a corner carver doesn't mean no American V8's can handle just as well as any **** import. It's just going to narrow down your selection a bit.

edbert

I agree, you can swap out suspension components in the process that will make it handle quite well. And you can do that easier than trying to get some good ole American muscle into one of today's imports.

venomclan

Or get a Corvette and get the best of both worlds, V8 iron and killer handling.

edbert

Yeah, but you KNOW a Corvette should both blow your doors off and run circles around you. Are you going to expect that from some dude in a Cutlass and tweed seats? Not that a Corvette wouldn't be awesome, just more fun to have something people don't expect.

audiobliss

I think in order to buy a 'Vette than can handle AND has a lot of power would cost way too much. You're basically limited to a C5 or C6, barring spending mega moola.

The older Corvettes (70's) could make a lot of power, but didn't handle. I personally like the C4 Corvettes, but I have to admit most them couldn't handle or make a lot of power.

venomclan

edbert wrote: »

Yeah, but you KNOW a Corvette should both blow your doors off and run circles around you. Are you going to expect that from some dude in a Cutlass and tweed seats? Not that a Corvette wouldn't be awesome, just more fun to have something people don't expect.

True, not a sleeper, but I guess it matters what is most important to you. If beating every guy at the light gets your rocks off, then a sleeper is what you want. I went that route in my 20's, had some fun but got it old quick. I ended up wanting the Vette over the Cutlass eventually.

audiobliss wrote: »

I think in order to buy a 'Vette than can handle AND has a lot of power would cost way too much. You're basically limited to a C5 or C6, barring spending mega moola.

The older Corvettes (70's) could make a lot of power, but didn't handle. I personally like the C4 Corvettes, but I have to admit most them couldn't handle or make a lot of power.

C4's are a bargain right now, and all of them will kill most Monte's and Cutlasses. A friend of mine had a Grand National with close to 600 hp. It was a beast going straight, but I owned him on a corner.
I have a C4 and I cannot agree with you about the handling and power part. I knew plenty of C4's in my old Corvette club that were killer. C4's handle pretty good imho, more so with the right shocks. As for power, depends on how much power you feel is enough. There will always be someone with more power and better handling. Venom

MSALLA

Everyone loves a Vette but they are not in everyone's budjet. I have no clue what your budjet is. The 1993 and up f-bodies handle great and are farr less then a vette. Lower a fox chassis mustang and they handle like a slot car.But.........if you can afford a vette and the parts I would go that way. They are awsome cars.
You sound like an import guy though. Maybe a tricked out honda is for you. They make a great motor.

JoshParsons84

MSALLA wrote: »

You sound like an import guy though

LOL I am. I know it sounds silly, but I honestly know more about a 4 cylinder Japenese motor than a V8 American motor. I'm sorry, I just do. Thanks for all the suggestions on the V8's and such but I guess do y'all know anything about imports? So a Honda Civic, huh? What model with what motor? I'd kinda like to NOT do any kind of motor swapping or anything. I'd like to leave the original motor in and just do work on it.

Face

I guess you like slow cars then.

Systems

Face wrote: »

I guess you like slow cars then.

Engine size in the year 2008 has very little to do with "speed". An S2000 can beat the hell out of 95% of the cars out there with V8's on a track. My old Subaru Sti could out track 98% of the V8's on the market.

Face

Silverti wrote: »

Engine size in the year 2008 has very little to do with "speed". An S2000 can beat the hell out of 95% of the cars out there with V8's on a track. My old Subaru Sti could out track 98% of the V8's on the market.

He mentioned getting a Civic and not doing much to it. The S2000, as impressive as it is at times, I still can't stand them. Unless you're beating the hell out of the car, it doesn't move. As for the Sti, I'd love to have one as a daily driver. Depending on my next contract at work, I may get one or a Lancer.

audiobliss

And I don't think the OP ever mentioned anything about TRACKING his car. Sure, if you're wringing the S2000 out, it SHINES on the track.

On the street? And off the line? I think not.

1422

Camero with a 350 is the way to go.

Face

I know people that OWN a Camaro that spell it that way, scary.

JoshParsons84

I don't want no track or strip car or nothing like that. I just wanna build me a bad **** car that's gonna handle like nothing else which also has a lot of aftermarket parts for so it's easy to fix up and go fast. In the beginning will be a car that's gonna sit out in the garage and be builded up piece by piece but in the end is gonna be my daily driver. Now does that help anybody out? I have no clue what I want or what I should even look into!

Systems

JoshParsons84 wrote: »

I don't want no track or strip car or nothing like that. I just wanna build me a bad **** car that's gonna handle like nothing else which also has a lot of aftermarket parts for so it's easy to fix up and go fast. In the beginning will be a car that's gonna sit out in the garage and be builded up piece by piece but in the end is gonna be my daily driver. Now does that help anybody out? I have no clue what I want or what I should even look into!

Get yourself a used WRX for cheap (Sti if you can afford it)...

edbert

Get a mid 90's Nissan Sentra SE-R with the SR-20. You will have a smaller lightweight car that can handle pretty well and you can get some good power out of the engine. I remember reading a couple of places where guys were getting 200hp to the ground without any power adders. Throw on a turbo and you are dancing closer to 350+.

audiobliss

JoshParsons84 wrote: »

I don't want no track or strip car or nothing like that. I just wanna build me a bad **** car that's gonna handle like nothing else which also has a lot of aftermarket parts for so it's easy to fix up and go fast. In the beginning will be a car that's gonna sit out in the garage and be builded up piece by piece but in the end is gonna be my daily driver. Now does that help anybody out? I have no clue what I want or what I should even look into!

You just described a fox body Mustang or Camaro with the LT-1.

That's exactly what you're looking for.

Either can be made to handle, and either can put down a lot of power.

Jstas

Oh God, I don't believe I am going to do this but, I suggest getting an old, early-mid 70's GM pickup. Either a Chevy or a GMC. Find a 3/4 ton one. You can open up almost any restoration or parts catalog and get all the parts you need.

Also, any V8 engine will bolt in without a problem and anything before 1974 is Federal emissions exempt. Also, because of the availability of parts, they are not only cheap but if you screw something up, getting a replacement is easy. Also, you can get them looking damn good with minimal experience. You also end up with a real nice pickup that is useful, not just a trailer queen or anything.

I don't know how much experience you have but, it's good to cut your teeth on a full-on, frame-up resto with something cheap and simple. Then you know what you are getting in to with other stuff. The work is work anybody can do. To be GOOD at it, you need the experience. It is not nearly as easy as most people think it is and it will ALWAYS take twice as long and cost 3 times as much as you think. So stack the deck in your favor as best as you can.

Other good options like a Fox chassied Mustang have already been mentioned. I'm going to say that you should stay away from a Camaro because the aftermarket is not there for it like the Mustang has and the cars have alot of little "gotcha's" that you really need to know an understand or they'll bite you in the ****. Corvettes are good if you are not above ripping the whole thing apart. The ones you can afford on a shoestring budget are probably the worst examples though. The early 80's examples with the "Crossfire" ignition are a nightmare and the mid-late 70's examples are pigs that need a TON of work to make viable. They look awesome when they are straight and clean but the body work is EXPENSIVE!


Some other options would be an old Ford Maverick or Chevy Vega. Parts are not easily available but they came with V8's from the factory on some models. An old Ford Falcon or Mercury Comet is a nice car to mess around with and there are plenty of parts to make them go fast. You could also do a Ford Fairmont for something different. It's based on the same chassis as the Mustangs so many parts bolt in. A small Chevy S-10 would be a good thing to mess with too.

I would honestly stay far away from imports. If you want fast and handling on rails, forgoe the Hondas and Nissans and other junk like that. Subarus and Mitsubishis are OK but expensive comparatively. Best bet for an import is t go and get a Miata. Mazdaspeed has entire staged suspension kits for them. You can get a turbocharger for it too and get like 200-250 horses out of it. That's a TON of power for a little car like that. You can get an early 90's model for next to nothing now too and it will need engine work. Otherwise, imports are expensive and most of the affordable ones for a project car are really economy cars and not very good for hopping up, no matter what the bench racers online and teh punk kids in the parking lots want you to believe.

Systems

Jstas wrote: »

I would honestly stay far away from imports. If you want fast and handling on rails, forgoe the Hondas and Nissans and other junk like that. Subarus and Mitsubishis are OK but expensive comparatively. Best bet for an import is t go and get a Miata. Mazdaspeed has entire staged suspension kits for them. You can get a turbocharger for it too and get like 200-250 horses out of it. That's a TON of power for a little car like that. You can get an early 90's model for next to nothing now too and it will need engine work. Otherwise, imports are expensive and most of the affordable ones for a project car are really economy cars and not very good for hopping up, no matter what the bench racers online and teh punk kids in the parking lots want you to believe.

Wow lol, couldn’t disagree any more. The reason Hondas, Nissans, Mitsu (really only the Evo) and Subbys are chosen by people to sup up now-a-days because they are some of the best bang for the buck cars you can buy with huge aftermarkets backing them. Hell $30000 WRX Sti's can take on Ferrari's (and many other $100000 cars) on the track and blow away anything made 15 years ago in performance and yet be a great daily driver with great gas mileage. Drop another $5K on and Sti and there’s very little out there that can out track it with some of the top Nierenberg track times there are (top 100). They are usually light and extremely well designed to the point that they can put out big power if tuned right. They are well balanced cars at strait line and lateral performance and adding after market to them. This is why these cars have been the defacto "sup up cars" for the last several generations (since the early 90's). My generation is not into the old school stuff, strait line muscle cars... of the 60's and 70's. A lot of people from that generation are still stuck in that era and even to this day still do not comprehend why the newer generations are not into the same thing they are. Sure we still appreciate them 60's Mustangs...

The real problem is the usual generation gap, older folk into old cars in America are like their parents, they just don’t get the young folk and their preferences and tend to call them “young punks in the parking lot”… But they fail to realize that when they supped up that 69 Chevy… Their parents were calling them young punks in the parking lot.

audiobliss

YOUR generation? Which would that be? I'm 19. I'm pretty sure that would automatically put me in the group loving imports. However, I'm over here championing the Mustang and Camaro. It's not just purely about age. We're all individuals with our own personalities and our own personal preferences. Mine is domestics, usually.

However, that doesn't mean I hate imports. I rather like an aesthetically pleasing, well done car that performs well, regardless of origin. But there's no denying I'm a sucker for that rumble and raw power of a V8. I also like imports, would like to have a few one day, and can appreciate one that's done well.

Now, in this thread, I was recommending the Mustang and Camaro because of budget. You're talking about 30,000 and hanging with Ferraris. You can take a Mustang or Camaro for a total investment of $5,000 and easily make it a beast in a straight line and, if you so desire, make it handle, too.

Two DRASTICALLY different budget levels.

MSALLA

How about a prelude with a vortec motor? Toyota supra came with a good motor. Can't go wrong with the last version of the RX-7.Worked rotory motors are a blast to drive and rev fast as hell.

Systems

audiobliss wrote: »

YOUR generation? Which would that be? I'm 19. I'm pretty sure that would automatically put me in the group loving imports. However, I'm over here championing the Mustang and Camaro. It's not just purely about age. We're all individuals with our own personalities and our own personal preferences. Mine is domestics, usually.

However, that doesn't mean I hate imports. I rather like an aesthetically pleasing, well done car that performs well, regardless of origin. But there's no denying I'm a sucker for that rumble and raw power of a V8. I also like imports, would like to have a few one day, and can appreciate one that's done well.

Now, in this thread, I was recommending the Mustang and Camaro because of budget. You're talking about 30,000 and hanging with Ferraris. You can take a Mustang or Camaro for a total investment of $5,000 and easily make it a beast in a straight line and, if you so desire, make it handle, too.

Two DRASTICALLY different budget levels.

I wasn’t responding to your post and you didn’t make comments that asserted that Imports were no good for supping up so I’m not sure what you are arguing with because you didn’t say anything that was inflammatory or incorrect to an auto enthusiast. But I could also just as easily say that you can pick up a great import for $5000 and sup it up just as easy and probably come out with a more balanced and reliable car then a $5000 Mustang or Camaro.

Your generation is different than mine. In the mid 90’s people bought Hondas and that class of car. Kids like you today are more balanced because the offerings of new domestics and imports are different and there are a lot better made domestics out there to pick from. But in my day, the imports were generations ahead of domestics.

Compare apples to apples in price.


The simple fact that if you have money, you can take just about any car and make it fast over stock period. There are simply better platforms to make it happen. For example in my auto enthusiast world, you would never.. ever.. pick a FWD car for any kind of performance with the exceptions of a few gems like say a 99 Integra Type R.