which one for a driver?

[usetaboost]

93 t/a LT1, auto, posi, etc. or 88 daytona c/s 2.2 5spd turbo?

The trans am has been a great car. Not really that great for winter though:frown: Doesn't handle near as well as what my 86 z 28 did

The daytona on the other hand will need some work. Nothing major though. Gets 30+ MPG, parts are cheap and easy to work on, and can be modded very easy-like a turbo buick

I still owe a bit on the t/a and I do keep full coverage on it in case of an accident. If I did sell the t/a it would give me some extra cash to give to the house and fund some more buick stuff. Getting in a different car always makes me nervous. break downs suck. I was thinking keep the t/a until the buick is roadworthy then put it up for sale. Decisions decisions.....

 

[DailyDrifter]

T/A=rwd, Daytona=fwd. For me the answer is simple , but no one listens to me.

 

[BLACK6PACK]

get ready to spend twice as much on the dodge as the american rwd v8. doesn't make much sense, but try to repair the little 4 banger.

 

["Turbo-T"]

You'd probably have to look thru all ends of the earth to find parts for a Dodge Daytona. The Firebird will be easier, just make sure the opti spark gets replaced when the water pump finally leaks.

 

[usetaboost]

pros and cons

For some reason this is a hard decision for me. I've had a K car before and I never had any problems with it. I beat the hell out of it too. The two biggest sell points on the daytona is FWD and a helluva gas saver.

BUT the trans am is in good shape for how old it is. I don't have much left to do on it to make it be 100% worry free. Down side to the car its a FKN PITA to do any work to. Parts costs make a turbo buick look cheap to repair. RWD sucks in the snow (how'd you like lookin at the guardrail going 50 on the interstate with NO snow). Cant get any better than 16 mpg. Runs on 180 t stat so I freeze my nuts off when it gets 20 or below. It is a decent lookin car with leather, 6 speaker and steering controls, posi, and a solid drivetrain and NO RUST!

HOW would I spend twice as much on the dodge as I would the trans am? Please explain.

As far as parts, EXAMPLE: Heater core for TA about 70 bucks. New opti setup and water pump probably about 500 bucks. A whole new distributer for a dodge is around 200. Performance parts are about the same or sometimes cheaper than a TR. A cold air intake for a t/a runs over 200 bucks. TIres are about 125 a piece, I could go on and on with comparing prices but don't have time. gotta work.

There are more K cars in the yards around here than 4th gen F bodies.

 

["Turbo-T"]

If you're only getting 16 mpg at best then something is wrong. If I'm not mistaken I believe those get in excess of 20 mpg.

I can believe you on the "it's a bitch to work on" thing. I've had lots of 4th gen F body owners curse their cars on plug changes, opti spark changes....the list goes on. My old boss had a 96 Z28 and vowed to "never own another American car again". Yet he'd never sell his...guess he had some $$ tied up in it.

And I also concur on the snow thing, FWD does get thru better, just dont expect a turbo Daytona to get any traction if your right foot gets happy on snow.

I guess it's really your call, but I've not seen a Daytona, much less a turbo model, for a long long time. I remember them in the 80's, and maybe the early 90's. I'll bet I've not seen one since about 1996. I figured they were nothing more than another junk cookie cutter Chrysler that lived 5-10 years before heading to the boneyard. Never have seen a K car last for long.

 

[usetaboost]

There are daytonas running on the strip wtih well over 200k on them. I saw a thread last week on there a guy had over 325k on his car and was trying to decide weather he should rebuild it or buy a reman. IT STILL DIDN"T SMOKE, just had the wonderful piston slap when cold they all get if they are rode hard. It's a huge toss up. I am not worried about performance with the car, that will come eventually with junkyard treasures and home depot stuff Maybe we can get some former TURBO DODGE people in here to give some insight if they are reliable drivers. Some People drive their turbo buick every day, what would eb wrong with a TD?

 

[Renthorin]

As an X turbo Daytona (89) owner I say get the Dodge

There are plenty of go fast parts and stock parts are still at the dealership for lots of stuff.

I see TA's all over the place but Daytonas are rare and don't look like everything else on the road today.

 

[SloGN]

the daytona's are great little cars. the turbo 2.2l are really great engines.

 

[supercrackerbox]

The trans am has been a great car. Not really that great for winter though:frown: Doesn't handle near as well as what my 86 z 28 did

The way I understand it, when GM was researching ways to improve the next generation F-body, a lot of people complained that the 3rd gen had a very harsh ride. So add a softer suspension, 800+ pounds of body mass (and a huge fat a**), and viola! 4th gen F-body.

get ready to spend twice as much on the dodge as the american rwd v8. doesn't make much sense, but try to repair the little 4 banger.

Not on your life. Go ahead and pick any single random driveline, brake, or suspension part, and I'll pull out the receipts and tell you exactly what it costs.* Now of course, if you mean dollars spent per horsepower gained, of course it will start to trickle off once you start approaching 300hp. There's only so much you can do with 135 c.i.d. and 8 tiny valves. (In stock form, these heads make a '78 305 head look like a high flowing piece)

*Now before you take this as meaning the cars are so unreliable I've had to replace every single part, umm, yes I've done everything, but not because they're unreliable. My daily driver is a beater 1986 Daytona Turbo Z with 220,000 miles on it- the last 140,000 of which I've driven through every kind of weather Nebraska has thrown at me in the last 11 years. Of course, I have some very good snow tires on it. I've had to have it towed twice. Once for a fuel pump and once when I spat the clutch out. Yes, I have replaced almost everything mechanically, but I don't exactly baby it either. I bought it for $300 with a bad head gasket my junior year in high school, fixed it, and have been driving it since. I also commute 60 miles a day for work.

My "toy" is an '86 Shelby Charger that I bought as a rolling shell with half a filthy interior and absolutely nothing under the hood except the brake booster. I spent two years piecing it together and FWD or not, it is a blast to drive.

And I can assure you, these cars are easier to work on than a SBC. If you know your way around a turbo Buick, these will be a walk in the park.

 

[supercrackerbox]

You'd probably have to look thru all ends of the earth to find parts for a Dodge Daytona.

Mechanically, not at all. Worst case scenario, the part I'm after is a non-stocking item and has to be ordered at the parts store-- But anyone with a car from the 80's has probably been through that before.

Now, body and interior-wise, that's a bit different. Three mom-and-pop vendors aside, these cars have virtually no aftermarket support whatsoever. That's when you get to start foraging through junkyards and scouring internet classifieds.

But, on the note of interior parts- As long as this CS is a non T-top car with a grey interior, umm, what part do you need?

 

[Rivical]

supercrackerbox +1

I've had lotsa turboK's and will defend to the end that they're spectacularly reliable(or is that Reliant?) quick for what they are and UNFREAKINBELIEVABLE in the snow!!! My black 85 Shelby Charger with winter 195-75/r15's would blast thru thick drifts well over the hood alla time!!! I LOVED that one! Yes ma Mopar is a bitch and drops all the goodies of her sheets after ten yrs, but for a daily year round transportation car? PLEASE, there's NO comparison! Build the T/A for a cruiser/racer!

 

[usetaboost]

Well the wife is VERY worried about this car being a pos. I haven't heard one bad thing on ANY board about turbo dodges. My friend's dad had one when I was in high school and it was a badmammajama I've had plenty of v8 fbodies for driver's and they have usually been troublesome except for the T/A I have now. It's a great car, but its not practical for my DD duties. She wants me to wait on getting the c/s. I need to go check it out and see if its at least mechanically sound. If it don't blow a ton of smoke, have a bad piston slap or noise, and the clutch is good I think I'll buy it anyway. SHe would probably feel better if I could get the trans am sold. Neither one of us want it anymore

supercrackerbox- It is a true 88 c/s. It has a/c, rear defrost, and tape deck. It is a 2.2 5spd turbo I motor. Shouldn't take chit to put a junkyard intercooler in front I don't need multiple hot rods. I got the TB if I wanna go kill something That is, if I ever get it finished:redface:

 

["Turbo-T"]

What kinds of times do those turbo Dodge's do in the 1/4? Is there any issue with torque steer?

 

[JOHNDEEREGN]

What kinds of times do those turbo Dodge's do in the 1/4? Is there any issue with torque steer?

In 1986 they wouldnt out run the cops, ask me how I know

 

[supercrackerbox]

What kinds of times do those turbo Dodge's do in the 1/4? Is there any issue with torque steer?

Eh, mid to high 15s in stock form. Even in stripped form (like a CS car) it's knocking on 3000lb. curb weight. Car in question is rated at 155hp/170tq IIRC. Torque steer is very minimal unless there's a shot motor mount or something askew in the suspension.

 

[jdpolzin]

Dude, I say ditch the TA and the Daytona idea and get something like an S-10 extended cab or something thats not a hobby car but more of a useful family oriented car thats reliable. Also, little trucks are useful man. Think about how much more stuff we could have piled into it when you came and got those seats?!! I guess I just see it this way, if you have a house, and a family, you need something that supports the house and family first. Money is tight for everyone right now, why do you want a Hot Rod for a driver thats going to need to be repaired-maintaned? Maybe I'm just getting old I guess!:biggrin:

 

[usetaboost]

Silly wabbit, turbo daytonas aren't hot rods It's just a little turbo 4 banger in a heavy car. Wait, kinda sounds like a TR doesn't it I tried the s10 idea but the wife won't let me get a p#ssy truck. THat and they're going for more than what I want to spend. 4-6 grand, I'll buy a full size. Don't really need a truck unless I'm going to get buick parts:biggrin: I already got that arranged with my buddy. Just gotta plan the trip. Both of us having free time is far and few between anymore. I'm just at the point where I hate fbodies, I myself didn't want the car. Just got stuck driving it. I want a TD just for something different. That and I like to play with stuff. If I get an s10 I'll just wanna turbo, lift it, v8-it or something, see there's always an angle. I'm sick in the head, I like having multiple retarded projects. I like to tinker and tear it apart and see how it works If I still had the old blue regal, it would have a 455 in it and the monte ss trans I have in the garage-cause I found a 455 yesterday for 300 bucks.

 

[turbofish38]

Well the wife is VERY worried about this car being a pos. I haven't heard one bad thing on ANY board about turbo dodges.

I see your wife has been reading my posts :tongue: http://www.turbobuick.com/forums/turbo-lounge/237569-question-winter-beater-shelby-z-z-24-a.html

I might not have any experience with turbo'd chitzboxes and the only experience I have with LT1s is with my 95 Roadmaster Wagon with 375K on the clock but I'll be the first to reacclaim my total dislike for 4 bangers from the Old Pentastar Company with this quote from that thread

The thread should be titled which car is the biggest POS! Neither car is anything to brag about IMO.

 

["Turbo-T"]

S-10's aren't ***** trucks, they're good cruisers, easy to manuever....drop in a nice small block and overdrive trans and they can eat up most anything in their path, very unsuspectingly, using less fuel to do it and you save on insurance too. Besides there's nothing wrong with tinkering, it's what being a hot rodder is all about.