As soon as i pay my srt off in aug. 06, im selling it and picking up a used Z28 or TA. i just wanted to know what are they differences between the 2, the oldest year i would by will be a 98. Are these cars reliable with heavy mods, how many miles can you get out of the car? to the people who already have one of them, how would you rate them against other cars, have you had any trouble with the car? im also looking at maybe gettin a used 04 or 05 gto then too. how would you compare them to the gto’s? any other INFO will be very helpful.
get a 99^ there the same,looks are on t/a side!
Ss > T/a
don’t they all run about the same times, ss/z28/TA?
if so, whatever has the best price when you goto buy is the best one to get
I would say go to a few local car shows and check out a few close up and see the differences. I can meet up with you so you can see a WS-6. It is a matter of taste. I prefer the TA over a Z-28. I would recomend finding a nice clean one that you can tell it was cared for and try to keep the mileage under 40K. A good LS1 will run great over 100K but there is more to car than just the motor.
find a Used 03 Cobra in 06 for under $20k
03 cobra is about the easiest/cheapest car to make fast. Keep in mind it isn’t hard to get a LS1 to run fast either. It all depends on what you like. I would take a ws-6 over a 03 cobra but that is just me.
and it seems parts for 99 cars are cheaper than 00-02…
both cars are identical except for looks…me i love the look of a SS
my fav would be 97 SS vert but no LS1 
i love them both look wise but maybe the TA WS-6 is a little better looking.
I dont like the way the cobras look and i dont like ford either, i could probably make the ls1 run just as good as the cobras
For a given year all 4th Gen. Z28/SS/TransAm/Formula/WS6/Firehawk cars run about the same numbers and dyno about the same (accept the very rare LT4 SS and Firehawks in ‘97… but you’re lookin’ at 98+ anyway). The various ram air hoods and model specific exhausts are worth very little (the LT1 models are actually the only ones that seem to be worth jack since none of the LS1 ram air hoods seal and especially the SS hood has a very inefficeint air-path). Some cars are just factory freaks and put down a few extra ponies, but it’s just as likely to be a Z28 or non WS6 TA/Formula as it is a SS, WS6 or Firehawk.
There are few options worth a couple 'o ponies. Like the 345hp package that includes a lid and higher flow catback that was availble on '01-02 SSs. However, an aftermarket lid and catback is going to be even better than those pieces. Also the higher level suspension packages available from SLP on the SS are worth it if you want to Road Race or AutoX but want to stay in a stock class (though a SS gets pushed to BStock for AutoX so you’d be more competitive with a Z28/TA/Formula in Fstock). But once again you can do better aftermarket stuff for the $ if you don’t mind modding it.
So it’s all up to looks. Personally my favorite is the SS, but that’s just me. I got a Z28 when I bought my car though cuz I wasn’t going to pay $5k more (I bought my car used, at the time SSs were holding value pretty well so even though the package was about $3k brand new a used SS brought about $5k more than a similar used Z28 which wasn’t holding value that well) for the “looks.” When I got my car painted from being keyed I got a SS wing really cheap from a buddy so I put that on. Someday I might do the SS hood too, but I’ll still run my '69 Z/28 badges cuz I do not have an SS.
Anyway what I’m trying to say is just pick the one that you like best, as they all perform equally well.
By the time you are ready to buy a '01-02 LS1 should be pretty cheap. With an '01+ you’ll get the LS6 intake and no EGR and they generally dyno a bit higher too. You’re also likely to find a lower mileage car in these years. So personally that’s what I’d shoot for. But there’s nothing wrong w/ '98-00 cars (I have a '99). You can easily put a LS6 intake on and delete EGR etc. (I dunno excatly how that’ll work w/ PA smog laws, in Cali it’s an issue but I dunno 'bout there). The '01+ have better exhaust manifolds too, but if you’re going to do headers obviously that doesn’t matter.
As for reliability/longevity the LS1 is very good. My buddy has over 130k on his '98 Z28. He’s AutoXed it all season long (which is like 10 months of the year here in Cali) every year since he got it brand new. He finally retired it from AutoX last year when he bought a race-prepped 'vette. Though he actually AutoXed it just a few weekends ago cuz the 'vette was down. He’s always run a few different series out here so for the car’s life it’s ran probably 2 AutoXs a month for most of the year. It’s still his daily driver and road course car and he even drag races it on occasion. It has 130k and hasn’t ever even had the valve covers off. It still uses no oil and pulls hard. Another friend of mine got well past 100k on his LS1 even though he sprayed it w/ a 125 shot on a regular basis and Road Raced it. He finally blew it up on purpose when he installed his STS kit and cranked it to 14psi. He just wanted to see what it’d take b4 it blew since he had an all forged 387 ready to go. The thing lasted a few months bumping the boost every few weeks 'till it got to 14psi. And that’s another 100k+ ‘abused’ motor.
As for the GTO keep in mine the '04 is a LS1 and the '05 is the 400hp 6.0L LS2. Something to think 'bout if you end up going down that road.
-TJ
well 01 and 02 are the faster ones being 02 are the freaks. either one are nice, z28 is kinda a low key ride well everyone and their mom hasssss a damm ram air TA these days. now the SS and z28 are the same except the hood and exhaust some had stronger aurban diffs. if i was to get any it would be the SS that is all done up in slp crap. i like the dual center port exhaust instead of the dual dual center port exhaust. the WS6 wing is nice but the SS wing seems to be really mean looking. its a hard decison but in the end they claim the optioned out ws6 over the SS by 1mph on top end. lol something with how hood effects the ram air. mods are very simple to do to it but can get pricey when looking for motor parts. actually the stock parts are very well design and they can be made quick with nothing more then a exhuast, tune, and a cam. some cleaning up of parts dont help either to hte Gen III motors
the SS also has 17x9’s unless its a vert!
what do you think about buying an r-title ls1? Also whats the biggest difference between the ls1 TA and Z28 compared to the ls1 gto if there are any? What are the differences between the ls2 and ls1, which one is better and for what reasons?
thanks alot guys
If you are going for an Rtitle LS1 go through JJ’s
^^yep…and i agree w/ quik. SLP SS done up might be my fav of the f-bods
SS only if you put the ground effects package only with the center exit exhaust, if not TA all the way.
what about selling my car? how difficult will it be cuz i never sold one before and dont really know how difficult it is or how long it could take?
wont be that hard to sell and SRT-4 i dont think
where do most people post them up at? Autotrader.com?