Well Don if you are looking for the fastest car in the 1/4 mile thats bone stock then a 02 Trans AM 6-Speed would be it.
However when it comes to other areas a 94-95 Supra TT would no doubt be your best bet.
As for the 300zx and 3000GT count them out. I've owned a 92 300ZX and it's not quite what you would expect. I have driven 3kgt TTs and they are awesome off thge line but after about 70mph the fun is over.
So that leaves us with 3 cars.
97 Camaro
02 TA
94-95 Supra
Now the 02 TA is an awesome car no doubt. However insurance will be as much of a beast as the car is. However if thats not a concern then it's a great deal. The car has awesome straight line performance and it can be made to handle excellent but it will cost you a few thousand dollars. Also the stock brakes will need work. If it was me I would count this car out of the choices basically because it will cost you a bundle to purcahse a brand new one and modify it and pay insurance.
Now we have two choices the 97 Camaro and the Supra. 97 Z28s 6-Speeds are bargins! You can find them at excellent prices right now. They are a few years old so insurance isn't going to outright break you up. I just sold a 95 Convertible and insurance on it was only $90 a month for a 19-Yr old. Anyways though the LT1 is an excellent engine that can stand 150k or more of performance driving and abuse before a rebuild (with proper maintnence of course) they are a lot cheaper to modify then the 98+ LS1s and to me the LT1 cars feel a lot better to drive. The torque on LT1s comes into play at a much lower RPM then the LS1 so on the street the LT1 feels really fast. If you get a 6-Speed and know how to drive it you can hand right with a new Trans AM LS1 Automatic. However the interior build quality of these cars are kind of low but definitaly not as bad as people make them out to be. Who needs a perfect interior in a performance car anyways? Basically though you can do about $1500 in suspension and brake upgrades to this car then about $2,000 in engine and trans mods and run with pretty much anything not totally exotic.
Now to the Supra, this car has excellent brakes and suspension from the factory. The build quality is excellent and their resale value is high. I have never seen a car respond as good to engine mods as these cars do. Install a full performance exhaust, a K&N and a boost controller and you have a 400HP rocket on your hands that has handling and braking to match. About the only disadvantge I can think of to these cars are 1: If proper maintnence has not be done you could have major problems with the turbos and such. 2: If the engine needs rebuilt you are looking at a good chunk of money!
The Supra is an all around performer with excellent reliability. But the fact is it is a turbo car and it does like to be wound out to get the most out of it. If you never go over 70mph then the car is not for you.
Basically what do you want to do with the car?
If you want to be one of the baddest cars on the street then the Supra would be your best bet if you have loads of money to dump into it.
If you want a fast car that you don't have to be afraid of beating the heck out of (cheaper parts prices) then get a 97 Z-28 6-Speed and do a few mods. The Z-28 will be funner on the street because you have no turbo lag. Just stomp the pedal and take off. Plus if the car breaks parts are easy to get.
Heres what I would do:
Find a 97 Z-28 6-Speed with 20k-40k miles on it. Get the following:
Hooker long tube headers - $380-400
Flowmaster Cat-Back exhaust - $240-250
K&N Filter - $35-40
B&M Ripper Shifter - $150-175
That will get you a decent start. From then on the sky is the limit. You could do with some nitrous if you like to drag race or go with heads and a performance cam if you just want street performance. Or you could do suspension and brake work (Hotchkis makes suspension stuff to make this car pull over 1G) if you want auto-x performance and things like that.
Just my .02 cents
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