In college, my brother had a red 1985 IROC-Z that was one of the first IROCs on the street. He got a license plate the said “N-ROLL.” I always thought that was clever. I think he might be interested in living his glory days over again in this 34k mile 1986 Chevrolet Camaro IROC-Z. The car is for sale in Phoenix, Arizona and is listed here on Craigslist for $19,900.
The car is equipped with a tuned port injection (TPI) 305 cubic inch V8 engine that sends its power to the rear end through a 4 speed automatic transmission. As can be seen in the pictures, the engine compartment is super clean. For a reason that I don’t know, horsepower for the TPI 5.0 liter dropped from 215 horsepower in 1985 to 190 horsepower in 1986. In 1987, Chevrolet introduced the L98 5.7 liter TPI engine with 225horsepower.
The gray cloth interior is equally impressive as the engine compartment. The IROC-Z was named after the International Race of Champions. Painted in Code 744 Dark Red, this IROC-Z has aftermarket exhaust but otherwise is basically stock. The seller is asking strong money for this clean car but it is said to have its original paint and interior.
My brother sold his first IROC-Z in 1991 when he bought his wife a new Nissan. Now, he has five Z28’s and IROC-Z’s including a rare 1989 ILE Camaro IROC-Z with racing history. The ILE has a 305 cubic inch V8 and 5 speed. So what would you offer on this car? Is $20k still too steep for a low mile IROC-Z?
One of my all time favorites. This looks like a rocket ship compared to the 84 Mustang SVO also on this site today. No offense to the Mustang, but this car looks stunning where as the Mustang looks kind of Ho Hum
Yeah but the mustang doesn’t squeak and rattle. I agree the irocs did look good but the build quality was terrible. In 1985 I wanted a white 5 speed iroc. Went down to the chevy dealer to buy one. Oddly in 85 you couldn’t get a tuned port with a 5 speed. I couldn’t get over how a brand new car could rattle and the huge shifter ball was odd. I told the salesman I would think about it. On my home I drove past the Ford dealer and they had a red GT mustang sitting outside. I wasn’t a Ford guy but I thought I would try one out. I couldn’t believe how tight the body was and the 5 speed shifter felt much better. I bought that car and put 200k miles on it with very little trouble other than a heater core issue.
I had a similar experience. That parts bin interior and mismatched plastic everywhere was pretty bad. Just look at the pic of the dash, with the cheap plastic and different screws heads hanging out every which way.The Mustang just felt and looked better inside and out, cleaner, lighter and tighter.
Was that ‘85 GT carbureted or injected?
The author of this feature is right, it’s too pricey. It’s nice, but ahead of the curve. In another 5 or 10 years they might realistically have a shot at getting that much, but not yet, at least not for a 305 with an automatic.
Steve R
i wouldnt touch that car. wrong speedo in the car. tells me the mileage is not right. 1986 cars the speedo only went to 85.
1986 was the first year for the 140/145 mph speedometer option. There’s debate as to why certain cars got them. Some claim they went in TPI cars, some say only if they were hardtops, some say rear axle ratio.. There seems to be a lot of anomalies.
2nd half of the production year the 145mph speedos were introduced. Engine type didn’t matter, Z28’s & IROC’s only.
You’re right Chris. I changed my Speedo when I got mine. I know the rationale but 85 was 2nd gear.
I still have the car same paint and 34k
I also swapped out the engine at the same time to a 30m over 350 with the 5 speed B.W.
Ate Mustang Gt’s for lunch
Very nice car! These cars are perfect for LS motors!!
I would love to put this in my garage but there isn’t any room. My ex-girlfriend had one with a cracked cylinder head and with some difficulty we managed fo find a replacement. Then she wanted the engine rebuilt. So I pulled it, put a Crane Comp-cam, ported the heads, and balanced all the new parts. That car would flat get with it when you put the pedal down. She raced a GTa and kept up with it. She got more miles out of that car than she did with me.
I had an 87 IROC with the 350 motor. My personalized plates read IROC Z 57. I cut out a small blue “Illinois” period from some tape and placed it between the 5 and 7. Got tons of comments about it. Actually got pulled over by an obviously bored cop and told me it was an illegal display of my license plates…. So I took it off right there, went home and made another! Never got caught again….
I love this generation of Fbody, Camaro or Firebird, yeah they squeak and rattle and were mostly underpowered, the tuned port 350 is the one to have, however the later tuned port 305s weren’t bad either, especially with some simple mods, my 89 305 tpi auto will break the tires loose and get sideways shifting into 2nd, the 3.42s instead of 2.73s help a lot too lol.
I have a 92 T/A convertible which is the last year for the 3rd gen and also the year that GM used the upcoming 4th gen sealers and adhesives. Even as a convertible, the car is amazingly rattle-free even at 28 years old and with over 150k miles. It’s a 5-speed and so much fun to drive.