Without going into too much detail, I find myself suddenly a big fan of convertibles – namely, because as of last week, I own one. More to come on that later. I haven’t owned a drop-top since my ill-fated Mazda Miata purchase in the early 2000s, and I’m glad I wasn’t too scarred to try again. This 1988 Chevrolet Camaro convertible here on eBay should only make believers out of you, as it seems to be in excellent condition with a reasonable $13,500 Buy-It-Now.
Bidding is just over $10K with the reserve unmet. The Camaro shows 54,300 miles and the clean cosmetics serve to back that up. Paint appears excellent and original five-spoke wheels still suit this generation well. The seller says the Camaro remains completely original aside from the radio, which has presumably been replaced by an aftermarket component.
The interior is spectacular, looking way better than even less than 60,000 miles would suggest. As I recently learned, the thing about convertibles is it encourages people to lower the top – and leave it down, permanently. Yes, I am searching for a new interior, but not if I owned this Camaro – it looks spectacular inside, with no obvious signs of abuse or prolonged sun exposure.
The engine bay is quite clean, and I assume the 5.0L V8 still purrs with authority given the seller lists no details about flaws and/or maintenance history. Still, this is a fairly trouble-free package and there’s still time left in the summer months to enjoy it. With bids nearing the Buy-It-Now price, I imagine we’ll have a new caretaker of this clean Camaro soon.
Ah, the experience of driving about in your vintage convertible with the wind in your hair…for those of you who still have hair..
Very nice for what it is; this too appears to be well taken care of, and that’s a good trend!
I agree with your comment about dropping the top and leaving it down. I had my Z3 out yesterday for a 100 plus miles of back road cruising. Topless all day thanks to the newer HVAC systems. Sun beating on you? No problem, turn on the A/C. Waiting to hear more about your new ragtop! This Camaro would be a fun rig, not sure on the value but it seems high to me.
Hey Mike,
We will soon be without a topless car for the first time in many many years. The Corvette is long gone, and the wife’s Beetle is getting a For Sale sign put on it tomorrow.
I’ll have another, someday, that’s for sure!
Sorry to hear that Dennis. The good news is there are a ton of cool ragtops around. Have a great time with your test drives! Take care, Mike.
Aw, not to worry, they’re like ex-wives and show up in the most unlikely place when you least expect them to!
I love my ’86 mustang GT convertible, unfortunately no a/c, so in Mississippi in the summer, I try not to drive during the heat of the afternoon. Driving around the back roads in a drop top keeps me sane.
Where I am from we have what seems like solid rain/freak storms to blistering heat. I am not retired and still work for the weekends (loosing the hair tho) and the weather is a crap shoot.
As nice as it seems it is the same as a motorcycle or boat. Not worth the fun of a few days of enjoyment only to store indoors and insure all year. Too nice for a daily driver and assuming the top is original it is fragile. Most hit the button and let the top go back.
On my Fox Mustang GT back in the day it took me a few min of walking around the car making sure the top wouldn’t pinch between the top assembly. Still though after 10 years of minimal use it shrank and no amount of chemicals or preservatives prevented age due to the drying effects of the sun.
If I were in the market I would wait until the winter as everyone knows the value is much much less when there is snow on the ground. Not ready to be a caretaker I still have the boat and motorcycle.
Jeff I would consider a Miata tho
I had one of these in the early 90’s. Tan top and interior. Loved it! Just traded my 1998 rag top Camaro on a 2011 SS drop top. Guess I like the sun. If had room, would add this to the stable in a minute!
Definitely a great buy at a great price, great color, great engine with tpi
Not much to dislike about theses cars, tops were hartz and did not shrink and were manual and sooo easy to pop up or down , i owned a few and if not for buying a 2 seater topless this would still do it for me …
Anyone have one of these? I’m thinking it’s a rattletrap
Yes it does rattle when its freezing cold but in warm weather its a great car …
Yes it does rattle when its freezing cold but in warm weather its alright
I have a ’89 Lamborghini Red Avanti convertible and really enjoy driving it top down in the summer. Only a week ago, I drove it to South Bend IN from the Chicago area for a club picnic topped by driving some laps on the old Studebaker Test Track now owned by Navistar. Two accessories are needed when driving a convertible top down, sun block and a a wide brimmed hat that won’t blow off. I prefer my Tillie hat for the drive. Get the convertible, put the top down and enjoy the ride, forgetting about the squeaks and rattles when the top is up!
When I got my driver’s license at age 17, my first five cars were all convertibles. I love droptops. Once I went to a two door hardtop I figured my convertible days were over. I managed quite a few decades later to get my most recent convertible, a 1975 Cadillac Eldorado convertible.
Of course, since then I’ve joined the ranks of SUV owners, but I will get another convertible (hopefully a Cadillac) soon. Living in an area of the country where we have more than 300 sunny days a year, now is the time to get back to droptops.
Just don’t forget the SP100-the sun is brutal at higher altitudes!
It’s a shame those 305’s found their way into so many of the Chevy’s of this era.
@ Nevadahalfrack
Being the desert, it kinda goes without saying that you put the top down at night. If you’re gonna do any day driving, you leave the top up and crank up the a/c. This week…… 108° all week.
😓😎!
Which is why we live in the other end of the state..it’s gonna be a balmy 92* here this week and 86* at Tahoe!
FYI, a friend of mine was a LV Metro motorcop back in the day; working day shift in the summer made him come up with some ingenious was to cool off (especially in August!).
Stay cool, Angel.
It was fun for guys like me with a 5.0 Mustang rag top even in stock trim. It would disrespect the Gen III Camaro’s all day long and those…..get ready… Monte SS. Yep those 305’s awesome!
I had a 305 in an el Camino in 86, and it had throttle body, and it ran great, was pretty quick too.
I had one of these that my dad had bought new, so I was lucky to get it after he bought a newer one. He hated “automagics” as he’s call them, so it has the great 5 speed manual with the larger of the V8s and was such a great performer. There was some appearance package that came on it that put the matching red accents in the wheel recesses to match the exterior paint. The leather interior was super nice and comfortable. I ended up selling it when the family grew and I was not about to buy a new family car on payments, so I sold it to a guy that had been bugging me to buy it for years before. The design of the top to be so easily and quickly stored under the boot was really a savvy one. I like it much better than the power drop tops I had later on.