Which One IS Worth More

[jjbondzio]

I am looking at getting a blue and white gts and cant decide on the 96 or 97. Which one is worth more or are they about the same

 

[PDCjonny]

Mileage matters.
'96 was first, but '97 has improvements like forged rims, not cast rims and improved weatherstripping.

 

[unreelviper]

The 96 GTS will be worth more in the long run because it was the first year of the GTS(FE) First Edition. Both are very nice!!!!

 

[jjbondzio]

what is a good price for a 96 with 26k miles on it. Has cat delete, 4" Borla exahust, and smooth tubes, the guy is asking $39k and he said he paid $45k for it 8 months ago. so would $39k be a good deal

 

[jjbondzio]

i appoligize for my ignorance but what does forged rims mean

 

[jasontiff]

i appoligize for my ignorance but what does forged rims mean

STRONGAH!!!

 

[mad0953]

39K for a 96 in decent shape and a good history is a good deal chief.

 

[jdeft1]

Pretty set on the B/W huh... great combo IMO....
The car is worth what you're willing to pay for a B/W! What's the history? Good records? Grandma only drove on Sunday to church?? Who serviced it? and when? It's old.. maybe still on the original brake fluid..clutch fluid (tires!!!?)...

You want it? buy it!!!! Have no regrets whatever you learn later about it!!!! - all cars have problems here and there... What are your intentions? Garage queen? Driver? Please don't say investment potential... if you do, well, you want the FE and a friend a long way away to send the keys to.... LOL

BUY IT!!! you'll love it.

 

[HSSSSSS]

Check our classifieds. Three 1996 blue/white GTS's. Check Autabuy.com and you will find two 1996 and two 1997 B/W GTS's. They will give you something to compare to if nothing else.
Two of them are supercharged. You can never have too much power!!!!

 

[FikseGTS]

go for the 1996 GTS, it's the only year that the stripes went through the license plate area....

 

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

i appoligize for my ignorance but what does forged rims mean

The 96 rims were known to fail under track conditions. I don't know of any that failed under normal street driving.

Aside from being stronger the 97 rims also have a higher polish than 96. And 98 higher polish than 97.

 

[sniper1]

96' FE it's my fav
I didn't know bout the forged wheels on 97' though hummm

 

[dave6666]

Which one is worth more to WHO? You, or the future owner you are saving it for?

If you are looking to purchase an investment, I certainly would do something with a historically better return rate than a Viper.

Why don't you buy both and report back to us in 20 years!

 

[whitebluevipe]

Which one is worth more to WHO? You, or the future owner you are saving it for?

If you are looking to purchase an investment, I certainly would do something with a historically better return rate than a Viper.

Why don't you buy both and report back to us in 20 years!

must agree with dave on this one. i would almost rather chance buying GM stock over buying a viper as a investement.

 

[Martin]

I think it really comes down to which one is in best shape, has the right mileage, and history. As others have noted, '97 had some minor improvements (forged wheels, better weatherstripping, slightly better epoxy work (that's my opinion)). The '96 was first, though, so that might be worth something - but not much in my opinion. Some people like the stripes going through the license plate frame, some don't care.

One thing to consider is that there were actually fewer B/W '97 GTSs made than '96s since they also made a red one in '97. It makes the '97 B/W slightly rarer (fewer than 1000 were made compared to around 1200 for the '96s).

 

[PDCjonny]

By the way, regarding the forged wheels.
Early '97's still had cast, they switched to forged early to mid year.
Jon B knows the dates on that.

 

[WOT!]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but are the strips on the 96 wider than the 97?

If so the look is different as well.

 

[PDCjonny]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but are the strips on the 96 wider than the 97?

If so the look is different as well.

Narrower on the '97, but takes a sharp eye to notice it.
1/4" narrower on the '97's.