reactor2

No such thing as a "cheap" 'vette. You're likely going to find out that repairing and maintaining a 'vette is going to get expensive fast. Absolutely nothing on the 'vette is cheap to replace. $7500 might sound like a steal but I guarantee you that a bulk of those miles were driven hard.

bj1k

SAX2VET Since you went from a sax player to a proud "vet" owner.

SaxyVette

Well let me put it this way my friend, one thing I've learned is that nothing in this world is free.

I've owned many Corvette's over a 30 year span. I've spent anywhere from $1500-$35,000 to buy my cars, just for the simple joy of driving a Corvette.

here's some short history. (wish I still had my Red '72 454 4spd 'vert)...yrs ago I traded a 911 Targa (that I paid 9K for) to get that car..(sold it a year later with a flat cam for 13K)

I've had only one C2 it was a '66 Big Block 4spd coupe ..I drove it for 3yrs like I stole it and made money when I sold it.

I've owned 6 different C3's and in more recent years three C4's '86-'87-'88...never lost a dime on any of them. ('cept maybe a little on an '81 I blew off in a trade)..

Knowing how and where to spend goes a long ways.

Some were good cars, some not so good.. but in the end I've survived and had a blast with every one of them.

It ain't my first rodeo..

Now this IS my first C5..with it's own special set of issues, I know..but truth be told I could sell it tomorrow and make money..but I didn't buy it to sell it...holy cow, will it detonate in the meantime and send me to poor house?? only time will tell..This one spoke to me and I rolled the dice, just like all the others..I'm determined to enjoy it ..that's it.

I buy 'em to drive 'em, and if you actually look at the pics, my newly acquired '99 is a damn straight car.. If it causes me grief or when the party's over I'll move on, simple as that..win lose or draw..

A Corvette is a hobby to me..an investment in having a good time.

You say that you "guarantee me" ..well I don't think so..There are no guarantees...at my age I realize that much.

But thanks for your thoughts anyway..

SaxyVette

Anybody know if that's a Stock Exhaust system under there ????

seansz28

yes, definitely stock

SaxyVette

Thanks Sean, I'm glad it is. I'm not a big fan of extensive mods anyway. Seems like some mods can cause extra problems that I don't need...

The car sounds real good anyway. I think those Tips will polish up real nice when I finally get to start detailing my new toy.

mpride

Don't forget to update your profile pic when you get a good picture of the car.

c4gone

I got my 99frc for around 13k. drove it home which was about 85 miles. 2 days later the torque tube goes out. up on the lift the shop realized the whole assembly of the rear cradle and everything was hand tightened.i called the old owner and of course he failed to mention that he and his friends had messed with it. so after the new torque tube and cradle comes in and we start it all up again we see the oil leaks. I called the old owner and he failed to mention that it had 3 oil leaks. oops right? so I fixed the front timing seal, oil pan gasket, rear main seal. when we start the car up after that fix the column lock goes out. so the car sits and gets fixed, right after its fixed the battery goes out. fix that and on the drive home from the performance shop the ebcm and ac goes out. im yet to fix those. a few weeks later the transmission starts acting up. long story short; after owning this car for a couple of years im still fixing it.

SaxyVette

Hmmmm..not a good story...

My '99 has so many miles on it that I know it's been driven for sure. Fortunately it's doesn't appear to have been badly abused either. I'm thinking perhaps a Lady owned it..for a car with 200+ thousand miles the interior is not trashed or the seats broken down..

On the rack my undercarriage is very clean and shows no signs of anything leaking. I got a fresh Battery with my used car when I bought so it starts fine. My a/c seems to work OK although the Fan only goes to 4. I ditched the aftermarket junk stereo and now have a hole in the dash.

My car is basically stock and unmolested. I hope along the way the column issues and other C5 gremlins have been chased down. Of course I'm getting a new trans so hopefully I'll have no issues for a long time.

..it definitely sucks when what should be so much fun turns out to be so much pain.

Let's hope you'll sort these issues out and you'll finally be able to enjoy your car.

c4gone

I too took out the radio and put in a stock radio.

vettefx76

Wow!! I hope you will eventually be able to enjoy it without something going out. Seems like the previous owner was kinda shady...

c4gone

well he didn't take care of it. he didn't know that a white frc was only made in small numbers. that's why i bought it. i was looking for a white frc for 4 years. mine is the only one i have seen. so in a sense i knew i was going to take it. but yes it does bite. right now its in the garage with trans issues, no ac, ebcm, slight oil leak again,
however its so clean. id post pics but i have none

seansz28

I paid 11 for my 99 frc. Shortly after starter went out then throw out bearing then I blew the diff in half and sheared my 6spd output shaft in half from launching it and getting wheelhop. Engines still goin strong with 170k in the clock.

SaxyVette

So many of these cars are modded and abused. I know they're a performance machine but some guys thrash them beyond belief.

Mods are another issue, I guess it's the thrill of being able to brag about your HP/torque stuff..Don't matter at all to me . These cars are plenty fast enough for me out of the box.

I prefer a car that's basically stock and unmolested anyway. Better resale that way too. When guys list endless pages of engine Mods I see endless pages of potential issues. That's just my school of thought. Even lowering I have my doubts about, the C5 sits pretty nice as is to my eyes. I can see perhaps better shocks and some accessories but thats about it. Even the stock exhaust sounds pretty good to my ears..

Glad to see your engine still going strong at 170K..mine at 220+ seem a bit noisy on cold start up but quickly quiets down and sounds fine. I'll probably throw some Lucas in at my first oil change. Can't wait to really drive mine as I don't know how strong it pulls yet as I bought it with the bad trans and never really got it off the car lot.

bj1k

I couldn't agree more with you. I think a car that has been modded has most likely been viciously abused , after all isn't that the whole idea. When I see a Corvette that has mods I run not walk the other way. I learned at an early age that if you abuse a car , you will experience the abuse in the way of pain to your wallet. With a mechanically bone stock Corvette you get a lot more for your money in dependability. Like to hear it or not , it's true.

SaxyVette

***update***

They raised the price for the personal plate, I said forget it.
The DMV guy says "how 'bout a triple digit, no charge" well of course me being on a slim to none budget the price was right, so I went for it..

laurent_zo6

Good numbers for Vegas... Am sure the license plate "sax addict" was already taken.

mpride

Pretty cool plate especially for the price.

Did you get the car back yet?

SaxyVette

Not back yet, the car went on the rack day before yesterday (Thurs) Today is Sat and the shop is closed.

I'm figuring probably Wed-Thurs next week..Man am I nervous. The mgr did say about a week for the job.

It looks like a decent shop, "Bacas National Transmission"

I checked their website it looks OK. All certified Techs and warranteed work.

mpride

I dont know why but this is one of the coolest threads I've followed in a long time. Good Luck!