chillin014

Hello All. I am a new member to this forum but certainly not a new member to the car scene. I am in the market for a new car and an opportunity has presented itself to get (what seems to be) a great deal on a 2002 C5 Vette from a family friend. I am seeking advice on whether this is something that would be a good idea for me from those most familiar with the C5.

Background Info : I am picky and over analytical, especially about cars. I've owned a variety of cars (but never a sports car) and do all maintenance and modifications myself. I have a strict set of criteria for my car which most think is unrealistic. Oddly enough this C5 seems to be one car that meets this criteria. My main priorities are that my next car be within budget ($10k absolute max), get decent gas mileage (mid 20's at least), be at least moderately fun to drive (manual gearbox) and provide creature comforts as well. Currently I commute 80 miles round-trip in a 2002 Infiniti G20 (5 speed). For the past 4 years I've found the car to be extremely reliable and fair enough on MPG. The lack of power is a daily frustration however and honestly it's just too small for me (I am 6'1" tall. Nostalgia of my younger days has me desiring something sporty but I am also frugal and the budget is strict in my household.

The car : As I mentioned the seller is a friend and this '02 C5 is 1 of 3 vehicles and it is rarely driven. The body has 150k but the engine, a ls3 6.0 liter with a cam and mild headwork, has only 6k miles on it. I checked the vin and there is no recorded accident history on this 2 owner vehicle. The exterior and interior seemed to be in decent condition, no noticeable issues considering the mileage/age. The car does need work though, and I am confident I can manage the repairs for relatively low cost: It needs a new heater core. The transmission has a broken 3rd gear and the synchro seems to be going bad on 4th. The inspection and registration stickers are out and its throwing an undetermined CEL. The e-brake is broken as well. The engine seems healthy but owner thinks it needs a tune to run smoother. I didn't notice a rough idle or anything of that nature. Finally, the asking price is $8k.

So what do you guys think? Is this a good deal? I know a corvette is on the opposite end of the spectrum from what I drive now. There are many factors to consider and to me it seems good from an investment perspective but I'm not entirely sold on whether it will be a good daily driver for me. The car has a lowered ride height (1 inch from stock) and I've managed this without issue in my teen-years but I cant tell if it will be a burden or simply an adjustment for me now. I certainly don't need the ~500 HP, I could appreciate even something with 250-300 HP. If I can somehow tune the engine for tame daily drive-ability I think I can manage to exercise self restraint.

thank you for reading my ramble and I appreciate any input!

Shakeydeal

If it didn't need all that work, I would say go for it. But for antoher 3-4K you can get a C5 with ~100K miles that hasn't had a motor swap and probably doesn't have all those issues. 8K is a pretty good price, but I would rather spend more and do less.

Shakey

grantv

Another no vote. You would be happy with much less power, there's a $2000 tranny bill (unless you do the re/re yourself, then still over $1000)... seems like a good project car for someone who wants 500HP to me.

chillin014

thanks for the feedback. I am trying to be of the spend-more up front and repair-less mentality. But I have been looking for months and the few 6-speed C5's under ~15k that I see are either salvage/rebuilt title, high miles or have similar problems. Thats almost double the price and still not any more of "turn-key" cars.

The heater core and e-brake seem to be cheap fixes (I do all the labor). I can find T56 vette trannies for about a grand locally if I don't try to make the repair myself. I totally agree, the engine swap may cause some gremlins which should probably be my bigger concern.

Honestly if I don't go through with this deal I don't think I will be able to afford a corvette right now period... I think the seller is negotiable but he has admittedly "invested" 6 grand into the engine. In my attempt to find justification it seems like a well taken care of car with just a few problems, rather than a neglected car needing restoration. Worst case scenario I could fix the car and maybe even sell for a profit, don't you think??

CQRT

Pass - - too much work known and unknown once you get into it.

Secondly- where are you located? Please complete your profile- that way, members can let you know about cars that might suit your requirements.

Good luck - - -

Pounder

That car may be a NO but I think a C 5 or C 6 (did I say C 6 ??) would make you happy !!!! My 99 with LS 6 intake,headers and Vararam CAI and a tune still gets 28 mpg and I have my foot in it at least every on-ramp !!!!!!!!!

Sydwayz

Pass, too many issues and too many unknown issues that have not even sprouted symptoms yet.

chillin014

Geez! I was expecting at least a few people to say it was a worthy deal!

I consider myself to be a bit more hands-on than the average person- does this make a difference? I don't believe in wasting money/time polishing a turd but I also believe there is a tendency to be over-paranoid about the unknown. I've done everything up to engine swaps on both chevys and nissans and rebuilt the transmission on my 4th gen Maxima. I draw the line these days when the money invested becomes unable to be recouped but so far I'm not seeing any potentially extremely expensive repairs to bring it to acceptable daily driveability. Maybe I am being too optimistic.

Can anyone at least give me hypothetical problems that would result in a regrettable situation? I was under the impression that LS3 swaps were pretty common-place. Are they known to be riddled with codes that cannot be eliminated? I am assuming the ECU was not changed.

Just a few more tidbits about the car- the owner spared no expense with parts and upgrades. It has upgraded brakes, wheels, a magnaflow exhaust, some kind of expensive composite aftermarket intake manifold ; Name brand stuff, not the ebay crap i usually put on my cars


Houston Texas here. Okay will do!

jdvann

Not trying to pile on but, read this...https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...alf-lives.html Good Luck!

4XLR8N

It is written: fast, cheap, reliable...pick any two...

ONE BMF

Sounds to me like you made up your mind to buy this before you even posted this thread. Hey were not going help talk you into a bad/ stupid buy,, sounds like you're already doing a pretty good job of it yourself from the last post. You asked these very fine and knowledgeable people and you got excellent advice. Stupid is as stupid does,,, now who was it that said that,,,, Now what you wanted to hear,,,, Yeah ,jump on it dude , with all those cool after market parts and an engine transplant its a bargain ,,what could go wrong. We'll be here to see all your new threads on ,,"Oh no wtf do i do now my wattszenpopper harness is smoking" and " Whats that vibration between my gonads" . Stay tuned , same batsh!t crazy channell , same batsh!t crazy time. Run away dumb *** ! Red Forman

road pilot

I say buy it!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But don't pay more than 4K. You will have a lot of work a head of you.
Good luck.

92GA

In my neck of the woods, ANY Vette you're going to buy for 8 grand is going to need a LOT of work. At least you're not buying it from a stranger. You know what you're getting into, but it may need more than you think. Your money, if it's the challenge you're after go for it. It may just be what you're after when complete. I bought my car for 12 grand 4 years ago and it needed some TLC. It's a very good car now, and i've been offered a lot more than I paid for it.

wamara

I believe you have a couple of good shops in your Houston area - England Green comes to mind, if I recall correctly. Perhaps they can give you a more accurate idea of what you might be getting yourself into $-wise.

strand rider

I see basic conflict in this proposed buying decision . This is a car designed for extravagance ,you can tell just by the looks, it is very obvious.

The poster mentions frugal ,strict budget, investment?!?!???! and gas milage as some triggers for his buying decision.

This doesn't scream high powered chevy product as the best answer to me.

Further, how do you not break the gears you use most often first? without a ton of highway miles to balance out the street use, you will never see mid twenty mpg averages. I am an old guy with a stock six speed in good repair and get 15 around town.
And check out torque tubes before you get super confident about the transmission work.
Not that I don't believe in the good posters skill, just to share how steep the learning curve is from my own modest skill set.

foundvettelifeisgood

Oh 2 Fun

Seems there are a lot of unknowns for us to help you. We can't see it or the overall condition of the body/paint, interior, tires, etc.

It's good that it is an '02 at least but high mileage and possibly a MAJOR component (trans) broken. We don't know, and maybe you don't either, how it's been driven or signs that it has been abused....or not.

If the engine swap seems good and you REALLY like to work on it, go for a bit lower price and buy it......IF all those unknowns are good in your eyes.

I love my '02 and it has never gotten boring over the eight years I've had it.

Good luck on whatever you decide.

WICKEDFRC

You only live once.

End of therapy.

roadbike56

When it comes to buying a Corvette, I insist on a "No Excuses" car. In the long run they are almost always the least expensive.

sirdano

Find out what code are in the CEL light first. Could be minor or something major