rbell

My Dad always said to stay away from the first model introduction year. He claimed that the "bugs" haven't been worked out. I'm close to buying a 05 with 16k miles. My question is, did the 2005 model year have any new model inherent problems, recalls ? If so, what should I look for ? Thanks for your help, this forum is great.

vforrest

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-t...-recalled.html

That's a start...use the VIN on the car to see if the recalls were taken care of.

Do a search here lots of help on your topic.

Jimbeaux

If I were looking for a great car with low mileage like you've come across, I grab it in a minute. I love my 05. I have 182,000 miles on it now

saplumr

The only real problem is jacking up the hp and having a rear diff issue. If the car and price is right go for it.

NVR LAT

There has been many, many posts just like this one, and I do understand the caution, but as I (and many) have stated, the 2005 is a very good car and you have no reason for concern...buy it if you like it. I am still driving my '05 with 70K on the odometer and have had almost nothing go wrong in 8 years. It has been (by far) the most dependable (and fun) new car that I have ever bought.

2vettes

Bought mine new in February 2005; it now has 78k miles, and has had zero problems.

RickMG

The only problem I have in my '05 is not having the steering wheel controls for the radio.

One other great thing. You'll be getting a car with only 16k miles on it. Besides being like new, it will look almost exactly the same to anyone as a 2013 model.

ruxvette

All good info. I would add the later the vin the better chance things have been corrected during the model run. Last 6 on the vin ran from 100001 thru 137341. Just sayin...

sevinn

I think the biggest issues were (and still are with many model years) wobbly crank pullies and a quite a few 2005's ended up with faulty DRL/blinker harnesses. These issues are more rare than the forum will make it seem however because chances are people only post when they have a problem.

If you find a good deal go for it; the only reason I traded my 2005 in was because I wanted a manual.

rbell

Great idea, This vin is 121116, so it appears that it was 3/4 into the production year.
Thank you for the information.

RJRSW

I have owned 25 vettes from each of the first 6 generations and out of those I have had 4 first year cars. They were by far the most troublesome and problematic of all that I have owned. I now avoid first year vettes from any generation.

There were a number of changes that GM made when the 2006 model came out. The trans and differential were carried over from the C5's and the automatic went from a 4 speed to a 6 speed and a beefier differential in 2006. The most noticeable things are the steering wheel and the shark tale on the 2005's with XM.

If you go to this site you can search the TSB's and Recalls for any year and you will see that the 2005 by far had the most of any C6. Another thing is to have any GM dealer run the GMVIS report to see if there were any ongoing problems during the warranty and if all recalls were done.

http://www.corvette-web-central.com/CorvetteTSB.html

myfunz

Look for cosmetics at this point bubbling on the A pillars and dash, all of the recalls should be taken care of at this point. I bought my '05 two years ago and love it.

RobLo

So you're past the issue of the Harmonic Balancer bolt coming loose, a bad crush washer design but I think that only went to about production no. 11,100. Run the VIN and check the recalls...I've had my '05 for almost 4 years, have 25K miles on it and other than tires and the Balancer (I replaced it with an ATI, not really sure if it needed it but better safe than sorry, it probably would have failed eventually) no problems, love the car! Good Luck...

Mr.Nubain

I'm surprised there's still 2005 on the road! Everyone on here with an 06-13 claim they are death machines.

I have an 05 with 45K on it, the only problem that I have had are those stupid day time running lamps. Now I make sure I turn them off when I drive.

One Kick

Any problems with my 05, Z51, Vert, have been owner induced. The car is great, it was built about 3/4 of the way through the production run. The car is old enough so that most of the issues should have been taken care of. Good luck.

rbell

Thank you, thank you. I can't express how helpful everyone has been. My motivation is the low millage, Navigation and Z-51 suspension. Purchasing it from a dealer. We have been back and forth negotiating a price of around 28k. From what I can see from KBB or NADA, it seems very fair.

RobLo

Not looking to throw a wrench in this (and you will get plenty of opinions I'm sure) but that price MIGHT be a little high. I don't see where you're from, I know big city prices are usually higher than rural area's and buying from a dealer you will pay more but that being said you might want to research that a little or maybe offer him 25K and see what happens. As an example, I bought my '05 Z51 loaded with Navi and 2 tops, 10.5K miles almost 4 years ago and paid 30K, I bought privately. Our cars are 9 years old so 28K seems a bit high, just my opinion...Good Luck!

LD85

I love my 05, 14k miles on it.

I agree, if you want to add a Supercharger/HP, get a 2006 or better yet an 07/08

I paid $27.5k and mine had 11,600 miles on it when I got it.

1rusty1

I had been searching for about 4 or 5 months before settling on my 05 vert with 14k miles on it. Depending on the overall condition, and the fact that the miles are low, I think that is a very good price. I've noticed the last few weeks prices have started to creep up some of the new listings. With spring around the corner, the prices won't be coming down.

On a side note; I have a good friend who used to work building cars for dodge/Chrysler (for about 20 years). He said the only cars he would consider buying were first or second year models. He told me that all the research and best parts went on during the first few years and then they would start replacing quality parts with cheaper versions to make the car more cost effective.

I'm not sure I would agree but he stood by his claims. Just a different take on first year models.

I would jump on that price. Good luck.

PS: Not sure the color of the car you are looking at but my 05 is VR. That color was not added until mid year on 05 so was not part of the first run.

EVRose

I think that opinion is starting to change. There are no '05 owners on here that regret buying it. Only happy 05 drivers and I'm one of them. The one's that have negative remarks to say have never even owned one. I've had mine over 3 years and other than replacing the balancer and the battery and a glitch in the shifter I've never had a single problem. It's been the most reliable car I've ever owned.