auggy

Just read an interesting article on C5s . Long story short --not many are bought---not many are sold---not many are driven. IMO, good car under the hood, but like the looks and fun of the C4 better. Totally subjective like music and art, I know. May like the C5 a lot more if/when my opti starts acting up.

drcook

there are 2 C5's that have been sitting at a local dealership for months. Now they are sitting out in the weather getting rusty. both are relatively low mileage cars so there is no reason why they are not selling.

on the other hand, we have seen numerous low mileage well maintained C4's sell rather quickly around here.

bb62

I would like to see this article if it could be posted. I find it hard to believe that C5s are not driven since I see a lot of daily driver C5s around my area. C4s - not so much (never mind the earlier generations).

gerardvg

Maybe they just don't appeal to many, I have never gotten used to that big "***'' the C5 have..... however I love the sleek C6 shape.

My next Corvette will be a black C6 coupe, just got to wait for the price to come down. I cannot justify mortgaging the house for another corvette, they are damn expensive over here in Oz ....not to mention the Ozzie dollar down to 74 us cents....

Right hand drive ones in Oz
C6 ZR1 180k ZO6 130K plain Jane C6 70k to 80k...

Pity the value of the C4 has dropped so much,

zr1fred

The article was posted here somewhere, maybe OT. It was all BS. C5s are driven just as much as C4s, probably more so. Most C4s are seldom driven anymore, while many C5s are still daily drivers, with the average one about 135k miles (that means half of them are over 135k). One of their big pluses is they are newer. This is a C4 forum, so you are going to get a lot C4 rah rah. C5s are about where C4s were 5 to 10 years ago. They're great cars, fast, comfortable, economical, very reliable (for a 13 to 20 year old car), and a great value for about $10-$12k. A C6 will set you back about $10k more.

JrRifleCoach

Without a link to the story this thread is useless.
And the author of the story must be smoking something....

IMHO anyone that enjoys driving a C4 will appreciate the C5 as well.
Better comfort, reliability, power and handling are the advantages of the +1 generation.
Equally, the C6 has distinct styling advantages over the 5.
But as we've seen, each passing gen leaves different niches in the market.

Gibbles

I took a 2002 C5 out for a test drive before i started building up my C4.

I was not impressed at all, the car drove like my wifes saturn aura, i did not feel like i was driving a sports car at all.
​​​​​​​Then other things in the car felt cheap, and reminded me of my mothers 97 Pontiac sunfire.

Lt4-396

Having driven all 3 c4 lt4 c5 zo6,c6 zo6
Im not a fan of the c5 something just felt off but I really like the c6, I also never really liked the c5 looks of the c5 especially the c5 rear bumper.

NOMOREWORK

Lots of C5s being driven around and being sold in my area. See way more of them than C4s on the streets. Plenty for sale on local Craigs List !!!!

Joe C

I've had a couple C5's (2000 Z51 coupe, and a 2004 Z06) - both nice cars. the 04Z was a fun ride, the Y2K coupe, and great long distance cruiser. I would be open to another, in fact, wouldn't mind having a (real) 50th anniversary coupe. i'm trying to get down to one corvette, and since I can't part with my 85, I really don't see another C5 in my future, but then again, who knows???

drcook

Back before I got back into a Corvette, I wanted a 97 through 99. I started doing a lot of reading about them. I also started scanning the ads. It turned out that most of them (C5's) that I saw for sale were in the 70K+ mile range. The prime age that maintenance, such as clutches start needing to be done.

I also found out about the maintenance costs for C5's and beyond. That is why I chose a C4. While a lot of parts are out of production, you can find them if you are diligent enough and you can still work on them yourself. Plus you don't have to tear so much out to do things like replace a clutch, which adds up if you have to pay someone to do it.

I would like the performance potential of the LS engines, but I couldn't justify buying a car and having to spend potentially 1000's just to keep it going when I could spend that same money to make a C4 better.

I know I would have probably had to spend another 10 or so to get a C5 with the mileage my car has, that 10 will buy a lot of performance parts, a lot.

Kmcoldcars

I have had 3 C4 Corvettes and 2 C5 Corvettes. My first was a 1991 automatic coupe with 47000 miles on it. I sold it to buy a 2002 Z06 with 22000 miles. I then bought a 1992 automatic with 49000 miles. Then I added a 84000 mile 1991 coupe with a 6 speed and a supercharger. I sold the 1992 and then bought a 2000 convertible with an automatic and 34000 miles.
So now I own the 1991 supercharged 6 speed, the 2000 automatic convertible and the 2002 Z06 6 speed. All are great cars to drive and are totally different from each other. The 2000 is a somewhat refined nice cruiser, the Z06 is a beast, and the 1991 is a high powered go kart.
All are fun.

BLUDICE

My first Vette was a '03 - bought it in '04. Prior I have driven C3 & C4 and found the C5 to be a very nice "luxury" 2 seat sports car - didn't have the race car feel of the C3 or C4.
Don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with that, but I think the C4 ('94) is the cats meow!! If I was to go back to a C5 it would only be due to the "getting in & out" of my C4 - back/leg issues. It's a bitch getting old - lol.

FOURSPEEDVETTE

[QUOTE=zr1fred;1593898416]The article was posted here somewhere, maybe OT. One of their big pluses is they are newer. This is a C4 forum, so you are going to get a lot C4 rah rah.


Yes, only one generation newer. Hardly see that as a "big plus". C5's are now 20 years old. Not new to anyone anymore. And yes, this is a C4 forum. Are we supposed to come here and just rah rah about C5's? Wouldn't be much of a dedicated C4 forum now then would it? Face it, for the most part anyone with any certain generation of Corvette joins the specific forum that suits their generation of Corvette and most do rah rah about their specific car generation. Just as we certainly do in this C4 forum. Basically because we like them to begin with.

bruceg2016

http://www.roadandtrack.com/car-cult...old-or-bought/

QCVette

I see both C4's and C5's for sale all the time. Prices on both have gotten pretty low.

I have had both C4's (7) and C5's (2) and still have both generations. They are both great cars, but different. Both have their good and bad points. Either one could be the better choice depending on your needs/wants.

Try driving both to compare and with prices so low, and if you can get both, go for it.

ON 8TH

I test drove a new 98 ,it wasn't for me.

Greg Gore

I don't know why anyone would think C5s are not driven but I saw that tag in a recent Barrett Jackson write-up which labeled a C5 that went across the block: "C5, the cars that are never driven"

auggy

Good job, I think people thought I was making this stuff up.

Guro305

They can't get rusty. They're all fiberglass and aluminum. I had one. Loved that damn car. Still feels like I gave a child up for adoption. The 97s (year one) are classics now. Mine was a 98. Would've been a classic next year.

I can't honestly say there is anything about my C4 I like more than I did about my C5 except the C4 has less blind spots and is easier to drive over speed bumps and dips. I've driven a few C6s and I can say the samething. There was nothing I liked about my C5 more than those C6s I had the pleasure of driving. The only thing better I guess is working on the car. The C4 is a breeze to work on while the C5 presented a few more challenges to work on. Plus C4 parts in general I find to be cheaper. Just one blokes $.02.