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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 09:35 PM
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Default Modified C5s

I've been waiting quite a while to be ready to buy a C5 and finally the time has come where I know exactly what I want and have $$ in hand but now I find I am faced with a unanticipated question. I have found a couple cars I am really interested in but they happen to be modified. Heads, Cam, Intake, Headers etc... When I was younger (20 years ago) we always modded our cars as much as we could afford too but the downside was that we ended up wrenching on them all the time for one reason or another and at this stage of my life I'm not really interested in working on a car as much as I am interested in it not breaking and being reliable.

So my question is have things changed? Are modified C5s reliable and maintenance free if the work was done by someone really qualified and with good parts or is it the same old deal?
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 09:43 PM
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Originally Posted by Munch
I've been waiting quite a while to be ready to buy a C5 and finally the time has come where I know exactly what I want and have $$ in hand but now I find I am faced with a unanticipated question. I have found a couple cars I am really interested in but they happen to be modified. Heads, Cam, Intake, Headers etc... When I was younger (20 years ago) we always modded our cars as much as we could afford too but the downside was that we ended up wrenching on them all the time for one reason or another and at this stage of my life I'm not really interested in working on a car as much as I am interested in it not breaking and being reliable.

So my question is have things changed? Are modified C5s reliable and maintenance free if the work was done by someone really qualified and with good parts or is it the same old deal?
Honestly it totally depends on who did the work and what parts were used. Some of us in Forced Induction section daily drive our C5s with 850 Horse Power or more.
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:08 PM
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Cam...headers...Fast 90/90...Vararam...Tex clutch and a pro tune by ECS..

430/380

Been modded' for two years now.....NEVER had a single issue...

All in who does the work !!!
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:17 PM
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All depends on how the car has been taken care of and mild or radical cam
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:17 PM
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So ya just jump in and drive it like a regular ol stock Vette but with gobs of thump and power... Hmmm
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:22 PM
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If done by a reputable shop and not totally abused by the owner, a modded car should give you reliable service.
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:23 PM
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Got my H/C gears almost 2 years ago. Drag race it and beat the hell out of it. Not a single problem.
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:34 PM
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Originally Posted by JDs00PewterCoupe
If done by a reputable shop and not totally abused by the owner, a modded car should give you reliable service.
What if the work was done by someone named Steve Doten and tuned by Don at Slowhawk?? Does this mean anything?
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 10:49 PM
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Originally Posted by Munch
What if the work was done by someone named Steve Doten and tuned by Don at Slowhawk?? Does this mean anything?
You are good to go
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 11:45 PM
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Steve and Don are VERY respectable names. Steve can install pretty much anything. Don is the master tuner. You are set!
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Old Oct 9, 2008 | 11:53 PM
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You can't really know how relieable the mods are until you own it. I'd want to do the mods myself, that's half the fun of owning one.
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Old Oct 10, 2008 | 12:38 AM
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My Z06 has many mods I've done myself. Intake, headers and complete exhaust system, some minor other mods, ECS tune, lowered, suspension work, brake mods, custom wheels and tires, and more. Only a few days ago I returned from a 3000 mile trip to Florida, completely trouble free and and averaged close to 29 mpg total for the entire trip, highway and city combined. Plus I've got more than 64,000 miles on my car. Is that reliable enough? I'd jump into it and do it again. C5's are pretty bullet-proof, even modded.
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Old Oct 10, 2008 | 12:43 AM
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BTW, on my trip to Florida, there was a ags shortage in the Carolinas. I had to run on regular gas for several hundred miles and the car still ran perfectly, though the gas mileage decreased a little until I got premium again. As low as 26 mpg on the highway, not bad for a 450+ hp car? Mod away!
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Old Oct 10, 2008 | 12:52 AM
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Back in the day the tech just wasn't there, and information wasn't as wide spread as it is today. Now a days we have the internet to see if were doing things right, and have a huge amount of vendor support that has great experience to help us with the work, walk us through it, or do it all together.

Much better gaskets, fasteners, blocks, parts, ect. are available to use now. So in my opinion it has changed, and even some of the "shade-tree" guys are able to put together some nice cars with the support they have. But in the end, you still want to ask questions, see who did the work, and if you have a reputable Corvette shop around you can have them check it out.
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Old Oct 10, 2008 | 12:55 AM
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Originally Posted by FactoryRaceCar
Honestly it totally depends on who did the work and what parts were used. Some of us in Forced Induction section daily drive our C5s with 850 Horse Power or more.
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