Hello everyone I'm looking to buy my first vette and I need a little help. I went to autotrader.com and there are a few in my area for sale. I can only afford a car from 12-16k. I also have a 95 Cadillac deville So I guess I have a little more money. A few questions I have are, should I buy from a dealer or a private seller on autotrader? How many miles is considered good or decent for vettes in that price range? Also should I look for a 97-00 zo6...or a 2001 or a 2002-2004 c5 with an auto. Which one would you perfer? Also what kind of questions should I ask the seller? Thanks for the help guys!

Corey

 

Also, I'm sorry if there has been a post like this one already, and if you could direct me to it I'd appreciate it!

 

Hello Corey,

Welcome to the best forum around!

First you need to complete your personal info section so people responding to any of your posts will know where you are located, etc.

For instance, if you are in a city on the other side of the country it would be a waste of a poster's time to tell you about a car that is for sale in a city 2500 miles away if on a limited budget.

I have an '02 millineum yellow, 6 speed, fully equipped, low mileage convertible for sale but I'm asking $28,500. You can check out my car in the "C5s for sale" section of this forum.

Sanford in Saraland, Al.

 

I don't believe Z06 started until 2001. You can get an earlier year Fixed roof coupe, which has the same body style as the Z06.

You need to decide what you want out of it. Nothing wrong with a coupe, FRC, Z06 or vert. If you want power and are going to mod any, you could get more out of a "regular" vette with mods than a Z06 for less money.

Are you going to use this as a daily driver? If so then consider traffic and the clutch. Autos are fine but a stick is more fun. Just search for the best car that you can get for the price you are willing to pay.

I went looking for a Z06 but my 2000 FRC was too much of a deal compared to the Z, to pass up. I'd say for your price range, an early coupe is what you're going to find. As far as where to buy, it's just like any car they all have pros and cons. If I was looking in your price range I'd be trying to get into an auction and get more bang for my bucks but there's a risk there.

 

The Z06 didn't start till 2001. If you like the look of the Z06 you could buy a FRC. In the price range your looking at I would guess that most will be high mileage. We have a coupe and a vert so its hard to say which is better. If I had to choose it would be a vert. First get a report like a carfax so you can see the vehicle history,then ask what maintenance has been done to it. Also would suggest a mechanic to look it over for you. Hope this helps.

 

Welcome to the forum.

There are no "right" answers, but myself, I always prefered to purchase from a private seller (despite the fact I work for a dealer). I just like to get a feel for who had the car before me. The gentleman I bought mine from had 3 different Corvettes and used to put each car on a lift in his garage and clean the undercarriage after each drive. I figured he was someone who really cared for my new car.

As for body style, it's all personal preference. The vert, FRC and Z06 all share the same body style except the vert gives you the open-air driving experience. The coupe is a great balance between open-air driving and cargo space - if that's important to you. It was to me.
The FRC was available in 2000 and became the Z06 in 2001 and onward.
The Z06 is the more performance oriented. 385bhp in 01 and 405 from 02-04. Coupe and vert had 345 from 97-00 and up to 350 from 01-04. Torque was a bigger improvement in 01.

If you go auto, they were offered with two options for gear ratios. The 2.73 gear is standard and a more perormance oriented gear (3.15) was offered as an option.

Just do some homework. There are a lot of threads if you do a "search" that will provide you a lot of info.

Happy hunting.

 

Thanks for the help guys, flauch I will fill out my profile asap, but I'm located in Missouri. And I'm sorry but I can't afford your car but it sounds really nice! But Milo thanks for informing me. I wasn't sure I just saw a few pre 2001's with a 6 speed and automatically assumed they were z06's.

Bencini I'm sorry for being a noob but what's a vert?

Also here are a few listings I'm considering!

2002 for 12,900 but it has freaking 128,000 miles on it!!!!!

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...7&rdpage=thumb

97 with a 6 speed and zo6 rims 51k miles, 14,000

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...9&rdpage=thumb

2001 zo6 with 75,000 miles asking 16,900...which would be the best deal? I'm sure I could wait a little longer if none of these are worth buying.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...00&cardist=339

 

don't limit yourself to private/dealer. it is a buyers market. we bought one z from a dealer and one private. look for the right car for what you are willing to pay. also, there are no secrets any more. who cares if a dealer is asking 18k. offer 13k. tell the guy upfront you know what the MMR is.

if they play hard give it back a bit and don't be afraid to walk... if you find the right car you might wanna stretch a bit.

 

I'm thinking about trying the auction, but is there any way I can call them before hand and see if they have any vettes? I'm not 100% sure how it works.

 

Corey,
Go with a private seller. You will get a better deal in most cases.
Look online to shop and get some ideals about what you want, like, and can afford. One of the online classified sites lets you search in your area. That way you can go and see the car in person.
You will know when you find the one that you like. Don’t get in a hurry. I looked for about 5 months. That is a short time compared to what some people spend.
When you do find the one that you want, get a carfax report on it at the least. Then have the car checked out by a mechanic that you trust. That will give you the best ideal of exactly what you are buying.
Fix Roof Coupe were produced in 1999 and 2000. (only those two years) They look like the Z but they don’t have the performance of the Z.
Coupes and Convertibles (vert) are both nice too. Mods can be made to all of them.
No two people are exactly alike or like exactly the same thing. You have to pick that for yourself.
Auto or Manual is the same thing. You have to pick that for yourself.
Your price range is 12-16k. If you look long enough you will find one in that range. Don't let the high miles run you off. If it has been taken care of it will be OK.
Don’t settle for one that is just OK. Hold out for the one that you want. Enjoy the hunt, that is part of the fun.
Good luck to you.

 

Being as though you are located in Missouri puts you in a great position to be shopping for a used Vette. The reason I say that is that I have heard that the geographic center of the lower 48 states is in Missouri.
That definitely gives you access to more used Vettes than people like me who are located near the coast. If I draw a 500 mile circle around my house, half of it would be in the Gulf of Mexico.
You can start your search area at no more than 100 miles from your home and if you can't find anything within that area (31,700 square miles) simply expand your search to 200 or 500 mile radius or whatever distance you are willing to travel.
When I bought my first Corvette in November 2001, it was a spur of the moment thing where my wife and I went out to look at a '96 coupe Collector Edition with automatic. It was for sale by the original owner about 20 miles from my house and I told my wife before we left our house that I was only looking at it to expand my limited knowledge of Corvettes. (Mistake number one was that I took my wife as she was an only child and when she sees something she wants, she wants it now.) I made the man a fair offer a thousand less than the asking price and was prepared to walk and leave him my phone number in case he changed his mind. My wife wouldn't allow me to conduct the negotiation process and pretty much said we HAD to have the car and the price didn't matter. I ended up writing a personal check for $19,900 and we drove the Corvette "we were only going to look at" home that afternoon. Don't get me wrong here, there was nothing wrong with the car as it was a beautiful Corvette in near perfect condition. But, it was not a convertible (VERT), it was not red, and it had an automatic transmission. Those were three things I had already predetermined in my mind that I wanted when I finally got around to buying my "DREAM" Corvette.
It wasn't but a very few weeks later that the dazzle went away and I started thinking about how different MY Corvette was from the one I had in my mind. I had bought a silver coupe with automatic when I really wanted a red convertible six speed.
In 2004 my "Corvette Fever" again intensified and by that time I had fallen in love with Millineum Yellow so I started a nation wide search for an '01-'03 millineum yellow vert with a six speed. After a lengthy search I found an '02 MY vert six near Philly, Pa.
I did the negotiating by internet and telephone and once I was satisfied I bought two one-way plane tickets to Philly and we flew up, inspected the car (it only had 4007 miles on it and was in showroom condition), bought it and drove it back home to south Alabama. I finally had the car of my dreams. About 3 years after that my bad left knee started giving me so many problems I decided I had to give up driving a car with a clutch so I bought a Red C6 convertible after searching again and finding it in Paducah, Kentucky. It was another automatic. I call the C6 my "Sissy car" but it is better than not having a Corvette. So, now I have two Corvettes: one I can drive and one for sale.
As you can see, I did some travelling to buy the Corvettes that I have but like others have said on here "the search is just part of the adventure and thrill in finding the Corvette that is just right for you."
Sit down and write the best description of the things you would like to have in your car. If you want a specific color, do an extensive search for that color before you "settle" for something else like I did.
Do you want a vert or a coupe? I consider a garage a must for any Corvette but especially a vert.
Will you use the car as a daily driver or "good weather weekend car"?
There are many other decisions you need to make before you continue on your serious search so you won't end up with buyer's remorse like so many of us have.
Again, enjoy your search and don't hesitant to ask any questions on here after using the search for obvious lists of do's and don't's.

Sanford in Saraland, AL.

 

Welcome to the forum! As mentioned above, fill in your profile so you don't have to waste time and space telling us whee you are again, and again.

As for finding the car of your dreams, first you need patience -- it took me two years to find exactly what I wanted. Next, you need to get as fully educated as you can in order to feel comfortable when you pull the trigger. Starting with this forum is fine, but you also need to read up on these cars to include various options, differences between model years and models therein. AutoTrader is one good source, but also look into craigslist.com with emphasis on the metropolitan areas near you. (I searched all over the country this way, and found "my car" just 35 miles away.) Good used cars an be found on dealer lots, but you usually pay a bit more because they have higher overhead. Private sales are often less money, but once you've made the purchase, there is no recourse -- and private owners usually have comparable asking prices bsed on reseaching retail ads (including AutoTrader). So, patience, research, and using all available search resources are the way to go. Once you've found "the" car, be sure to get the service history from your local Chevy store (it's free, just give them the VIN), get the values for it from NADA.com and KBB.com, and invest in a CARFAX. Like dating, the chase is fun. Enjoy it! Happy hunting!

 

Hello neighbor. I'm from Illinois. I go to St. Louis once in a while. Which part of Missouri are you from?

If your budget is $12-16K... you have a lot of options. Don't get fooled about paying premium on vettes... I found many that are well priced. Obviously you're not going to get some 8000 miles 2004 Z06 with that budget, but it doesn't mean you have to settle for those 100K+. $14K could've gotten you a 98 with 43K miles. Of course these deals are gone fast, that's why you got to decide quick. Dealers will try to tell you these cars are rare sports cars, and private sellers will act like they are selling a part of their body to you (I think in many instances, it's probably true). Not that private sellers are trying to rip you off, they are more emotionally attached to the car. It's like buying a harley from a hardcore owner.

As for prices, do not trust KBB/NADA. Ask people who can check wholesale prices for you. Then you know how much room you have when negotiating. Also you can walk from cars that are obviously over priced. i.e. wholesale is $10K and seller wants $20K for the same car.

What exactly are you looking for? Z06's are obvoiusly more expensive. Set a price range for different types of C5's. If you want Z06 for the same price as a base coupe, expect it to be have many more miles. I was debating between Z06 and coupe and I decided to go with coupe because I think it'll make me happier (less performance, but less money and I like the style/targa). Z06 is obviously a better car if that's what you're after, but it's not what I need.

I looked at the links you posted. The 97 is actually owned by a forum member here and is already sold. The Z06 is not worth it, it's been repainted.

If you find anything that you're not sure is a good deal, post it up. Everyone here will help. They're generally good and friendly people here. Good luck.

 

Hey guys thanks for all of the help!! I will keep this in mind when I buy my car!

I'm in Boonville Missouri which is about 100 from KC and STL.

And I just saw the best deal i've seen so far.

2002 6 speed Vette, they're asking 16 for it. It has 43k miles on it. And it's my favorite color which is the silver. Removable hard top. Hopefully they still have the car when I can buy it in a few weeks.

Heres the link

http://stlouis.craigslist.org/cto/969172313.html

 

Welcome to the forum. I live close by to you - only about 35 miles (Ashland). I have a few Word files that may help you out. If interested, PM me your e-mail address and I'll forward them to you. Also if you just want to talk Corvettes, let me know.

 

Hey that's awesome that you live in Ashland! I know exactly where that is. But anyways my e-mail adress is jonzie04@hotmail.com! thanks... Also if you know of anyone selling any in this area please let me know. Do you think any of the dealerships in Columbia have any reasonably priced? I guess I'm just going to have to go check it out.

Corey

 

Sounds BS. 6-speed automatic? "convertible hardtop"? But if you're close I guess it doesn't hurt to ask to see the car...

 

Crap lol I need to start paying more attention when I read lol

 

Haven't seen any locally that are for sale - you might want to contact the Mid-Missouri Corvette Club out of Columbia - some of their members may have some for sale. I haven't seen any used Vettes for sale at Perry Chevrolet and the only one I know about is an '07 Vert at Putnam Chevy in California. But it is way more than your budget.

If I hear of any I'll let you know and will send you some info that might help you in your search tonight when I get home.