Lowest mile C5?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2004
Posts: 5,230
Likes: 419
I have two low mileage Corvettes. I like to drive both of them but they are not daily drivers and I don't have lots of time to drive them as much as I would like. As it is, Michigan cruising season is only 6 months long. Couple that with demanding job and two daughters that don't care about Corvettes (but still deserve as much of my time as I can give them) means that I don't get the cruising time I would like.
But that doesn't mean I shouldn't own the cars either as they both give me a rise when I drive them:
67 435 (31000 miles)
95 ZR-1 (4500 miles)
But that doesn't mean I shouldn't own the cars either as they both give me a rise when I drive them:
67 435 (31000 miles)
95 ZR-1 (4500 miles)
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 24,310
Likes: 0
From: Canon City Co
St. Jude Donor '11,'13
"I voluntarily took 60 days off from OT"
Take a good long look at these three pics...They are of a 1990 Coupe, it's odometer and fuel sending unit...The miles are actual....The car's exterior and interior were absolutely PERFECT....Just BEWARE of what lurks beneath 
....Allowing these cars to sit for long periods at a time doesnt do them any favors.....BTW, he used Stabil yearly...
....Allowing these cars to sit for long periods at a time doesnt do them any favors.....BTW, he used Stabil yearly...
Race Director
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 11,199
Likes: 1,139
From: Santa Rosa Beach FL
Take a good long look at these three pics...They are of a 1990 Coupe, it's odometer and fuel sending unit...The miles are actual....The car's exterior and interior were absolutely PERFECT....Just BEWARE of what lurks beneath ....Allowing these cars to sit for long periods at a time doesnt do them any favors.....BTW, he used Stabil yearly...
....Allowing these cars to sit for long periods at a time doesnt do them any favors.....BTW, he used Stabil yearly...
I bought a low low mileage 35th Anniv once and it looked perfect. After a tow, fuel pump, and replacing like new but cracking tires it seemed OK. Within a short period it developed cut-offs at stops.
Sold it to a collector who stored it some more.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 19,384
Likes: 87
From: Horncastle Lincolnshire, England
2023 C5 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
I've invested in many low mileage cars over the years, many of them new
Its the best way of turning good $$ into old cars worth a fraction of what I paid for them.
Its the best way of turning good $$ into old cars worth a fraction of what I paid for them.
Instructor
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 206
Likes: 0
From: New Jersey
1998 with 1100 miles and trust me I take care of it properly. I get speeches all the time about using it. Maybe when Im dead, I can "Pay it Forward"................
Last edited by CMC1998; Jul 16, 2009 at 01:57 AM.
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Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 206
Likes: 0
From: New Jersey
Race Director
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 15,323
Likes: 2,077
From: Guelph, Ontario
I just checked the Toronto Auto Trader and there is a guy selling a 2001 convertible with only 1600 miles on it and he wants $55,000 Canadian for it! He even says the price is firm, so this guy will never sell that car. You could get a brand new 2009 here for just under $60,000!
Race Director
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 10,581
Likes: 252
From: SE TEX
Le Mans Master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 9,488
Likes: 1,743
From: Knoxville Tn
Pro
Joined: Feb 2009
Posts: 570
Likes: 11
From: Lancaster PA
I know of either a 50th aniversary or a 98 indy 500 pace car, I forget which, that has under 10 miles on it. It was driven off the trailer and into the garage. It still has the plastic packing materials on it.
Pro
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 628
Likes: 4
From: Columbia SC
Lowest mile C5?
Last year I bought a 2003 Coupe with 4500 original-owner miles. I've been driving since the early '60's and my "fun" cars have low miles on them but get driven regularly (but sparingly). In my opinion, a garage-kept car needs to be driven at least once every three weeks or so, and then out on the open road for long enough to thoroughly warm it up and clear it out. Without a garage you'd want to drive it more often, I would think. When I started looking for a C5, my goal was to find an original-owner car with low-but-not-TOO-low miles. As others have posted on this thread, not driving it regularly is death on a car. They are machines and machines need to be worked. In 1996 I bought a 1965 Mustang fastback with the rare Hi-Performance 289. It had undergone a concours restoration a few years before and had only been started to move it on and off a trailer for car shows. Beautiful car, but the list of things that had to be attended to to get it truly road-worthy was long. Regards, Ralph Boineau in central South Carolina
Team Owner
Joined: Mar 2008
Posts: 24,310
Likes: 0
From: Canon City Co
St. Jude Donor '11,'13
"I voluntarily took 60 days off from OT"
That's what the white 6300 mile C4 owner thought too...He paid $40K for the car in 1990...Today's its worth about $10K..and that's after the necessary repairs were made......How is that not losing $$$??...
These cars simply will NOT see investment potential in our lifetime...
These cars simply will NOT see investment potential in our lifetime...
