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[Z06] z06 vs c5 maintenance?

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Old May 6, 2010 | 04:58 PM
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Default z06 vs c5 maintenance?

Hey guys, been looking at getting a c5 strongly the last couple years and almost pulled the trigger, due to work circumstances i ended up having to put the brakes on for a while. Im now in a close position to buying again possibly and im wondering what can of worms i would be opening if i decided to push up to a c5 z06 this time around?

What kind of problems could i expect to look for? This would be a total daily driver for me. Dependable enough? Whats everyones experience here?

Thanks
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Old May 6, 2010 | 05:30 PM
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Having owned both, my suggestion would be to take each model for a nice ride. They are both great cars but they are not the same. The Z06 rides rougher, noiser, eats more fuel, and only comes in with a six speed standard transmission. All the things I love, basically a race car. Now the C5 coupe is another beast. They come with an automatic transmission, better noise insulation, and run flat tires. More of a daily driver. If you are driving it daily some of these things are going to make a difference to you. Good luck in your quest and let us know what you decided. Just my $.02
Ken
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Old May 6, 2010 | 05:35 PM
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I love my Z and I drive it everyday. Get yourself a partition and leave the stock exhaust on the car and you'll love it as long as you don't do a lot of commuting in stop and go traffic due to the manual trans.
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Old May 6, 2010 | 07:45 PM
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you'll love it, or atleast i do and i daily drive mine
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Old May 6, 2010 | 07:56 PM
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zo6
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Old May 6, 2010 | 08:06 PM
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Maintenance should actually be easier on the Z06 because there are less things to go wrong like tire pressure sensors, automatic headlights, or power tilt/telescoping wheel.
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Old May 6, 2010 | 08:09 PM
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Originally Posted by garage-ghost
Having owned both, my suggestion would be to take each model for a nice ride. They are both great cars but they are not the same. The Z06 rides rougher, noiser, eats more fuel, and only comes in with a six speed standard transmission. All the things I love, basically a race car. Now the C5 coupe is another beast. They come with an automatic transmission, better noise insulation, and run flat tires. More of a daily driver. If you are driving it daily some of these things are going to make a difference to you. Good luck in your quest and let us know what you decided. Just my $.02
Ken
A Z06 should get better fuel economy than an automatic coupe. Even the EPA rated it better than an automatic. Of course, that depends upon your driving and shifting style.
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Old May 6, 2010 | 09:10 PM
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Zo6
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Old May 6, 2010 | 10:17 PM
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eats more fuel
Odd, my z06 with longtubes, catback, and tune gets as good mileage as my 99 FRC did with just a catback exhaust. I get 28-30mpg in the z06 on the freeway. How much better does it need to be?
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Old May 7, 2010 | 02:09 AM
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Yes im pretty sure id prefer the z06 regardless of the comfortability. I've just turned 21, and working in construction ive had a truck my whole life. The entire idea behind the shift is to get into a fun as heck fast car to enjoy before i turn into a family man ina few years. I would've gotten an m6 coupe anyways.

My priority was in learning the key things to look for when car shopping, and what things are most likely to nickel and dime me as life goes on, what things are catastrophic to prepare for, how much they'd cost, ect.
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Old May 7, 2010 | 03:43 AM
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I daily drive my Z06 with no problems. My girlfriend loves to ride in it too.
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Old May 7, 2010 | 05:47 AM
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Never had a Vette until recently, never drove a C5, actually my Z06 is the first Vette I ever drove. I had a 69 396 Chevelle, 70 1/2 SS 396 375 hp Camaro, a 71 Hemi Challenger that where street cars and none of them can come close to the feel of the Z06!
I have always done as much work on my cars as I possibly can, with modern cars the maintenance differences between them is not huge like in the old days.
In order to spend to stretch your $ investment I would say get as much Vette with as many mods as your pocket book can afford at the beginning. Modding is expensive if you plan on doing it in the future and modded Vettes can be comparibly cheaper if you get them on the inital buy! The term in the forum I keep hearing is the Corvette tax!
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Old May 7, 2010 | 11:21 AM
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ZO6. The most exoticar level power you will have out of the box. Besides if you get a standard C5, the itch to get more power (at least to ZO6 level), will get greater pretty soon. And you WILL want more power. Its not a question of IF but WHEN.
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Old May 7, 2010 | 11:57 AM
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The only concern I can think of is it lacks a spare tire and it does not use run flats.
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Old May 7, 2010 | 12:51 PM
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I have had to COUPES and my current ZO6. There are things that both cars are plagued with having issues with:

COLUMN LOCK
OIL SENSOR GOING BAD
DIFF SEALS GOING BAD
HEADLIGHT GEARS TAKING A DIVE

Just to name a few. I will say this though. The Z has been the most fun out of the box of the three. Great package. I love the FRC look the best. It has alot of the features you will end up wanting to upgrade (if you are a guy that mods). Get the Z!

Micah
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Old May 7, 2010 | 01:11 PM
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Originally Posted by mph1972
I have had to COUPES and my current ZO6. There are things that both cars are plagued with having issues with:

COLUMN LOCK
OIL SENSOR GOING BAD
DIFF SEALS GOING BAD
HEADLIGHT GEARS TAKING A DIVE

Just to name a few. I will say this though. The Z has been the most fun out of the box of the three. Great package. I love the FRC look the best. It has alot of the features you will end up wanting to upgrade (if you are a guy that mods). Get the Z!

Micah
Great points, I don't have previous Vette experience but liking DIY they are all fairly easy and inexpensive to mod repair so those issues do not return. The axle seal would be the most work but quite do able DIY.
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Old May 7, 2010 | 02:48 PM
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Originally Posted by rbartick
The only concern I can think of is it lacks a spare tire and it does not use run flats.
Tire repair kit and/or AAA... One comes with the car!
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Old May 7, 2010 | 02:55 PM
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Originally Posted by SCM_Crash
Tire repair kit and/or AAA... One comes with the car!
I am the original owner of my car and it came with the tire kit. With that being said, I would not trust it and I'm not going to join AAA. What are they going to do for you when you are stuck on the side of the road with no spare...
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Old May 7, 2010 | 02:58 PM
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Tow you to the nearest tire shop!
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Old May 7, 2010 | 03:25 PM
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Sounds like im probably going zo6! I got nailed (rear ended) on the freeway yesterday. Heavy traffic and was pretty slow (maybe 15-20mph)? So with the money I've been trying to save, + what im sure to get from this accident i think im easy half down cash on a zo6 :P

Whats the deal with the springs goin out that i hear about, in the engine?
And 03-04 have an in tank fuel filter that seems to cause some heart ache?

Any other peeves to watch out for like that?
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