The number of owners can jump quickly if the car was traded in at a dealership. That dealership in turn flips it to another smaller dealership and boom two more owners are now listed. The car is truly a one owner but because two dealerships took possession it now shows up as a three owner car.

Do your diligence in checking out the car. If the car passes all the evaluations and your GUT check, then make your move. I will say that 17K for that age / mileage car is high in my opinion. Be patient and you'll find the right car. I looked at over 30 Vettes before finding "the one."

Part of the fun is the hunt for the perfect one. Perfect means the right color, right options, right condition, etc. for you. I wanted and bought a Vette for driving. I was willing to buy a car with some paint imperfections because I have no intention of showing the car but the car needed to be mechanically sound. The car I bought passed all of my criteria and puts a smile on my face every time I drive it. I've owned it two years.

 

I agree that the price seems high. For around that price, you may be able to find a newer car with perhaps the same or even a bit less miles on it.

 

Thank you for this bit of info.

I thought odo tapering was a thing of the past? Carfax did check out.

Correct, I got the numbers of owners off carfax. I agree with your last bit, Im just being over cautious as they say.

Maybe I'll give the seller another shot especially since I havent put the car on a lift yet and have a shop take a look at it.

Thank you for the bit of info. Im didnt know about the ten years tapering part.

The car is very clean for its age and number of owners.

I planned on doing a compression test and leakdown test but with the seller not budging much and high number of owners, I hesitated.

Maybe I'll give the owner a call and we'll see if he'll budge on the price a bit more.

While it is fun car shopping, the longing for one is starting to hurt.

Checking out the car, I looked for normal sign of wear and tear. I checked the seat condition (leather was in pristine condition), steering wheel was in a great condition, paint was also great (no water marks or swirls), and the underbody was great. It differently looked like a car under 50k miles, very clean. Havent put the car on a lift yet.

It just the 5 owners things bugging me and possibilities of the known common problems among earlier c5's.

Yeah, I told the seller I'll be in contact. He wouldnt budge much when I met up with him. Maybe things will change.

 

Recap on carfax.

1. No accidents REPORTED to carfax (I know this isnt a 100% sure thing, but I checked body frame, nothing out of order. No signs repair or overspray.)

2. 5 owners. They all owned the car longer than a year. First owner put 10k on it, while 2-4 barely put a 1000/year and the fifth owner (current) put on the rest of the miles.


The car definitely represent its age very well. The exterior and interior, I would give a solid 9/10.

 

there was a 2004 coupe that sold in my area a few weeks ago for 17k and it had 58,000 miles, 2 owners and appeared to be very clean. i would wait for a deal like that

we also had a forum member sell an 01 with 40 some thousand miles for 17k over the winter

if you wait and get really thorough with checking craigslist daily, 3x per day if you can, same with autotrader and ebay, you'll find a car

i called on my z06 the same day it was listed and was the second guy to call on it. good deals don't last long

 

Dealers don't title cars and they don't count as owners when they pass through. Number of owner's is of little concern to me, there can be many reasons not related to the car for selling.

 

Wow that is awesome!

 

Not true, especially at auctions.

 

I've had my 99' for almost 3 years, I shopped for 3 months to find the right one, it had a few more miles, (90k), but was a 1 owner, well maintained, it needed tires, but tires also kept the price down...

I got mine when prices were down, but finding the proper beast makes the enjoyment last longer,

 

I try to browse everyday on my phone. I check autotrader, craigslist, and the forum pretty frequently.


True, hopefully sell the car for good reasons and not bad.

Yeah, I know Im being impatient. I guess the search continues.

 

wait, deals will come up. i looked for roughly 6 months before i found a good cost to quality ratio

 

Seller is willing to do 15k.



Would this change things? Should i still be leery of the 5 owners?

Edit:

Happy fourth everyone.

 

Based on your description, I'd pay the $15K for this one. If it feels right for you, go for it. It won't be the best deal in history, but it'll be far from the worst. Enjoy!
PS - I bought mine 13 months ago -- '99 Auto 2-owner with 43K for $16K.

 

5 owners? Run from that don't walk.. I just sold my 99 3 months ago, I was the 2nd owner. Loved the car but upgraded to a new Grand Sport. I wouldn't buy any car that had 5 owners..

 

Unless I it was a C3 maybe and I was willing to work on it. 5 owners for a C5 seems dangerous.

 

Just my .02 on the earlier C5's (97-2000).

I bought a 99 C5 last August with 73k original miles. I am the 4th owner. There were three lady owners in front of me. That meant not all the service had been done regularly and was behind on maintenance. There were some paint issues that needed addressing and she wanted $16k for the car. I bought it at $14k. The car is a loaded C5 auto 4 speed, dual tops, AM/FM/Cassette/12 disc CD changer.

What it needed:
2 new front rotors & pads, new rear sway bar ends/links, alingment, etc
A/C service to HVAC unit (LED's were dim) and both actuator doors were replaced, system recharged.
New wiper motor/blades.
New tires (bought wheels as well since the painted wagon wheels were the only base model option on this car ...WTF?).
One rip in the driver's seat bolster, got it replaced.
New bolster pump/seat bolster lumbar bags.

I bought new ZR-1 replica wheels, Granatelli CAI (dual cone filter, MAF, 0 ohm plug wires, tune up), Bossanni exhaust w/X pipe, some leather interior upgrades to the console, and door panel arm rests.

There were other various updates/fixes I did (paint scratch fills with Dr. Color Chip, nothing major), one weatherstripping piece over the B pillar that also seals the back of the door windows from noise, and new carpet pieces from Lloyd's for the front and rear cargo area.

All in I've got around $22k in the C5 at this point. Every system works perfectly (both power seats, etc) and without any glitches or hiccups, including the telescopic steering wheel, etc.

We've put 7k miles on it since August for various trips on weekends, etc and the car hasn't had one hiccup.

Granted, $22k included a bunch of upgrades you wouldn't need specifically (exhaust/wheels/leather upgrades came to around $4k all in), so figure a fully loaded 99 for $18k with all systems dialed in and working is where you should be at with new tires, tune up, and brakes all just replaced.

If you have doubts, move on. But if you think any issues it might have could be addressed for less than 2k on top of the 15k asking price that seems reasonable to me.

Just get it on a lift, checked by a mechanic familiar with C5's and go from there.

Here's the 99 I bought.

 

Looks great. I'm convinced I want to tint my windows now.

 

Thanks. That's the factory window tint, which you need here in So Cal so the CHP and police don't pull you over. Both of my C5's have them.

 

IMHO....All I needed to see was the FIVE owners....Don"t buy, keep looking around. Their are hundreds of cars out there that are newer, less miles, and a better car for the money.... good luck.