When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hello,
I am looking to purchase a 2001 C5 Coupe. The drivers side seems to fit well, but the passenger side seems a little funky in regards to the door, fender and hood fitment. You can see the odd gaps in the picture. Is this normal for a C5 or is it likely this car saw a ditch or 2 in it's lifetime. Car history report comes up clean.
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Before you would make the purchase, take the car to a trusted body shop and get their opinion on whether a simple adjustment would solve the gap problem or if it will require a more extensive procedure to make it look right.
So I took the car to a shop and had it on a hoist so I could check it out. There is some metal guard thing on the bottom of the front bumper that was torn on the passenger side. It was actually torn out of the frame next to the radiator. The vehicle history report listed no accidents.
So the car hit something hard and low. Enough for me to walk away from that deal. Looking at the car a second time I noticed the headlight on the pass side wasn't even flush with the hood. You can see a little gap issue in the picture.
With no detail about how many miles, interior condition, accessory functionality and how it rides, the OP might be walking away from a decent car. Most of what he describes in body panel misalignment seem to be easy adjustment fixes. That right front fender/door issue is the same as my 98 had. A simple adjustment fix, as are headlight cover lids.
The broken metal frame component is most likely the front end rail guard that did its job, another routine fix. Might have been worth a more thorough look, but if the buyer has mixed feelings, best he walks.
114,000 miles. Car history shows over 12 owners in 6 states.
I've bought and sold a lot of cars. Body damage of any kind that the seller fails to inform me of is suspect in my eyes. When the car was on the hoist and I saw the lower front bumper by the radiator shroud on the drivers side looking ok and the passenger side having about a 3 inch gap, the owner said, "Plastic warps."
Then I saw metal that was torn. Not bent, torn. I walked away.
He also was kind enough to only raise the car 5 feet off the ground at his shop. Using a normal shop hoist. The man was hiding stuff and I found it. Or at least some of it.
The car may look great to 99% of the people. But 99% of the people are not lining up to pay for my next car.
114,000 miles. Car history shows over 12 owners in 6 states.
I've bought and sold a lot of cars. Body damage of any kind that the seller fails to inform me of is suspect in my eyes. When the car was on the hoist and I saw the lower front bumper by the radiator shroud on the drivers side looking ok and the passenger side having about a 3 inch gap, the owner said, "Plastic warps."
Then I saw metal that was torn. Not bent, torn. I walked away.
He also was kind enough to only raise the car 5 feet off the ground at his shop. Using a normal shop hoist. The man was hiding stuff and I found it. Or at least some of it.
The car may look great to 99% of the people. But 99% of the people are not lining up to pay for my next car.
Alright...then why ask for our opinion then?
99% of the people responding to your thread were trying to help you out, and you dismissed 99% of the responses because you had already made up your mind.
114,000 miles. Car history shows over 12 owners in 6 states.
I've bought and sold a lot of cars. Body damage of any kind that the seller fails to inform me of is suspect in my eyes. When the car was on the hoist and I saw the lower front bumper by the radiator shroud on the drivers side looking ok and the passenger side having about a 3 inch gap, the owner said, "Plastic warps."
Then I saw metal that was torn. Not bent, torn. I walked away.
He also was kind enough to only raise the car 5 feet off the ground at his shop. Using a normal shop hoist. The man was hiding stuff and I found it. Or at least some of it.
The car may look great to 99% of the people. But 99% of the people are not lining up to pay for my next car.
First off welcome to the forum, and good luck on your continued search for a C5.
If you hang around here long enough you quickly realize that the quality of the responses is only going to be as good as the quality of the questions you ask. In your initial posting, your only concerns centered on body panel alignment and your suspicion of possible accident damage. Most of the replies were by owners with knowledge and experience fixing the usual misaligned body panels on the C5's.
Both of those problems you specifically mentioned are common to the model and relatively easy to fix.
Now on the other hand, if you had raised these two concerns along with the 114k miles, 12 owners, and registered in 6 states, I would have commented that the two misaligned body panels are the least of what you should be concerned with and would have recommended keep searching for a better car.
To be fair, I didn't mean to dismiss the responses. I didn't get the car history and see the car on the hoist until after the initial question. If I was looking at an Escort, I would have thought nothing of the panel fitment issues.
I've wanted a C5 since they came out. They are a beautiful and fun car.
I just feel a little disappointed that I'm finding out their build quality is just as poor as any other car. So no disrespect, I just feel like I found out unicorns are really just plain old horses with well placed tumors.
C5 Body Panel Fitment
