Hey guys I have been lurking for a few months now trying to learn as much as I can about the C5 Z06. I am looking to buy my first corvette. I have had several classic cars. Mostly cars geared more towards drag racing. I am looking for a clean C5 Z06 to drive on nice days and some mild track time. Something like solo racing. I have found a silver 2001 ZO6 with 57,000 miles. It has had three owners. For the last 5 years it has been owned by a 81 year old man and only had 5000 miles. Before that i know nothing about the owners. It is in good condition. Paint and body are in good shape. Interior is in good shape. Tires wheels and brakes are ok. The car needs a really good cleaning and I think about $1500 in maintenance. The car runs and drives great. It has always been garaged kept. After two days of thinking about it the owner has excepted my offer of $15,000. I am scheduled to pick it up tomorrow. This will be my first Vette. I would like to have a good experience. I dont want to buy a car that requires constant attention. I just want to do regular maintenance and be able to enjoy the car. $17000 is what I have budgeted for. I dont think I will find a better car than the C5 ZO6 in that price range. Could I find a better car for $17,000 all in If I wait?
Thanks,
David

 

If that's a clean title car it's a good buy. Check the tires date code a d if there to old burn um up and get new ones. Other than that enjoy the car

 

yes the title is clean. Carfax says it was in a wreck in 2001. Police reports estimate damage at $2500. Current owner says he has no knowledge of any accidents. Current owner has replaced the A/C control panel and the gears in the headlights at the local Chevrolet dealership.

 

It sounds like a very fair deal to me. If you are comfortable with it, I would do the deal. but YMMV

 

$1500 in maintenance seems like a lot. What things does it need done?

$15,000 seems like a good price for a 57k mile car, but not knowing the accident history would make me nervous.

There is a list on the forum somewhere that will show common problems with the C5, and there are quite a few that most cars run into eventually.

Here are a few things you can check for:
1) Flappy sun visors. The ends break/sag, and cost about $150 each to replace.
2) Turn signal stops working. Pressing the hazard switch temporarily alleviates the problem, but it will continue to get worse.
3) Rocking seats. Brackets that secure the seat have play, easy fix, just takes time to install/fix
4) I've seen a few posts about leaking water near the passenger/driver footwells. Look under the floor mats for water marks.

Check for engine codes, after a test drive. Hold the Option button down, and while holding it, press the fuel button 4 times. It will cycle through codes, write them down, if you see any PCM codes those are the big ones.

An example of a PCM code is like P 1055 C H, the C = current, the H = history, so if you see a H it hasn't happened this ignition cycle. Hopefully you'll see 0 codes, but don't freak out if you do see some, my car has LDCM (left door control module) codes because i need to clean the wiring harness. No big deal.

For reference, I bought my 2001 Millennium Yellow Z06 with 28k miles in Nov of 2010 for $22,500.

Good luck with your search!

 

The tires have good tread but are almost 8 years old. I figured $1000 for new tires. The car needs a good detailing and wax $150. Then I just threw $250 for maintenance items. I

 

If it was me I'd find out what was damaged and repaired in the accident. If the current owner doesn't know, inspect the car and try to figure it out before buying it.

Depending on what you find $15K could be a great deal on this car........or not.

 

8 year old tires may not hook the best in the world, but if they have sufficient tread on em, I'd run em till they need to be replaced. Unless you're trying to drag/sprint the car, spend that money elsewhere.

Trans Fluid change if you don't have any maintenance records, Oil change, Air filter (if looks bad), ect.

I agree with the above post, figure out what was damaged, look for mis-matched paint, peeling paint, ect.

 

That's solid advice! I appreciate it. The tires do have good tread. I would estimate 60% tread depth.

 

Its a BRANDED car--think resale when your done with it or drive until it dies for good-

 

I don't think a $2,500 accident on a carfax is necessarily "branded". All to easy to come up to $2,500 damage without significant impact. If the title is clean, not salvage, rebuilt or reconstructed, then a small accident would not deter me from buying a car. An inspection for mismatched parts is warranted, but should not significantly reduce what you could sell if for. In this area of the country we seldom see $15,000 Z06s, no matter the condition or mileage. I think this is a darn good deal. YMMV

 

I tracked down the original owner. He was real cool and has purchased 5 new corvettes in his life. He said he got a little crazy in his neighborhood and hit a drive way curb at about 15 miles an hour. It cracked the front nose of the car and bent the under the bumper spoiler that is hinged. He had the nose replaced at the local chevy dealership. The hinged spoiler was bent and was not replaced because it still functioned but does sit about 1 inch higher on one side. The guy was real honest and I appreciated him taking 10 minutes to talk when he has not seen the car for 8 years. I understand that having a wreck on a vette is not the most ideal but I feel like it had been well cared for and not abused. God knows I will drive the snot out of it!! I think it is a solid deal and I'm gonna pull the trigger. I also found a really nice set of Hoosier track tires on C6 Z rims. The owner says they are brand new tires and will sell them for $1200 for the set. I think I am ready to get some seat time and enjoy this car.

 

Holy crap!!! I just went to the bank got the cash and was 20 minutes away and the seller calls me and says he changed his mind. This guy is ridiculous. I guess the search continues

 

I was looking at this Z06 also, I just saw they have it back on ebay for 17900.

 

I know what a salvage and rebuilt title cars are... But what the heck is a BRANDED car??

 

This is a great price for a 2001 C5Z with that low of miles. Do it but get new tires! 7-8 year old tires simply are not safe no matter how much tread is remaining. The rubber gets hard and it would take several more feet to stop if you locked them up in an emergency. Could be the difference of avoiding a wreck or crumpling up the nose of the car.

 

There is a such thing as branded title such as when you specify "not actual mileage" or "mileage exceeds mechanical limits". My dad was just recently trying to sell a vehicle and pulled the 8 year old title out of the safe only to discover there was a brand on the title! It was literally the difference between an "A" and a "B" in one of the boxes and you'd never notice it unless you knew to look for it. Fortunately there was enough documentation supporting that mileage was correct and it must have been some clerical issue when titling the vehicle that went unnoticed that we were able to get it straightened out.