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Not my Corvette, but a few years ago I took my 66 Thunderbird(before I sold it) from Los Angeles to Miami, then up to Boston, then back to Los Angeles.
Not one bit of trouble the entire trip.
That car was 46 years old.
The car had been fully restored in in 2007, so for the most part was like new.
I am planning a trip to New England next spring with the Corvette.
My C5 has 150k kiles and is very reliable and comfortable, got about 26 MPG. Would like to do a long trip every year, but getting harder to get away. Take your time and have fun.
Y'oughta come on down here to Mississippi... some of our roads are so bad I hadda add "splash guards" to both my Vettes. Rough enough down here in places the car rides like a pickup truck in places. Broke my heart; there's so much gravel and potholes, etc. on a coupla the roads I travel that aftermarket OEM splash guards just don't shield enough. I've never posted pictures of my two Vettes because the mudflaps I got on there are embarrassing--but I learned the hard way, after rocks chewed up the quarter panel and rear bumper.
If the roads are that bad, I'd be moving away from that state...
Don't worry these corvettes are utterly reliable...just stay with a basically stock c5....no heads and cam packages in my opinion and your car will go hundreds of thousands of miles.
I've had two c5 s and now a c6 owned since new.
I put 115k miles on my c6 z51 manual and I wouldn't hesitate to drive it across the country as you described..
GM validates these cars for 300k miles so they can easily offer their 5 year 100k mile warranty ...
These cars are amazing...besides the good looks, the amazing performance it's the utter reliability and ease of repairs if something pops up...
This is the right time to buy a c5 as the prices are about to go up shortly in my opinion.
The only thing I wouldn't buy is a garage queen with no miles...the seals don't like non usuage...
There was just a forum member who donated his 783 thousand mile 2000 c5 ...
These are rock solid cars..my buddy has a forty five thousand mile convertible 2004 that I almost bought this past week but he wouldn't let it go...he was going to because it just uses it to go play golf each week ..the cars mint...
I'd buy that car in a minute...
I would based off my own experience not be afraid of higher mileage...
I have 115 k miles on my daily driver c6 z51 m6 and the car never breaks...
It's just amazing...
Just don't buy a corvette from a kid...find the usual mid forty or mid fifty owner who seems like he loves his corvette...
Mileage is not something to worry about...
Sitting in the garage with no miles would worry me more.,.because of the seals drying out and lots of miles might shock the cars systems if never used in its lifetime.
St. Jude Donor '08-'09-'10-'11-'12-'13-'14-'15-'16-'17-'18-'19-'20-'21-'22-'23-'24
Originally Posted by grampi50
do you guys think a C5 would be okay for touring the country? Have any of you done it in a C5?
I have driven my 2003 coupe CC twice, hit all the lower 48 states with it.
Sorry to read about the one man experience, but I would say he just got a bad one as I am on my 5th C5 and they have all been rock solid.
As for touring the country...I would pack right now and leave in the morning and do it all again if I could.
I found the coupe with the sport seats very very comfortable, and the lumbar support was a big help on long mileage days.
The MPGs were outstanding. Cruising the flats would get me an easy 30 mpg. And most highways you travel are in really good shape so the ride was never too stiff. Back roads... Some of the back roads I traveled would bring tears to most owners eyes.
Any questions feel free to pm me.
Common sense goes a long way when traveling alone.
I have driven my 2003 coupe CC twice, hit all the lower 48 states with it.
Sorry to read about the one man experience, but I would say he just got a bad one as I am on my 5th C5 and they have all been rock solid.
As for touring the country...I would pack right now and leave in the morning and do it all again if I could.
I found the coupe with the sport seats very very comfortable, and the lumbar support was a big help on long mileage days.
The MPGs were outstanding. Cruising the flats would get me an easy 30 mpg. And most highways you travel are in really good shape so the ride was never too stiff. Back roads... Some of the back roads I traveled would bring tears to most owners eyes.
Any questions feel free to pm me.
Common sense goes a long way when traveling alone.
Don't worry these corvettes are utterly reliable...just stay with a basically stock c5....no heads and cam packages in my opinion and your car will go hundreds of thousands of miles.
I've had two c5 s and now a c6 owned since new.
I put 115k miles on my c6 z51 manual and I wouldn't hesitate to drive it across the country as you described..
GM validates these cars for 300k miles so they can easily offer their 5 year 100k mile warranty ...
These cars are amazing...besides the good looks, the amazing performance it's the utter reliability and ease of repairs if something pops up...
This is the right time to buy a c5 as the prices are about to go up shortly in my opinion.
The only thing I wouldn't buy is a garage queen with no miles...the seals don't like non usuage...
There was just a forum member who donated his 783 thousand mile 2000 c5 ...
These are rock solid cars..my buddy has a forty five thousand mile convertible 2004 that I almost bought this past week but he wouldn't let it go...he was going to because it just uses it to go play golf each week ..the cars mint...
I'd buy that car in a minute...
I would based off my own experience not be afraid of higher mileage...
I have 115 k miles on my daily driver c6 z51 m6 and the car never breaks...
It's just amazing...
Just don't buy a corvette from a kid...find the usual mid forty or mid fifty owner who seems like he loves his corvette...
Mileage is not something to worry about...
Sitting in the garage with no miles would worry me more.,.because of the seals drying out and lots of miles might shock the cars systems if never used in its lifetime.
So you're saying that instead of looking for a low mileage C5, I should be looking for one with what, 40K, 50K?
Same as the others. No concerns about long trips. Recently returned from a 1200 mile trip. The only issue was I ended up with a very slight crack in a spark plug that wasn't happy in the rain. As dannyz said; it's a GM - parts are everywhere. Stopped at the nearest auto shop, bought a plug, borrowed a spark plug socket wrench, changed the plug and gone in 10 minutes time. Easy Peazy as my grandson likes to say.
We're already planning trips for next year that will range from 700 miles to 4000 miles round trip. (My only concern how my wife will pack for a three week road trip and fit it in the car).
I have met some nice people broken down on the side of the road NOT . Make sure it in good working order check everything out get it in the air ,look under it , bushings / leaks / tires and a AAA card and go have some Corvette fun . I drove mine 04 65,000 miles on a 2,500 mile trip last year big fun .. Houston to N. Fl. to B-Ham Al. to Bowling green KY. and toured N.AL. as well and on to the town of Elvis back to Houston .. and lapped the Talladega track @150 MPH with suitcases in the trunk ( yep in my 04 ) that was fun .. If I had to be broke down I rather be in a Corvette that a old TOYMOTOA anyway .. LOL
I will be retiring in 2.5 years and I plan on traveling the country in a C5. I want to revisit all of the Air Force bases where I was stationed, and visit with old friends I made while I was in the military.
Thx for your service, from a min-time AF flier.
[QUOTE=grampi50;1595969310I'm a little concerned about the reliability of the C5 for long distance travel. From what I've read in this site, it sounds like the C5 is fairly reliable, [/QUOTE]My Corvette buddies told me three primary things: 1) they miss the C5 if they sold, 2) they did many, comfy long drives with spouses, and 3) C5s are as venerable as ANY import, better than some. Two pals own C5s with well over 200k and counting, with very few issues.
Mileage, storage, ease of old-bones entry/exit, performance, ride, etc. are amazing, IMO. My C5 vert had <70k when bought some months ago. One HUGE reason I jumped on it was the unmodifed aspect, plus the obvious care it'd had, despite 3-4 prior owners.
Not a fan of tire goop, but containers of certain fluids may be prudent. New fluids, maybe belt and the usual regular maintenance, unless you get totally complete records showing such, are always a great idea with any used car purchase. You might consider a clear bra to protect the nose, etc.. I've had no deterioration of plastic headlight lenses from same.
Sounds like a fantastic trip, in all aspects!
Last edited by whalepirot; 11-17-2017 at 01:28 PM.
After reading these posts, I'm sold on the C5 being good for country touring. However, I'm more confused about what I should be looking for when it comes time to buy my C5. My intention was to buy one with the least amount of miles and owners. JerriVette isn't the first person to say that low mileage cars may tend to have more problems than say something with a few more miles on it. I do agree that sitting all the time is not good for a vehicle, or at least such a vehicle may have more problems than say one that is driven on a semi-routine basis. Originally I wanted a low mileage C5 for two reasons; the paint is normally in better condition, especially in the vulnerable areas like the front end and behind the wheels wells, and the driver's seat is usually in much better condition. I guess it's a trade-off. Do I want these areas to be really nice, and take a chance of having to replace seals and other things that go bad from sitting too much, or do I go for one with a few more miles that may not have perfect paint and a perfect driver's seat. I know the driver's seat wouldn't be nearly as expensive to repair/recover/replace as say a rear main seal, but paint work these days is crazy expensive. Instead of looking for something with less than 30K miles, maybe I should be looking for something with 40-50K, which might be a good compromise between a car that sits too much, and one that is starting to show it's age from higher mileage...it would get me at a better price point too...from what I've seen, people selling the low mileage C5s apparently don't think age has any negative effects on a vehicle when it comes to pricing...
After reading these posts, I'm sold on the C5 being good for country touring. However, I'm more confused about what I should be looking for when it comes time to buy my C5. My intention was to buy one with the least amount of miles and owners. JerriVette isn't the first person to say that low mileage cars may tend to have more problems than say something with a few more miles on it. I do agree that sitting all the time is not good for a vehicle, or at least such a vehicle may have more problems than say one that is driven on a semi-routine basis. Originally I wanted a low mileage C5 for two reasons; the paint is normally in better condition, especially in the vulnerable areas like the front end and behind the wheels wells, and the driver's seat is usually in much better condition. I guess it's a trade-off. Do I want these areas to be really nice, and take a chance of having to replace seals and other things that go bad from sitting too much, or do I go for one with a few more miles that may not have perfect paint and a perfect driver's seat. I know the driver's seat wouldn't be nearly as expensive to repair/recover/replace as say a rear main seal, but paint work these days is crazy expensive. Instead of looking for something with less than 30K miles, maybe I should be looking for something with 40-50K, which might be a good compromise between a car that sits too much, and one that is starting to show it's age from higher mileage...it would get me at a better price point too...from what I've seen, people selling the low mileage C5s apparently don't think age has any negative effects on a vehicle when it comes to pricing...
I have had great luck with buying cars over my lifetime (66) I look for condition more than miles. My feeling is if the body and interior are in great shape, I feel as the rest of the car was taken care of as well !!!! (it has served me well)
ps, as a tech I can fix all the mechanical's, interior and body seem to cost me more, another reason I look for good interiors and body !!!!!
Same here, I could probably repaint my car myself in the $1500 range but the savings come in the form of hundreds of hours of body work becauae I'm picky. If the paint is clean everything else is easy, including interior.
I can add my 2 cents - I bought my 2000 A4 coupe 4 1/2 years ago with 76,000 miles on the clock, and have made 2 long trips up and down from FL to NJ with no problems at all - total ~5000 miles and getting 30+mpg driving 75-85 mph for 8-9 hrs. in a row on the road. The car is totally reliable and is my DD the rest of the time. It now has 102,000 miles on it and I would not hesitate to take it anywhere. Besides that, it's comfortable and has a great amount of storage in the hatch for it's size, making it a great road car. You take along the usual necessities for self-sustainability, like a jack, tire repair kit, air pressure pump, extra can of oil if you're obsessive, small bag of tools, and cellphone. The only problem you may have is lack of radio stations along the way to listen to, so an iPod hooked to the radio comes in handy.
I think under 50000 and NO mods , stock . If it’s 2004 check vin for tank problem
What do you mean by "mods?" People consider mods to be different things. Me, I don't consider a cat back exhaust system or an intake with a K&N filter mods, but others might. Cams, heads, blowers, stuff like that I consider mods...
I have had great luck with buying cars over my lifetime (66) I look for condition more than miles. My feeling is if the body and interior are in great shape, I feel as the rest of the car was taken care of as well !!!! (it has served me well)
11-16-2017, 01:49 AM
