So this may be scattered and this may be enjoyable or this may be hell for you to read this....either way thanks for checking it out

So last year me and my wife of one year was expecting a child and we were living in a smaller home that we outgrew a couple years before we just were too busy to try the process of buying a new home and the stress involved with it but the newborn is more important so we made things happen. To make a long story short I sold my Sunset Orange Metallic WS6 to help get us into a new home and it worked out. I didnt want to sell the car but i had 8 other cars and 5 motorcycles my selfishness had no room for my goals for my family at this point i was willing to part ways with whatever to give us a better life except for a few certain cars that ive had forever.

Anyways the 2001 SOM WS6 sells and we purchase a home, i ended up having a good chunk left over and i got a new garage that was much bigger then the one i had before so i started looking for a c5 vette as i have other trans ams and camaros....but i love my c6 z06 so much i wanted something similar to it but without the cost of it so i did the next best rhing and started huntin for a c5 z06.....to make a long and crazier story shorter i see this spongebob lookin pos on fb marketplace and the main picture was not very goof and the angle of how the car was parked made me think hey “c5 z06” well it wasnt. It was a 6 speed car and the ad basically said “z06 motor, 6 speed, cold a/c $7800”

That next saturday my dad and my best friend loaded up in the truck with me and we went to look around at some. Got to the yellow vette and i was almost pissed i even drove out there....yes there was a new engine but not a z06 engine but it ran and sounded great with documents showing it was new....ok good BUT it’s not a Z06 and...... it’s yellow, with tan and black interior......and i dont really want a project car the hood didnt line up, drivers seat torn, carpet look like cattle gave birth on it, radio was probably snatched from a looter of a value pawn, billy boat exhaust with 1/4 moon tips.....bug eyed aftermarket headlights and some paint fade.

I f’n hated the car....i wanted to throw up....so i bought it. I thought to myself this thing needs me and i have the ability to save it and im always happier mentally when im busy. So i brought it home for $4430 dollars.

NOW USUALLY I dont share what i pay for things with anyone at all BUT this is so cheap its worth mentioning and I wana point out i drove it home with the a/c on and not really having test drove it.....i wanted a car i could enjoy and depend on and love to hop in and go whenever and easy to fix. This wasnt the car

BUT I like odd colors, i like rare colors, i like yellow on certain things and corvette can pull it off. I like 6 speed and now that ive worked on the car so much I LOVE HOW EASY IT IS TO WORK ON AND HOW CHEAP THE PARTS ARE.

C5 Corvette in my opinion is the best bang for the buck performance car.

Heres a picture of it ill be updating this as i go too and some pics of some of my other toys. Needless to say i love this shortbus, big bird looking, spongebob twinin hunk of gm

I will explain in my next post why i got it so much cheaper

 

Hello! Absolutely agree with you on the C5 being the performance bargain of the century. Keep the forum posted on your project letting us all know on your progress. By the way, love yellow C5's! Best wishes and good luck with that new ride!

 

Looks pretty nice to me...

 

thank you i appreciate it the color really has grown on me, i would like to get it repainted and would go with factory color. I will keep posting and thank you for the kind words

 

Thank you, keep reading as i update id like to get your thoughts once the whole story is posted if your up to it just to see if we feel the same about that lol theres some good prts to come

 

CHAPTER 2: Buders the Corvette lol

This is kinda still the beginning of this journey with this car.....i wanted something in great shape that i wouldnt have to do much to except upgrades.....i bought a car that basically needed quite a bit of attention, on the ride home no check engine light, drivetrain boise, dip in the road the car really fealt soft the shocks were bad pretty much.....z06 wheels were peeling chrome, plexiglass roof, transmission was notchy as hell, drivetrain noise galore, one bad tire, ugly bug eyed headlights, paint fade and clear coat failure here and there, tail lights were sun faded and shot.


While looking at the car at the location i purchased it from i checked the glove box door for the rpo codes which was real easy considering that was broke but really the rest of the interior really wasnt all that bad but it wasnt up to standard it needed some help. I checked the rpos to see if it was a Z51 car the glove box reflected it was not.....the car is though keep reading.

Get the car home i decided based on how tame this car really was i wanted my wife to learn how to drive stick....which led to it being a big project later on bc of that decision haha

The reason I ended up getting the car so cheap was when i messaged the guy, which by the way seemed and projected himself as a private sale and he was not it ended up being a low end bottom of the barrel dealer. The car still had Manheim Auto Auction stickers on it from someone trying to sell it.....this car has been dragged through hell, I know those auctions well as i have worked for them in the past in a subworker kind of way.

After asking the seller to pop the hood and i looked and saw the head casting was not 243’s i knew eight away it wasnt a z06 motor and the old bullseye trick between ls1/ls6 i called him on it right away he asked me how i knew that i toldem how and i closed the hood and he said man it runs great though i have documents on engine....he did. The test drive told me the car had issues which was great for my advantage in bargaining and this guy was so accomodating holding the door and stuff i knew he wanted it gone. Got it down to $4430 out the door with temp tag and free transfer of my old tag and title work done mailed to my house....i knew surprises were waiting but i was excited to do this but not prepared for what was to come


The drrivetrain noise i mentioned before got worse quickly and alot of that was teaching my pregnant wife how to drive it which wasnt so heartbreaking cause the car was the type you didnt mind parking next to carts at walmart lol

my wife did really well and during her third lesson something gave out. We did ALOT of stopping and taking off, there was alot of clutch riding, it got hot, dont know what happened but it started binding really nad, get going make it about 7-8 ft and the tires wana lockup. Drivetrain has a serious bind. The grinding noises this thing makes just sitting in neutral and when the clutch is pressed at a certain point are terrible and first gear is harder to get into then harvard university.

I limp it home, we looked like idiots. My wife and ouldnt want to be in the picture so i darkened her out

 

CHAPTER 3: Buders the Corvette

The car ended up sitting for several months while i got our new house situated and baby stuff being setup. Title did come in thr mail and i was relieved. Baby comes, i take some time off work to be there to help my wifd and still do house stuff. I have every intention of starting on the car. Doesnt happen.


I am a medical mj user for some health problems i developed when i got older. Couple times i smoked in the garage while getting dome things done and out of nowhere i kinda just started on the car.


Now this car has been budget built partially and it really fell together. Online one night i see a guy selling parts off his c5 picked up a new trans from him low mile for $400 super clean.... i was a trandmission guy years ago. He also sold me headlight assemblies and a e-brake as mine wouldnt stay up. I scored it all for $580 I believe (written down at home)

Start with headlights first im still not done

 

Goof for you for resurrecting that C5. While you have your work cut out for you, it will be interesting to follow as you go though the process. Good lcuk.

 

You're taking on a lot of work it seems. If you have the means and the will, you'll get it together soon enough. Good luck with it all. Looks like fun to me.

 

All hail the budget yellow C5!

We're in the same boat. I bought mine for super cheap and it's honestly the most fun car I've ever owned.

 

$4,430 !?! Why can't I find these deals?
Congratulations on such a good find. Glad you are getting rid of those headlights but bummed for you on the peeling chrome. I like the Z06 rims and really like the Z06 rims in chrome.
Best wishes on your repairs

 

I paid even less for mine and I drive it daily.


They're out there haha

But do you reeeeeeeeally need another one?

 

No, but I WANT another

 

Thank you everyone for the kind words and comments and support. Im diving in cause what do I have to lose.

 

CHAPTER 4: Buders The Corvette

So i started working on the headlights and that lasted for about a day and the next time i went to work on the far I started getting it in the air. Funny thing is the jack stands i purchased last year, still new in the box, was what i put under the car that day then i got the update that harbor freight jack stands had been recalled so the car came down again lol

At this point i considered letting some old friends of mine in the transmission business do this for me, they quoted me $600....amazing deal but i wana take pride in being able to do this job in my new garage that I waited for to start getting things done.

I exchanged jack stands, got started.

This was 3 weeks ago

In the meantime a forum member here (which ive had amazing luck here buying and selling) had some seats for sale, pm’d him and we met and I got some really sharp almost mint seats for a great price $550 and although mine were tan i wanted black because yellow is already bright enough, tan interior is too light, more black interior parts to come.

A few weeks ago i found a procharger for sale for $1200 and i commited to buyin it and the guy flaked and ghosted me

Bought a 4.10 rear diff on fb marketplace for $500 barely used

another friend of mine was selling a mcleod twin disc rst clutch, flywheel, ARP bolts, alignment tool and i picked it up for $850

I really cant believe how cheap and easy to come by the c5 parts are. Im used to 4th gen which parts are not as common and more expensive so far this car has kind of fell together on its own as far as getting fixed

I also found out the interior is loaded with dynamat....how exciting

 

While getting the torque tibe outnof the car i noticed something. What do you see?

 

Peeling bumper letters?

 

ratchet on the floor?

 

Euro tail lights ?

 

So, what's the answer? Or do we have to keep guessing until someone gets it right?