Looking to get back into a C5 and need opinions on how many miles would you folks consider to be " too many "?

 

For me 100,000 is the most I would buy one with. At this point I assume the car needs a bunch of preventative maintenance to make it go to 200,000 relatively trouble free.

If it’s babied up to 100,000 by a responsible owner you will likely only need minor things done to it. Shocks, tires, brakes, brake lines, bushings, pumps and minor electrical fixes.

If it was abused you may need to dig into the engine, transmission and/or clutch. I would stay away from cars that have seen track time and been heavily modified if you’re buying high mileage. Because extra horsepower plus high mileage means things will wear out.

I got one with 80,000. So far nothing major and I’m near 110K. Take those things into consideration and pay accordingly. I think a common theme is people buy one and then a bunch of things break because these cars are often sold after they haven’t been driven much recently. Usually people don’t throw a bunch of work into it and then sell.

Good Luck

 

Well, your in luck. A lot of guys buy these C5's and put very
little miles on them. You could by a 20 year old vette with
50 to 75 thousand miles on the car. And they will be well
maintained. They are a great value, right now.
Good luck

 

Depends on your budget and skill level.

 

Car #1 (mine, not for sale!) 122K one owner, never tracked, daily driver, long trip cruiser. Always garaged. All scheduled mx done, history of oil analysis from day one. Does not burn a drop between oil changes.
Car #2 5-6 owners (one under 25) 49K, some mods, tracked and driven "like you stole it." No mx history.
Car #3 2 owners, 22K miles, Garage Queen, still has original tires, belts and hoses.

Which would you chose?

 

Don't forget someone who dives the $hit out of is but maintains it and zero oil analysis because what for.

Don't matter anyways because you're going to put money into it regardless unless the SOB is built.

 

not enough miles

 

Car 3 would be my choice. You could have many trouble free miles with that one. Some will say bad to let it sit but I'd take my chances in a second if I had the choice.

 

Low mileage cars are over rated and usually over priced. I would much rather have a car with 90k miles that has been taken care of for $11k, than one with 30k miles that has been sitting for $16k +. I have been buying cars this way cheap for cash all my life with very few problems.

 

That's a tough one and can be debated forever. I got mine with ALOT of miles, 186k buy an impeccable carfax. That's what made me consider it, of course the low price also was a driving factor.

 

Choice #3 for me. Tires, belts and hoses available all day and everyday and easily replaceable.

 

I agree. If I had to buy a C5 tomorrow, I'd look for a low mile garage queen and just replace everything.

 

Definitely #3. Hoses and belts are cheap, tires can be expensive though.

 

How much is too many miles? Depends. I searched out a higher miles Corvette for the lower purchase price and the guilt free driving experience. The +17,000 miles I have driven it since buying it in December of 2017 represent a lot of value for the money; and those miles have done nothing to the car in terms of depreciation. In fact the car today, is a better car with +114,000 miles than it was when I bought it with 97,000 miles thanks to my upkeep over the past +2 1/2 years. I'd trust this car to take me anywhere there are roads and to get me home.

I'm not afraid to get it wet, drive it on a back road, or park it at Walmart. Within 4 months of owing it, I drove it through an Indiana blizzard (on brand new all season tires, I might add) on our way back from the Corvette museum. I bought my Corvette to use and knowing myself, had I bought a low mile garage queen...it would likely still be a low miles garage queen. Life is too short for that. In fact my 2001 Corvette if driven at my current rate of 5,000-6,000 miles a year might just outlive me.

Most of these cars, if not abused should go 200,000 miles. Admittedly, all things being equal, low miles are better than high miles. The problem is, rarely are all things equal. Factor in how you want to use your car and how long you want to keep it and then find the right car for you. Miles aren't everything. Just one of many factors to consider.

 

Hands down car #3

 

I completely agree. I bought mine to drive. I have owned my 02 for a bit more than 5 years. It had about 72K on it when I bought it and it has about 122K today. I love driving it. It started having some issues so I am putting another engine in it currently. I am not worried about ruining originality or anything like that. I plan to drive it another 20 years. It was something that my dad who passed 3 years ago and I really enjoyed together. But I love the fact that I don’t worry about driving it as much as I feel like and changing stuff about it when I feel like it. If it were a low mileage garage queen I would not feel as free to enjoy it.

 

Many years ago I bought a 1997 with 120,000 miles. I just got back from a 300+ mile
road trip

 

Too many miles on a Corvette for me would be a 150K+

 

I wouldn't buy one with more than 50K miles, but I prefer to buy vehicles on a lower end of the mileage scale. The C5, when properly maintained, can go well beyond 100K miles. So just depends on what you are comfortable with.

 

Other choices dont look good to me. Ill take the garage queen and budget a few k just in case.
Then drive it daily like it shoulda been. I drive a 88 C4 daily with confidence as it was well maintained.