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Hello! I'm in the market for a C5 FRC or Z06 and recently stumbled across a 2000 FRC with "Lingenfelter modifications." I've yet to see it in person, but the seller simply states that the mods consist of heads, cam, intake, headers, exhaust, and "suspension package" (FWIW, there's Hotchkis sticker on it).
What, if any, packages did Lingenfelter offer for C5s? There's some engine and suspension packages on Lingenfelter's site, but I have no idea if they offered any other options for these cars when they were newer.
Currently waiting on the seller to provide more info, however, it appears that the car was purchased at an auction, so they may not have all the details. Any info or things to look out for would be greatly appreciated.
Lingenfelter keeps records on every car they've worked on. If you contact them with the VIN they can provide you with a copy of the work order for that specific car. Do be aware that this isn't free. However, it will tell you exactly what was done and when. Cars modded by Lingenfelter are one of the very few that tend to actually gain value due to the modifications. If the car is pried well, and has been well cared for, I'd consider pulling the trigger on purchasing it. You'll want to get a good pre-purchase inspection done though to make sure everything is in good order.
Lingenfelter keeps records on every car they've worked on. If you contact them with the VIN they can provide you with a copy of the work order for that specific car. Do be aware that this isn't free. However, it will tell you exactly what was done and when. Cars modded by Lingenfelter are one of the very few that tend to actually gain value due to the modifications. If the car is pried well, and has been well cared for, I'd consider pulling the trigger on purchasing it. You'll want to get a good pre-purchase inspection done though to make sure everything is in good order.
Thanks. I sent them the VIN. Hopefully they have a record of it. Car looks very nice in the pictures and only has 32k miles.
Just heard back from Lingenfelter and they have no record of it. They suggested that the parts may have been purchased from them and installed by another shop. Bummer. I'll post another update if I get a chance to check out the car in person.
Just heard back from Lingenfelter and they have no record of it. They suggested that the parts may have been purchased from them and installed by another shop. Bummer. I'll post another update if I get a chance to check out the car in person.
That is a bummer, for sure, and in more ways than one. As a skilled tradesman most of my life, I'm picky about mechanical things, especially engines. I also feel, without being snobbish, I'm damn good at building engines. That said, I don't, and never will, have the reputation LPE has. In the big picture, I'm just another Joe Blow. In other words.....
Strike 1-
The car has an engine with LPE parts, built by Joe Blow, NOT a Lingenfelter engine.
Strike2-
The seller has been less than honest about the engine. Has he outright lied? Probably not.
Has he mislead you? Definitely! What else about the car has he mislead you about? Who knows. If it were me, I'd have my antenna's out full length before I'd be buying this car. FWIW.......
I think the reason you also have to be careful is ....I'll use my car as an example. It has only 1 Lingenfelter part, but it also has heads, cam, headers, etc. The previous person even put a L sticker on the back of it. But it's in no way a Lingenfelter car. It just has 1 part on it that happens to be. Point is, I wouldn't add any value to the car that you are looking at because it says Lingenfelter, just enjoy that at least it was probably a nicely chosen part. Then you have to decide whether it's worth the price as a car to you.
To be fair “Lingenfelter modifications” is different than “built by Lingenfelter”. If the seller is saying built by Lingenfelter, there’s a problem if Lingenfelter has no record. If the seller just said Lingenfelter modifications/parts, it doesn’t seem they are trying to get one over on anyone.
I'm of a slightly different mind on it. I see LPE, and I see an unnecessarily large bill for whomever purchased their parts or service. It is usually someone who does not know car parts or does not spin wrenches. Therefore, most of the time with these cars they are owned by posers. If you don't change your own oil, I don't consider the car to be well maintained because you are not aware either by experience or by direct contact.
Likewise, while I recognize that they do build grest engines, I feel that LPE trades heavily upon its historical reputation and identity but that they are not offering the best or cutting edge parts today in 2021 terms for LS engines. Would you be buying 2002 heads and cam tech and theory back when 500 hp was still a big deal?
LOL @ the one part rule. I guess my 99 is "LPE equipped" since I used their fuel pump. And my '03 Z06 is the same for using their factory FPR block off.
I do not visit hate upon other Corvette owners, but I did pluck a few feathers a few years ago with one local guy. He had a brand new red C7 with the Callaway SC627 package. Callaway is local here in CT, so we tend to see more of them. The shop which I have visited is certainly high tech and experienced. But, like LPE, you would NEVER purchase anything from them unless you didn't know better because they pump the price to an unrealistic level vs doing it yourself or engaging a good engine builder. (Coincidentally, if you're in the northeast or just in CT give Bobby a call at RPE Machine in Hartford for a very experienced LS builder) This guy had bought the full package. Oddly enough, I had seen this very visually unique (due to emblems) car in Farmington the day before and I shook my head at the memory because the owner could barely drive it normally. Maybe it was just brand new to him, but even turning and accelerating it had been awkward to observe. So I encountered this very same car at the then weekly Friday night cruise at Hooters. All the dudes were eager to check out the car. Myself included. But the owner was a D-bag bragger type. Kept patting himself on the back, but then started talking other cars down. So I, knowing that Callaway was charging $24,000 at the time for this "package" which consisted of their own brand name blower kit and an emblem package, but which was really just the Edelbrock blower kit with their name and a smaller pulley.... I mosied past Mr D-bag and the crowd and leaned over the engine admiringly and said openly as if to my girlfriend:
"Oh, cool. This guy put the Edelbrock blower on his C7." You could hear the fishing line SNAP tight. He reeled around to brush away this dirt suddenly on his lapel and launched into the Callaway diatribe. "No, no..... Look" (I already had the link on my phone showing the exact same blower for all to see) "See? Right here. That's the $6,000 Edelbrock blower kit. Cool setup. How's she stake those corners in Farmington?" kaboom! The poor guy seemed to honestly not be aware of rebranding. And I'd never do that to anyone in the world. But this guy? He was truly unique. Next few times I saw the car it had the hood down at shows. Callaway no longer posts their pricing openly. Now when you go to the site you see flyers but are prompted to call for next steps.
Pro tip... If you get on C5 Modified's separate page for buy/sell on FB you will see some very cool cars going around for sale. Some with sensible prices. Others not. But guys are dumping some nice cars. What the heck they think they're going to replace them with under current market inflation, I have no idea.
Edit: if you look at the picture, what are they selling? Trim, Emblems, Badging, a Plaque, key fobs..... and an Edelbrock blower "made better" by Callaway.
I have a LPE built C5 .It came with a large pack of recipes, Invoice numbers ,and actual pictures of it being worked on .
If this C5 was BUILT by them he would have some kind of paper work proof.
I think the reason you also have to be careful is ....I'll use my car as an example. It has only 1 Lingenfelter part, but it also has heads, cam, headers, etc. The previous person even put a L sticker on the back of it. But it's in no way a Lingenfelter car. It just has 1 part on it that happens to be. Point is, I wouldn't add any value to the car that you are looking at because it says Lingenfelter, just enjoy that at least it was probably a nicely chosen part. Then you have to decide whether it's worth the price as a car to you.
I agree .Just do your homework. For me, most mods do not add large amount to any vehicle. It interests me in the vehicle but all to often people think they spent 10k on mods and it adds 10k to the price .
That being said if it was a Lingenfelter package ,which back then there were packages offered ,if it was done right is a nice setup.
Just a quick update: Ran a CarFax on it and found out that it had been sold at an auction or some other dealer a short time ago. The listing from the other dealer also described it as a "Lingenfelter" FRC. Based on the pictures, the current seller is the one who slapped the Lingenfelter banner on the windshield. Apart from the ridiculous asking price, since Lingenfelter has no record of it and there's likely no paper trail showing who did the work or what exactly was done, I never bothered trying to contact the seller again.
Lingenfelter modded C5?
