I've had my Vette 4 yrs now. I'm about to sell it b/c my spouse is nagging and fussing about how often it should be driven. I'm sick of hearing his mouth! How often should these cars be driven? Are they that fragile that if they're not driven EVERY WEEK, they'll fall apart?!!

Please help settle an argument, before I just chuck everything and get rid of my beloved car!

 

Sooooo. You don't drive your car that much? Is that what's bothering Him/Her? I would say, it is always best to use a car consistently. They are made to be driven.

However, if it causes conflict in your relationships then Sell!

 

Thanks for the reply, doc. No, I don't drive it much (4 yrs old, has 14,955 miles on it). If I'm making a mistake with the car, I'll do better. I'm just not tryin' to run her in the ground. My hubby says I need to drive it every week, which I'm not willing to do. Am I wrong? He thinks the car will "fall apart" if I don't drive it all the time.

 

I recommend taking a look at the messages on the "Autocrossing & Roadracing" forum - you will see that our vettes like to be run often and hard. Late model vettes are not fragile; however, more damage is caused when they're not driven often - same for most vehicles. Examples include: excessive moisture in the oil causing sludge from not being run often at operating temperatures, seals/hoses/belts become dry rotten or cracked, and lack of general lubrication from not being driven sufficiently. I have 22000 miles on my 2004. These cars are not going to hold their "value" so I recommend driving it as often as you would any other car or truck, and enjoy it!

 

I have 8500mi on my 2004 in 2 yrs, it gets driven about 1-2 times week if the weather is nice. Dec-Jan maybe only 1-2 month. Track days are a different story. If you enjoy the car, then drive it when you want. I choose not to drive in rain for a couple of reasons, mostly other drivers. Don't worry about hurting the car, it will take whatever you can dish out.

 

HA! I've got you by a mile! I bought a new one in 04 and it has a wopping 3750 mi. on it. It's my Sunday and "toy" car. Always wanted a go-cart as a kid and now I got one. Happy Vetting!

 

Yep...'04 Coupe here...just a hair over 20,000 miles on the clock. Drive 'em if you got 'em!

 

I've got 3100 mi. & its a '03!Driving season is here & plan to do alot more shortly!

 

15k in 4 years is fine

 

Its really not a matter of miles that you drive, but you should roll it around the block once a week or so to make sure that all of the seals stay lubricated and that you don't flat spot the tires from sitting to long.

I normally drive it around half a mile up the street and back around to the house.

I wouldn't ever sell my car unless financial necessity dictated so. Tell your spouse to find his own hobby or interest.

 

I've got 8K miles on my '04 - limited only by very long winters and too much time spent traveling.

My first Corvette was a 1990 that I purchased in 1991. It had 1,500 miles when I bought it, and about 4,500 miles when I sold it in 1993. The car was like new, but I got maybe $500 more than guys selling same year cars with much higher miles in much worse condition. The lesson learned for me was that these cars are not an investment so if you are going to take a hit on depreciation then you might as well enjoy it. I love my C5, drive it as much as possible, enjoy it as much as possible, and don't think twice about what it might be worth someday to someone else.

As an aside, I just came back from a 3-day Level 1 advanced driving school at Spring Mountain (very cool program with great instructors, BTW). This course gave me a new appreciation for Corvettes. We were driving '04 Z06, '05/'06 Z51, and '06 Z06's very hard and sometimes for extended periods of time. No problems at all. It was amazing to see what those cars (some with ~25K miles of "race school" time on them) drive completely normal to and from the track and handle perfectly at speed around the track.

In the past I had always been afraid of buying used Corvettes because someone might have "beat" them. Seeing what these cars can do and what they can put up with is amazing to say the least. More importantly, I no longer place as much value on the ultra low mileage "garage queen" vehicles as I once did.

Just my $0.02

 

I say do whatever give you the most pleasure out of owning it. If you love to wait until special occasions to go cruise, don't let anyone tell you differently. If you get more pleasure from driving it all the time, that's exactly what you should do. I drive mine everyday, but if I could I'd leave it in the garage too. Vettes serve different purposes for different people.

 

Too bad, I'll bet you'll miss your spouse....

These cars are not the least bit fragile but they do not have to be driven daily. I've got a good chunk of money invested in mine and don't want any harm to come of it.

I like to drive it but I'm not about to have it vandalized because someones jealous that I have one and they don't. I also don't want the car stolen....

My car, my rules...and my $0.02 cents

Bob

 

The typical Corvette is a additional car for most.
It is driven on weekends /trips and is used about 4,000 miles per year.
So your driving habits seem to be with the vast majority.

I have an '01 with 87,000 miles and an '88 with 17,000 miles.... neither is falling part. The lack of use horror stories are myths.... I have NO lack of use problems on my '88. It looks showroom and has no oil leaks.
Yes rubber ages.... but heat from use accelerates that ageing.

Similary the '01 has only needed tires, brakes , batteries and an A/C compressor clutch due to use.
The other minor electronic issues as mileage independent.

Bottom line there is no right answer.... IT is your car, drive it the way you want to.

 

82K on my 2000 and she is driven everyday as long as there is no salt on the road. Its going to be a sad day when your spouse has to go , but at least a nice drive in the Vette will fix that.

 

95,000+ miles on my 98. I would say that you are driving it enough. How does the battery hold up, you may want to get a Battery Tender (about $17 at Wall Mart), you keep it hooked up all the time.

These cars have a lot of battery drain when not driven, can go dead in 2 weeks.

 

Why did you continue to own a vette and not drive it? What's your purpose in owning it?

Thinking about the answers should help you decide what to do......

 

i just bought an 00 with around 35k on the clock... ive owned it nearly a month and a half and iv put nearly 2,500 miles on it... and that was not being able to drive it 2 weekends... the day i bought it i put 400 miles on it... and weve gone one 2 more drives of around 500 miles a peice... and then when my friends live 100-150 miles away the miles rack up..

this is a weekend only car and im actually kinda wondering how the hell all these miles are showing up, but ive been enjoying the hell out of it... im gonna cry when it hits 50k, but i wouldnt be surprised if its at it by next summer...

do with it what you boght it for... if you want a low mile car... have one... if u want to drive it every day... do so...

-me

if my gf ever told me that i should loose the vette... ohhhhh man she just better be joking... actually i would just tell her "thats fine you dont like it your not welcome in it..." and if i wanted to go for a cruise she could follow in her car, but she would have alot of begging to do b4 her *** would be in that car

 

From what I have read on the CF and other sources they say its good to drive it AT LEAST once every TWO week to once a month. The important thing is to drive it long enough to get to full operation temperature (192 deg. on mine) to burn off any moisture in the engine and exhaust system. I try to drive my at least 30 min every two to three weeks in the winter and its works fine. I usually drive it once a week in the summer. Never had an issue with dead battery after 3 weeks but it does seem to crank a bit slower compared to when I drive it every week. Many members put there on a battery charger with 1.5 to 2am charge (shuts off when fully charged and kicks back on when needed). Some CF members in colder climates leave there on charge for 3 to 4 mo. During winter months with no issues.

 

Dump the Hubby, Keep the Vette.

You will always regret getting rid of your Vette.