This morning I checked out a showroom condition 2000 FRC w/ 18600 miles on it. The problem ?? is the car has a 427 in it, installed about 2000 miles ago. The car ran tight and woman and children ran when we started it. The battery needed to be jumped as it was sitting in the showroom for a couple of weeks. The car had the following codes:
U1064H U1255H U1096H U1016H C2120H I realize they are all history codes but the battery was near dead. The same codes were displayed after a very short ( roads were crap ) test drive. I would have thought the car had a 350 w/ long tube headers and a Borla exhaust if I did not look under the hood. The plenum covers were missing ? The car had chrome 18/19 ZO6 wheels and brakes w/ 275-35-18 and 305-30-19 PILOT SPORTS. Except for the missing covers it looked like no expense was spared. The car has passed emmisions twice in Massachusettes and would be sold w/ a fresh Rhode Island sticker but I live in Connecticut!! It was the most gorgeous, best sounding, scary fast C5 I have seen in 6 months of looking, but I am nervous about the conversion. What do the forum experts say??

P.S. The dealer had the original engine for sale separately ( I cannot justify/afford ) and the car had a clean Carfax!! Dealer said the car had a "3/4 RACE CAM"

 

I am looking up the codes and it looks like C2120 means no TPM's received and with what little I know about C5's ( I am a C3 guy) Z06 wheels do not use TPM's. Does this sound correct?

 

the loss of communication codes are probably from the dead battery, the wheels dont have the sensors installed, which is where you get the 2120 code. I would want to know who built the motor, who installed it, tuned it before I would consider a purchase like that. 3/4 race cam is something out of the 1960's nobody refers to cam specs like that anymore.

 

Are you sure the front tire was 275/45/18 ? That size will seriously give you active handling and Traction control issues when compared to the rear 305/30/19.

It should be a 275/35/18 which will keep your active handling and traction control in spec.

Check the size again....

Toque

 

Unless the car has an impecable pedigree ( Like Lingenfelter) and comes with a warranty, I would recommend you keep looking. This car will likly be problematic.

 

3/4 race cam? Lol run away very fast.


This is more like it
http://bit.ly/VUwINq

 

It is a GM crate motor installed by a GM tech., as were the brakes and original GM wheels!

 

The car is 3 hours away but I'm sure you are right, I am going by memory and have looked at dozens of specs today!
ps I just checked Michelin does not make a 275/45/18 !!

 

The engine is supposed to come w/ a 3 year 36000 mile warranty of which 2 years and 2000 miles have been used up. The dealer offers by law a 60 day 2000 mile warranty!

 

how much are they asking for it?

What are your intentions with the car?

 

They are asking $25000 and I would use the car conservatively for cruises w/ the club, cruise nites, some commuting, and maybe a one time street nite at the local track! I already have a '77 Vette, a SHELBY GT350, Dodge Ram, Harley and a 2011 Accord, so I shouldn't be walking if this thing has issues!

 

I'd be the salesman was just saying 3/4 race cam because he didn't know any better and was trying to sell ice to an eskimo.

If you get the paperwork from the dealer with all the engine specs, then I'd be ok with it but the next time they say 3/4 race cam, just sigh and walk away.

 

What dealer?

 

Do you want to buy it? It is a meduim sized used car dealer in business for 35-40 years. My research did not turn up anything negative about them and I got a good vibe from them. They said my mechanic could look at it but the distance and time of year make that problematic!

 

I would not agree with AJ. I bought a LS7 C5 sight unseen from eBay, flew to pick it up and have had no issues with it over the entire summer. This was my first Vette and, I'll admit, was an impulse purchase because the deal was too good to pass up. The motor was built by a reputable shop and the car came with a stack of receipts to show all work performed.

Spend some time in the C6 Z06 forum to read about the motor problems they are having. This forum will not have enough info for you. I have only seen a couple LS7 swapped C5 owners report in here. I feel that if you are not tracking a stock LS7 or spending a lot of time at the 7400 RPM limit, you should be just fine with this car.

I'm guessing it has a wet sump, but it's worth asking about. Who did the tuning? Did they use HP tuners or EFI Live? Do they have dyno sheets and/or AFRs from the tune? What size injectors? Any fuel system work? What fuel was it tuned on? What kind of clutch is in it? If they can't answer these questions, I would beat them up on the price because it should be gone over by a competent tuner, which will run $6-800. A stock clutch will not hold the ~500WHP/WTQ this car will produce. (It may be an auto, but your previous post don't mention it.) That is the peace of mind I would want going in on a modified car purchase.

 

Spreader, I find your advice very helpful. The car is a 6 speed. Unfortunately the dealer only knows that the engine was a GM crate motor installed by GM as were the Z06 brakes and real GM wheels. The car drives veery well, and I have spent a lot of time over in C6 looking at LS7 problems which seem to be limited to the valve issue. I believe the dealer is being honest with me but this engine visually looks exaclty like the 625HP retrofit small block motor offered by Blueprint Engines for $11000. There are no plenum covers just the coil packs on top of the valve covers. Do you think the clutch will hold up to conservative driving w/ just a few pulls now and then? Does your engine have plenum covers? If I purchase the car I will bring it to one of the local tuners recommended by Bill Curlee and others so I am not worried about AFR's too much.

Ps. I just noticed you are from Nebraska, know anything about Blueprint Engines as offered by Summit and Jegs. My motor is a ringer for theirs, do GM crates come in the same configuration?

 

625 flywheel should be ~530 to the wheels. My motor is stroked to 440c.i. and I'm making 540 wheel, so the numbers are close.

I don't know the stock clutch hp rating but you'll have near double the stock rating for the 2000 year LS1 (345 hp). At least start putting your pocket change in a jar so when you do smoke it, you're ready for a new one!

I'm not familiar with Blueprint or other crate motor offerings as I'm very new to domestic performance cars. (Don't tell the old guys, but I'm one of those (gasp) import punks that has grown up a bit!)

 

Spreader, or anyone else w/ a LS7 C5 can you post an underhood photo? Also what are you running for Exhaust? The one I am looking at had some kind of long tube headers w/ what looked like quad Borla Stingers though I thought I saw a GM part number on the mufflers?? Sounded awsome, you could hear the cam loping!

 

More than likely, if someone spent the time and $ for that swap.... The clutch was changed out. If the OP can get back to the car and really drive it... You can get a feel of what other things have been changed. If it was me and I started a thread about one particular car after reviewing many others... THe OP likes the car and thinks it's a great deal. I would buy it

 

Kooks long tubes and x-pipe to C5Z Ti mufflers. Quiet and unsuspecting. The '08 Viper driver I dusted this summer just had this confused and frustrated look on his face. His car was for sale on Craigslist a couple weeks later.