Corvette base 1lt
#21
Le Mans Master
I agree the 1LT is a great car. I have a 2LT GS and really like it. I have the Kalahari interior so I really like the flow of the interior color on the 2LT. 1LT the seats are Kalahari, 2LT is the seats arm rests and center console. With a black interior it wouldn't make much difference.
#22
Le Mans Master
I don't like blanks or spaces where optional equipment would have been and that is what the 1LT has where the HUD and seat heating cooling would be.
#24
Intermediate
I would recommend the 2lt. I just bought a Corvette and it was the best deal that I found, but it was a 1lt. The only thing I had to have was homelink. It was easy to add ($220 took less than 5 minutes). Also, I added the automatic dimming rearview mirror (it was cheap and easy to do too). I think the sound system is better in the 2lt, you get nav standard (at least $600 extra to add to a 1lt) and you do get HUD. HUD was not very important to me. I had it on my Camaro and during the day I couldn't always see it due to the Sun.
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#26
Intermediate
I was very much like you, on the fence, four months ago. In the end, I opted for the 1LT. There are a couple of features in the 2LT that I kind of wanted but decided they were not worth the $5k. I have no regrets.
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mbaessler (06-08-2017)
#27
Le Mans Master
I have a base 2014 1LT now for 3 years and when I ordered my car I too worried about not having the HUD since I had it on my C5 & C6 but I had noticed that the graphics on the C7's were very large and I could easily read the speed and keep my eyes on the road. The rest of the 2LT features, like heated seats & mirrors, in Florida, I think not. As with most of these upgrades they're just window dressing designed to entice you to spend more money. I have zero regrets and as for the missing sub woofer, well, I listen to my exhaust far more than the radio so what. Oh I forgot the "cheap" looking interior. I've had yet to have a single person say to me, "How come the interior looks cheap?"
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mbaessler (06-10-2017)
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mbaessler (06-10-2017)
#29
Racer
Others have shown you the features you'll lose if you go 1LT. As someone who specifically bought a 2LT because of the features here are the ones I would really miss (my Vette is my only car so it's a sort-of daily driver for me):
* Memory seats/easy exit, largely because of easy exit. I'm 5'10" and mostly torso, very short legs, so the seat is very far forward. Getting out the car with the seat in the driving position is almost impossible.
* Front parking camera. I find this invaluable; bought the 2LT specifically because of this feature after having experience in other sports cars with very low front ends.
* Cooled seats. Heated seats are a joke but the cooling is really nice once the temps climb into the 80's.
* Auto-dimming mirror. These are always nice when driving at night, but you can easily add this yourself so no need to buy a 2LT just for this.
Finally, if you get a colored interior I think you need at least a 2LT. The 1LT's with colored seats look horrid IMO. Of course this is completely irrelevant if you get black.
* Memory seats/easy exit, largely because of easy exit. I'm 5'10" and mostly torso, very short legs, so the seat is very far forward. Getting out the car with the seat in the driving position is almost impossible.
* Front parking camera. I find this invaluable; bought the 2LT specifically because of this feature after having experience in other sports cars with very low front ends.
* Cooled seats. Heated seats are a joke but the cooling is really nice once the temps climb into the 80's.
* Auto-dimming mirror. These are always nice when driving at night, but you can easily add this yourself so no need to buy a 2LT just for this.
Finally, if you get a colored interior I think you need at least a 2LT. The 1LT's with colored seats look horrid IMO. Of course this is completely irrelevant if you get black.
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mbaessler (06-08-2017)
#30
Race Director
Great info from rangda above. Regarding colors, Adrenaline Red / Jet Black and Gray / Jet Black along with solid Jet Black are available with 1LT though it's only the seats that come in the color.
#31
Melting Slicks
Member Since: Jul 2014
Location: Bonita Springs Florida
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I'm looking for a Corvette and see a lot of folks talking about the 2lt being the sweet spot. I do not plan to track the car. It will be a 7 speed. What am I missing if I go with the 1LT over the 2lt. Will my resale value hurt one day. I want a comfortable ride and a backroad crusier. Also the cost differential seems to be high for the 2lt.
#32
Melting Slicks
Ultimately, its about you and what you like, adn how the features fit your style.
My C5 is a 1LT, was my DD for 12 odd years, and I have no regrets - very few mods, still enjoy driving it.
My C7 is a 2LT.
I've already spent more on C7 mods that I have on C5 mods.
Part of that is my own fault because I bought off the floor, so it wasn't exactly what I wanted. Thought I could live with it, but thats been overridden.
I knew wanted that C7 logo in the seats and the better radio, so that automatically pushed me towards the 2LT level
For you, will the C7 be a DD, and how long is your daily commute?
Didnt get heated seats in the C5, thought they were expensive to fix toys.
OTOH, my 7 is barely to temp when I pull in the parking lot at work, so I "discovered" te heated seats I was ambivalent about to begin with are actually quite nice to have in the winter.
HUD:
At purchase time, I didnt really care about the HUD (or NAV) b/c I never had HUD, adn my TomTom works.
But NAV doesn't t take up windshield space, and I (eventually) realized the HUD/NAV integration was nice to have/convenient. (I know, Wayz et al - I dont have unlimited data on my phone)
And if I have the radio turned up, I may not hear TomTom talking to me - NAV cuts the volume and change the HUD display, both of which are hard to miss.
Now when I drive other vehicles, I really do miss the HUD.
Not part of the 2LT package, but the sueded seat inserts are worth it IMHO in that they have texture, which helps hold you in the seat during spirited driving - In the C5 - my butt slides across the smooth leather on hard corners - but the C5 seats are wider than the 7 seats so that may be a moot point..
Autodim mirrors are helpful in that the side mirrors also dim, which greatly reduces glare from cars on either side, especially from tall trucks or with poorly aimed HIDs.
Byond that, as the others have said, most of the rest of the 2LT items are convenience features - nice to have, but may not be essential to your style - and if you've not had those features before, you don't know what you are missing, and they seem like expensive overkill.
I think homelink is the only completely useless feature (for me) because as I said earlier, its not compatible with my comparatively ancient garage door opener.
And OnStar, but thats another thread.
But once you start using those extra features, you may find you like them.
At which point, you realize GM marketing knows you better than you thought
My C5 is a 1LT, was my DD for 12 odd years, and I have no regrets - very few mods, still enjoy driving it.
My C7 is a 2LT.
I've already spent more on C7 mods that I have on C5 mods.
Part of that is my own fault because I bought off the floor, so it wasn't exactly what I wanted. Thought I could live with it, but thats been overridden.
I knew wanted that C7 logo in the seats and the better radio, so that automatically pushed me towards the 2LT level
For you, will the C7 be a DD, and how long is your daily commute?
Didnt get heated seats in the C5, thought they were expensive to fix toys.
OTOH, my 7 is barely to temp when I pull in the parking lot at work, so I "discovered" te heated seats I was ambivalent about to begin with are actually quite nice to have in the winter.
HUD:
At purchase time, I didnt really care about the HUD (or NAV) b/c I never had HUD, adn my TomTom works.
But NAV doesn't t take up windshield space, and I (eventually) realized the HUD/NAV integration was nice to have/convenient. (I know, Wayz et al - I dont have unlimited data on my phone)
And if I have the radio turned up, I may not hear TomTom talking to me - NAV cuts the volume and change the HUD display, both of which are hard to miss.
Now when I drive other vehicles, I really do miss the HUD.
Not part of the 2LT package, but the sueded seat inserts are worth it IMHO in that they have texture, which helps hold you in the seat during spirited driving - In the C5 - my butt slides across the smooth leather on hard corners - but the C5 seats are wider than the 7 seats so that may be a moot point..
Autodim mirrors are helpful in that the side mirrors also dim, which greatly reduces glare from cars on either side, especially from tall trucks or with poorly aimed HIDs.
Byond that, as the others have said, most of the rest of the 2LT items are convenience features - nice to have, but may not be essential to your style - and if you've not had those features before, you don't know what you are missing, and they seem like expensive overkill.
I think homelink is the only completely useless feature (for me) because as I said earlier, its not compatible with my comparatively ancient garage door opener.
And OnStar, but thats another thread.
But once you start using those extra features, you may find you like them.
At which point, you realize GM marketing knows you better than you thought
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mbaessler (06-10-2017)
#33
Are you saying just the OP wouldn't be missing a thing or are you saying the tens of thousands of people that selected the 2LT wouldn't be missing a thing if they downgraded to the 1lt, or did you really mean that you personally wouldn't' be missing a thing due to your very specific needs?
Last edited by RedC7AZ; 06-08-2017 at 07:08 PM.
#34
Burning Brakes
I have a 1LT and to me the driving experience makes up for the lack of features.
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#37
Intermediate
Member Since: Jun 2017
Location: Mountain View California
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As others have said, it's very much personal preference. I am a big fan of heated seats, they are nice of course in cooler weather, but are also great if your back decides to bother you on a long road trip. The Corvette I rented before I put in my order also had the cooled seats, which I found really nice. Warm day, top off, A/C off, but cooled seats on is a nice experience. The HUD, while not necessary, is a nice to have in my opinion.
Maybe the biggest one for me is the front view cameras. The front end of the Corvette likes to drag on small obstacles like parking blocks. Maybe you get used to it, but I found it very hard to judge. The cameras were a life saver for me for front end parking.
Since I like most of the features, I found 2LT a good buy, but you may differ. Note none of the features have to do with performance though, they are all creature comforts and technology.
Maybe the biggest one for me is the front view cameras. The front end of the Corvette likes to drag on small obstacles like parking blocks. Maybe you get used to it, but I found it very hard to judge. The cameras were a life saver for me for front end parking.
Since I like most of the features, I found 2LT a good buy, but you may differ. Note none of the features have to do with performance though, they are all creature comforts and technology.
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mbaessler (06-10-2017)
#38
1LT for me. Elmer, eboggs on this forum, has a NavTool installation sticky to tell you how to install a front camera, which I had done at Best Buy reasonably or you can do it yourself. Other than that, 2LT memory seats were always going every which way so I didn't want them. I like non-auto dimming rv mirror better. Don't want or need bun warmers or bun coolers. Don't much like heads-up. I use my own garage door opener. Other stuff I could do without for the five grand or whatever it is difference. Do like and did pay for Z-51 performance stuff - my 2 cents.
#39
Melting Slicks
There are two schools of thought on this...
Some buy their corvette strictly for the performance aspect and couldn't care less about the luxury and convenience amenities. They rather spend the extra $$ on a Z06 if they could afford it but the luxury/convenience bells and whistles don't rank up there.
Then there are those that share my view. You are buying a CORVETTE, the car that many dreamed about owning since they were kids. I want just about every option available, I don't want a half loaded car, I want all of the buttons, bells and whistles....the whole shebang, the total experience of performance, technology and luxury. If $4500 (after discounts) is going to make that big of a difference averaging out to just $75/month over 60 months...then you may want to rethink the entire purchase.
Which school of thought you agree with is a personal decision based on your objectives but the last thing you want is to make this sizable purchase and then have regrets.
Some buy their corvette strictly for the performance aspect and couldn't care less about the luxury and convenience amenities. They rather spend the extra $$ on a Z06 if they could afford it but the luxury/convenience bells and whistles don't rank up there.
Then there are those that share my view. You are buying a CORVETTE, the car that many dreamed about owning since they were kids. I want just about every option available, I don't want a half loaded car, I want all of the buttons, bells and whistles....the whole shebang, the total experience of performance, technology and luxury. If $4500 (after discounts) is going to make that big of a difference averaging out to just $75/month over 60 months...then you may want to rethink the entire purchase.
Which school of thought you agree with is a personal decision based on your objectives but the last thing you want is to make this sizable purchase and then have regrets.
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