Matt H

Joe, I used to be the authorized mechanical repair shop for the MB dealer (for non MB cars they took on trade). They had bucket loads of C5s (early 1997-1998) they took on trade. The C5 has a huge number of quality problems ranging from window switches to power steering racks, etc. I will say they were much less prone to the annoying problems like seats not working.

I have worked with/on numerous Corvettes. They are what they are. A great buy for 20K used, plenty of power, handle pretty well, etc. The Z06 is a very nice car. That said, the visibility out the front to me is unnaceptable, the fact that the car feels as big as a school bus numbs the experience, and the fact that at the dealer it sits next to Cavalier's is enough for me not to buy one.
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Scuba Steve

If my '70 Ford truck counts then it looks like I'm in the fold too. It only has a 302, but it's geared low enough to just about climb a phone pole.

KLR

The C4 vette did have an exceptionally high fatality per unit produced rate, but obviously the characters self-selecting into the ownership pool (and their kids, the local hoods with slim jims, etc.) had something to do with that. I actually seriously considered buying a late 80's C4 as a practical classic before I picked up my 951. The biggest impediment was that it's surprisingly hard to find nice ones in this part of the world, and when you do, they're actually going for decent money. I also find the arcade game gauges and build quality (the etimology of the word cacauphony has Corvette in it somewhere, I'm sure) to be a bit difficult to take. Nevertheless, I'm sure that I'll have one someday. They were certainly on my short list in junior high school.

As for our dashes... oye! I can't tell you how often I walk by 80's or early 90's era cars in horrible condition that clearly have lived outside for years, but that, nonetheless, have pristine, crack free dashes. Just today I was admiring the crack free dash in a late 80s v1 Camry that looked like hell when I noticed that someone was living in the back seat. My car has always been garage kept and still has a couple of hairlines radiating from the two defrost vents that always get them. WTF?

500

Hey,

Nice deal on the 'Vette. Congratualations.

Corvettes are nice cars IMHO, not my favourite, but definitely worthwhile.

With all this discussion about "build quality" I thought I'd check into availabilty of cars locally (my province - Ontario) and found 32 Corvettes available (1982-1989 model years) compared to 30 944 series cars. Just interesting because I thought many more 'Vettes were sold in this area than 944 cars and it is telling to see that so many 944s are still out there (now of course, it could just be that a disproportionate number of people are not selling 'Vettes, but who knows...it does seem to match my observations of sightings on the road). Very un-scientific, but it supports my feeling that these cars have survived well and although there are crappy plastic bits, these cars are around twenty years old. Yes, hindsight has shown that Porsche did not select a great dash material...but I think that is more a mistake than crass cost cutting. I'm overall quite positive about the quality of these cars, especially compared to other period machinery. I would not say 'Vettes are up to the same level, but they are not that bad in my (limited) experience. I do agree that they seem to be improving significantly these days.

My high school auto teacher had a '75 Corvette which was really nice. I am quite nostalgic about that vintage and if I saw one cheap (and had room for another "toy") I would certainly take a look.

Oh yeah, and Tom R.: "PPI - Post Purchase Inspection" really made me laugh for some reason - that is just the kind of thing I do! Thanks!

Allan

Tom R.

44mag

Well I must have done something right, because I just trounced a carrera 4 on the way to school last week (he started it) , I dont think that would have happened had I spent the same on a 951... I know straight line accel isnt everything but it just feels so good. Anyway I already have plans to build a 383 bottom end for it this winter so look out.
P.S.: I still wave to 944's (force of habit) they just look at me funny

Ken D

Well any of you 951 & 968 owners looking for a 'Vette might be interested in this ad (no affiliation, etc), run on my local PCA web:

"1994 Covette for 968 trade Looking to trade 1994 corvette in excellent condition with all maintenance records. car has 91k on it and is fresh out of chevy dealer with complete tune up to include distributor and water pump. car is bright red with tan and black int.auto, fully loaded,recent Dunlop 285 SP tires all around, cross drilled slotted rotors, custom exhaust and 6 disc changer. Looking for excellent 968 or may consider 944 Turbo for even trade (must be in excellent shape). Contact Tim Keough (Marshfield, MA) at 781-xxx-xxxx or twkeo AT yahoo.com (October 24, 2004)"

Shutemup

welcome to the dark side

btw, I get 29 mpg hwy with my 350 hp mullet :P

Graufuchs

hahahaaa

icat

I love vette's - had three of them over the years - 72, 77, and a new 80. As someone already said - they are what they are. I will say this, they were a heck of a lot less expensive to maintain than my 951.

BeerBurner

I just bought a Miata. But I'm keeping the Porsche, too. Best of both worlds, methinks.

Congrats on the Vette!

BB.

FSAEracer03

Interesting... you need a couple small mods on your 951 then

A little bird told me my lightly modified 951 tramples on C5s and runs dead even with 996s. Not bad for a sub-$7k forgotten sports car IMHO!

slowazzporsche

a little bird showed me a vid of a c5 vette trampling brand new ferarri modenas, spyders, everything but the f-series and modified cars... c5's eat up the tracks and most anything on it

peterjcb

Congratulations on your vette. I'm not too familiar with Corvettes although I've alway wanted one. I've heard that they rattle like crazy.
However, the new 2005 Vette looks beautiful and is boasting some very impressive stats for the money.