Corvette C5 "Daily"
Discussion
Thought a few times about starting one of these so here we go.....
As the title suggests, about 5 years ago I bought a Corvette. My car history at that point had been pretty much all Japanese cars and coming directly from an Evo 8 I wanted something a bit different that created more drama at lower speeds. All I knew was I wanted to tick off the V8 box so after some hunting, I decided on........a Monaro.
My reasoning for a Monaro was twofold. I'd always liked the look of them and they're pretty unique which was important. Also, I knew the LS engines would be very reliable and easy to work on especially compared with similar German or Italian offerings.
Having looked around for a while for a Monaro they were few and far between, so a random Google for V8s for sale brought up a Chrysler 300C SRT8 Estate for sale down the road. When looking at the dealer's website, just below the 300C was the Corvette. I drove both of them, the dealer was kind enough to let me drive home and check the Corvette would actually fit in my garage (the 300C would not, they're huge) and a deal was done.
When I bought the car it looked like this.
The wrap was a little tired but still in good shape, I wasn't massively sure about the whole murdered-out look but the main reason for buying the car was the mechanicals. 57k miles on it, black underneath with virtually every option from the factory. Most importantly, it was a manual. The car had loads of upgrades under the skin and was far from the standard which suited me fine. I've always modified my cars and had no desire to own a standard Corvette.
The car benefited from upgraded leaf springs with Eibach shocks (removing the variable ride selection), high rise hood, Caravaggio spoiler, K&N CAI, CAGS skip shift eliminator, a full stereo install and a quite frankly ridiculously heavy uprated clutch. The clutch I lived with until it needed changing last year as that's a big job on these but having now switched to a standard one I can't believe how heavy the old one was. Night and day driveability difference.
Since I've owned it I've made several further upgrades, a custom-built manifold back exhaust and X-pipe to free up some bald eagles out the back, MGW short shift to remove the awful eBay special it had fitted, drilled and grooved Stop Tech discs all around with Extreme pads as well as the new clutch as mentioned along with the flywheel being replaced and all other ancillaries associated with the clutch job.
Over time I've updated the exterior with Sharp Light Innovations HIDs and LED rear lights, fully UK compliant and custom made to order, Forgestar F14 alloys in Monster Green, painted the callipers to match the wheel hardware as well as re-wrapping the car in this satin grey you see. Added a few touches of green to tie it together. I know it won't be to everyone's taste but I love the fact it looks like a life-sized Hotwheels now. It's a genuine pleasure to see small kids jaws drop when they see it drive past and reminds me how I felt the first time I saw something like it when I was younger.
As the title suggests this is my only car and it gets used for everything. The boot is actually a pretty decent size, the heater is one of the quickest to get warm I've ever known so I'll take it anywhere where I know it'll fit! Size wise they're actually no wider than a 911 Turbo so it's pretty fine parking as well.
Mechanically I've done a lot of small things myself and diagnosing issues is pretty straightforward with the car having it's own code reader built into the dash. With them being so common in the US there's a wealth of knowledge and YouTube videos out there for pretty much everything. Shipping has started to get expensive for parts from the US but there's a decent network of UK suppliers who can get most items.
In terms of the driving experience, left-hand drive took a bit of getting used to but after a few weeks, I was hopping between left and right with no issues. Dynamically it's obviously all about the engine but the car does corner really well and is very predictable on the limit. Mine benefits from uprated sway bars and end links as well as wider rear tires, hustle it along and it's flat and stable and that stability only increases with speed. It's a little fidgety on poorly surfaced roads due to the track width but the wider tires actually helped with that a lot. It's no Jag but even with the uprated suspension, it's soft enough when you want it to be.
The biggest plus for me is how it feels just plodding along at 30. Every drive is a small event and I fear this kind of experience and connection is only going to get rarer as time goes by.
Plans for this year are to get a couple of oil leaks addressed (sweating power we call it) and then maybe have a look at getting the interior re-trimmed. The seats are pretty rubbish in these so I'd like to get the foam replaced and thickened up along with new covers.
As the title suggests, about 5 years ago I bought a Corvette. My car history at that point had been pretty much all Japanese cars and coming directly from an Evo 8 I wanted something a bit different that created more drama at lower speeds. All I knew was I wanted to tick off the V8 box so after some hunting, I decided on........a Monaro.
My reasoning for a Monaro was twofold. I'd always liked the look of them and they're pretty unique which was important. Also, I knew the LS engines would be very reliable and easy to work on especially compared with similar German or Italian offerings.
Having looked around for a while for a Monaro they were few and far between, so a random Google for V8s for sale brought up a Chrysler 300C SRT8 Estate for sale down the road. When looking at the dealer's website, just below the 300C was the Corvette. I drove both of them, the dealer was kind enough to let me drive home and check the Corvette would actually fit in my garage (the 300C would not, they're huge) and a deal was done.
When I bought the car it looked like this.
The wrap was a little tired but still in good shape, I wasn't massively sure about the whole murdered-out look but the main reason for buying the car was the mechanicals. 57k miles on it, black underneath with virtually every option from the factory. Most importantly, it was a manual. The car had loads of upgrades under the skin and was far from the standard which suited me fine. I've always modified my cars and had no desire to own a standard Corvette.
The car benefited from upgraded leaf springs with Eibach shocks (removing the variable ride selection), high rise hood, Caravaggio spoiler, K&N CAI, CAGS skip shift eliminator, a full stereo install and a quite frankly ridiculously heavy uprated clutch. The clutch I lived with until it needed changing last year as that's a big job on these but having now switched to a standard one I can't believe how heavy the old one was. Night and day driveability difference.
Since I've owned it I've made several further upgrades, a custom-built manifold back exhaust and X-pipe to free up some bald eagles out the back, MGW short shift to remove the awful eBay special it had fitted, drilled and grooved Stop Tech discs all around with Extreme pads as well as the new clutch as mentioned along with the flywheel being replaced and all other ancillaries associated with the clutch job.
Over time I've updated the exterior with Sharp Light Innovations HIDs and LED rear lights, fully UK compliant and custom made to order, Forgestar F14 alloys in Monster Green, painted the callipers to match the wheel hardware as well as re-wrapping the car in this satin grey you see. Added a few touches of green to tie it together. I know it won't be to everyone's taste but I love the fact it looks like a life-sized Hotwheels now. It's a genuine pleasure to see small kids jaws drop when they see it drive past and reminds me how I felt the first time I saw something like it when I was younger.
As the title suggests this is my only car and it gets used for everything. The boot is actually a pretty decent size, the heater is one of the quickest to get warm I've ever known so I'll take it anywhere where I know it'll fit! Size wise they're actually no wider than a 911 Turbo so it's pretty fine parking as well.
Mechanically I've done a lot of small things myself and diagnosing issues is pretty straightforward with the car having it's own code reader built into the dash. With them being so common in the US there's a wealth of knowledge and YouTube videos out there for pretty much everything. Shipping has started to get expensive for parts from the US but there's a decent network of UK suppliers who can get most items.
In terms of the driving experience, left-hand drive took a bit of getting used to but after a few weeks, I was hopping between left and right with no issues. Dynamically it's obviously all about the engine but the car does corner really well and is very predictable on the limit. Mine benefits from uprated sway bars and end links as well as wider rear tires, hustle it along and it's flat and stable and that stability only increases with speed. It's a little fidgety on poorly surfaced roads due to the track width but the wider tires actually helped with that a lot. It's no Jag but even with the uprated suspension, it's soft enough when you want it to be.
The biggest plus for me is how it feels just plodding along at 30. Every drive is a small event and I fear this kind of experience and connection is only going to get rarer as time goes by.
Plans for this year are to get a couple of oil leaks addressed (sweating power we call it) and then maybe have a look at getting the interior re-trimmed. The seats are pretty rubbish in these so I'd like to get the foam replaced and thickened up along with new covers.
Edited by C5_Steve on Thursday 9th February 12:41
Krikkit said:
Not my taste in colour scheme (although the purple calipers, lovely!), but fair play for going with something bold and fun. 
Never heard of the "skip shift" thing before, was it only fitted for a few years? Sounds horrendously annoying.
Haha, yeah I'll be honest I fell in love with the wheels and then based the car around them! Didn't want the usual red for the callipers and the purple is a dark metallic so will go with anything really. Never heard of the "skip shift" thing before, was it only fitted for a few years? Sounds horrendously annoying.
Eventually, I'll change the wrap and then redo the wheels in a different colour. Thinking a dark metallic green for the car with gold wheels.
Skip shift was on all the C5s, it was GMs way of complying with the need to reduce emissions I believe and made you change from 1st to 4th unless you were applying over a certain amount of throttle. Absolute madness.
That is an awesome car OP. I was lucky enough to be on the cusp of a late C5 or early C6 back in 2011 and ended up with an C6 Z51 which still takes up space in the garage after 60k miles and many many track days!
Even approaching 50 I love those wheels! Mine is silver and I am thinking of orange wheels and stripes! Keep it lairy, it suits the Vette well!
I totally get the kids staring and shouting bit too! They love it! Had a late knock at the door a few Halloweens ago and had to say to the group of 6 lads that I was sorry as we’d given away all the treats only for one of them to say “it doesn’t matter, we forgive you because you have a Corvette” lol
Even approaching 50 I love those wheels! Mine is silver and I am thinking of orange wheels and stripes! Keep it lairy, it suits the Vette well!
I totally get the kids staring and shouting bit too! They love it! Had a late knock at the door a few Halloweens ago and had to say to the group of 6 lads that I was sorry as we’d given away all the treats only for one of them to say “it doesn’t matter, we forgive you because you have a Corvette” lol
Very cool, love the grey wrap and green wheels. Say what you like about it looking lairy but I like its presence.
Interesting to see the underside, wasn't expecting the leaf spring to look like that - looks a bit like the front spring out of a sprinter. Also are those shocks not Bilstein 4600s?
Interesting to see the underside, wasn't expecting the leaf spring to look like that - looks a bit like the front spring out of a sprinter. Also are those shocks not Bilstein 4600s?
I also run a C5 as a daily. This replaced my trusty Lexus LS400 which I'd owned for 12 years. My C5 had only done 31,000 miles when I bought it, and I've added several thousand since. I've experienced the usual gemlins - ABS fault, HVAC display and steering wheel position sensor. Fortunately, mine is a 2001 and these were easily fixable by myself by soldering a buying a new part which is apparently very hard to get for the earlier cars. The previous owner of the vette upgraded the car to suit his tastes, and I've not changed anything. Main gripe for me is that the headlights are uselss, despite being a UK spec car. I've upgraded bulbs, they they are still useless. My local car club has 6 Corvettes (2 x C5's, 2 x C3, C4 and C7) so it's great to swap stories. I've got another 2 cars with LS engines in them and can't see past them.
Pete
Pete
C5_Steve said:
steveo3002 said:
very nice , cracking cars for the money eh?
Yes indeed, hard pressed to know what I'd ever replace it with. 
My preference is for more subtle mods however, I must admit, I do like what you have done & it defiantly stands out from the crowd!
plastic orange said:
I also run a C5 as a daily. This replaced my trusty Lexus LS400 which I'd owned for 12 years. My C5 had only done 31,000 miles when I bought it, and I've added several thousand since. I've experienced the usual gemlins - ABS fault, HVAC display and steering wheel position sensor. Fortunately, mine is a 2001 and these were easily fixable by myself by soldering a buying a new part which is apparently very hard to get for the earlier cars. The previous owner of the vette upgraded the car to suit his tastes, and I've not changed anything. Main gripe for me is that the headlights are uselss, despite being a UK spec car. I've upgraded bulbs, they they are still useless. My local car club has 6 Corvettes (2 x C5's, 2 x C3, C4 and C7) so it's great to swap stories. I've got another 2 cars with LS engines in them and can't see past them.
Pete
That's very sleek looking, love it. You're right about the maintenance, very simple cars to work on. In regards to headlights, I cannot recommend Sharp Light Innovations enough. They are pricey but it's the biggest thing on the car that changes the driving experience. I've had several cars with poor headlights (300zx were only just better than the Vette) and changing to HIDs has always been so much better than swapping the bulbs over. The whole kit is very well made, basically plug and play and he'll set them up for driving on the left so the beam will be correct.Pete
Thanks for all the positive comments, in regards to the suspension you're right they're Bilsteins, I always get confused! The leaf spring set-up is a very old design so not surprised it looks like a Transit! I have looked at coilovers, but these would actually add weight compared to the shock and leaf and as mine already has uprated leaf springs as well as shocks I think I'll stick with it as is. I don't track the car so it's set up well for fast road.
In terms of power, they're stock around 350/350 bhp/Torque so this would be around that with the intake and exhaust changes. Seat of the pants dyno puts it about level with my old Evo which was 370/370. It's an interesting drive because it'll do around 50 in 1st so 0-60 seems a lot quicker with only the one gear change. I do find this pulls much stronger around 80-120 than the Evo used to and put a lot of that down to the aero difference and displacement.
Lovely car OP. I really like the utter lack of subtlety from the wheels and calipers, alongside a stealth body colour.
I'd love one of these myself if only I didn't need to put 2 kids in the back...
Can I ask, as google suggests this isn't a standard item, do you know what gearknob this is? I've just put a Delrin knob on my Monaro but think this looks much better.
I'd love one of these myself if only I didn't need to put 2 kids in the back...
Can I ask, as google suggests this isn't a standard item, do you know what gearknob this is? I've just put a Delrin knob on my Monaro but think this looks much better.
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