Chevrolet Corvette (1997 - 2004) Reviews, Pricing & Specs

I was comparing this car against a Chrysler crossfire SRT6 a Porsche Boxster s and a BMW Z4 coupe.the only car that came remotely close was the Porsche.the Chrysler was wicked quick but it drove horribly over pavement and the build quality wasn’t there.the bmw was awesome handled great but wasn’t super quick but was great looking.the Porsche was awesome handled amazing was quick great manual transmission great sounding 6 yet having owned a Porsche I knew how much it wouid cost to maintain correct and that’s a small fortune.the corvette was by far the best all around vehicle.very fast handles great great looking very reasonable cost of ownership and tons of modifications that you could do that wouldn’t break the bank.it really is the quintessential sports car.I’ve owned 50 cars only my Ferrari 328 I had back 20 years ago was better all around outside of maintenance.also drive it halfway normal and you’ll approach 30 mpg highway.not bad for a 4.7 second to 60 pre mod sports car Dec 23, 2021

The 2002 Corvette through the 2004 model year which was the end of the C5 production are the only year C5s to consider. Starting in 2002 Corvette made a substantial number of improvements to eliminate some of the issues that plagued earlier C5s such as a more robust driveshaft and bearings. Also upgraded were revised rear shock valving, new high-performance front brake pads, cast aluminum wheels. All Corvettes with automatic transmissions got a new aluminum tranmission cooler case instead of stainless steel. The Coupe and Convertible got a new AM/FM stereo with an in-dash CD player and an available 12-disc changer (gone was the cassette). Corvette made numerous small improvements too numerous to mention that resulted in a minor horsepower increase, better handling, and driving experience. Although the 1997 through 2001 models are perfectly fine the later C5s are worth spending a little more for the improvements made. Nov 20, 2020

I chose this car (my 5th Corvette) because I've always appreciated the low ownership costs and high performance limits and potential. I bought my first C5 at 18 years old nearly 9 years ago. In the beginning i would daily drive them. But because I choose to only own a Corvette with a manual trans it can be tiresome so I've switched my Corvette to weekend/fun duty only. One notable attribute is the potential gas mileage. On a 2-hour trip from LA to San Diego i achieved 35+ MPG avg 70-75-mph. I will always love the user friendly, simple ownership experience. If I had a wish list of improvements it would be better seats, interior build quality and entertainment system. Other than those things (which aftermarket can correct) its a wonderful car.Feb 10, 2015

Bought my wife her very last car which is a red 2000 Coupe automatic with removable roof and hatch with huge storage area. We loved it. So I decided to get one for myself to autocross and enjoy. I found myself this 2000 car with Convertible, 6 speed, Z51 handling package and only 61K miles on a 15 year old car. The HOD is awesome with a shift light too. PO had installed Euro front and rear (tiger shark) fascias which make the car totally unique. This is as sold in EU for Autobahn use with required downforce. Looks very aggressive. Very seldom see one like this and I love the Metallic Pewter color with the black top and interior. So far the only issue with our C5's has been the turn signals stopped working on both cars. Simply repeatedly pushing the emergency flashers on and off 25 or times in rapid succession has fixed both cars. It's time consuming to replace that $30 combined switch. We like the C5 with the covered headlights better than the C6 with the plastic lens covers that always get cloudy here in FL sun. Both our cars get 27-28mpg @ 75mph cruising speed in OD. The 3 in-trunk covered storage bins are very useful and "secret" from prying eyes on both coupe and convertible models. There is only one cupholder but don't put anything in there without a cap on it. These cars handle and ride better than you would ever imagine. Turn off the traction control or put mine in Competition Mode and go on a track to look like a pro. This car weighs only 100lbs more than my RX8 with 345HP and 350 torque. One cannot put more power than that to the ground so rolling the throttle on is important to learn or just leave the traction control on and wear out the rear brakes.Dec 22, 2014

This was my "I survived Iraq", gift to myself. Very nice car, good gas mileage on the highway. still turns head after 10 years, fast and fun. This is the car you find yourself driving everywhere for no reason. I've driven this car from west coast to east coast, also did a couple of laps on Mazda Raceway (Laguna Seca). Very comfortable and fun ride. On the down side: once the key FOB battery died it cost about $200 to get it working again, however no one could seem to get it working; and just like the Viper there is a little engine heat in the cockpit. Not nearly as bad as the Viper. Overall a wonderful, good looking performance car.Jul 05, 2014

This car compared to other foreign model sports cars is unsurpassed in all respects. The value for the money is uncomparable. The amount of miles you can travel with the 6-speed manual on a tank of gas is incredible. I took a 4200 mile trip, running at an average of 80-95 miles an hour with a top speed of 177 miles per hour and still averaged 30.4 miles per gallon. How can you beat that?Oct 26, 2012