1997 Vette

[Bird oF Flames]

First off I just want to say hello to everyone on this board. This site is organized very we'll and lokks great. Anyway, right now I own a 93' Firebird with a bunch of bolt ons and I am in the market for a new car. I was wondering if buying a 97' vette would be smart to use as a daily driver. I would be driving it to school and work.
p.s Very surprised insurance quote under parents for 18yr old =$3600

 

[ZZRider]

Welcome!

The corvette would do well as a daily driver. It does not get around great in the snow, but if you have a 93 F-body you already know about performance cars in the snow. You can pick up used vettes at pretty reasonable prices now. I would expect to pay $20-25,000 for a decent 97-98.

 

[Bird oF Flames]

Welcome!

The corvette would do well as a daily driver. It does not get around great in the snow, but if you have a 93 F-body you already know about performance cars in the snow. You can pick up used vettes at pretty reasonable prices now. I would expect to pay $20-25,000 for a decent 97-98.

Thanks for the reply, and I probaly am going buy one as soon as I can sell my bird, have been finding a lot of low mileage 97 vettes in that price range, which is nice. Believe me, I have first hand experience w/ the snow, especially the winter we had in the northeast this year.

 

[mick_s3]

Thanks for the reply, and I probaly am going buy one as soon as I can sell my bird, have been finding a lot of low mileage 97 vettes in that price range, which is nice. Believe me, I have first hand experience w/ the snow, especially the winter we had in the northeast this year.

I just did what you are contemplating, and for what it's worth I would stay far away from a used '97. Mine has been trouble. The car only had 55k on it when I bought it, clean carfax, test drove well, but has been falling apart consistantly.

Obviously, I could just have got a lemon, but I have to put some stake into the "first run gremlins" theory. Try for a '99+, I can only assume that the build quality has improved over time, since there are millions of C5's running around where I live.

As far as the snow thing, sorry I cannot help there at all.

Best of luck with your purchase!

Mick

 

[Daryllawman]

Welcome to the Corvette Action Center........Enjoy.......

 

[Silver97]

Hi there,

I have a 97 and asside from the steering lock problem the car has been great !! Take the car to the dealership to have a complete diagnostic before you buy it, but my 97 has been an absolute pleasure to have.

Good luck.

 

[hawaii-5-lo]

welcome,i have had my 99 for 1 year now.i slammed the car the first day,ive put on a cold air induction,35,000 miles.i race the car a lot at the track,i have never had one problem with it,later,Todd.

 

[danl72]

I have a '99 with no major problems besides having the water pump replaced, under warranty at least. I would recommend that you buy an extended warranty, it will be well worth the price. I have a $0 deductable 7 year/100,000 mile warranty. It is good until 2008. I did not get a GM warranty because it would cover the Vette long enough to justify the price. My warranty took effect when I purchased it and not when the Vette was first bought like GM warranty would do. I had 40,000 mile on my Vette when I bought it and the warranty is good for up to 7 years or 140,000 miles. Good luck.

 

[johnl]

I have to agree with Silver97, My 97 just went over 130,000 and other than routine maintenance it’s been a pleasure to own and drive.

 

[jfss3bat]

1997 corvette

I bought a used '97 with 57000 miles from a local Chevy dealer and have put 4K on it since. I've had no problems and it is my daily driver (12 miles one way to work). I sometimes swap to my '99 Tahoe if the weather is bad or I have to haul the kids around. I prefer to drive my Vett not only because it's more fun but it also gets a lot better gas mileage (I average 20 MPG) than my Tahoe (14 MPG).

 

[mick_s3]

Re: 1997 corvette

I bought a used '97 with 57000 miles from a local Chevy dealer and have put 4K on it since. I've had no problems and it is my daily driver (12 miles one way to work). I sometimes swap to my '99 Tahoe if the weather is bad or I have to haul the kids around. I prefer to drive my Vett not only because it's more fun but it also gets a lot better gas mileage (I average 20 MPG) than my Tahoe (14 MPG).

Isn't that funny, a Corvette gets better gas mileage than an SUV.

I noticed the same thing, my Vette gets alot better gas mileage than my Silverado did.

For that matter, it gets better gas mileage than the Town & Country too.


Mick]

 

[atmmac]

I have a 1997 Vette has had not one single problem. The 97 gets better gas mileage than the new ones as well so youd be paying a bit less at the pump.

 

[hawaii-5-lo]

funny,i thought it would get slightly less due to the 97 having larger injectors?but what i think means nothing,gas milage means nothing to me either,im modding for more power. later,Todd.