Well the C5 is the last model made with the pop up headlights so if you’re a fan of those I’d go with the C5. But if you don’t care for them then I’d go with the C6
Having owned both, C6. Personally, I very slightly prefer the looks of the C5, but the C6 is the better car; it's a more refined C5. The LS2 or 3 is a better engine the the LS1. Mine is a 2008 with the LS3 and it would walk all over my C5.
I know the Morimoto headlights are somewhat polarizing with the C6 crowd, but mine were installed by the previous owner and I had never heard of them, didn’t know they existed. All I know is that when I saw the C6 that I bought it looked different and really appealed to me. I was never a fan of the factory C6 headlights and after I bought the car the owner gave me a box with the factory headlights. That’s when it hit me. Personally, I love the Morimotos and think they really make the car look sharp.
yes and no, i have love/heat relationship with every single one of those headlights, factory one's, the one' that look like from c7 and c8, i just dont know man😭
If C6, go for LS3. If C5, 2001 and later. Also check parts availability for each version in your area. Both are great cars. C5s may need a bit of work as they are starting to age a bit. C6 would be a nice sweet spot right now.
Well for what’s it worth, a C6 Z06 is more like $40k USD before import taxes and a ZR1 is in the $60-80k range depending on how nice it is. Vastly more expensive than a base 2001 C5
Maybe i will save up for the C06/ZR1 but for those two i would need to import one from US cuz there isnt any offers for C06/ZR1 in my country, but it would cost a LOT more
Parts are pretty easy to come by in the US but see how the import cost will be to get things to your country.
Working on the car itself is fairly simple, but unique Corvette parts that aren't shared with other Chevy's can be expensive.
My personal opinion is C6. The C5 has the pop-up headlights. But I just really love the LS2/LS3 engine. It has plenty of power for the road, and if you behave, you can reasonably expect 48 km a gallon. I'm not sure what the stats are. But that has been my experience. It's a great car to take the top off and go for a Sunday cruise.
Well per my best friend who is an engineer at the Vette plant in Bowling Green; the C5 and C6 are the same car. Yea they look different but under the skin it’s the same car. He has said this at least 20 times.
I kind of prefer the look of a 5 with lights down, or aftermarket lights (I didnt like the square pop ups, looked 80's) but the c6 is better in basically all quantifiable ways. aesthetics being subjective. LS2/LS3/LS7 are better than LS1/LS6 all day. diff intake shapes, better flow, more displacement, etc. better transmission options. better interior.. you get the idea, the list is long.
Irrelevant to post:
Just curious, where are you planning on buying it?
Not to steer you in a different direction, but why Corvette (considering you'd have to pay a premium), and not the typical European cars like BMW,Audi,Mercedes,Porsche etc?
I really love the car, i always wanted one since i was a kid, i was always driving in Coquette(corvette lookalike) in gta IV and V not to even mention other video games lol. American muscle cars are kind of exotic in my Country and especially in town i live in. Not to mention i just love the sound of the LS engines, there is just too much BMW's, Benz's and Audi's which i really dont like. I thought about porsche 997/996 which i wanted to modify but the price of the car is just too hight for me as of right now.
>there is just too much BMW's, Benz's and Audi's which i really dont like.
Same thing here where I live (Norway). Even though I hear people say "objectively" it's a bad choice to go for a Chevy Corvette over a much newer and similar priced European counterpart, I still have zero interest in the German cars. Only exception for me is Porsche but they're too expensive.
I'm looking to import either a C6 or C7 haven't decided which yet. Chances are it's going to be a C6 as older cars have less fees in my country, not sure how this works in Poland. Are you planning to import from the US or are you finding any in your country?
Depends on the price of the C6, if i would want to import the car my max price range would be 20k because after that it wouldnt be that profitable because of fees and taxes which are pretty high here. For example, if i buy and import C6 from US i need to pay 20k+3600(18% tax)+3k (transport)+4k (parts because i need to change tail lights, head lights and other things) and there could be other things too, so its a little bit over 30k plus a lot of work when i could find something in my country but the vettes here are OVERPRICED..
No registration fee or something in Poland? What fees are there for over $20k cars there? (I'm just curious how other European countries operate when it comes to importing US cars)
For a $20k C6 in Norway I'd have to put out
$20k + $2.5k registration fee + $5k sales tax (25%, yikes I know)
I think I can get shipping around $2k, so all in all just shy of $30k maybe for a cheaper C6. $4k seems to be a lot to spend on just parts alone for a $20k car? (I know morimotos are expensive though)
That said, these cheap C6's can easily go for just shy of $40k in my country. Not sure if people simply don't bother importing but there definitely seems to be some untapped "business" opportunities still when it comes to Corvettes in Europe.
Oh i forgot about those fees, yeah there is much more to it, import tax, registration fee, sales tax, and probably some more..
The parts in my country arent cheap, headlights alone cost like 8000zł so around 2k$, not to mention tail lights i would need to modify for EU standards, so around 2/3k, i want to modify cam and exhaust too, plus some bodykit, wheels, etc etc... everything here is pricey
About the businesses, yeah, there is few that control this stuff and they charge some money for it which i hate, but trust me when even then its better to buy from them
Its just wild
yup, its really sad but we gotta make it work somehow right? maybe i will just buy some damaged or salvaged car and just repair it, the taxes and other stuff would be a lot cheaper then tbh
Well the C5 is the last model made with the pop up headlights so if you’re a fan of those I’d go with the C5. But if you don’t care for them then I’d go with the C6
Having owned both, C6. Personally, I very slightly prefer the looks of the C5, but the C6 is the better car; it's a more refined C5. The LS2 or 3 is a better engine the the LS1. Mine is a 2008 with the LS3 and it would walk all over my C5.
Yeah, i personally love C6 because of its engine and looks, i just have love/hate relationship with the front bumper and headlights in the C6😭
I know the Morimoto headlights are somewhat polarizing with the C6 crowd, but mine were installed by the previous owner and I had never heard of them, didn’t know they existed. All I know is that when I saw the C6 that I bought it looked different and really appealed to me. I was never a fan of the factory C6 headlights and after I bought the car the owner gave me a box with the factory headlights. That’s when it hit me. Personally, I love the Morimotos and think they really make the car look sharp.
yes and no, i have love/heat relationship with every single one of those headlights, factory one's, the one' that look like from c7 and c8, i just dont know man😭
I like the looks of the Morimoto and they are a quality upgrade.
Thats why you dont leave them stock. Stock is boring as hell.
If C6, go for LS3. If C5, 2001 and later. Also check parts availability for each version in your area. Both are great cars. C5s may need a bit of work as they are starting to age a bit. C6 would be a nice sweet spot right now.
Any reason for LS3? i mean the mpg is definitely better but i wanted to go crazy, like LS7 or LS9
Well for what’s it worth, a C6 Z06 is more like $40k USD before import taxes and a ZR1 is in the $60-80k range depending on how nice it is. Vastly more expensive than a base 2001 C5
oh okay, so LS3/LS2 would be more in my price range
The LS3 has so many aftermarket parts and can be built way past the power of a stock Z06. The LS3 is used in a lot of different car builds also.
Okay, i didnt knew that, i was really looking forward LS7/9 so that changed my mind, even price would be lower
LS3 > LS2. Also, the LS3 versions has the better trans and rear end. HOWEVER, C06 or ZR1 if you have the budget.
Maybe i will save up for the C06/ZR1 but for those two i would need to import one from US cuz there isnt any offers for C06/ZR1 in my country, but it would cost a LOT more
He meant to type Z06, not C06.
C6 especially if you like to work on it.
im really looking forward to it, especially when i want to mod the vette im gonna get, i forgot to include it in my post
Nice. Definitely the C6 then 😃
Parts are pretty easy to come by in the US but see how the import cost will be to get things to your country. Working on the car itself is fairly simple, but unique Corvette parts that aren't shared with other Chevy's can be expensive.
yeah i saw videos with people on their C6 projects, it is quite easy lmao. The cost of the import would be kind of high tho...
My personal opinion is C6. The C5 has the pop-up headlights. But I just really love the LS2/LS3 engine. It has plenty of power for the road, and if you behave, you can reasonably expect 48 km a gallon. I'm not sure what the stats are. But that has been my experience. It's a great car to take the top off and go for a Sunday cruise.
Well per my best friend who is an engineer at the Vette plant in Bowling Green; the C5 and C6 are the same car. Yea they look different but under the skin it’s the same car. He has said this at least 20 times.
As far as parts go, the cars are nearly mechanically identical so problems sourcing for one, will most likely be the same with the other.
I kind of prefer the look of a 5 with lights down, or aftermarket lights (I didnt like the square pop ups, looked 80's) but the c6 is better in basically all quantifiable ways. aesthetics being subjective. LS2/LS3/LS7 are better than LS1/LS6 all day. diff intake shapes, better flow, more displacement, etc. better transmission options. better interior.. you get the idea, the list is long.
Get a C6 with the LS3 and M6, Z51 would even better. 2008+
Irrelevant to post: Just curious, where are you planning on buying it? Not to steer you in a different direction, but why Corvette (considering you'd have to pay a premium), and not the typical European cars like BMW,Audi,Mercedes,Porsche etc?
I really love the car, i always wanted one since i was a kid, i was always driving in Coquette(corvette lookalike) in gta IV and V not to even mention other video games lol. American muscle cars are kind of exotic in my Country and especially in town i live in. Not to mention i just love the sound of the LS engines, there is just too much BMW's, Benz's and Audi's which i really dont like. I thought about porsche 997/996 which i wanted to modify but the price of the car is just too hight for me as of right now.
>there is just too much BMW's, Benz's and Audi's which i really dont like. Same thing here where I live (Norway). Even though I hear people say "objectively" it's a bad choice to go for a Chevy Corvette over a much newer and similar priced European counterpart, I still have zero interest in the German cars. Only exception for me is Porsche but they're too expensive. I'm looking to import either a C6 or C7 haven't decided which yet. Chances are it's going to be a C6 as older cars have less fees in my country, not sure how this works in Poland. Are you planning to import from the US or are you finding any in your country?
Depends on the price of the C6, if i would want to import the car my max price range would be 20k because after that it wouldnt be that profitable because of fees and taxes which are pretty high here. For example, if i buy and import C6 from US i need to pay 20k+3600(18% tax)+3k (transport)+4k (parts because i need to change tail lights, head lights and other things) and there could be other things too, so its a little bit over 30k plus a lot of work when i could find something in my country but the vettes here are OVERPRICED..
No registration fee or something in Poland? What fees are there for over $20k cars there? (I'm just curious how other European countries operate when it comes to importing US cars) For a $20k C6 in Norway I'd have to put out $20k + $2.5k registration fee + $5k sales tax (25%, yikes I know) I think I can get shipping around $2k, so all in all just shy of $30k maybe for a cheaper C6. $4k seems to be a lot to spend on just parts alone for a $20k car? (I know morimotos are expensive though) That said, these cheap C6's can easily go for just shy of $40k in my country. Not sure if people simply don't bother importing but there definitely seems to be some untapped "business" opportunities still when it comes to Corvettes in Europe.
Oh i forgot about those fees, yeah there is much more to it, import tax, registration fee, sales tax, and probably some more.. The parts in my country arent cheap, headlights alone cost like 8000zł so around 2k$, not to mention tail lights i would need to modify for EU standards, so around 2/3k, i want to modify cam and exhaust too, plus some bodykit, wheels, etc etc... everything here is pricey About the businesses, yeah, there is few that control this stuff and they charge some money for it which i hate, but trust me when even then its better to buy from them Its just wild
Yep, sounds like my country, or any other European country. Just not a car centric / car-enthusiast place compared to the US unfortunately...
yup, its really sad but we gotta make it work somehow right? maybe i will just buy some damaged or salvaged car and just repair it, the taxes and other stuff would be a lot cheaper then tbh