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what to look for? shopping for a C6

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Old Jun 18, 2013 | 01:49 PM
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Default what to look for? shopping for a C6

So my brother in law and i were having a chat the other day. we were discussing for what to look for when shopping for a c6. obviously we would need to shy away from the weak 2005 c6.. but what else is there to look at?
sure an ls3 would pop out more horsepower, but what about the ls2 corvettes? are they really that bad?

so im turning to some c6 corvette owers for more responses.
what did you look for when purchasing a c6?
anything that you missed? any highlights that would best benefit my brother in law in his potential hunt for a c6 corvette?
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Old Jun 19, 2013 | 12:42 PM
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Why are you saying the 05's are weak? The rear? If I were to get another auto C6 I would only buy an 05. The 4L65 is much easier and more reliable to upgrade. The rear can be swapped for a C5 or C6 Z rear pretty easily. If you're looking at manuals then 06+ for sure. The LS2 is decent performer. Mine went 12.4 with 17" DR's and a tune. With the mods listed in my sig it went 11.0. An LS3 is preferred but the LS2 can be just as potent.
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Old Jun 19, 2013 | 01:02 PM
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Id lean more to the manual side myself haha.

But thats not bad. Anyone with a ls3 wanna chime in?
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Old Jun 19, 2013 | 01:38 PM
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i have a 05 manual 80k miles on it now 453 rwhp road race drag race and generally abuse it no probs at all. yes the 05 has the weakest diff but if you dont put slicks on it and learn how to slip th eclutch just right for killer 60 foot times its prefectlly ok. the 08 and newer cars ave several better features the ls3 the tr6060 trans the interior look a lil nicer. key thing is get the newest lowest milage car you can afford. or maybe get a high mileage 05 and use the rest of the money to mod the **** out of it.
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Old Jun 20, 2013 | 12:50 AM
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If you're going to mod the car then an LS2 will be fine and save you some money for mods. I'd still go `06+ with either the M6 or A6 as the 6l80 isn't that bad (I agree the 4L65 would be cheaper/easier to rebuild though). Basically no matter what I'd buy the newest I could for the money as there are little updates here and there. Major issues are the roof panel in `06 and a low beam gremlin in some cars. I think the column lock was gone by `06 (maybe not). Corvette forum has most of this info in their C6 forum.

If modding isn't a concern then I'd shoot for an `08+ if you can swing it. The LS3 is more powerful, the A6 gets updated software for better response, the M6 goes to the TR6060 and a lot of bugs are worked out by then. No matter the model, LS2 or 3, I'd get one with the Z51 package. Bigger brakes, better suspension, and the M6s get lower gearing like the C5 Z06s.
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Old Jun 20, 2013 | 08:45 AM
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yeah z51 is prefered. 3lt is prefered. and 07+ is prefered.. whats this low beam gremlin??
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Old Jun 21, 2013 | 11:50 AM
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I just picked up a 09 A6 w/ 16k miles. I traded my 01 Z06. I would go with the LS3 over the LS2 personally. I drove some LS2s and they felt slower than my z. My buddy had one. we did several roll races, I would pass him. The LS3 SOTP feels faster than my z but I have yet to come across a c5z that is willing to race to test this.

I would get at least a 2LT. As everyone else has pointed out there are a variety of minor updates through the years and once you get to 08 or 09 most of the bugs were worked out. Get the newest vehicle you can swing.
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Old Jun 22, 2013 | 10:53 AM
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Hey now, nothing wrong with my 05, of course every single bit of the drivetrain has been upgraded, lol.

Only true concern is in the C6Z06 dropping valves, and the 05's weak diff.

There are alot of deals to be had out there though. i caught mine for an absolute steal 2 years ago.

In all honesty, i say check Corvette forum periodically, if it's an out of state purchase for you, i used a place called CarChex to go do an inspection of the car, and made me a full report with a 100 pictures, made me feel alot safer.

Cool thing about that, is you basically get the mods for free. What i did , was think of what i would do if i had the Vette mod wise, then look for one matching what you would do. There are alot of them on CF. Of course, i am literally in the middle of a head/cam swap on mine, lol.

I think if you plan on modding the car, the LS2 is the way to go, keeping it cathedral port, makes stuff alot less expensive, but remember, Vette specific mods, cost 1.5 to 2 times the price of F-body mods.

No matter what year you go with, i am sure you will be pretty damn happy with your purchase. i know I love my 05
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Old Jun 27, 2013 | 02:40 PM
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C6Z06 dropping valves... hmm ill have to check in on this.
doubt c6z will ever find its way in my driveway haha
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Old Jun 29, 2013 | 01:51 AM
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Originally Posted by fastenough
I just picked up a 09 A6 w/ 16k miles. I traded my 01 Z06. I would go with the LS3 over the LS2 personally. I drove some LS2s and they felt slower than my z. My buddy had one. we did several roll races, I would pass him. The LS3 SOTP feels faster than my z but I have yet to come across a c5z that is willing to race to test this.

I would get at least a 2LT. As everyone else has pointed out there are a variety of minor updates through the years and once you get to 08 or 09 most of the bugs were worked out. Get the newest vehicle you can swing.
My 99 FRC has wiped a buddies of mines 05 c6 a4 all over the road many a times, still nothing wrong with 05's, not saying that, but I'd try swinging an ls3 if you could, they worked a lot of bugs out around that time too. We both had about the same bolt ons btw.
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Old Jun 29, 2013 | 08:13 AM
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I think auto is out of the question,
He picked up an 07 lmb z51 3lt

I cant wait to see ut
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Old Jun 29, 2013 | 02:27 PM
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I was gonna say if he could get a '08 do it but I see he got a '07. Nothing wrong with that especially in that color.
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Old Jun 29, 2013 | 02:35 PM
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Originally Posted by Detoxx03
I was gonna say if he could get a '08 do it but I see he got a '07. Nothing wrong with that especially in that color.
Absolutely nothing wrong with that, a Vette's a Vette, they're all nice!
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Old Jul 5, 2013 | 09:21 AM
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Yeah i finally got to ride in it. Beautiful... I want one haha
He has a custom cherry bomb exhaust on it (from the original owner) gives it a nice growl. Great power as well for stock. He is averaging 27.1 mpg

Quite the impressive little machine!!!
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