Call me crazy but...has anyone year round daily driven a Corvette?

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Has anyone daily driven a C5 Corvette year round? I am very interested in one or something similar for my new car, but it will also be my only car.

[boxer23]

not only is it not worth it, its also not possible. When it snows the c5 is too low to through most roads. Also there is too much torque your going to crash pretty easily.

[Cos]

Although not technically possible I had a friend in school who had a C5 (I think, could have been a C4 since the C5's were pretty new then) and he drove it year round. Only way he could afford it.

Got annoying after the first winter and end of the second summer he sold it.

[corsvette]

Just buy a beater for the winter and keep fire/theft ins on the Vette, you AND the Vette will be miserable in the winter, i couldn't imagine driving one through the winter.........dangerous!

[shakalaka]

I contemplated this idea for a while and gave up on it. Just doesn't make sense on so many levels to be honest.

[HiTempguy1]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
Has anyone daily driven a C5 Corvette year round? I am very interested in one or something similar for my new car, but it will also be my only car.

I've met people that have, as well as 4th gen camaro's. NBD, the engine parts/drivetrain are fairly similiar to any other small block of that generation. Buy the best winter tires you can and go from there. Obviously, you'll want to add a block heater! And hopefully you are considering a coupe, I wouldn't do a t-top or convertible.

Without a doubt though, the Vette WILL have problems in deep snow as they are quite low. But for 90% of the year, it should be good to go. Hell, rent a car for a week if it snows a ton!

[Maxt]

I saw a couple on a motorbike with a sidecar driving through Rogers pass in January in a blizzard.. I guess its just how big your balls are.
If you had a second set of rims with a much narrower snow tire on it , it probably wouldnt be all that bad..

[dj_rice]

I had a co-worker in Edmonton who drove his Lamborghini Gallardo convertible throughout the winter.

[spikerS]

my best friend drives his 97 camaro convertible year round. summer he runs his perellis and in the winter he runs some nokians on steelies. He does just fine, he just drives to the conditions.

[Shlade]

good tires and youll be fine. Given youll destroy that front bumper.

Dont forget the amount of ice buildup on the roads we get from some areas never getting cleaned.. cracks, rock chips.. Not worth it dude.

[Shlade]

Originally posted by spikers
my best friend drives his 97 camaro convertible year round. summer he runs his perellis and in the winter he runs some nokians on steelies. He does just fine, he just drives to the conditions.

Corvette is much lower than a Camaro. 2 very different cars also.

[spikerS]

Originally posted by Shlade


Corvette is much lower than a Camaro. 2 very different cars also.

not with his shitty aero kit, i would wager his is just as low, if not lower with it on there.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Well obviously I'm going to have winter tires, all of my vehicles do. What about a Pontiac GTO (Holden Monaro)?

[94boosted]

Why not buy some $3000 Civic for winter :dunno: If you really wanted to you could prob drive the vette on most winter days so long as the snow wasn't deep but I wouldn't.

[blackpeople]

I have a friend that has a white c5 corvette convertiable that he drives year round, Yes that includes winters. you just need some winter tires and call it a day.:D

[ercchry]

ride height isnt too big of a deal, the roads that never get plowed and are rutted out can be an issue... if you dont drive offset to them!

i did a Q45 that was SLAMMED for a winter, got high centred once and that was doing a u-turn on an un-plowed street. would have continued driving it but i took the oil pan out on a mildly raised manhole :rofl:

i would say make sure you have a standard so you can start off in 2nd and you should be fine.

hell im even thinking of lowering the mustang before winter :rofl:

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Whatever it is it's going to be manual. Also interested in 350Z.

[e31]

The fibreglass body panels get very brittle in the winter and crack easily, especially with weight of snow/ice on them. If you park it in a garage as well, the temp fluctuations will make it worse. That's not counting the high probability you will end up in a guard rail or ditch.

This idea should be completely scrapped not only for your safety, but for that of everyone else on the road as well.

[J-hop]

After seeing the effect this last winter had on my car with all the salt that was dropped I wouldn't do it, even with the fg body panels. I wash my car minimum once a week (usually twice) and barely drive it during the winter and I still noticed this winters effect. I think traction and clearance are going to be the least of your worries.

[Kloubek]

Seriously man - don't bother. My C5 wouldn't move even on my driveway even with a little snow. You're going to have to get great winter tires which will be super expensive at that size. And then you have tires entirely too wide to keep from "plowing" the snow. Low clearance. Weak panels in the cold. Too much torque.

As suggested, just buy a 2g beater for the winter - you'll be thankful you did... believe me.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Winter beater is not an option.

[AndyL]

My boss used to daily his C5 - still had a 4runner for snow dumps - but generally year round he was running the vette... (Yes the vette pretty much was his winter beater).

[Mitsu3000gt]

Really, there is probably only a few days, maybe a week, in any given winter where the roads are so bad with so much snow that you couldn't drive it. I don't think you could use it every single day, though. Also, if you're not deep in a neighborhood, the roads get plowed reasonably fast. It wouldn't be ideal but I think it could be done. Sometimes neighborhoods can be pretty bad for a day or two until other cars pack things down, depending where you live.

Also, given how poorly a corvette is put together and how many creaks and rattles exist even on the smoothest of roads , I don't even want to imagine what a corvette sounds like driving over roads that are like a washboard from ice/snow. You might actually rattle the thing apart haha.

[max_boost]

If you do this, I'll raise my NSX up and winter drive it too. :rofl:

[88CRX]

Driving a lowered car (or low-ish stock car) in the winter isn't enjoyable but it's definitely more than possible.

[blackpeople]

I think you should do it. You should be "that guy" If you are comfortable with your driving skill and are willing to put skinny rims and tires on it then do it. You can be one of the only guys that have the balls to try something like that. :D

[max_boost]

Originally posted by 88CRX
Driving a lowered car (or low-ish stock car) in the winter isn't enjoyable but it's definitely more than possible.

Yea I did that for years. FWD/AWD/RWD, snow plows lol

I just value comfort more than anything now so it's nice to have an AWD vehicle with good ground clearance and can absorb all those bumps on the roads haha

[Anomaly]

I used to drive a Camaro year round, it's not bad as long as you know the limits of the car.

You could drive a corvette year round, there isn't THAT much snow on the roads in Calgary. There would definitely be a couple days in the winter you wouldn't make it out, but those days you just work from home :nut:

I've seen Ferrari's and 996 Porsche's driven in the winter here

[ercchry]

its really not that bad... if you dont hit raised manholes :rofl:

also notice the wheel selection... hahaha

http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/24255_361988863637_504953637_4705162_1617566_n.jpg

but i must admit, there was some days i left it at home

[JfuckinC]

Last year the ruts on my road would have eaten a corvettes under carriage for lunch.. They were insane.. and they were there for a lot of the winter.. that's the only thing that would worry me.

[ercchry]

Originally posted by JfuckinC
Last year the ruts on my road would have eaten a corvettes under carriage for lunch.. They were insane.. and they were there for a lot of the winter.. that's the only thing that would worry me.

your road wasnt wide enough to drive offset to the ruts by a foot?

[bituerbo]

Taking insurance off the 'vette for one winter *should*cover the cost of a $1500 beater. At least if you have my premiums...

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Beater is not an option, it would add the cost of the beater plus $1250 insurance a year for that, plus I still have to insure the Vette year round.

It surely can't be much worse than my slammed Escort, 180SX or my dads Z4M which have all been daily drivers in the winter.

[Rat Fink]

.

[94boosted]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
Beater is not an option, it would add the cost of the beater plus $1250 insurance a year for that, plus I still have to insure the Vette year round.

It surely can't be much worse than my slammed Escort, 180SX or my dads Z4M which have all been daily drivers in the winter.

You could just have fire/theft on the vette during winter and one-way on your beater so the cost of insurance during the winter months wouldn't be bad.

That plastic air dam thing under the front bumper on a corvette hangs like 3" off the ground lol :nut: Pretty damn low. It's hard enough driving around on the fantastic calgary roads during summer let alone when there are ruts and deep potholes everywhere.

[Chandler_Racing]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
Beater is not an option, it would add the cost of the beater plus $1250 insurance a year for that, plus I still have to insure the Vette year round.



What about insuring for only fire and theft over the winter?

It seems to me though that you're stretching yourself too thin if $1,250 influences your decision enough to say no on this type of purchase. I don't know your financial situation though.

I'm curious how many winter tire options are offered for the Vette's ...

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Fire and theft also isn't an option because it will be parked on the street all year.

[M.alex]

It might work - I had briefly toyed w/ turning my z06 into a winter beater and getting another viper, but opted against it because there would be several situations where it'd be too low/too problematic in the winter. (and of course those days are probably the days when you absolutely positively have to get out)

If you were set on it, what you could do is raise and lower the ride height on the stock bolts every year before/after winter. That would alleviate clearance issues and let you be 4x4 in the winter, slammed in the summer. But of course that's a pain to do over and over and ......

Tires wouldn't be a big deal - just buy some repro rims and get some skinny blizzaks (like 245/17). If the abs sensor gets pissed at you, just pull the fuse and drive w/o abs in the winter (my winter beater has no abs or traction control)

Aside from the above, the only other concern is the effect of extreme cold on the fiberglass. Probably would make it more susceptible to damage. Btw, don't listen to people who say fiberglass will crack if you look at it when it's cold outside.....if it's parked in your garage it will be okay. Several fiberglass bodies later I only had 1 crack after this winter, because there was a massive (5'') air void on a curve and I improperly stressed it.


And LULZ at anybody saying a C5 has too much torque - my winter beat makes 500RWtq @ 2000rpm, has no abs or traction control, and I manage just fine w/ 245/17 blizzaks and knowing how to use the gas pedal.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

I don't have a garage, it will be my only car, I have access to a Jeep for the winter but not all the time, and it will be parked on the street all year round.

[M.alex]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
I don't have a garage, it will be my only car, I have access to a Jeep for the winter but not all the time, and it will be parked on the street all year round.

Thinking about it, I have a friend of a friend who dailies a c5 'vert everyday except the worst days of winter and leaves it parked outside all the time, so it should be fine I think.

[JfuckinC]

Originally posted by ercchry


your road wasnt wide enough to drive offset to the ruts by a foot?

ya you could, but then there's parked cars and piles of snow and shit everywhere, and they were rounded off and suck you in.. Last year was nuts for ruts(lol).. but seriously it was in chestermere at least.. and i'm pretty sure they usually sorta plow the side roads..

[Nakadah]

There is a guy that parks next to me in the University who drives a 911 997 during the winter. Also I have seen R8 that is winter driven.

If you are parking your vehicle on the street the chance of having someone crashing into your Corvette during the winter is pretty damn high. Most people drive with some stupid bald "all-season" tires during the winter and do not take into consideration that the roads might be icy and they might not be able to stop.

I think investing all of your money in a dream car that you can barely afford is not wise.

[Maxt]

Looks like a winter tire for the vette is non existent, but it probably has the same bolt pattern as 4th gen camaro or something like that.....
My rx7 won't go downhill wearing 275's , but put 185's back on it and its a totally different car in the snow.
That airdam does look awefully low on those cars though.

[rob the knob]

http://www.libertiny.com/undergroundaces/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/carstuckgirls_com_red_corvette.jpg

[rob the knob]

http://fastcache.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/12/2009/01/Corvette-ZR1-In-Snow.jpg

[rob the knob]

ulVtNdClhb8

[revelations]

I drove a car that used to have 5" of ground clearance.

The first piece that met objects on the road was the engine subframe tube - the front air damn was already removed when I bought the car.

The only time I got stuck was going DOWN into my condo parkade ramp after snow drifts got into the 2-3' high amounts. The rest of the time I went through winters with no problems - but I did definitely plow snow everywhere I went.

[J-hop]

Originally posted by JfuckinC


ya you could, but then there's parked cars and piles of snow and shit everywhere, and they were rounded off and suck you in.. Last year was nuts for ruts(lol).. but seriously it was in chestermere at least.. and i'm pretty sure they usually sorta plow the side roads..

Yea I have the same problem on my street. Too many cars on either side and edges of ruts are too icy to drive on without risking sliding into parked cars. Thank god for my skid plate, at stock height my jetta drags down the whole street

[herragge]

Originally posted by corsvette
Just buy a beater for the winter and keep fire/theft ins on the Vette, you AND the Vette will be miserable in the winter, i couldn't imagine driving one through the winter.........dangerous!

Yeah just buy a beater. I bought a $1000 beater and its lasted me through 4 winters.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by herragge


Yeah just buy a beater. I bought a $1000 beater and its lasted me through 4 winters.

Why spend $5000 to insure a $1000 car for 4 years?

And it's not that I can barely afford it either, I would be paying cash.

[Chantastic]

Don't lower it and you I think you should be fine really (+ skinnier winters). My only concern is that plastic thing under the front (C5's have it, dunno about C6, in fact, what are looking at?).

Oh, and since most of the car is fibreglass, you don't have to worry about rust as much! :clap:

[kvg]

You drove your 180 with no real problems so sure why not.:dunno: I had a friend drive a 600hp 2003 Cobra year round with proper winter wheels and tires. :nut:

[Chantastic]

S13 is ridiculously fun in winter, I'd keep driving mine but the rust from the salt is just too much for it to handle now. :(

[Ukyo8]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo


Why spend $5000 to insure a $1000 car for 4 years?

And it's not that I can barely afford it either, I would be paying cash.

Why would you be paying $5000? are you 14 or something?

[M.alex]

Originally posted by Chantastic
Don't lower it and you I think you should be fine really (+ skinnier winters). My only concern is that plastic thing under the front (C5's have it, dunno about C6, in fact, what are looking at?).

Oh, and since most of the car is fibreglass, you don't have to worry about rust as much! :clap:

that's just a plastic air dam that can be easily removed - it's purpose is to increase cooling to the radiator, so it could be removed for winter use.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by Ukyo8


Why would you be paying $5000? are you 14 or something?

20 years old. 1 speeding ticket on my record.

[M.alex]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo


20 years old. 1 speeding ticket on my record.

If a $1000 civic is $5000 in insurance, how much is the corvette going to be?

[Mitsu3000gt]

If your insurance is $5000 on a beater I think you need to switch providers or shop around. When i was 20 with several speeding tickets, full coverage on my Audi S4 wasn't even close to half of $5000/year.

My insurance on my new civic with full coverage, max everything and minimum deductibles is $1400/yr.

[beyond_ban]

It isn't 5k/year for the beater, i think he said that he didn't want to spend 5k in insurance over 4 years for a beater. I think.... to lazy to go back and find it.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by beyond_ban
It isn't 5k/year for the beater, i think he said that he didn't want to spend 5k in insurance over 4 years for a beater. I think.... to lazy to go back and find it.

Correct. $1250 a year.

[max_boost]

Just do it. Buy the Vette and winter drive that thing. :burnout:

[94boosted]

Originally posted by rob the knob
ZR1-In-Snow.jpg
A ZR1!!! :eek: That guy's got balls.


Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo


Why spend $5000 to insure a $1000 car for 4 years?

And it's not that I can barely afford it either, I would be paying cash.

It shouldn't cost $1250/yr to insure your beater just for winter. Half of that at most, just insure the beater one way from November -> End of April :dunno:

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

I still want to say fuck it and buy a C5. Work has a 2000 C5 Vert with 50000km I really like.

[Shlade]

eww. Vert corvettes are gross.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Whats wrong with verts?

[Cos]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
I still want to say fuck it and buy a C5. Work has a 2000 C5 Vert with 50000km I really like.

How much are they asking?

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by Cos


How much are they asking?

$22000 but I will get an employee discount.

[Cos]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo


$22000 but I will get an employee discount.

Yeah of course. That still isnt bad to get it down to 19 or so as a normal person.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Cos did you sell your Ford? I see some GM parked in your driveway all the time now.

[Cos]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
Cos did you sell your Ford? I see some GM parked in your driveway all the time now.

No it is my work truck. Been traveling a lot for work :(

The ford is living at my office. Had to go down on Saturday to start it and move it around a bit haha.

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

Originally posted by Cos


No it is my work truck. Been traveling a lot for work :(

The ford is living at my office. Had to go down on Saturday to start it and move it around a bit haha.

Ahh I see.

[94boosted]

IMO Convertible + Sports Car = :thumbsdow

Unless the car was strictly designed to be a convertible from the very beginning (i.e. S2000, Miata) it just won't be the same as the Coupe it will feel heavier and softer. Especially if your going to race (Auto-X or Track) the car.

And 22K for an 11 year old base corvette seems a bit steep. For the same price, maybe a bit more you should be able to buy a decent C5 Z06 out of the states.

[94boosted]

^ i.e.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-corvettes-for-sale/2913808-2002-quicksilver-z06-57k-miles-18-5k-texas.html

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-corvettes-for-sale/2917323-2002-quicksilver-z06-cammed.html

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-corvettes-for-sale/2915277-fs-2003-corvette-z06-original-owner-bone-stock-50th-anniversary-blue-67-9k-miles.html

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

The C5 was designed as a convertible from factory. I want a vert because I will use it 150+ days a year. Also with my employee discount I'm looking at $18000. Its only got 49500km on it.

[xviper]

I had an '88 Vette coupe and a '90 ZR-1. I drove the '88 for 2 winters with only snow tires on the rear. When I got the ZR-1, I used those same snow tires and rims but the huge tread width on the front made it nearly impossible to push through deep snow and I abandoned the idea after a heavy snow fall in May of that year. I did pretty well till then. Had there been snow tires wide enough for the rear in those days and had I reduced the width of the front tires and put snows up front as well, I could have driven the ZR-1 through the whole winter as well.
The biggest issue with driving such a car in winter, even if you can find snow tires that will work, is driving down side streets where the ruts are so deep as to make the car high center. It becomes a necessity to plan your route carefully and if required to go down side streets, to roll on top of the ruts if possible.
Driving through really deep snow (axle deep) is not a big problem so long as the snow is soft. With steam roller sized snow tires on the drive wheels, you can push through a lot of snow and since most Vettes are mouth breathers (as opposed to nose breathers), filling the front grill with snow is not an issue. Even nose breathers can inhale an adequate amount of air through the snow plugged grill. Done it lots of times.
I've driven my supercharged S2000 through every winter since I got it new in year 2000. Never a problem. Yeah, and people say you can't drive an S2000 in the winter either. Ignorance is bliss.
Those who claim there's too much torque and you'll over power the situation and crash have absolutely no clue as to how to drive such a car in winter. Control is all in the throttle (and clutch on a manual) and the proper use of ABS brakes with an automatic. So what if you've got 400 HP. You don't have to use it all. If you don't have the skill to meter out the power you need, then don't do it. You're probably the same person who crash in the summer time, too.
Then there's those who say, "Why would you want to subject such a nice, expensive (in its day) car to such conditions?" Every winter, we see the streets full of big buck SUVs, "nice" in their own right. And what do you see when you find a vehicle stuck at the side of the road, buried up the nuts in snow? Yup, most likely an SUV.
If you really desire that Vette as a daily driver, make sure you get it properly equipped for winter and have the necessary skill and knowledge to drive it in winter.
So, unless you've actually driven a low sports car in the winter with the proper skill, maybe you really don't know what the fuck you're talking about.

Oh, one last thing. As far as I've been able to determine, Vettes don't like extreme cold temps (colder than -20C). They run fine and they start fairly well. It's just that all those hydraulic lines are made of aluminum fittings over the rubber hose ends. It doesn't take too long before the car pukes almost every fluid it has onto your garage floor in annoying little drips and dribbles. This is something you'll have to deal with come spring.

[M.alex]

Originally posted by 94boosted
IMO Convertible + Sports Car = :thumbsdow

Unless the car was strictly designed to be a convertible from the very beginning (i.e. S2000, Miata) it just won't be the same as the Coupe it will feel heavier and softer. Especially if your going to race (Auto-X or Track) the car.
.

I agree. Down w/ heavy, open-topped bloated cars. Boooo, hssssss, nobody likes them :drama:

http://i708.photobucket.com/albums/ww89/efnfast/blizgf.jpg

[Twin_Cam_Turbo]

The Vette I checked out is a no go. It needs tires, and has a service stability control and service abs light on and they weren't willing to negotiate which was odd.

[94boosted]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
The Vette I checked out is a no go. It needs tires, and has a service stability control and service abs light on and they weren't willing to negotiate which was odd.

That's strange wouldn't they be desperate to get the thing off their lot with winter just around the corner. :dunno:

[Shlade]

Originally posted by Twin_Cam_Turbo
The Vette I checked out is a no go. It needs tires, and has a service stability control and service abs light on and they weren't willing to negotiate which was odd.


nvm lol

[Disoblige]

Originally posted by Shlade

Buy my cobra :D Much faster than any silly stock corvette lol from 2000-03 haha
Funny how both your cars are similar in color.

[Shlade]

haha very true lol

[xviper]

Originally posted by Shlade



Buy my cobra :D Much faster than any silly stock corvette lol from 2000-03 haha
If it's a Mustang Cobra, I agree. I drove a Mustang GT back in the late 60s for 5 winters with the old fashion biased ply snow tires.
If you're talking about an open top Cobra (replica), I can just see it now ....................... -35C, blizzard conditions, no real roof over your head ................. yup, that would be a sight. Instant popsicle.

[Shlade]

haha yeah its a 03 cobra it catches up to a few 600`s pretty quick lol

[Sentry]

Man why you selling that thing? Kicks the shit outta that bullitt you had.

[Shlade]

Going to be going away for work possibly! and Id like to buy a house... I know if I kept it id toss all of my money into the car haha

[Hallowed_point]

I'm going to daily my 98 Camaro z28..6 spd with studded winters and 3M bra etc. But my commute is 5 K to work and other then grocery runs she's staying parked. :devil:

[Cos]

After driving my Cobra around this last month I couldnt imagine a car like this in the snow.

Dont do it.

[Hallowed_point]

Well I drove my SRT-4 last winter which was on lowering springs and had much lower rpm torque band. If it gets ridiculous out I'll take the LRT to work as my commute is 5 K.