Looking for first Vette

Hello all,

I'm finally in a position to buy my first Corvette. I love the C5 and would love some feedback as to what options/features to avoid or the make sure I look for.

I'm strictly looking at coupes, my plan for the car will includes some engine mods, when it comes to modding is there any benefit to the 6 spd or the Auto? I really haven't made up my mind on the transmission type.

Any feedback would be great.

Thanks all  

1999 fixed roof.around 19000.00-20,000.00 will be a collectable.its a six speed and very rare,  

C5 roadster, 6 speed for sure.  The more options the better except maybe the active handling.  

2003 - 2004. They have the least amount of problems. I like the hardtop myself. They run high 20s to low 30s, if you don't get a 50th anniversary.  

This link has a lot of useful facts on recalls and common problems for all the C5s.
http://consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com/1997-to-2004-chevrolet-corvette-6.htm
Also by "hardtop" I meant coupe. I say that a lot.  

I just picked up a 2004 targa-top coupe, love it!  It was about 30K.

I shopped around a bit to find a metallic grey 2004  with heads-up display, auto trans, and low mileage.  CarMax seemed to have quite a few within cheap shipping distance and the sales process was painless.  

C5 is great if you have the money for one. My first 'Vette is a 1989 TPI, and I absolutely love it. They are much more affordable than the C5s and lend themselves easily to mods. If you do decide to go with a C4 however, I would suggest staying away from the cross-fire injection and going with a tuned-port injection or LT1, or LS1. They are just easier to work on and tend to have fewer problems.  

I would avoid the lt1. the distributer is behind the harmonic balancer  and is prone to water damage and it is costly to replace plus with its placement a tune up is almost impossibal without a lift.