I began doing my research back in late 1996. I had every intention of buying a used C4, and spent a lot of time dragging my wife along to various dealerships around our hometown. In an effort to learn as much as I could about the Corvette I subscribed to Corvette Fever, Vette and Corvette Quarterly. Then, one day while I was at a local bookstore, I noticed a book titled "All Corvettes Are Red". I bought the book and had hoped to learn even more about the C4, even though the book dealt primarily with the development of the C5. Hey, a source is a source. The more I read about the C5s evolution and development, the more I became attracted to this new Corvette design. It appeared to me that GM had come up with a real winner. After the C5 intro (oh yeah, I was at the local dealer) I began to read the driving reviews in the various trade journals and realized that the C5's strengths were pointing towards the C4's weaknesses. My head was turned around, and I began to set my sights on acquiring a new C5. Nothing else would do. My research intensified. There was so much I needed to learn. LS1, hydro-formed frames, drive-by-wire fuel systems, EMT tires, etc... Problems? Oh yeah, plenty. I was either totally ambushed or ignored at the various dealerships. The more I spoke with the salesmen the more I realized that they really didn't have a clue about this new Corvette sitting in their showrooms. I was flabbergasted. Gee, if your going to sell the product vow had better know the product. I actually had salesmen telling me, "Gee, I didn't know that". Well, there were brief periods of joy and enlightenment, and major episodes of grief and depression. At times I felt unsure of this new Corvettes ability to meet the expectations of the publics scrutiny. New owners were very critical of the cars systems and space. And the uproar over the design of this car was deafening. Depending upon what magazine you read, on what day, and you'd read that the C5 engineers copied the body designs from Mazda's to John Deere Combines. Couldn't these people see the big picture? After months of prodding and subtle little hints to my wife (like C5 collectibles placed at strategic locations around the house, and leaving my various Corvette magazines lying around, just in-case she wanted to peruse them), she went along with my wishes and we ordered our C5. It hasn't been an easy road, and there were times the conversations became intense and heated between my wife and I. But, we will be Corvette owners and I have my wife, my best friend, to thank for making my dream come true.

A small price to pay for owning 'the best Vette yet'. -  Stephen Davies