C5 Common Problems (and fixes)

[LEJ ZO6]

My wife drives a C5 convertible that has 96,000 miles on it. We bought the car new and have had very few minor problems with it. She plans on keeping it until after the C7 is out and enough time has elapsed that we can get a good deal on one. We maintain our cars and typically keep them 10 years.

We recently experienced 2 problems that are common on C5s.

1.) The temperature control display visual intensity deteriorated. This happened the first time at 59,000 miles and was fixed under warranty. The warranty is expired now so we were faced with paying GM $600 to replace it.

With help from the Corvette Forum I found instructions for the fix at http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-t...splay-fix.html. I printed the instructions out and took them with the car to our mechanic and he agreed he would attempt to fix it. When he got the controller board out he determined soldering the surface mount components that worked loose and caused the problem was out of his scope of expertise. I picked up the board and took it to a local TV repair shop and they soldered it successfully.

2.) The HUD surround bezel cracked and needed to be replaced. I found the fix described on the Forum at http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-t...ud-install.htm. And on the Corvette Action Center site at http://www.corvetteactioncenter.com/...ol-next-up.htm. I printed them out and took them with me when I took the car in.

I had known for quite some time that my wife wanted this bezel replaced. I had the mechanic order it from GM in Aug. 2009. It was out of stock and on back order. I tried several Corvette parts sites I found on the internet and no one was able to get one for me. GM finally sent the bezel in Feb. 2010.

Although our mechanic is ASE Certified he doesn't specialize in Corvette repair. With the help of the instructions from the Forum he was able to make the repairs easily and we are very satisfied with the results.

As an F.Y.I. the new bezel cost $45, the solder repair cost $20 and labor for installing both was $250.

[Bob K]

Thanks for the info Z06. I have a GMPP 10 yr warranty so hopefully I won't need these instructions but I'm sure others can.

[2Vettes]

Thanks! No warranty on mine and any help for future problems is much appreciated!