After driving a Firebird since 1996, I decided on a change. I had always been envious of the LS1 engine that was available in the 1998-2002 Firebirds and Camaros (mine was the older LT1 motor) back when it debuted in the Corvette in 1997. When it came time to trade the V6 Firebird for a V8 Trans Am back in 2001, the LS1 engine powered cars were still a little out of my price range, so I settled for an LT1 powered 1995 Trans Am. Seven years later I was ready for another change, but this time I decided to go for the whole package and purchased a 2002 Corvette.

Exterior:
The styling of this car has some exotic qualities to it. The hood hinges from the front (the only thing all Corvettes since 1953 have in common) and the doors and hatches all open very easily and feel very light. The body panels are made of lightweight plastic, which may turn off some people, however it appears to be the best material for the job. It doesn't rust or dent, it's lightweight, and provides good rigidity. The openings behind the front wheels are functional and provide an exit path for heat and air trapped under the hood. There are two functional brake cooling ducts leading from the front fascia to the inside of the front wheel well. The fuel door is located just behind the driver's seat in a tribute to the 1st generation Corvette. The targa is much more difficult to remove and even harder to install compared to the Trans Am's T-tops I previously owned, however it can be managed by one person with some practice, care and patience. Do not try this in the wind!

Interior:
The 5th generation Corvette regularly receives a lashing in car magazine reviews for its use of cheaper plastics in the interior. This may be true for some areas of the cabin such as the flimsy ashtray and cup holder covers, but if this it what it takes to make an exotic performing car under $50K, so be it! The actual layout of the interior seems logically placed.
The gauge cluster is laid out 3 dimensionally with nice round dial gauges representing the fuel, battery/alternator, oil pressure, engine temp, tach and speedometer. Below the gauges is the Driver's Information Center (DIC) which tells you everything from "low washer fluid" to "low tire pressure". On the right hand side of the gauge cluster are buttons that control what you can look at in the DIC. You can view digital readouts of all the analog gauges, along with oil temperature. It also allows you to set custom personal functions such as auto headlights, alarm settings, auto door lock/unlock settings, and easy entry/exit settings. Fuel information can also be viewed, such as range till empty, instantaneous and average gas mileage. An oil life monitor is also standard which seems to be common these days with cars in the price range. To the left of the gauge cluster is the optional heads up display controls. The heads up display can project anything from speed only to rpms, speed, oil pressure, turn signals, and high beams on. This allows for driving the car all day and not once looking at the gauge cluster (but who would want to miss that?). In case you get carried away and miss a Check engine light or low fuel gauge, a "Check Gauges" light will illuminate in the heads up display to remind you to look at your real gauges. The heads up display can be turned off if too distracting. It makes the display appear to be in front of the bumper instead of the windshield so your eyes don't have to change focus as often. My only complaint is its much harder to see during the day against a light colored road.
The automatic HVAC controls seem to work well so far (the automatic feature is an option) in the month I've owned the car. It allows the passenger and driver to have two separate temperature settings (that comes in handy considering my wife likes things a bit warmer than I do). During startup the AC unit will automatically get the car cool as quickly as possible gradually turning itself down. Three temp sensors (two in the cabin, one outside) and a solar heating sensor all give the HVAC system enough data to figure out how to keep the car the temperature you want. The auto function can be overridden.
The standard Bose stereo sounds great. The head unit is shared with other Chevy Vehicles such as the Cavalier, and likewise gets bad reviews for this, however it's hard to ask for much more. The speakers sound as good as, if not better than my 10-speaker 500Watt Monsoon system in the Firebirds. My only complaint in the radio department is the lack of a mute button and steering wheel controls (both Firebirds had this). The factory stereo sounds good however it will be very hard to customize it without ripping it all out and starting over. That may be more trouble than its worth.
The interior also gives some nods to previous model Corvettes in the location of the ignition on the dashboard and passenger grab handle above the glove box. The optional sport seats (highly recommended) are comfortable and very attractive. They are adored with higher quality leather than in their F-body cousins. The seats have a memory function and have two lumbar adjustments as well as bolster on both driver and passenger sides. The seat back is still manually adjusted however. The shifter is well placed and places your hand in great position for messing with the radio while not letting off of the shifter. I'm not a big fan of the square shaped shift knob however. The Trans Am's was much more comfortable. Who has a square shaped palm anyway? The center console can be locked and contains the fuel door button and a 12V outlet. However its very shallow. Another 12V outlet exist in the ashtray compartment.
The carpet seems to be of high quality and extends to every nook and cranny in the hatch. This probably doubles as soundproofing. The interior lights illuminate everything from the corners of the hatch, to the footwells and console dispite the lack of a dome light.

Driving impressions:
Climbing in the car, the memory seats and telescoping steering wheel move you into your programmed position from the easy entry seat position. The engine starts up with a comfortable low end growl and the gauges do a diagnostic sweep. "Corvette by Chevorlet" illuminates on the DIC below the gauges (interestingly the only mention of the word "Chevorlet" anywhere on the car, although there are 22 Corvette references). Acceleration is the most satisfying feature of the car. The tires bite into the pavement, the engine screams through a throaty exhaust, your back gets pinned to the seat, and the speed and rpms shoot climb faster than you can read them (this is where heads up display comes in handy keeping you focused through the windshield as things happen quickly). The throttle is very responsive and the gears shift very smooth. The gear shifter was a concern of mine since the shifter does not go directly into the transmission, but via connecting linkages to the rear. However there is no way to tell from inside the car the transmission is in the back (better weight distribution). My car has the base suspension package which is still great around corners and firm, however a little more forgiving over bumps than the stock-car-like Z51 suspension option. The braking response is also great with no hint of brake fade from a high speed stop.
The car comes standard with traction control and active handling which can be turned off (comes on automatically at start up) or can be configured to a "competitive mode" which leaves on active handling and turns off traction control. The car sounds rather quiet for a sports car with this much power on the highway. The gas mileage is also better than most in this category (BMW M3 is 16mpg for a 333hp 6 cyl, compared to a 24 mpg average on the Corvette which is a 350hp V8). I got 29 mpg on a two hour stretch of I95 at 79mph ironically making this my most fuel efficient car.
Driving around town is a little different than driving on the highway. The speed sensitive steering gives plenty of power assist as parking lot speeds (it tightens up on the highway). The biggest complaint on city driving is the low air dam under the car that scrapes everything. The owner's manual says it does not harm the car to scrape the air dam however you do get looks like you just trashed your Vette by onlookers watching you enter a gas station. The actual front fascia of the car is low as well making it prone to scraps on things such as pulling in to close to a curb, although these are protected by sacrificial bumper gaurds under the car. Although the car is low, getting in and out is surprisingly easier than most cars sitting this low.
I've heard of the door weather strips leaking around the targa top on some cars, however I have yet to see rain in my car so I can't confirm or deny this.

Maintenance:
The good news is there is plenty of aftermarket support for this car for everthing from turbo installations, to changing out all interior panels with red leather, to putting even more Corvette logos (on top the 22 that are all over the car already, to remind folks what it was that you bought). Bad news is all this stuff is overpriced because these manufactures equal Corvette owners with $$$.
As far as routine maintenance, the car keeps track of its own oil changes (forget the Jiffy Lube requirement of every 3K miles, the computer tells you to change the oil closer to 10K miles). Pulling "Check Engine Light" codes can be done inside the car without the use of a scan tool, as well as the ability to check any other codes from anything to the seat modules to the air conditioning and radio. The accessory belts are supposed to last longer than most (and are easy to change), the tires can't be rotated (one less thing to remember), GM doesn't recommend changing either the manual transmission fluid or rear diff fluid on any regular maintenance schedule. Automatic transmission owners don't have to change their fluid and filter until 100K miles, however there is no dipstick, so checking the fluid level is done underneath the car. That being said, there are some sports car like hassels with doing other maintenance. You'll need a special jack, ramps, and jacking pads to safely lift the car without damaging it. There is no spare tire so you can borrow the car's jack. A lot of mechanics may not know how to lift it properly resulting in underbody damage (the car as some unique components such as monoleaf composite springs that commonly get confused with a steel crossmember jacking point). Changing a clutch requires some special GM jacks to lower the entire rear drive train of the car and removing the exhaust system (strongly suggest taking this to a Chevy dealer for this kind of work). It's important to note however in the sports car category, this is still considered one of the most reliable. There are no multiple cam/timing belts to mess with, no turbos and intercoolers, no special direct injection adjustments, and no variable intake runners to mess with (who needs all that when its just as fast or faster with better gas mileage anyway?). Although Corvette parts can be pricey, they are still a bargain compared to Porsche/BMW/Mercedes Benz parts.

Closing notes:
Although the look of the car is up to one's own opinion, it seems to turn heads more often than not. Even with non-automotive enthusiasts, it seems to get an approving nod. The name itself is very familiar to people living in the US for the last 50 years and has always represented high performance at a cheaper price than foreign competition.
Given the performance, fuel economy, and reliability, you get a lot for the relatively low price of this car.
Amount Paid (US$): 24000
Condition: Used
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: Hatchback, 6-speed manual, Heads up display