Buyer Research

2014 Chevrolet Corvette — Should You Buy One?

Typical asking price: $30,000–$45,000. There are 4 high-severity known issues you need to know before handing over a check.

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Kestrel Take

The first year of the C7 Stingray, and first-year cars carry first-year corrections: five recall campaigns, three of them about whether the airbags and belt pretensioners will actually fire. Settle all five on the VIN before anything else, because they are free and two of them are narrow build-date windows you cannot guess at. Beyond the recalls the record spreads out — 13 fuel-system complaints about the same tank leak that plagued the previous generation, nine powertrain filings including two torque tube failures on one car, and eight electrical ones that are mostly the infotainment screen. The engine and the chassis are the reason to buy it; the paperwork is the reason to take your time.

What we checked

Reconciled against public records, 2026-09-25

NHTSA holds 61 owner complaints for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette, and 5 recall campaigns.

A big number here usually means a lot of these were sold, not that it is a bad vehicle — popular models collect more complaints for the same rate of trouble. So the total on its own says little. What is worth reading is the shape of it. The largest single group is the fuel system at 21%. That is notable without being overwhelming — worth checking, not worth panicking about.

5 recall campaigns cover this model year. Recalls are repaired free, for any owner, with no time limit on most safety campaigns — but only if someone books it in. Ask the seller to show it was done, or have any dealer check the VIN; it takes them a couple of minutes and costs nothing.

Counts come from the NHTSA complaint and recall database — free, public, and worth checking yourself.

Known Issues for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette

Ranked by wallet impact. These are documented, recurring problems — not freak accidents. How we decide that.

Fuel leak at the primary pump module flange — and the GM coverage for it has expiredHigh — wallet impact

Thirteen complaints describe fuel leaking at the top of the tank: fumes building in the garage and house, a puddle under the rear driver's side, smell coming through the cabin vents, one car leaking under 10,000 miles. Owners name GM's Special Coverage Adjustment 17469, 'Fuel Leaks at the Primary Fuel Pump Module Flange', and point out it has run out and that GM does not chase owners who bought used from a private seller. Fill the tank, drive it, park it somewhere enclosed, and go back in ten minutes to smell for yourself.

Repair cost (estimate): $900–$2,500 per tank module including labour

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the fuel system (13).

Airbag control module can short and switch off the airbags and belt pretensioners (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 14V299000 covers cars built 23 to 25 April 2014, where the Sensing and Diagnostic Module can short internally and deactivate the airbags and the seat belt pretensioners — in a crash, nothing fires. Dealers replace the module free. Two later campaigns, 16V651000 and 17V437000, reflash the same module's software on 2014-and-later Corvettes for the same failure mode, replacing it outright on cars that had already had a deployment. This year's file records five crashes, one fire and seven injuries, which is why we would not take a seller's word on any of these. Check the VIN.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 5 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Rear shock absorbers with a bad weld can come apart while you are driving (recall)High — wallet impact

Recall 14V377000 covers cars built 12 February to 14 March 2014: an improper weld means the rear shock absorber tube can separate from its clevis bracket, and the car's handling changes suddenly with no warning. Dealers replace both rear shocks free of charge and the campaign opened in August 2014. It is a four-and-a-half week build window, so most 2014s are outside it — but a car that changed hands a few times may never have been brought in. The NHTSA VIN lookup answers it in a minute; a clunk over bumps from the rear is your physical check.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 5 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Optional sport seats: side airbag replaced for child injury protection (recall)Medium

Recall 14V342000 covers cars built 20 November 2013 to 25 March 2014 fitted with the optional sport seats, whose side airbags did not meet GM's internal injury-protection specification for an unbelted young child. Dealers replace the passenger side impact airbag free of charge. It matters most if a child will ever ride in this car, and it is another reason to run the VIN rather than trust a folder of receipts. If the car has the base seats, it is not in this campaign.

Repair cost: $0 with the recall — verify it was performed

Source: 5 NHTSA recall campaigns on this model year.

Torque tube failures, second-gear grinding, and a driveline shake nobody could fixHigh — wallet impact

Nine powertrain complaints and they are not small: one owner's torque tube failed at 14,423 miles and again 1,500 miles later, 38 days in the shop between them; another reports the manual's second-gear synchroniser grinding on both up and downshifts; another was quoted six to eight thousand dollars for a driveline vibration that shook the whole car at every engine speed. There is also a differential oil leak in the cluster. Drive it at highway speed with the radio off feeling for vibration, and shift 1-2-3 briskly, cold and warm.

Repair cost (estimate): $1,500–$4,000 for a torque tube; $1,200–$2,500 for a second-gear synchro rebuild

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under the transmission and drivetrain (9).

Infotainment screen, backup camera and navigation dropping out togetherMedium

Eight electrical complaints, most of them the centre display: the infotainment unit going dead and taking the GPS and reversing camera with it, a screen that flickers and rolls while driving, a car that lost the display along with a misfire. One owner reports coolant temperature climbing at idle and in low gears with the level full. Sit in the car with the engine running for a good ten minutes: cycle every screen, select reverse and confirm the camera comes up clear, and watch the temperature gauge while you do it.

Repair cost (estimate): $300–$1,400

Source: NHTSA complaints filed under electrics and electronics (8).

Walk-Away Red Flags

✗Fuel smell in an enclosed garage after filling the tank
✗Any of the five recalls showing open on the NHTSA VIN lookup
✗Vibration through the floor at steady highway speed
✗Centre screen that blanks, flickers or rolls while the engine runs

Good Signs

✓All five recall campaigns shown complete on the NHTSA VIN lookup
✓Fuel pump module replaced after the special coverage expired, with the invoice
✓A reversing camera that comes up clear and immediately every time
✓Documented torque tube or driveline work by a Chevrolet dealer