Corvette is like Buick of sports cars. its mostly the aged people who desire it.

I happen to love Z06's. I'm into my mid 20's, that sure makes me feel old.

 

So basically he tries not to attack and stereotype Corvette owners, but he does. Then he says those people are now buying M3s and G35/G37s.

In conclusion, I guess he is saying the stereotype has moved to those 2 cars lol.

The Corvette has a base very few cars have and the M3 doesn't have it nor the G35/37. Some people will ONLY buy a Corvette. Period. Also he says the Vette price has creeped up but he fails to mention so has everything else. I priced a 370Z roadster and the damn thing was near 48k for example.

The Vette is not going anywhere and if anything it will only continue to get better. The C5 was a huge leap over the C4 and then the C6 came and blew us all away. The Vette has also remained true to low weight where everyone else is adding pounds.

The main thing the Vette lacks is interior refinement which surely will be improved next time.

Looking at sales, the Vette sells as much and more than the cheaper G37. That tells you a lot about the price. People think its appropriate.

 

^ Bingo....

 

You could say the same thing with how many of us would run to a Maserati, Bentley, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Porsche, Ferrari dealership and even remember Lexus exists. Of course if people suddenly come into a ton of money they are going to want a dream car that they could never imagine owning instead of something somewhat within reach that they see on the roads every day.



I mostly disagree with the article but it has a few decent points. The Corvette is still an icon and still a very competitive sports car. Nothing can really touch it for the price. Saying a Corvette is too expensive at 48K and then saying a 70K+ M3 is better without taking its more expensive price and lower performance into hand is ridiculous. Same with saying a Corvette can't compete with a Porsche 911 because the Corvette interior is not great, of course a 48K Corvette is not going to have as nice an interior as a 80K+ 911 and a 911 under a 100K is still not going to outperform a Corvette. A 911 interior quality is good but not all that great either, the 996 interiors were downright cheap in many areas. There is no sports car in the market that comes close to the looks and performance of a Corvette, even a base Corvette is 430hp in a car weighing around 3200lbs and is fast as hell. Don't even mention a GTR, it is 75K-80K not counting the huge markups. Yes the interior is pretty bad on the new Corvette and build quality and reliability are not great but they does not mean the Corvette is a bad car or its days are numbered.

The next Corvette is rumored to be smaller and more European like and I am sure it is going to get a pretty good interior as GM has been improving in interior design and quality in the last few years. I think the next Gen Corvette is going to be a pretty significant car and something hard to fault.

I am not even a big fan of Corvettes but there is no denying it is a fantastic sports car, an icon, and nothing can touch it for the price.

 

I know that the base sticker price of the M3 is $55k. I mistakenly compared a loaded M3 with the base vette. But even at a $5k difference, does the M3 really give that much more car compared to the vette?

How much are GTRs going for nowadays? Last I heard, you're gonna need to drop at least $70-$80k to get yourself one.

 

While I hate the M3 as much if not more than I loathe the Corvette, it offers much more for the same amount of money. While the interior is not absolutely phenomal, it is ergonomic, it works, the layout is simple, it's pretty to look at and it has top-of-the-line materials. The ride quality can be jarring when you want it to be, or soft and cushy when you're just cruising around or getting to work. Plus, it's 'driveable' in the winter and it's probably more reliable than a Corvette, although more expensive to maintain. I guess it's just the way it's built that simply does not justify the .3, .4 seconds the Corvette has on the M3 in the 0-60.

 

+1 on this particularly the weight gain problem most cars have

Corvette interiors get alot of critisism but I must say not only is it highly functional but very comfortable.
I think this writer is trying to increase posts on Edmunds blog as the main goal

 

Thats the problem with the Corvette, if one buys a Corvette, they will need a second car. If they buy a M3 or a G37, they dont.

 

Didn't realize it was Edmunds. I refuse to link their crap anymore.

That is like saying "the Suburban has a problem of being slow at the track".


Thats not a problem as its OBVIOUS it is not a car that has utility. No one buys a VEtte and says "damn I can't fit more people". They already KNOW that is the issue.

Its an all out sports car like many other 2 seaters, the 370Z, Cayman, R8, GT3, etc etc.

Of course that is a an additional selling point of the M3 or G37, they are more GT. The G37 for a pretty large vehicle doesn't exactly have a bunch of interior room or trunk space. The M3 uses space far better.

 

This can be said about the M3 or other performance Sedan/Coupes out there as well. Most would be passing by the BMW dealership and M3 on their way to the Ferrari Dealership as well. Perhaps with the GTR people would still buy it because it is a unique car, but time will tell on that one.

 

08-09 MUCH improved

No... I drove a 370Z Nismo that more than justifies $22K discount over a GSVette and should outhandle it all day, + better interior. Z06 is much better BUT $29K more than 370Z...

Build quality (especially with leather package) is DRAMATICALLY improved. A Z06 will take a 911 and run with a GT-R all day but... see below

For pure horsepower, yes... but here's the rub: a great driver in a good sports car will outperform an average driver in a better car UNLESS there is a tremendous HP advantage and more straightaways.

Now, if this is a ZR1 discussion, I'll take it STOCK and destroy ANY other car on ANY drive pavement over 45 degrees outside temperature no matter what the location... there is NO car that can run with it for under $500K... and if I had $119K, I'd take one as my car today without question (just sold at EVS for sticker).

my $.02...

 

The ZR1 is, however, not nearly as sophisticated as a price-comparable GT-R, or a performance-comparable Ferrari 599XX. It offers a simple Tremec gearbox you see in the Challenger and the Camaro and as far as I know, that transmission is utter crap and the skipshift is downright dangerous. Until Chevrolet develops a sophisticated, dual-clutch e-Gear (I know e-Gear is only one clutch) or F1 gearbox, it will never be able to compete with cars in upwards of $400,000 on a realistic scale, because none of those cars offer traditional manual transmissions (except the Porsche GT), because the manufacturers know that no one short of a race car driver will be able to tap into all the power with one. There's a reason why the LP670 Super Veloce is offered only with e-Gear... and that's because it would be utterly uncontrollable by the everyman without it. I have had the change to drive a ZR1 and while I was impressed, a manual gearbox is not befitting of such a high-performance automobile. You can try to call it a driver's car but that simply won't cut it with me, because the people who can afford such a car are beyond the point in their life where it is 'necessary' for them to justify their manhood by having an extra pedal.

Now it should be taken into account that a lot of you here will 'want' a manual transmission, but the matter of fact is that even all the enthusiast forums in the world do not account for a viable fraction of the population buying such cars. What we want is not necessarily want most people actually buying these cars want.

 

I'd be at my buddy's dealership the very next morning with a briefcase full of cash for the ZR1.

The exotic dealerships would have to wait until the next day.

 

All that sophistication sure adds alot of mass are you familiar with the laws of inertia?

 

Are you familiar with the GT-R or better yet, the Bugatti Veyron?