I have a C5 Z06 with about 5k on-track miles. Two months ago I spent three days driving C6's (normal and Z06) on a road course.

I will name ONE item: Seats. The seats in the C5 and C6 'vettes suck. In particular the ratchet-style seat-back angle adjustment (used on AFAIK all American and Japanese cars with manual back adjustment) is a POS that should have been $hit-canned 20 years ago. Also, the seats feel flimsy. You can feel them flex whenever you move around in the seat,

 

That is one of the things that a C4 has on a C5, the seats are better in the C4. At least to me.
I think the seats in the C5/C6 are made for bigger folks than me. (the American market is getting wider across the butt I think)
another is the clamshell hood.

Now the rest of the C5/C6 is light years ahead of the C4.

 

CarChick has some track time in a C4 ZR-1. I'll see if her backside remembers what the seat was like.

Given how narrow the C5/C6 is between the center tunnel and the door, if the trend continues the C7 will need a bench seat.

But, yeah, I've read in various places that American car seats are getting wider because American's are getting wider. Me thinks that rising food prices may not be, totally, a bad thing.

 

I remember from my younger days that bench seats did have some distinct advantages.

 

Well, I skipped 12 pages of this. Vettes' are nice. When I'm out and about on LI, in 10 minutes I can count 3 and then 5 by the time I get back from Home Depot. "The hood's too long." We're all car nuts.

 

Sigh. I had no intention of getting into a flamefest. I simply gave my honest, hands-on experience.

I'm sorry, but if you go sit in a Z06, there's basically a gun-slit view out the back. No matter how short or tall you are.

I'm sorry, but plastic pieces really were falling off the interior of all 3 nearly-brand-new examples I got to play with, and (since you need a very simple starting point) the cheap glued-on carpeting on the sides of the center tunnel was peeling off all three of the vehicles. Switchgear was behind the 20-year-old Porsche curve. I could go on, but I doubt the flamers on the other side are really interested in listening anyway.

I will continue to very clearly add that the vette is an outstanding performance car, and the Z06 has a stunning drivetrain - it's a very impressive package. It just doesn't happen to be my style.

 

Brendan, if you're ever in Northern CA and want to take a drive in my C6 Z06, give me a call. I love the car, gold chain image and all. Corvette owners are every bit as passionate about their cars as 928 owners and the C6 is a very competent car for the money.

As the owner of 10 928s over the past 20 years, from an early '78 Euro to a '93 GTS, I've put thousands of road and track miles on my various cars. Some of them I've only owned briefly and some I've torn down to the last bolt and rebuilt, like the '83 Euro S recently sold to a local lister in NorCal. I still own three 928s and can't picture myself without at least one of them. I think I've learned a thing or two about the car over the years.

When I bought my GTS in '99 I felt I had acquired the ultimate 928. As one of the few auto 928s I've owned, I quickly became disappointed in the performance and even considered selling the car. Putting in a kick down switch on the dead pedal, aggressive use of the go pedal, and a 928 Int'l RMB (still love the sound) convinced me to keep the car and I enjoyed it for years.

Earlier this year I purchased a C6 Z06 after finally getting the chance to drive one and finding a car I could actually acquire without paying the ridiculous additional dealer markup so often found as a barrier to entry for these cars. I got the car because I was impressed by the features and capabilities, loved the power and handling, but mostly because I'm just plain tired of spending my time on my back underneath a 928 every free minute I have. I wanted a street legal, capable automobile with warranty that I didn't need to constantly fix. I got that in the Z06. Whenever I drive up to my dealer in the car, various sales people come out to talk to me and see how things are going. The service manager races his C5 Z06 and bends over backwards to be helpful and friendly, even though he's well aware that I track the car and use it in open road events. This is in stark contrast to the Porsche service manager in Walnut Creek, CA who sneered at my 928 several years ago when I asked him a question and stated, "The less I know about 928s, the better." Needless to say, I don't take my 911 there either.

Maybe I'm an anomaly, but I thoroughly enjoy my Corvette and the crowd of Corvette owners I've gotten to meet and associate myself with this year. I also enjoy my 928s and the excellent crowd of folks I've come to know through my years of ownership with those cars. I'm still impressed by a well cared for 928 and enjoy seeing them on the road. Now I've got another circle of friends to have fun with during my free time since I'm spending less and less of it staring at the underside of multiple 928's, trying to keep them all running. Believe it or not, many Corvette owners also appreciate the 928 for the same reasons they like their Corvettes.

We're mostly all enthusiasts. Enjoy what you've got and learn to appreciate what other people are driving. If you don't like it, don't buy one.

 

New Vettes are like bleached blondes in LA, with big fake ****, named Candy- They're EVERYWHERE! Sure- they're fun to look at and maybe take for a quick spin. But I prefer an elegant and cultured woman- a la 928.

Vettes really don't even turn my head anymore- yes there is no denying the bang for the buck performance. They are the stereotypical middle-aged divorced bald guys ride.I'd rather have a cool modernized classic muscle car for the same dough.

 

You mean they're both named Candy?

 

Hmm, I have seen the same thing said by the 944 owners about the 928 crowd

 

You're right- same demographic .

PS buy a membership

 

Thanks. I should be up there occassionally. I may take you up on your offer.

 

Sorry, I spent all of my spare retirement income when I joined a vette forum.

 

The FIA certified Recaro racing shells in my 79 feel the same way
I find these comments funny when coming from 928 owners. I love 928's more than Corvette's or I would own one (a Vette), still.....

How many interior issues does every 928 have? Cracked / warped dash, gauge pod, thread on the steering wheel coming off, lamination on the HVAC controls going to ****.
Sorry, those POS pieces on either side of the tunnel are what, cardboard covered with carpet? Nice plywood on the fuse cover, real attention to detail and quality there.
Not to mention the shifter boot, would it have killed Porsche to use some quality pieces here? How about the Honda style accordian shifter on the auto's?

The Corvette interior is not perfect, neither is the 928. Compred to a modern Porsche, I'm sorry. The 2007 911 I sat in with 100% drab gray interior was no better than the last Corvette I was in.