BrianG

I had a '72 C3 and a '69 E-type Jag back in the day. The 'vette was quicker but should have been with 25% more displacement. It rode like a steel wheeled wagon and the Jag could go by it on the inside of any significant corner. The Jag spared your fillings on tar-strips while the 'vette pleased my dentist. My first 928 was a '86.5 and I had no idea that a car that was that sporty looking could both go that fast and be so comfortable.

I spin my own wrenches and really appreciate German engineering and craftsmanship, although I am still on the waiting list for 2 extra elbows on my right arm.

My current 928 is a ROW '87 auto, and I would say that it is definitely the best bang for the performance/luxury dollar these days!!

Kiln_Red

Funny to hear you say that. I always thought Chevrolet more or less "copied" from the 928 platform when they "designed" the C4. No other two cars by either maker have more in common than the Corvette and the 928. They are very comparable. I want to puke every time I hear someone refer to my cars as "German Corvettes."

928mac

Wow I am surprised by a lot of the comments. I would have never thought that vette owners would enjoy the 928 and have so much bad to say about their vette? Cool

Black Sea RD

IIRC, the GM copied the 928 trans-axle system for the C5 Corvette, not the C4. Then they updated it a bit with a beefier torque tube system.

The C6 Z06 and now the C6 Grand Sport models sure do make a compelling argument, especially the Grand Sport.

The Grand Sport's engine, which pumps out 430HP and comparable torque, is hand made along side the Z06 and ZR1 engines and is also dry sumped with the 6 speed transmission. The body has the wide fenders like the Z06 and also has the same brakes. It can also be ordered with the magnetic suspension system which first debuted on the ZR1. Change the seats, add a harness bar/harnesses and you will have a great street/DE car out of the box. Great power train warranty too. Used ones are popping up already and can be had for less than 50K.

No big problem if the engine goes, order another one from GM for less than 12,000 with warranty. How much does a 928 engine cost to rebuild after a failure? Especially if you want to increase it's performace to match the performance of a standard C6 engine?

Yes, they are plentiful on the street, but still a great package for the money. As far as the interior, I really don't care all that much as long as it looks good and works well. I like the mechanicals of a car. If I wanted to get a car with a great interior I would look at Audis, BMWs, Caddys, Jags, Mercedes, etc.

Anyone have/had a C6 Z06 or Grand Sport?

Cheers,

blown 87

One of my Corvette budds has a C6 GS, loves it.
Also the C5 did not come out until after the end of production of the 928, so not a really fair comparison in my book.
As far as the interior, sorry but if I spend 75 grand on a car i expect a bit better than a Cobalt steering wheel.

hacker-pschorr

The only problem with that theory is Porsche copied the trans-axle system from the 1963 Pontiac Tempest

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_Tempest

blown 87

And GM stole it from Ford who stole it from somebody else, not much new out there, just different ways of doing it.

Alan

I think it all started a very long time before that... its been in "refinement mode" for a very very long time...

Alan

hansjimsen

The wife heading out to the store

'05 C6 LMB (Le Mans Blue). When I stop and think about "the most fun I've had with my pants on" ..... Mmmmm. The vette is right at the top. Scary fast.

Erik N

Don't even the biggest baddest modern Vette's still use pushrods?
When I think of pushrods, I think of 1940's technology. Yeah, they work, but the coolness factor is zero, IMHO.

When I open the hood of the 928, people say "Oh, a V-8?" I answer "Yes, it is an overhead-cam, all-aluminum, European grey-market, high-compression V-8, connected to a rear-mounted, LSD 5-speed transaxle." Then I usually go on to explain the weight distribution, balance, stability, and self-steering rear end. They are usually amazed when I tell them the car is over 30 years old. I say, "Yep. No computers, ABS, traction control or anything like that. Just nuts and bolts. It's a great machine."

Occasionally I will mention that the modern Corvettes use this same configuration 3 decades later (especially if there is a Corvette owner around). I will then add that the modern Vette's are faster around the track, but the 928 loves a good powerslide.

All this while attempting not to sound smug.

thal

I've owned a '02 Z06. Very fast, brakes are outstanding. I had several comments from my DE instructors who were Porsche owners that the brakes were better than what they had. It ate the track up at Watkins Glen. Just no replacement for displacement as they say. And the hwy fuel econ at >25mpg is pretty freaking impressive. But..., it feels big, which my 928 does not give that impression. Also, driving around town is not so much fun, which is why I sold mine. My insurance was not higher than I had with other cars, maybe because I'm over fifty and have been with the same insurance company for thirty years were mitigating factors. I'm not sure the long term maintenance costs will be that different.

The big selling point for me was that my wife likes the 928 styling more than the vette, it is a rarer car on the road (which is nice), she thinks the ride of the 928 is superior, and if I can get her to ride with me, it is as they say, "priceless".

my O2.

928mac

Mercury, in the ZR1 went to over head cam around 85, here is a cut and paste of some info.
or read it here. http://www.zr1netregistry.com/LT5tech.htm

An engine is only as good as its cylinder heads and on the LT5, they're a work of art and science unheard of until now on an American V8. They have four valves per cylinder, hard valve seats, press-in valve guides and centrally located spark plugs. Valve angle is a narrow 22 degrees that results in several desirable features: 1) shallow combustion chamber with good squish characteristics 2) straight ports and 3) relatively narrow head allowing less overall engine width. Valve sizes are 1.54-inches for intakes and 1.38-inches for exhausts. The shallow combustion chambers and the dished pistons make for an astounding 11.25:1 compression ratio! LT5 could live with that high figure on, so said Chevrolet at the time, 87 octane regular unleaded gas due to high-swirl intake port and combustion chamber design along with digital control of the fuel and ignition schedules. Later, once the ZR-1 was in production, Chevrolet revised its fuel requirement for the LT5 to at least 91 octane, premium unleaded fuel.

The induction system is described as "three-phase" and looks like a sci-fi version of the tuned port injection we've known since 1985. There are three throttle bores, 16 runners and 16 Multech injectors. The smallest throttle plate, 22mm, supplies air at idle and very low speeds. Next, the two main throttle bores, 59mm each, open. Below half-throttle and 3500 rpm, the engine runs with the auxiliary throttle plates in the secondary ports closed and on eight of the injectors.

Once the driver gets his boot into a LT5 V8, things begin to happen. When both 3500 rpm and 1/2 throttle are exceeded, the auxiliary throttle plates pop open and the second set of injectors come on line. The extra punch of the secondaries is further augmented by their more aggressive intake valve timing. This three-phase TPI maintains high intake flow velocity and turbulence along with tight control of air/fuel ratio over a wide range of engine speeds. The result of this is a flat torque-curve and that, along with digital engine controls, is responsible for the engine meeting Schaafsma's goal of smooth down low and real nasty on the top end.

Erik N

I should have added that I have ridden in Hoosier-clad vette's around a couple of tracks, and they are scary-fast. They can almost part your hair, under a helmet. The braking was like hitting a wall.

Black Sea RD

I know GM studied the 928 trans-axle system while they were designing the C5 Corvette drive-line. That the trans-axle system had been around for a long time before that is not in question. I believe there is a GM photo floating around with a 928 in pieces in the background.

Greg, as far as the interior, who cares. It can be changed and Porsche owners always seem to be changing their interiors, wheels, brakes, clutches, gear shift systems, suspensions, exhausts, etc. and they spend a lot more than $75K for their car.

I will always regard the 928 as one of the best cars ever made. That it was made by Porsche is a happenstance of it's birth. If it had been made by an American car company, I wouldn't love it any less.

blown 87

You are right, the interior can be changed on a Corvette, I am on my third set.
I wish a American Company would build a car to the quality standards that Porsche built the 928 to, I would love it also.
Sadly, I have yet to see that car.