prg

I'm guessing this invective is directed at me? I never said the car wasn't fast. Both the GT3 and the base vette are probably faster than my old stradale but the stradale was more fun to drive. I just didn't enjoy driving the vette on the street as much as the GT3 ( or my s2000 for that matter). The steering feel is a little numb. (This is a highly subjective OPINION from my unskilled hands.) I'll leave any comments regarding the "assmeter" to the expert.

OldGuy

It looks just like a leaf spring. But it looks nothing like the traditional coil over suspension that the C6Rs
use in those REAL race cars.

Alan Smithee

It doesn't to me...but whatever. Street cars are a compromise...the GT3 and RS included. We all know that.

The Z06 will run with...and dare I say ahead of...an RS for base Carrera money. It's not for me, but it does deserve respect.

f4 plt

I have a Corvete C6 ( 2008) with the Z51 package and it is a nice car, more of a GT vehicle than a pure sports car. Great for trips but and has excellent V8 power, but no where near the sports car my GT3 is. I have looked at the Z06 but first it is the same interior as the regular C6 (not a good as the Porsche) has basically the same suspension which has a hard time handling the increased power and its brakes are still not up to the GT3. Second their have been more than several issues with the LS 7 engine in the Z06. Quite a few have had main bearing issues and a friend had to have his engine torn apart after only several hundred miles as the bolts on the connecting rod for # 8 cyl. had not been tightened and these are hand built engines. Yes I like the C6 but when you get up to the Z06 price range there are many other options and after all where can you use all that power. If the answer is on the track you need to do some rather expensive mods to make it work. The GT3 out of the box will track nicely. My .02 cents worth

djb_rh

We're getting into a holy war here. The original poster was asking about something *cheaper* to track. He has an RS and needs to sell it for financial reasons. We're looking at reasonable alternatives for him to still have something fun to track. A Z06 fits that bill for the most part.

It's a lot cheaper to give a Z06 enough brakes and handling to pass the GT3 than it is to give the GT3 more motor. Now if you don't like the interior or this or that, fine, but that wasn't really the original question. Plus, I suppose it's time to point out that the original poster doesn't like the Z06, so perhaps it's time to help him find something else that we can start a holy war about.

Me, I suggest he go with a Cayman S and start modding as he has the budget. *cough*

--Donnie

mooty

alan, donnie,

i think we are on the same page.
i ran with Z06, they are fast, very very fast. i can hang with them only b/c they dont turn as well, thus i said with some good coil overs and brakes it will be formidable. i doubt very much that given equal drivers, RS will beat Z06 on track.

now, that's just performance issues.

i dont own a Z06, i just flog my friends with abandon on track. i cannot speak to reliability, durability, overheating (if any), resale value issues.

the interior is not the best, but so is my RS. i dont really care that much about the interior as long as the car is good and Z06 is very good.

but make no mistake, though it is cheaper than GT3, it is NOT that much cheaper. let's compare new car to new cars. 75k for the car more or less, add 10k for suspension and brakes. 85k on z06 vs 110k for GT3 (of course i am assuming you can get one at msrp, and you can, at one time).

i just feel that some ppl (not alan or donnie or...) make it out to sound like Z06 is 20k vs 110k GT3. that's not the case.

if one is talking about c5z06, then you are comparing a 3-4 year old car with a newer car. mabye then it needs to compare to 996gt3 for price. (yes, c5 z06 is still faster than 996gt3 given equal driver assuming car doesnt break down. i haven't seen many z06 break on track, just my experience.)

eclou

For that matter, why not go for a good used 6Gt3? One sold here in Houston recently at $65k

blake

+1 on that. I would (and did) take a "6" GT3 over a new 997 as a track car. With the prices down in the 60s/70s on low mileage "3"s, why not?

In fact, I am very interested (tongue in cheek) in starting a holy war on the 996 GT3 versus 997 GT3 debate. Let's see - bang for the buck at $65K versus $120K. Hmm. This point answers why I canceled my 997 GT3 order.

But I must be careful, b/c this is the 997 board. All right, I am really not that interested in starting a holy war.

-B

eclou

couple of guys here have pretty extensive 6gt3 vs 7gt3 seat time. IIRC there was not a big delta in lap times

TTRob

Actually, I know that Kerbeck is (was?) discounting Z06s nearly $10K.. that's a lot of mod money. Whoever's interested in Z06, check out a large Corvette dealer near you.. evidently, it's a good time to buy.

TraqGear

allegretto

New Z 06 with tax $83000
Motons 6000
Brembos 6000
Exhaust/Headers 5000
Ron Davis radiator 1000
Caravaggio seats 3500
Misc goodies 2000
Wheels/tires 4-10000 depends on what you want

So as you can see. To optimize a Z for the track, you're up in GT-3 territory. You will have a faster car, but it's still a driver's race

The Carivaggio seats are necessary since the other makes disable many of the safety features and the telescoping steering wheel won't work either. So those seats are it if you want to retain the convienences.

NJ-GT

Definitely the 08 Z06 and the 08 GT3 are in way different price ranges, even after upgrades.

Also, the Vette has much more versatility to be modified for track duty. There is more aftermarket support for the Vette at a much lower price.

Base 2008 Z06 with 1LZ option: $71,000
Motons: $6,500. This includes monoball upper strut mounts, and full coilovers at the four corners. You can remove the rear leaf spring, and install front/rear adjustable sway bars for another $2,000 on parts.
Brakes: Only the front ones need replacement. Stoptech has a $3,000 kit
Radiator: Yes, it is needed for track duty: $1,000
Tires: $2,000. Michelin Pilot Sport Cups: 285/30R18 and 325/30R19 on the stock wheels.

For $85k, you get a brand new 2008 Z06 with good brakes for track duty, a full coil-over track suspension, adjustable sway bars, monoball strut mounts and decent tires.

Don't confuse steering feel from the floppy GoodYear F1 tires. I have driven the C5 Z06 with Kumho V710 tires, and the steering feel improves a lot. The 2008 vettes got some improvements on steering feel compared with the 06-07 C6, and the C6 got it better than the C5. Put some solid bushings and it can get better. The C6 I drove at the Chevrolet Rev-It Up had decent steering feel, not as good as my GT3, but good enough.

I would like to see the price for the Ceramic brakes from Chevy. They're the same units used in the Ferrari FXX, Enzo and F430 Scud, they can't be bad. Easily a +50 lbs weight reduction over the already light Z06.

Other car to consider:

- The 2008 Viper SRT-10 ACR. This car is coming with double adjustable shocks from the factory, an unheard downforce for a street car, Michelin Pilot Sport Cups, lighweight wheels, and the option to delete the radio and sound insulation. BTW, no sunroof.

Jon70

I agree completely with this and mentioned it in my earlier post. This Viper takes it to a new level. I think I remember it has something like 1000 lbs of downforce at 150 mph.

allegretto

Thanks for the heads-up on the 325 Sport Cups. Last year I couldn't get those tires. Everyone was going 18's all around and so new wheels added to costs. So that is a tangible savings. Still needs a seat solution however. The stock seats are inadequate for tracking.

You can go cheap on the brakes and just do the fronts, but most go four corners. Most also opt for headers/exhaust. but you can go cheaper.

What you cannot do in my state anyway, is pay no tax. So I think you're near $100K even on the cheap. At that point most guys here will buy what they like.

But I agree, the Vette is very upgradable. Add $30K to the engine and it will be bye-bye to a GT-2 on the straights too.

Why do you think it's my track hound?