wizee

The GT4 is 3130 lbs wet with sofa seats and iron brakes, around 3060 lbs with buckets and PCCB. The Corvette will be around 3550-3600 wet without Z51, and likely more than that in Z51 and with upgraded interior. The C8 is around 500 lbs heavier than the GT4, not 250.

The power to weight ratio isn’t that different between a GT4 and Corvette C8. Sure, the torque is higher, but it only revs to 6600 instead of 8000. A school bus makes much more low end torque than the C8 - does that make it better to drive?

2slow2speed

The comparison is between a 718 GT4 with PDK for reference, not the 981 GT4. 8spd DCT vs the 7spd PDK, the gearing on the DCT will be better relative to the PDK. I have read that the curb weight for the 718 GT4 with the 6 speed manual is about 3200lbs, expecting the PDK to add about 40-50 lbs if not more due to the extra cooling necessary for the PDK for real track duty.

I guess we will have to wait for trap speeds in the 1/4 mile as well as ET's. If you want to do apples to apples comparison it might require a yet to be announced Z07 package with CCB's and other goodies as well as seats that will be comparable to the CF bucket seats on the GT4.

In regards to torque, depending on the track layout, having more available torque down low that the car can put down helps a lot when coming out of the slow corners, tire sizes 285 vs 305. The e-diff vs the traditional diff on the PDK that has been offered on the 718 cars will also make a difference in available traction.

Besides the engine been a not so stellar achievement on the C8, the C8 has a better suspension than the GT4, double wishbones vs struts. MRC vs PASM.

Some folks are caught up only about a single parameter instead of looking at the overall package.

ZDan

For a sports car, IMO engine power/weight and power/size are more important than power/displacement.
If you aren't displacement-limited by racing class rules, a large-displacement OHV cam-in-block V8 is a pretty elegant solution for getting 500 N.A. hp out of a relatively compact and lightweight powerplant.

eltoshan

Its true, people don’t realize how light these small block v8s are. The LT1 is like 460lb IIRC

TexasRider

Yeah - its only 500. Sold in a showroom and with a warranty. Whats that GT3 level? And better.

Yeah they can get more. They did it in the ZR1 right? But I'm sure in the interest of a balanced BASE car they can sell, the 500 is right in there in their mind. It is in mine too.

There is a place right down the road here in Texas that can pump 100, 200, or probably 500 more horsepower in to that 6.2 for us if its not enough.

I strongly recommend that when you do pump it up that you have a very finely tuned foot, butt, and very quick hands or things can get out of hand. Fast. And warranty? Who cares then right. If you blow the thing just crank a new one down in it.

Paul Walker and those guys don't do us any favors. And that's the kind of thing that can take us back to the 190 hp Corvettes and Porsches. When the Gov gets in it on behalf of highway safety and Lives Matter - you can be assured it will not be a good thing.

I remember a guy came in to the motorcycle shop and bought a 1000cc sport bike while I happened to be there and them working on something for me. It was obvious to me he didn't have the experience to be on that motorcycle. I later found out that within a few minutes and few miles of leaving with it he was severely injured for life. What does that mean? Who is at fault? Well he should have known - and others should have too.

bertram928

How hard is it to change the ring and pinion gears, lets say if currently a 2.73 ratio to 3.75 ratio

bertram928

Sorry about your experience, and for sport bike guy, when i go I would it rather be a quick end, whether by my own ignorance or ill advised actions at least I got to do what i liked and aspired too, life with no engagement and passion has no meaning to me.

On another note is it not ridicules that if you blow an LT2 motor you could potentially get a factory LT1 block that may just bolt up for $1,829.51 (with rebate LOL)

https://www.jegs.com/i/Chevrolet+Per...B&gclsrc=aw.ds

chillindrdude

Pretty hard. Labor intensive.

bertram928

BTW, the C8 would make an excellent car to travel the US if you are retired:

1.- 30+ mpg instead of 6 to 8 mpg in motor home.
2. the difference in gas cost and depreciation would pay for bed and breakfast, hotels and motels along the way.
3. open top makes for a more scenic drive in the mountains, power means no stressing about holding up traffic
4. handling means one can stay off the interstates and take more scenic back roads with no difference in point A to B time.
5. enough luggage space to take along what you actually need

Owning an exotic engineering marvel pushing all know boundaries in car design; priceless

Having a net positive ROI could be possible as everyone will be clamoring for their turn to sample this beast when everyone catches on but by then demand will likely exceed supply

hf1

In 2006, before I had driven a Porsche, I cross-shopped Corvette, 911, and Boxster. I test-drove them in that order. The first turn I took in that Boxster changed me for life. I picked the Boxster over both the 911 and the Corvette (with 2x the HP). I decided I will never be Porsche-less again.

For me, a car has never been about prestige or status signalling (Boxster, lol). It's also not about how luxurious the interior looks/feels. It's about how the car is built and how it feels. There is a certain feel in a Porsche that I have not found in any other sports car regardless of performance metrics. My 6gt3 feels like it was cut from a single block of metal even at 15yrs of age. My first Boxster felt the same with zero sqeaks, rattles, or problems after 6 years, 40k miles, and 70+ track days, bone stock.

I drove a C7 couple of years ago. I still wouldn't pick one over my (recently acquired) 987.1 Boxster S for even $, much less at 3x the price. Luckily we don't have to buy all our cars new. All makes, models, and years are in play for me when I'm looking for the perfect tool for a job. I just took it on a 2hr backroads run and was grinning amazed (yet again) by how well it does the job it was designed to do.

I hope reviews and tests confirm that the C8 is something special. I hope I feel that myself when I test drive one. I will delay judgment until then.

Sunny_M3

And your point is?

slc4s

umm... you shouldn't. You are missing the point.

This car is not even pretending to go after the 720 or GT3RS... If you have and can afford those cars you aren't a Corvette customer. Period.

Now if you are shopping for a 718s/gts/spyder/etc...

Or a BMW Z4, M3, M4, Etc...

Or even a 992 S or 4S

There are a lot of cars below $120k brand new that are going to feel this competition. The fact in your head the 720 and GT3RS were even relevant to this car is exactly why somebody considering a 718 might get interested in the Vette.

Sunny_M3

The only thing I am concerned about is the overheating stuff. I want to get a report back about how the Vette does after hard track sessions. Furthermore, the sweet spot of the Corvette range (for me) has always been the Grand Sport; as a result, if I decide to get the Vette as a second car, it would be that one. If I'm being honest; however, I'm actually more inclined to get a Mustang GT350R. To me, the GT350R is just more of a special car: unique engine, manual transmission, limited production, and great handling.

ipse dixit

No one is really cross-shopping a GT3/RS with a Corvette.

It wasn't the case with the C7 (either the GS or Z06 iterations) and most likely it won't be with the C8 vis-a-vis the 992 GT models.

While both a Porsche 911 (and its GT variants) and the Corvette are aspirational purchases, the demographics for both are very different. Buyers who aspire to a Porsche 911 or a GT variant have never aspired to own a Corvette. Similarly, buyers who aspire to own a Corvette, generally consider a 911 GT3/RS, much less a regular 911, out of reach.

Yes, there are those that are buying these cars as track toys, or even weekend HPDE tools, but those buyers are few and far between, and even most of them don't really cross-shop a Corvette versus a 911.

SoCal-NSX

the rep told me yesterday at the showing that they purposely kept it under the magic number of 500 HP, due to the cost and hassle of insuring a car over 500 HP.... Sounds like a smart move when trying to sale $60K sports car these days