Opinions: Corvette C6 vs. Porsche 911

aka Danksy

aka Danksy

Registered
Currently I drive a 2005 Corvette Z51....

It has 400 bhp and 400 torques, massively large brakes, 6 speed manual gearbox that allows 0-60 in 4.0 seconds and an INSANELY, stiff suspension.

I live in the Northeast currently spending half my time in New Hampshire where we do things like PAVE OUR ROADS, and half the in Boston where they choose to simply dig them up and fill them with what is, the best I can tell, toothpaste that has expired.

I have owned the Corvette since January, and yes, it was snowing the day I bought it. Luckily only a dusting though seeing as 10" wide tires do not bode well in the snow.

The Z51 also has shorter gears than a base model, and gets slightly worse gas mileage. Although it claims to achieve up to 32 on the Highway, I average for a full tank about 20...if I'm gentle...

The Gear shift box is also something out of a tank, as is the clutch.

Driving in New Hampshire is fairly pleasurable but anytime I come across roads that have any imperfection my back feels like someone has taken a lead pipe to it by the time I get anywhere.

I do however LOVE the Targa top, and the ridiculous noise that comes from my Corsa Extreme Exhaust. However I have a sneaky suspicion the Porsche will be a bit more, refined.

So, since no one on the Corvette or Porsche Forums will give me an honest answer,

Will anyone here give an HONEST review of a 99-2005 Porsche 911?
 
maybe pointing out the obvious.... but the z51 was specifically meant to have a stiffer suspension vs the standard c6...

and if you get anything short of the turbo your going to be feeling slower than a slug...


even the carrera S is a bit of a dog.... decent hp but torque sucks, and you have to wind it out a fair bit...though both lower than the vette unmodified

suspension is closer to the magnetic ride that GM uses in the vettes with selectable stability, but personally i always found the vettes to be a better FIT(size wise)... however i admit an amount of bias there... i have always enjoyed the vettes cockpit feel..


it depends where you live, but porsche 911's when i lived in phoenix were like fords, everyone drove one... hell middle of iowa ames, actually has more porsches than vettes lol... theres one grandsport and 3 carrera S's


IMHO if you dont like the stiffness of the vette suspension, you would have been better off with a non z51 standard c6....



however, for comparison, i thought a c5 zo6 was fairly cumfy and didnt find it TOO stiff at all.... i prefere a harder suspension personally...


my vote is for the vette over the porsche any day :)

but if you go porsche, go turbo or go home :)
 
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I dont think the porsche turbo and a Z51 vette are similiar cars. They certainly don't have the same price tags.

Used Vette, $30K

Used 911 Turbo, $80k

In NH I find the vettes suspension to be extremely inadequate over anything but smooth roads which doesn't happen that often up here.

I am also not into this whole "I have more power than you" thing.

While the Turbo is a ridiculously sexy car, I think its a bit overkill to use as a DD, which currently my Vette is (more or less).

Maybe I needed to be more specific about that, AS A DAILY DRIVER, is a 911 better?

I'm not Michael Schumacher (although I might be the next Ben Spies but thats another thread) and 400hp and 400torques while fun, is definitely not used everyday.

Or am I just being young and dumb?
 
For a daily driver, go with the 911, maybe look for the Carrera 4 or 4S (for the turbo look) since it snows a bit up there, and the all wheel drive could prove handy.

Mileage wise, I would suspect that you would end up getting about the same, maybe a bit better in the 911.

Many articles have been written about how well the 911 works a daily driver, however, it being a german car, be prepared for high service costs (though I'm sure they are up there for the Vette as well).

I personally prefer the look of the 911 as well particularlly, the S models but they will have a stiffer suspension as well. Best bet, go test drive both model types if you can and decide which one you think will be easier to live with, you can always add an aero kit for appearence later.
 
Where do you normally drive? 20 MPG sounds about right if it's mostly around town. I have a C4 and get 32 highway but about 17,18 city. If your average is mostly city/town 20 isn't bad.
I'm biased toward Vettes but the Porsche does offer all wheel drive.
 
I drive between boston and southern NH a lot. Like 5-6 times a week.

I can only get 28 highway if Im REALLY trying to. Touch the gas pedal at all at it shoots to 14mpg VERY quickly.

I drove a C4 a number of years ago, right now I'm just pissed because the ride quality is ridiculous for such an expensive car.

Problem is, I do like making a scene with it... hmmmmmmm.

and yea the Vette service costs are ridicuous. $650 for a window motor... like, what tha sas;ldf ahsdf;asldf haspdfa s;df


sorry... Im not happy about that either...
 
OK, here you go................

I've owned most of everything out there. Family in the car business, so, I had lots to drive.

The Porsche, Handles different, you NEVER let up in the corners, it will cartwheel. No torque, but ok horsepower. Suspension, much like the Vette, but shorter travel. Parts, You thought Chevy parts were pricey? All in all, the corvette will be a better DD than any rear drive Porsche. Also, you will never want to drive a Porsche in the snow or slippery surfaces, body parts are very expensive................
 
mmmm interesting... I had heard opposite about the Porsche comfort levels.

Perhaps I need to look for something practical? Nope, not gunna happen.

As someone whose driven everything, what would you drive if you lived in NH.

I should note a 2+2 would be ideal for me, Hense my Porsche tendencies....

what do you say AussieKeeper
 
If you're whining about replacement part costs on an entry level Corvette, you shouldn't even bother looking at anything made by a German manufacturer.
 
Let's see.................You want power, comfort, safety (for snow and rain) a 2+2 seating configuration, reasonable parts replacement, average maintenance costs, good handling............

What are you willing to give up?

Just a quick brain search, the Corvette seems like the answer, but no 2+2 seating.

I'll look around and get with you, I'm thinking...............
 
I like Corvettes. I also owned a 2005 Z51. Only gear 1-3 are shorter. 5th is taller. 4 and 6 are the same in all non-Z06 Vettes.

If you want 2+2 look at the 2010 Mustang GT500. It's not a Corvette, and not as sleek. It is a blast to drive.
 
An oil change for my Porsche is $250. Clutch was $1,600 ($2,400 at dealer). Maintenance is outrageous.

Man I love my Porsche. I wouldn't give it up for the world. I've driven nearly every corvette model there is on the track and I wouldn't own one. It's nothing but a Chevy with Chevy build quality. After 50K miles it rattles like a rattlesnake.

I've also driven most every Porsche around the track and yes, it's a totally different vehicle to drive. You don't power out of the turns, you power through the turns. The level of sophistication on a Porsche is a level up on most other manufacturers.

Mine has never seen snow so I can't comment but as far as I know no other manufacturer offers a course on how to drive their car in snow. Ice Training Level - Overview - Porsche Sport Driving School - Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG

Drive one and you'll see there is no substitute.
 
PandaNin what Porsche do you have??

And I'm not pissed about the maintenance costs, I'm sayin the Vette isn't cheap either.

And you cannot physically drive a Corvette in the snow, not a C6 anyway. I mean a dusting sure, but it doesn't "DUST" here in NH haha

Price cap depends if I keep the Vette or not, I could just go for a cheap (sub 10k car) for winter orrr cap at $27k if I sell the vette.

And I have a friend with the 2010 Shelby GT500, its fun, but not for me. SO heavy. BEYOND heavy, and not that much faster than a regular GT. maybe in a straight lines but I'm not a big fan of straight lines if you catch my drift.
 
Have you looked at the Infiniti G37? My friend has one and it's alright. It won't be as fast as the vette but it looks good and has the 2+2. it's a Nissan so it can't be that much to work on right?:laugh:
 
Ha yeah I have. I am a big fan of the new drophead version, but that MSRPs at $45,000.... and thats a lot for a Nissan....

I did drive a new R35 GTR and HOLY HELL, never driven anything like that before.

Nissan Skyline R35 GTR > C6 Corvette in my opinion, I don't have the $100,000 to bribe someone to let theirs go though, sad...
 
I have thought of a few, but you are pickey. Ones I have thought of are out of your price range, or you don't like them. Keep the Corvette until something comes around..............
 
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