rustyguns

just put road race tires on it, hoosier r6's or toyo 888 or kumho v710 or michelin sport cups or Nitto NT-O1

and leave the rest stock and you will beat the crap out of 95 percent of the cars on the track! after a 6 months 99%

vtecnitian

lotus or s2k both will get the job done the s2k has corner entering speed do to the high revs ,close ratio trans and 50/50 weigh distribution and if you keep the momemtum right you'll have exiting speed too. but in straights away is not that great but not too slow eighter and its fun as hell.

hoefi

I agree 100%. Owned and tracked a Lotus Elise a few years ago and had driven a friend's GT3 on the track numerous times. Costs to keep the Lotus running on the track is a fraction of what it takes to run the GT3 or the Z06. Tires alone (R compound from the factory) are way way cheaper to replace, not to mention OE brake pads that actually last on a racetrack.

If they actually pay out prize money for turning fastest laps at a DE event, I will be crazy not to bring the Z. However, DE events can really only be viewed as recreation/entertainment, and the Lotus probably provides the best entertainment value per dollar when compared to any new streetable production car that is currently available. Yes, a Spec Miata is cheaper, but then again, you are not talking about an un-mod car.

Joe

Itiner

would get an exige or the Evo IX RS . you can get the Evo around $22k. and in stock form with better tires it is a forgiven drive and relatively fast car in stock form.
The exige is almost $15k more but still is affordable.
The reason i think the Evo wins , because the parts price and the durability. The Exige will at least double you cost. So i think the cheapest and still running great times the Evo will win.
Now i love the GT3 RS but that is alots of money. you can run easy 5 season with the evo to get the 1 season cost for the Porsche.
but what is wrong with the Z06? I think its a great track car.

AU N EGL

Any and EVERY car that goes on track needs work. Most to be safe.

Brake fluid need to flushed before and after EVERY event
Brake pads need to be changed
Tires ware out
Oil needs to be changed every few events
transmission and diff fluids changed every few events.

So NO there is not one car that can be totally stock being street and track worthy.

The above is all before the MOD BUG HITS. and it WILL

The Evo and Exige are good cars, been in both,. Only problem is you will seldom see 120 mph, let alone above 140 in either of them, without extensive mods.

If you want a dedicated track car that you can beat the chit out of, and have lots of fun, get a CMC race ready Camero. $9-$12K

Timz06

C5 z06, just needs brake pads, and the tire of your choice. I drove mine for 5 years at hpde's with no problems and no mods.

Tim

Itiner

the RS can run in stock form in Lime Rock /CT/ the staright away
over 130 mph . that is really not bad. the exige can do a same.

JimbeauZ06

I think all of us who have "tracked" our Z06s know that they work just fine "stock" and it's not a question of "have to" when it comes to mods, it becomes a "want to". I could do without the headers, the intake, the Nitto's, the new sway bar, etc, but I don't "want to".

You can track your stock Z06, have a great time driving it as it was meant to be driven, and know that you probably aren't going to hurt it. They're pretty tough right from the factory.

Have fun!

Itiner

yeah that was what i thinking. change tires ,break pads and fluids, and you got a very good track car.

Cobra4B

A C6Z really only needs some spare pads and fresh fluid for the beginner... but bang/buck a C5Z is a superior car.

The only downside as as you get more advanced you start going through things like brakes, wheel bearings, and tires where are very costly on the Corvettes.

This is the reason we bought the Panoz vs. convering my Corvette to a track car. Parts for the Panoz are much cheaper and easier to service.

jcmbird

have you thought about service.chevy has a great dealer network.I would also mention something like a factory five cobra. Like panoz they are not as complicated and fun

zcobra1

At Spring Mountain this weekend, an employee there claimed he had not seen any blown engines, or any clutch replacements in the 3 years he had worked there....... and they use stock cars as far as I know...

I had heard they add an extra oil cooler - but I did not verify that.

I agree the best improvement is the driver---this weekend I saw lot's of modded cars leave early, and some not even make it through the first half of the first day, while the stock/almost stock cars seemed to hold up well, enjoy 2 days of laps and turn on their AC/stereo and drive home...
Also a case in point: I took a ride around session in a complete box stock C6 Z06 in the advanced group and John kept up and was waved by a heavily modified C6 Z06, with suspension, slicks, and 550 HP at the wheels. Driver, driver, driver.

Keep her stock except as others have said, brake fluid, lines, pads, tires, coolers, and a good seat.

Independent1

^^If you truly want a track only car take a careful look at this thread.

http://www.trackpedia.com/forums/showthread.php?t=3161

I also pondered the question you are asking and came to the conclusion that in the long run (probably short-run too) it is much less expensive to buy a car that was specifically designed for the track.

You can get a Radical or similar C or D class sports racer for around $25K. These cars are ready from the get go to go to the track and perform. They will out run the vettes with ease for a fraction of the cost. They are also much less costly to operate because they are not as hard on consumables like tires, brakes, etc. They are also easy to work on unlike the vettes.

AU N EGL

Now your thinking. and the idea of the corvette.

95% of all HPDE drivers can not drive a stock CORVETTE to within even 60% of what the car can really do. Let alone the ppl who drive vettes on the street but never attend an HPDE.

ScaryFast

I hear that. I have a good friend (let's call him Ken) that has a stock C5Z and thinks he's super fast. But the guy could barely break into the 1:33's at Mid-Ohio!

It's amazing what some people think.

ProgGod

Take the 3 day course at bondurant. I guarantee you will be driving with in 80-90% of what the stock c6 can do

jcmbird

are these trace cars able to attend all hpde's? pca you need instructors seat.

jcmbird

track cars, sorry

Cobra4B

Not sure about the Radicals, but the used Panoz cars have 2 seats. Here's mine after installing my Ultrashield and some new belts.

95jersey

Afordability, power, handling, overall speed, safety, and driving experience, cheap parts...my vote goes for the C5Z06 (any year). This car if set up right, even with stock power and brakes/suspension is such an enourmously capable car for the price (used low $20's). I don't think there is any car on the earth with such performance at that price used. You can say miata/S2000 and such, but I think for just a few more dollars, the C5Z set up well is exotic fast. There are so many low mileage garage queen C5Z's out there at bargin prices, it's almost impossible to resist. While I love my C6Z, if I could go back, I probably would have kept my C5Z.