I am Italian and a proud owner of a '91 coupe'.
Ferrari here in my country is a myth that everybody would like to own some day.
Well, I really have to admit that I wouldn't change my Corvette with any other car, Ferrari included and with the money I had to spend to buy my Corvette here (much more expensive than in the States) I couldn't have bought neither a wheel of the cheapest Ferrari.
I love my Corvette, unusual for an Italian uh?

 

I wouldnt get rid of the vette, but if i had a chance to get a 575M Maranello, i'd be all over it.

 

If you can afford a Ferrari, you can also afford to keep the Corvette around as a toy.

 

I rented a 355 vert' in Las Vegas this past April. I was surprised at how much more I liked my C5 (I didn't have the 86' to compare it to at the time) than the 355.

The 355 was a rental, and they were NOT following Ferrari's maintenance schedule. That being said, there were still issues with the car that could not be blamed on maintenance. The basic ergonomics of the 355 are sadly lacking next to the C5. Even the C4 has better ergonomics (though ingress/egress is a sticking point on the C4). The buttons that move the seats back and fourth on the 355 are in the rear of the center console. Thus if you are short (like me, 5'6"), you will find yourself having to reach waaayy back to move the seat. That maybe be a small item, but you notice every time you get in the car, and it seemed odd for a car released in the 1990's. The convertible top seemed less well thought out than either the C5 or the C4, though that could be because of their lack of maintenance. The placement of the HVAC controls, and numerous other items seemed designed to take your eyes off the road, and don't get me started on the footwells.

Driving the 355, I realised what happens when you put 8 cylinders in a 3.5 liter displacement configuration. We all know that they are little clyinders, but driving the car, it really hits home. There was NO, and I mean NO torque below 4,000 RPM. This was a serious shock to me, even though when you think about it, it makes since. The 6 speed was easier to use than I thought it would be, but at 70MPH in 6th it was turning something like 3200RPM, thus the lousy gas milage. The car felt totally stable at 70MPH and I had confidence that it would produce the top speed it advertises, but here in the states all the fun is at lower speeds (unless you are in good with your local judge), and the torque the vettes have is far more entertaining in that arena. The LS1 has may more torque down low than the 355, and my newly acquired 86' with it's auto trans either feels or has more torque off the line than my 99' 6 speed. Thus, unless I move to Germany, I came away from the rental feeling that the Vette is simply a more enjoyable driving experience in the states, as well as beng much cheaper and easier to maintain/own.

Just my observations.

 

Not unusual at all my friend. Look what the Corvette is doing to the Ferrari this year in the Le Mans series.

 

Ferrari isnt even running in ALMS now.

But Prodrive Ferrari can whip the C5R at LeMans, if they just could get over quality issues. Its so fast in the straights that we had to have them wreck/break to win the race.
Of course, thats the name of the game in LeMans racing.

 

Corvette = USA4RE. I do love vettes but I also very much love Ferraris. I am the poor one of my friends. I have a few friends that have one or more in their garage. I have been in F40, Yellow F50 (first one in states), countless 308's and 328's, 360 F1 (like driving in a video game with the paddles), 288 GTO, M512TR, and still waiting for a ride in one guys ENZO. There is a guy I know here named J.J. Moore that at one time had 127 Ferraris. He owns almost 500 cars.

 

When I was in Europe in the mid - late 70's there were a few locals in Germany and Belgium that had Vettes... They weren't happy with the prices of parts (import duties are a real pain), but they each had mentioned that they were very happy with the performance, even against the bad azz Italian jobs (there are more than Ferrari's that come out of Italy)...

The guy outside of Graf said that he'd beaten Iso Grffo's and Lancia's as a matter of course (75 coupe with 427 and GMC 4-61), but that the Ferrari's weren't as easy when you could open them up past 200k...

I'd like to think he'd been more successful with a C4...

 

It's amazing what Ferrari does with its engines, and they are some great looking machines, but it is also amazing what Chevrolet does with the Corvette for a fraction of the cost. The newer Corvettes are pretty well thought out in their design and have to appeal to many different types of drivers and can still perform with some of the worlds best. All that in a package that is relatively simple to maintain and live with on a day to day basis. Ferrari = very exciting single minded expensive machines. Corvette = Great all around performance automobile. And with very few modifications can out perform supercars

 

Pietro,

Not really, there are a few Italian Vette owners here in Vicenza. I've seen a four other C4's and a couple of C5's. I was infatuated with Ferrari's before we purchased the Vette, they just don't have that same allure that they once did.

Check out http://www.lucacorse.it/ this is for a chance to drive a 360 Modena for a couple of laps around the Adria track. I've already signed up for it!

Ciao

Joe

 

Make mine CORVETTE!