Yes, I meant if you are limited to street use, you still can get in second and third gear. With 500hp behind that, that is some major getaway speed. I think of the people that even ride your back end too close, you can make them disappear in the rearview real quick.
That is having some fun with 500hp!!

 

Are you actually claiming that you have never hit a road hazard or had to dodge one quickly, never hit a pot hole or had a tire blow out, never been in a situation in which you started fishtailing because you misjudged something? You'll have to pardon me then because my comments were intended for mere mortals. Once you admit to having been in a risky situation then who is more at risk - you enjoying the power of 500 hp or the guy pedaling his Honda Civic?
If I enter an on ramp I often step on it unnecessarily fast and if I see an opening ahead I'll go for it. But I don't jam the accelerator on the floor to try to make full use of 405 hp. I occasionally get into the mountains and have passed up to six or seven cars strung out behind a slow driver and others not willing to pass. In my life I have faced every hazard on my list and on a couple of occasions faced them in my vette driving unnecessarily hard. I've had to slam on brakes or sharply maneuver to miss something, but I have been lucky. I remember the time on a back road I took my C4 up over 100, rounded a turn and there was a cop giving someone a ticket. On a couple of occasions I have been a complete idiot, but I have never tried to justify the antics or tell myself that I needed the extra hp. I just occasionally enjoy letting it out, feeling the thrill, but always knowing it was foolish to do so and that I was raising the risk to my life. A cop once explained to me how at the higher speeds there is less and less of your tires on the road and active handling, so we are told, does not protect us from our own stupidity. Perhaps the cop was only lying to slow me down. I don't know. Perhaps active handling will work miracles if we need one.
You might re-read your latest post. From where I sit you are either claiming to be some super human, capable of instantly avoiding all hazardous situations because it can't happen to you, or you're someone writing your own obit. Is your point really that the guy in the Honda Civic is equally at risk?

 

I've blown out 2 tires at once in a pothole. lol! That cop situation is scary, but been there done that. I've had a trooper say forget it and not even chase me lol! If I'm nailed I usually pull over and have license and registration waiting. I've never gotten a ticket in any of my Corvettes though. Pretty darn lucky I'd say. My insurance on my Z is under $1000.00/year, I'm a country boy in a low risk town, no tickets, or violations. Funny, any Fords that I've owned I received a ticket always lol!

 

My Stage II Procharger is coming soon. I'm already over 500hp naturally aspirated to start out with lol! I will still have to limit my boost to 6psi. because of the stock bottom end. It will be effortless speed when I throw that bad larry on!

 

I'm confused as to why you would feel compelled to respond to an 'absurd' musing. Quite a few of us are passionate about our Corvettes; they evoke a certain amount of raw emotion in us. What I find absurd is that you see the car as merely a 'machine'. If we wanted a machine we would be driving Yugos, not Corvettes. But that's just my humble opinion, with all due respect.

 

OK, Let me explain my absurd comment in a different way...

If a C5 Z06 is a second class citizen because they came out with a C6 Z06 then a C2 Z06 or a 63 split-window coupe is a...let me count back... C4= 3rd class....C3= 4th class...C2= 5th class citizen...

Does that make any sense? Absurd is just another way to express "does not make any sense".

 

A fully mentally healthy person...Whats you secret? 99.999% of the humanity would like to know.

It's a legit question. You or I might not agree with it, but it is.

 

I never claimed I never hit a pothole or had to dodge one.. I am saying that a sports car like the vette makes it easier to aviod a bad situation and maintain control. The amount of HP or lack of doesn't make the car safer. Which was my original point.
Look... you can still have fun with a fast car and still remain safe to yourself and others... You can also fall in the shower and kill yourself.
I'm in my 50's and like to live a little... I see many people driving slow cars making stupid moves that put themselves in far more danger than I am doing at speed. I will continue to drive in a spirited fashion as traffic and conditions allow. I will pay attention to the road and use the power and handling of the Z to an extent that is reasonable for the conditions at the time.
I bought this car to drive it like it was intended... that doesn't mean WOT everywhere I go... It a machine that is built for speed and handling.. and at the right times and conditions proves to be much fun!

 

WHOO RAH!

 

You keep pointing to other bad situations as justification for your own acts. How far do you think I'd get in court after killing 2 or 3 people if I told the judge Jeffrey Dahmer or Ted Bundy killed a whole lot more? What do you mean that you will drive the car like it was intended? Does that give you the right to break the law or put others at risk? I am over 50 also and I want to live life with some excitement as well. But that gives me no right to raise the risks for others, which you do whenever you unnecessarily tap into your 500 hp, and it is always unnecessary on the streets.
How does a sports car like the vette make it easier to avoid bad situations, when as you say, you are attempting to hit 60 in 3 to 4 seconds? I will agree that a vette doing 60 has more maneuverability than a Honda Civic at 60, but you are not talking about doing 60. An average person in a Honda Civic driving on the ramp is going to have much more reaction time to a road hazard than someone who is going to reach 60 in 3 to 4 seconds. But with you we have already established that you are not an average person. But you will say that you stomping on the accelerator on the ramp is safer than my half blind grandmother and I can't argue that one.
Reading your posts reminds me of an old saying. Humans are not rational creatures, they are rationalizing creatures. You want to drive like a bat out of hell and you justify it to yourself. It's the way the car was intended to be driven, the vette makes up for it in increased maneuverability, and you always give yourself time to react to any conceivable hazardous situation. Is that really the statement you wish to make about yourself?

 

Not knocking the C6, but its still an XLR chassis and always will be. A C5 is a purpose built corvette and not some GM exec. making a production call to save expense. The C5 was not done in terms of production run, but as we all know the General is hurting. My hat is off to drivetrain engineering though. I am not in anyway suffering from a complex, I know I have the better platform. I had the choice and am very happy with it.

 

You're too funny... no matter what I say or how it's said, you will always find the worst case scenerio and then use my words to infer that it never could happen to me..
I'm not saying that it can't, won't or hasn't happened to me. I'm generalizing the fact that these cars do have advantages in handling and saftey when it comes to spirited driving. Used in a responsible fashion relative to road and traffic conditions, you can still enjoy a "spirited" drive in reasonable saftey.
You can follow the rules all day long and try to stay safe.. good for you..
But be on the look out for an old man speeding by causing havoc to the system...
be sure to keep to the right, both hands on the wheel... etc...

 

100%! I was in the high speed lane on my way to work and 2 cars ahead of me, a Jeep Cherokee hit a big dog trying to cross the highway, everyone locked them up, I glanced the rearview and made a move to the middle lane to avoid everyone, but had the driver in front of me turned into my nose, I whipped the wheel again to avoid him hitting me and went around him towards an oil truck in the low speed lane. Any other car would have slammed sideways into the oil truck, but active handling saved the car in an emergency situation. I had another situation where someone pulled right out in front of me in broad daylight at an intersection and hit a SUV coming the other way in the rear wheels. If I was not in a Vette, the out of control SUV would have hit me without doubt, but I punched the accelerator and avoided getting crushed with brute speed and power of my LT1. I was driving my C4 Coupe at the time with the roof off. I would have been killed, but had the getaway speed to get me out of a bad situation.
I will never own any other type of car.

 

Well several points:

1. I had a 96 LT4 (C4) for many years, until I purchased my 04 Z new. Yes there were many posts for a long time pointing out that the C4 was not up to the C5's new standard. I remeber many C4 folks linking threads from the C5 section dissing C4's

Personally I was just glad to have a Vette, I really loved that 96 CE. Tony that 94 cooper metallic is REALLY COOL, any C4 person would drool over that baby. I would also venture to guess many would take it over a C6, just for the cool factor

2. I don't feel the C5 is yesterdays news just becuase GM improved the new Z. I am very impressed by the new Z, however I most likely will not get one until its last year of production when the C7 comes out, and then it will be second class

3. If you looked at Tonys site ( excellent website Tonny, great photography , beautiful cars, and thanks for the diecast link, thats my other weakness ) You would see in the background a picture of a 1969 ZL-1. Any Vette lover with any appreciation for the brand knows this is among the greatest and rerest Corvettes ever built, I think it would smoke either Z at the 1/4 mile. So time does not alway make something better, just different.

4. Every generation has a few stand out cars, the 57 fuel injection, the 63 split window, the ZR1, and also some very low production unique Vettes, again the 63 split window, the 94 cooper metallic, The lt4, the C4 GS, the 2001 Z, the Z16 etc. Granted the end of that list may not qualify as rare, but as years pass the numbers will dwindle. I wonder how many mint 94 cooper metallics there are still around.

5. The C6 is a great car, the C6 Z most likely the most advanced fastest over all vette ever. I give it its due respect, would I trade my Z for it, no I still like funny things like flip up headlights

6. To Tony's orginal point, I think yes it does apply to some. As to whether they are mentally ill or not I will leave that to you professionals My Mom thinks I was mental to buy a car with only two seats when we have a family of 4, imagine that, she just does not appreciate the beauty of my Z

7. I think any of us who have really looked at the evolution of the Vette and appreciate its beauty and duration, can find something great about each one. Yes I do think they are beauty's, why not, If people can appreciate fine art, why can't I appreciate fine design and engineering.

Gonzo

 

I hope you're joking about "speeding by causing havoc to the system". If not it is people like you who give the rest of us a bad rep. I enjoy spirited driving but getting on a freeway ramp and hitting 60 in 3-4 seconds I call irresponsible and dangerous. If that is how you drive on a regular basis there will come a day, when they perfect brain transplants, when you'll be very wealthy. You'll be able to advertise yours as "hardly used". In the meantime your children will be telling people who know you that they are adopted. But hey, that's a small price to pay for being 50ish and living life to the full. Good luck.

 

May I suggest that you never try a Z06... maybe trade in your vette on a Buick or a Toyota..
I'll stick with the Z06 and take my chances with my driving style... Maybe I won't live as long... or maybe it just won't feel that way.
As a cancer survivor, I don't mind enjoying life in the fast lane every now and then... You just never know what tomorrow will bring..

peace... out

 

Well that went well

 

Sorry about that Gonzo. Yes, as posted above I had a modded 94' C4 Automatic Coupe, dark green with a tan/black dash leather interior. It was a real reliable car and I enjoyed it. I loved taking the roof off, but was amaised at the chassis flex. Just the same, it was my first Vette, so I took very good care of it. I will always be a C4 fan and kick myself often that I could have bought a ZR-1 really cheap about 8 years ago, but I'm self employed and could be "fat" at the wrong times, so I missed my chance lol! When I saw my first 97' I was like Wow, I had never seen something that turned my head like it did, (or 8 years old, a new yellow 70' Stingray on black) a 97' Pewter Coupe. A couple of years later, I got my first C5, a 1999 Hardtop FRC black on black. It was sad to sell my first Vette, but that disappeared real quick. I modded it too and had 380rwhp by the time I was done with it. Had to have a ZO6 though, so in 03' bought the EB ZO6 thinking that a 50th Anniversary ZO6 would be a good investment. I believe in the long term 20 years, the 50th will be worth alot more than people think. All ZO6's will stabalize somewhere and start to appreciate. They have to. I believe modded Z's will bring money, because the performance parts manufacturer's would be dead without that current billion on billion dollar market, good news for us and the economy I can't wait to throw on a Stage II Procharger and maybe some new heads, but not too nessesary at 64.5cc combustion chambers, 10.5:1 compression. If I was staying natural I would have gotten 62cc chambers on an aftermarket head. Yes, the new Z is here and there is alot of new technology coming. I would think that piston sleeve manufacturers are going to explode, so buy your stock now The whole market is going to fly absolutely in the next 10 years. Guys like A&A, LG and others will do huge buisness. There is alot of competition, but that is what it is all about. I read a ton of material each month and believe me it is not Motor Trend or Road & Track. I read CHP, GMHi-Tech Performance, Hot Rodding, Hot Rod, and receive Vette Magazine. This month a few members cars are in there. Lou got some excellent publicity when Jim Sharp's black, real flame looking painted 01' ZO6 was featured lol! Awesome...It was cool seeing it in there, because we see it all the time. The cover featured other members here, a 00' C5 Vert. with a blown Ligenfelter makeover to the LS1. I guess my point is, I feel the C6 ZO6 is helping the market. GM better hang with us, not us with them. Great for the economy, what else can you ask for. You can now buy a brand spanking new 69' Camaro with C4 suspension upgrades, crate motors are going to be a stong market. GM will survive, but they need us instead now.
We were listening Gonzo, sorry to ramble there a bit too
Todd