glamcem

just a quick comparo (stock vs stock)


BMW M3 (with sport package) lateral accel.(on skidpad) .88g vs
Z06 1.00g

i drove them both Z06 is way faster than an M3 in every aspect not just straight accel. ..handles better,stops better,accels better which means it's faster in my dictionary..
been there ,done that

it laps nurburgring 26 sec faster than an M3 ..here ya go

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nordsch...test_lap_times

karpetcm

I have seen many silver and blacks in my area i do have to admitt black when its clean looks real nice. EB, Silver, Red and MY would be in the order i would pick, ive had black atleast 3 other times and after having a silver car meaning my M its soo much easier to keep it clean or it doesnt show as much atleast for me. Color is always preference i think any color Z is fine so if i can get a good deal im sure color would be secondary to me, glamcem thanks for the numbers and link.

glamcem

^^ sure every color looks good on a Corvette imho.. i also like this lime green

it'd look soo good on a C5 Z

BlackZ06

RedLS1GTO

It's been said, but I'll repeat it... my 02Z and my old roomate's M3. They aren't even in the same ballpark, league, zipcode, country, hemisphere... you get the point. The M3 did feel good, but as far as actual performance went it got absolutely murdered whether you are talking about turning, stopping, accelerating, or any other performance aspect. Get the Z and you will laugh at your BMW buddies who still think that the M3 will out perform.

mkiv808

M3 only has better steering feel. That's it.

Feel is not handling.

Z-THREAT

I currently own a M5 and a 01 Z06. Both great cars, Z kills in most categories, however the M5 has some awesome pull at 80 plus!!

Regards-

John

Z-THREAT

I currently own a M5 and a 01 Z06. Both great cars, Z kills in most categories, however the M5 has some awesome pull at 80 plus!!

Regards-

John

Vintage racer

OK, I feel I have turn off the “lurk mode” and make a comment here…I have an ’03 Z06 and an ’06 M3 with the competition package (better brakes, 19” wheels etc) and they are two distinctly different cars. That being said, the M3 is easy to drive at low and moderate speeds. It will go anywhere you want to point it…including that OMG decreasing radius turn. As the speeds go up, the M3 becomes a bit harder to stay on top of. The revs become a VERY important bit of cornering…get too low on the rev range and the car will fall on its face just when you don’t need it. Even with paddle shifters, it’s easy to get behind on the motor and that will spell trouble when you don’t expect it. It feels like the faster you go in the M3, the more attention you have to pay and the smaller the return in handling/speed. Terminal speed cornering becomes a bit twitchy and really doesn’t inspire all the confidence in the world.

The Z06 just has incredible torque that will cover most any situation without all the histrionics of the M3. The Z06 takes a little more attention to the corners at all speeds, but it as if the relationship is linear…it isn’t any harder to motor at triple digits than it is at a more moderate pace. The terminal speed characteristics on the Z06 are much easier to feel and are more predictable than the M3, and a bit more confidence inspiring.

About the only place the Z06 could be a bit better is on bumpy roads. The M3 will take an incredible amount of lumpy asphalt in stride and still corner well. The Z06 does tend to get a bit more upset over bumps in a corner. And this may be me, but The M3 has a nifty display to tell you what gear you’re in at all times (both are six speeds). There have been a few instances when I’m just a tad busy dancing on the pedals, turnin’ the wheel and tryin to see where I’m goin, when I have to look at the shifter to see what gear I’m in…there’s that wonderful torque again…

aris

just out of my curiosity, can you post the link to where these M3 guys claim the Z is a straight line only car? because thats absolutely ridiculous, haha.

karpetcm

^^^ Ill post some comments i got one at a time THESE ARE NOT MY COMMENTS BUT THEY ARE REPLYING TO MY THREAD THAT I POSTED ON THE E46Fanatics forum. There is more but i just picked a few and narrowed down the list


(Just FYI, the C6 has a slightly shorter wheel base for improved handling over the C5. The standard C6 will handle better than a C5 Z06. I have driven a C5 Z06 (my father owned a 2003 for a few years) and I have instructed many C6's (and a few C6 Z06's) at track days. The C6 fixed everything I disliked about the C5. However, I'm not a fan of the new look compared to the old but that's all subjective.

For your price range, if you want power then go with a Vette. If you want handling, look at a Lotus Elise. The Elise will be at the upper part of your price range, but a darn fun track toy. I'm thinking of adding a used non-SC Exige to my garage next year myself. I'm not a drag or highway racer, so lots of horsepower doesn't mean much to me. I prefer more nimble cars.

Also, an option would be a 993 Porsche 911. They can usually be had for low $30's in great condition. However, maintenance may be more of an issue with one of those verses a Vette or Elise.)

karpetcm

Here is another response to my thread

(Havent you heard what they say bout vet drvrs they are short handed
Listen bud...the M3 is a beautiful car,reliable besides you already had a feel for it.No one looks at my M6 like they do the M3.....that to a 03 M3,anyways if you wana go different for a changr go for the vet.....you'll be sorry you bought it)

karpetcm

Here is another one as well

(corvette's are junk compared to an m3 period why would you want an amerian car after driving an m3 test drive the vette you will see. going fast in a straight line is all they are good for. of course thats just my opinion, I used to have a 911 also a nice car but couldnt even hold an m3's jock strap let alone compare)

karpetcm

This one is just putting down the C5 style really the first few are the ones that people have givin me input on, i on the other hand love the style of the C5 especially the C5Z and have no clue as to what some people are talking about with pop up headlights who cares the car still looks bueatiful and its very rare now a days to see any car with pop ups. On the other hand these are M3 owners who are trying to give there best advice some dont know any better but i have to respect that they were trying to help either way.

(i would take a c6 over a c5z06 the c5 looks are so out of date and with those pop up headlights i feel like it belongs in the 80s.)
__________________

aris

i know a lot of very intelligent and knowledgable car guys that drive bimmers, particularly M3 and M5. i would not describe the people that made those comments as a car guy, or even as intelligent, haha. sounds like a lot of brand snobbery.

RedLS1GTO

Let me get this straight... his m3 will not only spank a Z06, but a 911 won't even compare. This guy is just plain special.

ptindall

Crosslink this thread to the e46 thread. Come on, I'm sure we can all come to a mutual understanding.

karpetcm

Well i just sat in a Z06 as a passenger one of the members here was nice enough to have me as a passenger. The handling is awesome corners really flat, acceleration was really good as well so overall i was impressed with the car. The only thing was it didnt feel as fast as it should i was expecting it to be faster but that could just be me in the passenger seat because i was like that with my M it felt slower in the passenger sit for some reason. Im sure the car is hella fast and it was fun even as a passenger great experience thank you Carnut101.

ptindall

When I flew out to pick up my car, I got in the passenger seat and the owner drove to his house so I could take the car away. He got on it to show me the power and I was completely unimpressed. I expected it to feel much faster. To this day, the car does not feel like a straight line monster to me at all. But it ran in the 12's at the strip like it should. I think it is at least partly that the car has a big, stable chassis and therefor the acceleration feels a lot less eventful than most other cars. For me, it was also that the power and speed are what is so touted about the car and not so much the cornering and brakes that are well beyond what I was expecting when I bought my car.

JC.LUCIFA

ptindall, I was afraid to say the same thing because I thought I was alone. I mean, the pull in 4th and up is just... unimpressive in some ways. I'm sure nothing some mods can't fix, but I didn't buy a z06 because I want to be the fastest straight line king. The way the car handles around the corner easily makes up for the slight lack in ****-your-pants torque.