International politics and economies as well. This is spelled out in All Corvettes Are Red but... The C5 was designed to compete with the early 90s Japanese imports: 300zx, rx7, and Supra were the benchmark. Guess what, Japanese economy collapsed while C5 was delayed and by the time it was ready to production it had to deal with the Germans: M3, Boxster, SLK...

 

The Corvette targeted the Japanize MFG as they have gone more up scale from the small 280Z and RX7 of the past. They had to be taken serious. But Corvette had always targeted Porsche over the years. The C4 Challenged the 944 Turbo in show room stock racing till it got banned. The 944 really could not win. So they moved to the Camaro and still beat them. Porsche always bought and dismantled Corvettes to learn what they have. That proved sticky when Pontiac Hired Porsche Engineering to tune the steering on the 1988 Fiero for on center feel, scrub radius and turn in.

Even today the Porsche GT3 engineers contacted the Corvette team on how they got the ZR1 right.

It has been a long rivalry.

Even back in the day Zora drove for Porsche at Lemans while working for Chevy. Today at Daytona one of the Porsche lead test drivers drove to the GTD class win in a Corvette. They are challengers but they respect each other today.

 

The official name is GM sport steering wheel.
The exact same wheel also came on Camaros, Monte Carlos, Novas, Chevelles, El Caminos..etc, etc...

Why did the C3 last so damned long? When sales go up every year why change? When I ordered my '76 & it was a four month wait...

 

Its official name is sport wheel but the Vette is called the Vega wheel car by many as it had a one year column. You can retro fit a wheel here easy yo another wheel without changing the column.

We get calls all the time on these with people looking for adapters for other wheels.

 

Know how to get a C7 wheel on a C5 column? Lol. Or what I really need is someone who can tell me which single stage airbag fits inside a C7 steering wheel.

 

Don't think I would give up an airbag at this point , but just decidin how small u wanted it was fun.

 

After '76 the "sport" wheel lived on in non-tilt Corvettes from '77 to '79...

 

Spot on. In 2012 when I bought my C6, that body style was still the new Vette. The C5 got a lot of flack for looking old back then, even by myself. It wasn't until the C7 was on the road for a while and the C8 came along that the C5 had this "retro cool" renaissance. I love the car now based on price and nostalgia. The C5.5......er.......6, was a much needed refresh in 2004. Interior was a huge step up then as was projector headlights and sharp lines.

 

I felt, and still feel, that the C6 body and interior was a wet toast change or bean counter special. The console chips up and makes the car look and feel much cheaper than a C5 for me. The rest of the interior remains in C5 range of quality to me - plenty of plastic, no real upgrades. Not that that has ever mattered to me in a sports car mind you. But the base model's appearance to me was just like the comparable Viper in those years.... meager.... Only the Z06s and later the ZR1s offered the right stance and line for the body which made them look appealing to me. That's just my particular bend on them.

Like Vipers... give me a Gen 2 GTS or a Gen 5 ONLY. I absolutely love those two. The rest do not exist for me and are ugly as sin.

 

Here is the deal. Many times the bean counters get the blame. But the truth many times is the engineers spend all the budget on the suspension and drive line and run out of money before the interior.

The C5 is a good example of this. They made it look good but they had a selling price point to meet and the interior was chosen to take the hit. GM was going broke long before 2007.

The styling of the C5 had to be careful. They needed to move the car to the future but not so much to put off many old traditional buyers.

I sat and listen to the head of the F body program and the head of the PR for Corvette. They explained the difficult process of trying to do the best car possible but still meeting pricing point. Also the difficulty of advancing the design to gain more new buyers but not losing the old. They said you never will make everyone happy. They said when a new design comes out half love and half hate it. Over the next six months and with media coverage it moves to 90% are fine and a smaller group just never will accept. To them that is a win.

The C5 is a mix of old and new. They could have eliminated the Pop ups then but left them to the 6 gen. The same for the tail lamps for the 7th gen.

The Sixth gen got better seat materials but it is not the most trick looking interior. The C7 got that and then the C8 took the C7 look and applied it to the mid engine layout.

It is easy to build a Ferrari or Lambo as you can put what ever in it and people will pay. With a Corvette you have a rep for delivering high performance at a lower price in a higher volume car. You just can put the best of it all in there as cuts would have to come someplace else.

I like to call the C5 as the car that took the old Vette and introduced it to the new Vette. We got the C1 trunk, We still had the pop ups, We still had the big dials on the dash. But we also got the new stiffer frame and the LS engines. We also got the better suspension and must a better car over all. It also is less digital and still a bit analog. This helps the tuners and modifiers.

There is just no one perfect Corvette out there for everyone. Everyone has different expectations and understandings of the car. Some narrow their view down. I like to keep things open. I have some I like better than others but I like them all. I can find good and interesting things in most.

To me there are 4 Corvettes that really changed and defined the Model.

The first was the 1955 V8. This saved the car.

The 1963 Defined the styling and chassis for the future.

The C5 was a total revamp that escaped much of GM's meddling since they had to hide the car after it was canceled. This car took the Corvette to the next level globally.

Finally The C8 has taken the Corvette to where it was expected to go and finally had to go if they wanted to get more out of the car and appeal to more than a smaller group of traditional buyers.

I know many hate change but change is needed for a model to survive. Even the 911 may look similar to the 1963 but there is nothing the same on it. Not even air cooled.

 

Not a good thing.

But they even did that to the C6 in a way. My HHR SS had the same wheel as the C6 ZR1 and only the center emblem was changed. Good for the HHR owner to have a Vette wheel but the ZR owner having the HHR wheel is not good. But it is about fitting a budget and keeping the price to where it needs to be.

 

I have a strong affinity for the C8. The engineering is amazing. The looks are pretty aggressive. Z06 once again being the best looking. I might have a Z51 in my garage except for the lack of a stick. The dct is absolutely faster. No question. And I know the safety margin added by going dct with so many electronic nannies too. But I just enjoy rowing gears on back roads and with no stick I will always consider the C8, should I eventually purchase one, to be a beater.

I did help my buddy order a new blk/blk Z51. Not yet ordered technically. He wants the '26 model with new interior. We're thinking the Apex VS-5RS wheels for it. Though the new Z51 wheels look good as well.

 

I heard a ZR1 going through the gears the other day. It sounded like an F1 car as fast as the shifts came.

I'm open to anything interesting. The perfect deal is to have a manual C6 GS and then a C8. Best of both worlds.

The C6 GS is the best drivers car. It has all the right Z066 stuff. But not too much to get you in trouble and much easier to work on.

 

So much great information. Thanks to all who replied.

 

I'm torn on the zr1... it's amazing, fast, and looks good, but still looking at a mclaren 750s -- I just like the way it looks. Totally shallow, I know. Maybe I'll feel differently when Nürburgring time for the zr1 is published : -)

 

McLaren all day vs GM.

The ZR1 may be the Apex of GM's performance curve and impressive as heck from the engineer perspective. From that same perspective any McLaren is a space ship by comparison. I do not ascribe my interests heavily to modern exotics as most are a freak show. However, McLaren repeatedly manages to achieve technical and performance excellence as well as the requisite aero while still maintaining two critical criteria to the consumer: sensual design appearance and a visceral experience.

If you are considering any McLaren, I would not consider a ZR1 to be on par with that selection. Particularly when the Z06 engines continue to pop and the transmissions continue to have failures. These are flagship extreme performance vehicles which should not have these problems, no matter the spin control applied by nationally known, locally grown vette techs.

Edit: the only bone I will throw to the ZR1 is that when it DOES break and no warranty is honored or allowed, it will be "affordable" to repair and easily so. The McLarens, if you follow Hoovie or one of those guys who had a dead one, has a lot of variation year to year and model to model between their engines and getting hold of replacements is not an exercise in frugality.

 

You got it! Chevy can be fixed with replacement parts ANYWHERE!... Try finding one needed part to that Mac when broken down in Kalispell, Montana!... Or Omaha Nebraska for heaven sakes... Not gonna happen... so it sits... parked... silent.... No nothin... but a pretty face with a foreign accent sittin there staring into space.. forlorn.

 

The McLaren is cool but you will pay a premium in repair and upkeep as that is the killer on them.

Many people can afford a Ferrari but they can’t afford to take care of them.

The Z will be a car you will be able to buy reasonable in a year or two letting someone take the depreciation hit. The car will run 100k miles with no major work if even then.

You will have a number of dealer able to work on them.

with the number of them there will be after market support.

Sure not as exclusive but so much more affordable over all.

The McLaren guys here have to have deep pockets.

But I like em. About a year ago a Senna was at a neighbors hours. Amazing car.