PeterK

I drive a camry

05C6spdvert

I'd love to have a Camry, I wonder if when the lease on my wife's 745Li is up she would buy one?

I mean I can dream can't I?

Great write up. Realy appreciate the review sans ego, misconceptions, bias etc...

Look forward to Andi's comments.

lager99

rubric scarab

Um, my take was that he was partly joking and partly being sarchastic. No bullets were exchanged.

For we who take our cars and driving very seriously, it's often hard to deal with those who don't.

ajindfw

Okay. . .

Regarding the "idiots" comment, of course I was being somewhat sarcastic. This is what occurred in Dallas- I was in the right lane of 75 southbound, about to exit Forest lane, driving the speed limit as V1 was chirping. A Toyota Highlander was driving with his front end near my left rear quarter panel. He was getting off at Forest too, and instead of tapping his brake and filing in behind me, he decided that he needed to pass me and cut over nearly clipping the front of the Z06. I cut the wheel right and braked- at this point he realizes his mistake and swerves back into the next lane to the left, only about 6 feet in front of another car. Me, now to his right, guns the throttle to get the heck away from him, giving the angered salute. I think I had the right to be pissed when someone was careless and almost took off the front end of my friend's $75K car that I know he worked his *** off to buy, but I thought y'all would've seen the humor in the paragraph, especially comparing the Porsche giving less opportunity to flip the guy off. Again, some folks just need to lighten up or read more carefully.

Back to the car. In this evasive maneuver, the car never felt awkward, and I'd only had about 3 hours seat time in it at that point. Simply put, the car's agility saved me from a very embarrassing phone call to Andi.

I really enjoyed the car and need to find a way to get it past the wife that I NEED a Porsche AND a Z06. My time in Andi's car was enough to correctly conclude that the C6Z is simply amazing. If you own one, it's IMHO one of those cars that you should try to keep forever.

PeterK

Hey, I'd say your wife deserves a reliable car after all!

Ryan Bell

My mother has had an '03 745Li for three years...not a single problem.

AWESOME car.

VETTE-NV

Regardless of this particular situation, calling everyone who drives a Camry or an Odyssey an "idiot" is unfair. Because someone has not chosen the same type of car as you does not make them any less worthy of being on the road....and not everyone who drives such a vehicle is a bad driver, let alone an idiot.

I sensed no sarcasm, only pompous elitism. Sorry, I'm not a mind reader. The comment was quite "mean spirited," yet you felt the need to scold a certain percentage of this forum for showing similar conduct. Was this supposed to be sarcastic as well? Just checking.
I wouldn't want to misinterpret anything.

Having the opportunity to flip someone off for a longer period of time is certainly one reason I would buy a Z06....that's sarcasm, by the way.

Overlooking the few poorly chosen comments of the original post, it was a nice review.

ajindfw

You're right- you're not a good mind reader, so don't try to guess what I meant. I explained it to you and I'm done with this, so I'll STFU and I ask you to do the same. Don't be an internet tough guy- I'd rather enjoy a beer together talking cars. FWIW I sometimes drive low-priced cars as well.

Yes, it was a good review of an outstanding car.

Signing off.

Andi

Styling:
Both cars look cool, in their own way. Like AJ, I wish I had one of each....

Power:
The Z06 is faster, no doubt about it. Power any time, any RPM, any gear. Only thing that's missing is traction -- that's what the all wheel drive 996TT brings to the table. The Turbo S spools at 3500RPM, and you better hold on when this thing hits 4500RPM as the turbo hits hard in the midrange.. It's a blast to drive. But you have to drive it like a turbo car...

The torque curve and gearing is much more useable in the Z06 -- with a tall first gear that lets you make a quick getaway in the city from any parking lot and exceed the speed limit before even having to make a shift. You cannot do that in the Porsche. Drop the clutch, floor it, get a speeding ticket, then shift, versus, drop the clutch, wait for spool, go, shift, wait for spool again, ok you're finally speeding by the Z06 that's pulled over on the side of the road...


The clutch action is much nicer in the Porsche; it's just too damped in the z06. Porsche put a REAL clutch in the 996TT. If you mess up and engage it too harshly, it feels like you got rear ended by a freight train. Yet the pedal effort is light. Excellent job.


Driving Impressions (Handling):
The Porsche's turn-in attitude is *VERY* throttle/brake sensitive, whereas the Z06's is hardly at all. In the Porsche, I can be cornering only at maybe 75% of the limit, and if I lift off the gas, the rear end will step out and the front end will change lanes to the inside before the stability control intervenes to stop the slide. Note that the stability control intervenes in such situations even if it is turned off -- you cannot totally turn it off.

In the Z06, lift midcorner and you might get the slightest correction of attitude, but not much at all. If I really need to tighten my line midcorner I tend to floor it and throttle steer.

On corner exit, the Z06 is much better balanced -- I can control the attitude of the car and guide it to the edge of the road with my right foot with millimetric precision. The 996 Turbo S, with its always-on viscous coupled all wheel drive just power understeers. Since I know AJ prizes his front wheels, and the City of Irving likes their curbs, I didn't often test how precisely I could power understeer near the curbs.

Static balance is pretty neutral in both cars.

Braking in a straight line on smooth surfaces is very good in both cars, with the nod going to the Turbo S -- especially in repeated tests where the Porsche's Ceramic Composite Brakes (PCCBs) resisted fade better than the Z06's brakes. I found the Porsche's ABS tuning to be more aggressive as well, especially in decresasing radius situations, where the Z06 finds itself ABSing too early, well before the limit of adhesion. This is a malady that has plagued Z06's since the C5 and has improved in the C6 iteration but is still not totally remedied. Note that the Porsche's PCCBs are a bit underboosted. On initial bite, the Z06's brakes feel better, but after some hard use, they don't feel quite as crisp. The Porsche PCCBs, like a good woman, just feel better and better the more you pound them.



I have cruised at 150mph for extended periods of time in both cars. The Z06 is smoother, quieter, and more confident. The Z06 seems to have a permanent mute/slow-motion button activated.


The springs are slightly stiffer the Porsche... but the shocks, especially on the rebound side, are signifncantly stiffer in the Porsche. You notice this going over big crests at speed. The Z06 will float for a fraction of a second, whereas the Porsche will immediately FALL back down with the road as it disappears under you. I like the shock tuning and ABS tuning on the Porsche a lot better. For an everyday driver, the Porsche does give up some ride quality for this improved damping.



Other misc impressions:
The Porsche has a rather blaah exhaust note, whereas the Z06 has a mute button cruise and a classic musclecar sound at WOT.

The Porsche is much smaller and easier to park -- there's about half as much car in front of you.

The Porsche has something like 3 cubic feet if tunk space plus 2 half-assed back seats. The Corvette has something like 18 cubic feet (can't remember for sure) of trunk space and no back seats. Makes more sense to me for this type of vehicle.



Both cars have decent lower seat bolsters, but the sport seats in the Porsche have shoulder bolsters that are greatly missed in the Z06.

The radio in the Porsche BUMPS. It's significantly better than the Z06 radio. The sat-nav in the Porsche also lets you enter destinations while moving, after agreeing that you are the passenger, a nice feature lacking in the Z06. On the downside, the nav is a non-touchscreen unit with the little etch-a-sketch type interface.

There is no dual-zone climate control in the Porsche, surprising for this price range. Z06 has it.

The Porsche's sunroof is a nice touch -- I wish the Z06 had one.


Both the 996TT and the C6 Z06 have mediocre interior materials. Ashtray bins, center stacks, etc -- both are subpar for cars this expensive. But then you look at the leather dashboard and Alcantara headliner and see Porsche at least paid attention to some things...

996TT has telescoping steering column but not tilting (997TT now has tilt/telescoping). Z06 has tilting standard and telescoping optional (part of 2LZ package). Even with 2LZ, it does not telescope far enough for a comfortable, good driving position for performance driving. I was more comfortable in the Porsche.

Other than the steering wheel position, I like the C6 Z06's driving position better because of the high center tunnel -- keeping my arms high for that la-z-boy recliner driving position that's so nice for long drives. The Porsche's lower armrests keep you more "proper" and upright. The wider z06 has more useable storage space for miscellaneous items in the center storage bin, and has a useable pair of cupholders, and most importantly, it has a place to put your phone! I couldn't find ANY place to put my phone in the 996TT.


--------------

I have to thank AJ for trading cars with me so I could get the a feel for the 996 Turbo again. It'll make my upcoming 997 Turbo article that much more educated and informed.

--------------

I finally understand why sometimes mags don't put conclusions at the ends of articles when they match up two wildly different cars. It's up to what you want in a car. Some people want the effortless speed with the safety of all wheel drive. Others want the visceral, thumping V8 roasting the rear tires in a sleek fiberglass wedge. It's all up to you.

05C6spdvert

Thanks Andi, very cool of you guys to pull this off and share with everyone..

Yeah actually Ryan is right, it has been very reliable.

ajindfw

Hey Andi-
A few points to add; but first, I hope today is better for you than yesterday.

More than one person has asked me how I, a 40 year-old , can be friends with a 24 year-old. I remind them that you're a dissertation away from being "Dr. Andi" and I remind them that you exhibit maturity beyond your years. I've seen you grow as an adult and as a driver, hehe, when I did your racing license exam physical (neither of us knew what to do about the eye exam form- I'm an OB/GYN for cryin' out loud). I hope my son is as driven as you, if we can omit getting busted for 170 mph. As a writer, I can see the improvement in your style- technical people are not usually good writers, but as always, you excel at that to which you aspire.

Getting back to the cars, your review actually helped me.

I loved the bolstering of your seats, and I think the high center console and optimal positioning of the door armrest made me feel even more comfortable. Still, while shoulder bolstering is superior in the Porsche, I found hip bolstering and how it positioned me relative to the pedals better in the Corvette. While I like my Porsche's brakes better than those of the Z06, the Z06 brake pedal is positioned better and easier to use.

Both cars have a low polar moment, and in mid-apex cornering, I found the line and feeling to be very similar. The Porsche late-apexes better, but the Z06 early apexes and corrects better. I don't notice the lift-throttle oversteer in the Porsche that you do, but then again, I'm familiar and comfortable with the Porsche platform. I found your Z06 to be beyond neutral, with control being squarely in my hands and feet. Overspeed into a corner results in a neutral slide, maybe slightly favoring oversteer.

I felt the Z06 hunkered down over 100 mph every bit as well as my Porsche does. Although axle lift numbers of the Porsche are better, the Z06 has enough downforce to make this a non-issue.

Center tunnel heat was notable in the Z06 but this is easily corrected with heat shielding material. This isn't an issue with the Porsche.

Time to stop- my 20 month-old son wants to add 4494jfma3c9 commentary.

ajindfw

You don't really drive it, you utilize it and conserve in it.

VETTE-NV

Once again, you can use a good dose of your own advice.

ee996tt

I have to agree with AJ and Andi... Great posts... I had a modified 996TT for about 3 years and could not find another car (under 150K) to replace the feeling of the 996TT until I test drove a Z06... Next thing you know... I have a red Z06... Hats off to Chevy for building a great car... Finished doing headers and tune... Waiting for exhaust and ram intake.. I can say that the car only gets better after mods... Only restriction so far is the traction, as noted... Hopefully, we will get some better rubber developed for the car soon...

Foosh

Indeed AJ.........a very good review and you nailed it on all counts.

crease-guard

Nice posts to both AJ and Andi. I had strongly considered a 911 style car and the Z06 for quite some time. I decided to go with the Z06 and am currently #11 at my local dealer.

As a side note to AJ's comment on the "idiot", I was put off by this until he explained. Having lived in and driven in the area all my life, I understand EXACTLY where he is coming from. I'm sure these types aren't unique to the DFW area, but I seem to encounter this driver on a daily basis...who doesn't pay attention to what they are doing and then think it's your fault for them missing their turn and changing lanes into you. I used to have this happen on a much more frequent basis in my eclipse (don't laugh, only thing I could afford going through schoo) but since getting my 3/4 ton truck, it seems to have decreased.

One other thing, the expressways in major cities (4 or more lanes) have posted speed limits. The speed limit in the left lane is EXACTLY that same as the one in the right. Those of you that think you have some almighty bestowed right to go however fast you want in that lane need to SLOW DOWN. I'm sick of seeing injured people as a result of idiots speeding on the expressway or any other street for that matter.

Jay

HIRISC

Thanks Andi - a very thoughtful overview of your time in the 996TT. I think you summed up nicely with 'it's up to you what you want in a car..'

Thanks to you and AJ both for taking the time, and making the effort, to inform a very divided base of readers about these two incredible auto's.

Chris

Andi

Jay, and whomever is considering replying regarding that last paragraph... Spare us the off-topic diatribe. Let's not pollute this thread with the classic Brock Yates vs Joan Claybrook jihad. Please.

Thank you.

Andi

PeterK

Andi, do you mean

"I have cruised at 150mph for extended periods of time in both cars. The 996tt is smoother, quieter, and more confident. The Z06 seems to have a permanent mute/slow-motion button activated."


Or vice versa?