I know, not an other test between these two rivals again, there were plenty of them already...

But this one is really nice .

In the current swiss auto mag "auto illustrierte" they were comparing these two sports car again.

The porsche had the edge as for as agility was concerened, but here it comes:

From 0-200 km, the C6 was 2.3 sec faster that is 14.3 sec vs. 16.5 sec

 

After having sold a Carrera 996 that gave 4 years of trouble free service, In February, I went back to the Porsche store to buy a 2005 base (321 hp) Carrera 997. I was given the keys to the demo and told to bring it back before 5 pm. After an extensive test drive, I returned, singulalrly unimpressed with the car. Power was "OK", but not awesome, the short wheelbase produced a jiggly ride, the interior wasn't much to write home about and the beloved Porsche steering, so famed for it's feedback, let you feel every stone in the road. Annoying! The gearchange, was however, a real joy. Virtually everything in a Porsche, including electric seats, is an expensive option. A very basically equipped 321 hp coupe is going to be in the low $70's, the more powerful and better equipped 355 hp S model, in the mid $80's to the low $90's. No cars were available for sale, and May was the anticipated delivery time for an ordered car.

I went right over to a local Chevy dealer, after phoning ahead to make sure they had a Z51 6 speed C6 available for a test drive, and was stunned by the incredible performance, awesome engine, better ride, better handling, better feel and overall engineering excellence of the C6.All for more than $20K LESS than a base Porsce 997! I ordered a Z51 and took delivery a few weeks ago. While I didn't test drive a Carrera S (none were available), if the C6 Z51 and the base Carrera were exactly the same price, I would still select the Corvette. It is just a superior sportscar and I now understand why Porsche sales are down 11% this year and Z51 Corvettes are so hard to get. I cannot understand paying more money for less car, unless sitting behind the Porsche crest means more to someone than how the car actually drives.

Yes, the Carrera does have a superb gearbox and the Tremec 6 speed in the C6 is a little notchy. But the (used) Ferrari 550 Maranello that I also test drove had a notchy gearbox, too. In fact, the feel was quite close to that of the C6 Z51. As a first time Corvette owner, I'm very, very pleased with the machine. As for the Swiss magazine, what do they know? Everyone knows that a Swiss Rolex is an overused, passe status symbol that won't even keep accurate time. The Swiss should stick to what they do best--making chocolate!

 

as for the swiss magazine: it was the best test I ever read concerning the C6 with the best performance results 0-200 km/h...

 

 

sorry for posting...

 

Your post was fine!

 

Nothing wrong with your posting at all.

 

I chased a Carrera S through a local canyon recently and had no trouble staying with him; that is until he starting doing stupid stuff like cross double yellows to pass slower traffic. Overpriced watches, chocolate, and let's not forget those havens for stashing dirty money, unmarked bank account; that's what the swiss are good at.

 

 

Don`t forget the cheese!!

 

 

That is exactly what ricers do when we are having "driving lessons" . Because their cars are so much slower, risking their lives and the lives of others, is the only way they can get in front. Loosers.

 

Good thread

 

I'm a previous 911 owner....the cars are over-rated and by todays standard, way over-priced. Great article Hampi!

 

It's testimonies like the one from AraiGP4 that make me wonder why the magazine reviews always make the Corvette the winner only because of the price difference when in fact so many people find the Vette superior in almost all categories. And that's IF they make the Vette the winner at all. They show Porsche lap times equal or slightly better but yet everyone knows that the Vette will be more easily driven to its limit than a Porsche without bouncing the rear end off of a wall. I stopped supporting the rags like Autoweek, Road & Track and Car & Driver years ago because of the obvious bias in their reviews. AM I WRONG???

 

No, you are entirely right! I remember a 997S vs. Z-51 test a six or eight monthe ago in Road & Track (Rod & Truck?). They praised the Corvette interior, handling, etceteras and criticized the Carrera for it's confusing center console and layout, allowed that the Z51 WAS quicker on the road course and then gave the Porsche more points for ergonomics, etceteras in the subjective categories so it outpointed the C6, until they adjusted for price! it seemed like the tallies were "adjusted" in favor of the Porsche. Could that be because Porsche buys a lot of advertising space in R&T and Chevrolet doesn't? Or is the R&T staff simply so enamored of the Porsche crest that they are willing to overlook the obvious?

The Carrera is a dated design with a vestigial rear seat and obsolete engine layout (rear engine, instead of mid engine) that makes the car twitchy to drive fast and less than comfortable for long distances. The Carrera understeers on turn in and oversteers on exit. It always has. Perhaps it is the cachet associated with the car, based on it's racing history and snob appeal, that makes a 911 desirable, not the actual virtues of the automobile.

 

Impressive review to me!

 

Most people don't push their cars to the limit, so buying either car for it's maximum performance isn't that big of an issue.

I've driven both Corvettes and Porsches over the past 3-4 years. I found the driving experiences to be different from what other people have posted.

- The Porsche felt better than my Corvette.
- The Porsche was easier to drive on the limit than my Vette. Having all that weight in the rear isn't good if it breaks loose but it also tells you what's going on.

It wasn't nearly 2x better than my Vette, even though it did cost more than 2x as much... But the Porsche was an excellent drivers car, with a bad interior. I actually preffered the 993's more sparan race car like interior.

 

The comparison was between a C6 and and a Carrera 997S! They are damn close as for as performance goes. The test Carrera had only about 4k miles on where as the vette had over 8 k on, furthermore the vette was testet with 2° C and the Carrera with 12°C. So under the same cirumstances they almost perform equal, what many other test showed.

I have driven (not owned) almost all porsches and almost all vettes and with the C6, the vette has catched up with the porsche. The gab is almost not any more existent. Tests prove that!

The interieur of the 997 Carrera S is IMHO the best interieur of any sports car. If the Vette catches up in that discipline, that would be cool.

T

 

I have a C6 on order. My closest friend got a 997 Carrera with the S package but not the engine and brakes about 6 months ago. I have driven both. The C6/Z51 is clearly more powerful and has a more comfortable ride that makes it a viable everyday car vs. the 997 ride is brutal and harsh. From the workmanship standpoint, the 997 is still ahead but you can say that about GM vs. German. Attention to detail and material is different in priority. IMHO this has been the case for at least since the 60's and still is. I agree with Carrera design being outdated as an earlieir post noted but that's what Europeans do. They do incremental improvement and I think this is the key to their success and fan base. Corvettes (at least beforoe C6) have been accused of being "crude" in attention to detail.

I think the price difference is due to material and workmanship. Both GM and Porsche have pretty good margin on these cars, so it is not that. It is how much it costs to build the car and that is not due to an engine cost difference, but exterior/interior precision, material and workmanship. As an example there is no orange peel effect on the porsche paint but the vette could use some wet sanding that cost $$.

In summary, I think these are both great cars with different price and appeal points. For my money, I picked the Vette. Also think the C6 is probably the best and most head turning car I have ever since perhaps with exception of some Italian exotics. This car just stands out vs a Porsche, well doesn't jump out at you.