Graynoise90

Kent1999

Get whichever one you like. There isn't enough difference in how they drive in daily use to really be any kind of a factor.

IF you live in a cold climate and plan on driving it on snow/icy roads, get the Stingray. Neither GS nor Stingray is going to be 'good' in those conditions, but wider tires on the GS are somewhat worse in snow/ice than narrower Stingray ones, and there seem to be more options for winter tires in the Stingray sizes.

Graynoise90

Kent1999

The only difference in maintenance is going to be the wider/ more expensive tires, but you already know that. Everything else will be the same as a Stingray Z51.

I drive a Stingray, because I purchased used, and at the time, the price difference between my used Stingray and a brand new GS was substantial ($20,000+) and I couldn't justify it. To be clear, I'm very happy with my Stingray, but if I was buying brand new, I'm pretty sure I'd go GS if it was in my budget.

Graynoise90

teejake

Exia

The biggest difference between the two, tire costs not withstanding, would be the suspension, especially without Magnetic Ride Control. I haven't driven them all so I can't speak from experience but the information out there states that in terms of smooth to rough it is Base+MRC > Z51+MRC > Base > Z51 > GS > Z06 (I may have gotten the base in the wrong spot but you get the idea). That being said the difference in ride quality isn't huge and would not be enough to sway me to pick one car over the other but I thought I'd mention it since you are looking for specific differences in terms of daily driving if nothing else was a concern. Do yourself a favor and go test a GS and a base with MRC and drive them over some bumps to see if you feel a difference, with both in touring.

The base car with MRC will be the better daily driver on paper but the difference is so marginal that you should just get whichever one you like better.

Oh and the GS being a little bit wider could also pose a problem if that sort of thing bugs you.

bigsapper

If you get the base *without* the Z51 package, you'll save a few coins on the oil change, too.

RX82Z06

I owned a 2016 Stingray, and now a 2017 GS.
They are very different. Here’s my 2 cents:

Unless you live in say Arizona, the GS tires are not suited for year-round daily driving in my opinion. They are treacherous in cold and/or wet conditions. In dry warm weather, the GS has ‘stupid’ grip compared to the Stingray. I have a C6 fully race-prepped track car and the GS grip and responsiveness is on par with it. So, you would be wise to have a set of wheels/tires that are not ‘extreme performance summer tires’ if you want the GS as a year-round daily driver.

The stock brake pads on the GS are dust machines. The very first thing you will want to do is swap them with another low-dusting pad (lots of info posted on this, and not expensive). You won’t notice any appreciable decrease in brake performance on the street doing this as the GS calipers are way overkill for the street.

Another consideration is the number of owners reporting wheel damage on the GS. It’s just not a sturdy wheel, and it is somewhere around $500-$600 from GM.

The Stingray on the other hand is fairly well-suited as a year-round daily driver stock. Sure it doesn’t have the aggressive wide-body stance of the GS, but it still looks awesome.

silvertc6

Please someone correct me if I am wrong but from my understanding both the base stingray and GS both have the same size tires in 2018 and 2019.

Kevin A Jones

If you are not going to track the car there's little difference as far as daily street driving goes.
It's probably has more to do with which body style you prefer. For me it's the wide-body.
The GS will cost a little more to maintain, if that's a huge concern you may want to consider something other than the C7.

pika

wrong, the base stingray and the Z51 have the same wheels and tires I believe (also someone correct me if I am wrong!) but the GS is wider

C7vette33

C7Me

They both have 19" & 20" wheels stock, but the GS's are wider and same width as the Z06's. The GS also comes stock with mag ride and is an option on the Stingray & Z51 models.

red62vette

JerriVette

I'd get the grand sport and I daily my corvettes..

The extra cost in tires is minimal and the preferred wide body look gets my vote.

The grand sport is literally considered the best vette to get...my dentist got a 2017 grand sport manual 1lz and he is in heaven as is his wife. His cost him 56888 dollars brand new. He flew out to Detroit to one of the forum vendors and drove home.

Upon arriving home he had a wonderful life adventure and as the father of three kids he is living his dreams. After a root canal he gave me...I let him drive my corvette z51 with the roof off between patients...he was hooked ...he was deciding between standard stingray or grand sport...he tells me he is very pleased with his choice of a grand sport and seeing the vehicle and going for a ride I can clearly say he made the right choice..

I suggest you live your dreams as you see fit. The grand sport is worth the extra few dollars without question according to my dentist who will also never track his car.

Your opinion may vary. Get the vehicle you like. Drive both and decide. That's the best way.

Have fun and congratulations.

Kevin A Jones

You get quite a bit more in a GS than just a beefed up suspension. In fact the GS package offers better value for features it contains than most of the packages in my opinion.

orca1946

That helps me in deciding on a 2019 GS.. Will the 2020 be mid/rear engine?? I'm almost ready to wait but, it has been "soon" for years.

Billy346

I am a fan of the GS but my budget kept me at the Stingray level.

I can can tell you that even a basic Stingray without Z51 or Mag Ride is a faster car than most drivers can handle. Unless you have had some seat time with an instructor and additional track time, I doubt you will be able to get anywhere near the limits of a stripped out 1LT. Just hit the gas at a stop light and you’ll know what I’m talking about. It’s an impressive car even in its simplest form.

Graynoise90