RBK

From Car Magazine Nov 2015: (copied from Ferrari Forum)

The reckoning

8) Corvette Z06 - Extraordinary engine, fine chassis, scary tyres. Bargain in the US; £112,910 here…
7) Lotus Evora 400 - Dreamy steering but the details will keep you awake at night
6) AMG GTS - Too well-rounded to win, but AMG’s Gran Turismo is a fine sports car
5) Lamborghini Aventador SV - Best Lamborghini ever? Believe. A £315k, 740bhp triumph of evolution
4) Porsche Cayman GT4 - The runaway winner if you factor in price. No wonder its biggest issue is availability
3) McLaren 675LT - A cut-price P1, and as focused and rewarding as the 650S is versatile
2) Ferrari 488 GTB - Breathtaking agility and speed, delivered apparently without effort
1) Porsche 911 GT3 RS - Special like a race car; practical like a (two-seat) 911. Best driver’s Porsche yet

And the winner is... By Gavin Green

We all like the car that must come last – this is one of those tests. The Corvette’s NASCAR V8 growl is bewitching, its punch of torque intoxicating, and the Z06 copes with narrow, undulating, pitted and gravel-peppered Welsh B-roads, surely the polar opposite of the wide, smooth blacktops for which it was bred. Had the Corvette engineers even heard of a Welsh secondary? Unlikely.

In the end, it’s just not sharp and precise enough for a British B-road, not when it’s facing opposition of this calibre. Those near-slick Michelins didn’t help, though they certainly boosted the entertainment factor.

Conversely, the Lotus is designed for these roads. The Evora has the best steering here, a sublime chassis, and copes with the dips and turns of a UK secondary as easily as a swift deals with a thermal stream. The Evora flows over these roads, never fighting. The downside is the V6 engine, void of the throttle sensitivity that the rest of the car deserves. Plus, that homespun style is a problem, especially in a car costing more than the Cayman.

Winging 'ell. Enough height on these spoilers to bolt on to a touring car

The AMG boasts the widest capability: surprisingly nimble over the moors, relaxed on the motorway. The twin-turbo engine is fabulous, the gearshift less so. I like sitting behind that long bonnet, hefty horsepower up front, but ultimately it just can’t compete for entertainment on the twisty stuff, not up against the best from Porsche and Ferrari.

The Lamborghini SV – the traditional supercar of this bunch – won us over with its character, and surprised us with its composure. We love its V12. We love its agility, which defies its two metre-plus girth. In some key areas though – gearshift, seats – it can’t compete. Plus the terrible visibility and video-game instrumentation undoubtedly diminish driving pleasure.

So our top three, from bronze to gold, runs McLaren 675LT, Ferrari 488 GTB, Porsche 911 GT3 RS. If value for money were a factor (it wasn’t), the fourth-placed Cayman would win. How could it fail, when it costs half as much as a GT3 and one-fifth of an Aventador? We all love it. But its rival Porsche, the GT3 RS, is faster, sharper, more dramatic to drive, has more definition to its steering and better modulation to its braking.

The Ferrari is awesome, of course. The new turbocharged engine has slightly dulled the throttle sharpness of the old 458 and, more important, the linearity of the torque delivery. The flipside is that the turbo-inflating torque makes it easier to drive briskly, the power always on tap. It is a less frenzied sports car than the 911, more supple, less hardcore, not so immersive; majestically entertaining but somehow less engaging.

Ultimately, though, it doesn’t thrill or reward quite like the GT3 RS, our winner. The Porsche is a track car boasting surprisingly civilised road manners. The throttle response and barely credible 8800rpm redline are both sensational, the gearshift crackerjack instant. It is, very possibly, the best driver’s car Porsche has ever made.

And the 675LT? It may have won, were it not for its DNF – ‘a powertrain issue on a pre-production press car, and the result of damage sustained on a previous activity’ according to McLaren. To drive this driver-focused evolution of the 650S is to be smitten. The LT is more nimble than the GT3 RS, faster and enjoys better steering, though its engine is less sweet, if ultimately more forceful at high revs. The McLaren also boasts the finest driving position here. The only consolation is that there is always a next time.

05dsom

I'll take the RS

Boba Fett

DaveFerrari458

I'll take 5 other cars before I take the RS and one of them is the Corvette.

ChevyChad

If money were no object, I'd take the aventador

Busa Dave

I mod my cars extensively however, the Z06 is still the one I would choose even stock as it is the best for a highway long trip asphalt ripper! Different people have different requirements--some just buy cars like these and drive them on a Sunday when the weather is nice. That is fine too whatever floats your boat and makes you happy.

Runs11s

I thought it was interesting the McLaren was a DNF. And, supposedly due to 'the result of damage sustained on a previous activity'. It was a pre-production press car which can account for some of the issues I'm sure.

But notice the similarity in results between the McLaren DNF and the MT BDC C7Z?

Interesting...

And - if funds were no issue, for me it would be between the Lambo Aventador and the GT3 RS. Love both of those cars.

emericr

Interesting bunch of cars. They could not put the home car last but that's really where it belongs.
They should have taken a non Z07 as the car would have been less edgy with the cups and the harder suspension.

Runs11s

OnPoint

488 and 675lt would make for an ultimate pair for me.

I'm one of the probable few among Ferrari fans who think the 488 sounds better and looks better than the 458. It certainly performs better - no small feat given how good the 458 is.

Runs11s

I've been in a 458 but not a 488 yet. Does the Turbocharging affect the exhaust much sound-wise? I do like the looks of the 488 based on pics I've seen.

OnPoint

It definitely sounds different. I actually like the sound of the 488 as it has a deeper note - the 458 sounds tinny, raspy and blatty, but in fairness darned good up top. 488 looses some of the top end rpm, but gains a lot of useable torque down low the 458 doesn't have.

Of course folks are split on the looks, which are entirely subjective.

Runs11s

The new 488 reminds me of the Enzo in some ways. It's definitely a good looking car.

GP1224

What a stupid test.

As if anyone gives a monkeys nuts about a Z06 is on a B road in the a$$ end of Wales that the roads are as wide as my shoe and you drive on the other side.

Even worse is they used a press car with the Sport cups when the press team (if there was one) if they had any brains at all would use the Super sports that are far superior in those conditions. Which AFAIK the 911 GT3RS also uses Sport Cups yet notice no mention of that for the 911

All great brilliant cars anyways... thats for sure... but no surprise in this test for the Z considering. Is there ever a test in the UK that they dont test on terrible roads or in the rain?

On another note is too bad and very sad that the 488 is not near as visceral as the 458. Turbo's just suck the life out of any engine no matter how much faster

TARANTULA

They have to use the car they have available to them. Remember even GM acknowledges that they don't have enough Corvettes for magazine testing.

RBK

I will put you down as a "maybe" regarding the comparison. I own both a 458 and Z 06 and both are great cars for different reasons. Best

GP1224

Put me down as a maybe? lol

SBC_and_a_stick

Definitely its steering is not the most sharp and precise, sure. Not reason enough to put it in last place though. The Lotus has steering feel but loses in every other category and it's rated higher than the 'Vette? I call this bull. No one trades an entire car for a slight improvement in steering feel.

GP1224

None of it makes any sense. How can a car that is too well rounded end up in 6th place