D6578

it is something I always wondered

Steve Garrett

It's a sports car..............with a lot of muscle.

sunsalem

^^^ That's about right IMO.

zhopper05

It is a sports car. Also, my understanding is the the C7 is considered a GT.

sunsalem

IMO, a "GT" is a car that adheres to being first and foremost a Grand Touring.
A stylish 2 seater meant for long distance cruising in complete comfort, with a touch of sport built in....
Vehicles that come to mind:
Aston Martins
Mercedes SL500
Jaguar F-Type V6

ShahulX

Yea, sports car not a muscle car... I always thought a muscle car was something that is an drag strip or 0-60 car but not great in corners or designed for long trips (not that cant be)...

Hellcat/Demon- is the epitome of a muscle car

Lotus Exige designed for the singular point of corners and track use- sports car

firstvettesoon

Not sure if completely accurate but to me, a muscle car is great to go fast...straight, but not a great turner. A sports car can go fast AND turn. I know some cross that line more than others and feel the Corvette does it better than most.

sunsalem

Agree with you guys.

vetteLT193

Sports car = 2 door, 2 seat small car with minimal 'stuff'.
GT is designed for long distance comfort, handling over many road conditions, driver centric, reliability over all out performance. Typically a 2+2 layout, front engine, RWD.

Corvette these days is between the two.

My 66 corvette was a Sports Car. Two doors, rag top, manual windows, brakes, etc. It didn't have the features you would have found in a 66 Caddy.

The C7 has all the creature comforts of a new Caddy, but is clearly performance oriented. It fits the sports car 2 seats, 2 doors, but is a heck of a lot bigger than what you would typically expect out of a sports car.

alain1601

The Corvette is a sport car. It is designed from scratch to be a sport car, quite different from a Camaro for example which can fullfill different uses. However the Corvette can also compete with Muscle cars because of its powerful engine.

IMO, the 60's Pontiac GTO's are the perfect examples of Muscle cars. To my knowledge the other American sport car is the Dodge Viper.

Sports cars are "international" as there are many car manufacturers around the world who produces them. Muscle cars are American made only.

The Corvette is also a roadster, as defined by the British; you can touch the rear wheel with your hand while being in the driver seat.

WesC7

Definitely a sports car....not a muscle car. Muscle cars to me are straight-line, 0 to whatever speed---as fast as you can get to their top-end. They're definitely not very nimble or trustworthy in the corners...

60's and early 70's had fantastic muscle cars: GTO, Fury, Cuda, Chevelle SS (loved that car), Mustang (Cobra & Mach 1), Demon, Duster, Camaro, etc. What a GREAT generation for muscle cars!

Too-Fast

Sports Car. Although todays Muscle cars: Camaro, Challenger, Mustang are moving from pure straight line to handling also, the Camaro and Mustang more so than the Challenger.

JoesC5

The Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio comes close to being a muscle car. 505 HP in a four door sedan. Not a huge engine, but a lot of horsepower and a bunch of high performance. A bunch of Mercedes AMG 4 door sedans(with up to 630 HP) would easily be classify as muscle cars. So would the Porsche Panamera with 550 HP in a 4 door sedan(680 HP in the Turbo S E-hybrid model). Audi 4 door sedan with 605 HP is no slouch either.

Europe has a bunch of 4 door sedans packing quite a bit of muscle under the hood.

JoesC5

Yes, the muscle cars of the 1960's and 1970's were horrible in the corners and stopping power, but the muscle cars of today handle the corners very well. In fact a bunch of today's muscle cars can out accelerate, out corner and out brake a 1960's era Corvette.

WesC7

I owned '64, '65, '66 vettes--but not until the early/mid 70s. If left stock, not a great car for pulling through the corners at the edge of their (or the drivers) limit. Still, I've always had a love affair with not only the Vette, but with the muscle cars of 60's & early 70s.

JoesC5

Same here. My first "muscle' car was a 1953 2 door Ford. What made it a "muscle car" was the small block Chevy I shoehorned in it when I was senior in high school in 1959/60. That was followed up with a 1932 3 window coupe with a SBC in 1961.

My first new car was in 1964. A 1964 Malibu SS hardtop with the 327, 4 speed, posi, and the rare F40 suspension. That was followed by a 1965 396, then a 1966 4-4-2, 1968 Torino GT fastback, etc. Even built a 427 1964 Malibu SS hardtop in 1969(engine from a wrecked 1969 Vette). And an original 1965 El Camino with the factory 327 and factory 4 speed Muncie that I came across in 1979.

I've owned a bunch of "muscle" cars over the years and every generation Corvette except for the C4 and C7.

Love the "oldies".

That reminds me of when some of us went to the Lone Star Corvette Classic in 2005. I drove my C5 and Jim was in his awesome restored 1959 Vette with 270 HP 283. Jim ran his '59 in the Gymkhana on Friday, and won a trophy. On Saturday he won 1st place in the car show and on Sunday we were out driving the high banked oval at Texas motor Speedway. We were in the same group of cars(12) and the late models were driving around 140 on the straights and around 125 through the corners(behind a pace car). Jim could only hit 125 on the straights but the first corner he held it on the floor and dived into the corner at 125 MPH(on reproduction 6.70x15 tires). Scared the hell out of him when it started going around and he was looking at the wall at a very odd angle. He was able to straighten it out, but for the next run around the track, he got with a group of "slow" Vettes(yes, there were owners of new(er) Corvettes that were afraid of driving over 85-95 in the corners) and they drove around the track at a slower speed.

sunsalem

Joe, you need to review the definition of what a "Muscle Car" is.
The cars you mentioned are technically "Sports Sedans,"
absolutely NOT Muscle Cars.

ROCKGT

American made
Big HP (not your base model)
Front engine
Rear wheel driven
Back seat (most important if you ask me)

Kenny94945

FWIW....

Muscle Car = Fast in a straight line.
Sport Car = Fast in a corner.

Back seats seem to be a muscle car trait.
Four doors might be another trait going back to the late 1950s.

Sport cars have neither of those traits.

Now as a GT.....

I don't think the older or original model sets had the luxury to be classed as a GT.

With base suspension it may qualify yet just doesn't have enough leather and solid metal if that equates to luxury.

Then with a C6 or C7 model with base and option 4 interiors...maybe has a GT's luxary, yet with the wide tires...just not so sure I class a Vette as a GT....even with MR shocks.

Fun discussion.

Lastly, I am on the Vettes are a Sports Car team.

firstvettesoon

^^. I agree that the Corvette is a sports car... But I have seen them made into muscle cars! Some of those YouTube guys are crazy!