Corvette ZO6
We’ve just driven the Corvette Z06 and proclaimed one of the cheapest ways into supercar ownership.
Sure, running a near-200mph car is never going to be cheap – four figure insurance premiums, the heaviest road tax bills and 19mpg if you nurse the throttle.
But to buy one new, you’ll only need to shell out £62,000 – that’s £38,000 less than a Porsche 911 Turbo with virtually identical performance, or a massive £76,600 less than the slower Ferrari F430.
Of course, the Porsche and Ferrari will offer more handling panache and the all-important kudos that comes with a thoroughbred badge, but are they worth up to twice the price of the Corvette?
The argument for the Corvette goes further than just a cheap price tag. It has a guttural roar from that 7-litre V8 engine and the size of the powerplant means it can do the long-legged cruiser thing as well as the very best. At 70mph, the engine is barely ticking over at around 1,500rpm. And it offers a level of exclusivity the others can’t – when was the last time you saw a new ‘Vette on the road?
Best of all is the Corvette Z06 is an American car which can actually handle. It might have ancient leaf spring rear suspension, but it has great weight distribution, tonnes of grip and nice steering.
But stacked against it are size and the fact you can only buy it with the steering wheel on the left. Your right leg gets very warm against the gearbox casing and the boot, while very big is shallow and covered by a piece of cloth the leading edge of which flaps like a washing line of clothes when the windows are open at speed.
What do you think of the Corvette? Is it an American relic, or still relevant in a world of £100,000-plus supercars?
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2 Comments
August 8, 2008 at 9:33 am
I think Americans just don`t understand European cars, & Europeans just don`t understand American cars, which makes selling into those markets a little tougher!
Correct, the Vette is not seen much on our roads, but how many dealers are there in the UK?
£62K is still a lot of money for a car so where do you take it when it breaks or needs serviced?
For not much more you can get a BMW M5, which has four comfortable seats, & boot, better built, a level of acceptable performance that would more than satisfy most of us, & a dealer within the locality, oh & it`s not American!
August 17, 2008 at 9:28 am
It certainly is. it is very exclusive and any mercedes AMG or BMW m5 just looks like any other mercedes or BMW unless you look very closely. as for dealers, there are almost as many as ferrari if you know where to look in the UK in the major cities. good internet forums as well to helpand many vauxhall monaro dealers also work on corvettes. Same engine in the two cars.
In traffic you will know no other corvette will be around for miles, but an M5 or Amg just looks like a car with a body kit on.
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