New Member -- Deciding Between c6 Z06 or Gen III Coupe

We have both Viper GTS & 07 Corvette Z51. The grin on you face in much larger after the Viper drive.

Viper is the better buy..... Z06 is a great daily driver and looks to be the best vette built this past decade, but lets face it, the Viper is what the vette should have been.

Chevrolet's left the corvette behind in 1967.... maybe 69-72.... and the Viper now carries the torch....

I, like most, am a bit biased as I have wanted to own a Viper since '92. I respect the history of Corvette and one of my best friends has several collectable vetts. I have driven several Corvettes and have enjoyed driving them all. However, with less than 1000 Vipers built/year you are paying for the exclusivity of a hand built American exotic. I live in a former GM town as the plant here shut down 2 years ago and everyone drove Vettes. That's not a bad thing, but ask any Viper owner and they will tell you that they enjoy the exclusive club. A neighbor up the street last fall drove by my house in his radar red C6 2 days after I took delivery and gave me the thumbs up. It was kind of a good feeling as my dream was a long time coming. Good luck!

I like the 'Vette as a street ******. Cheap, comfortable performance.

On the track (I go to VIR), I prefer Viper. Mainly because of reliability...but that torque! ach du lieber!

Pretty much all of my track buds who've had or have C5Zs have blown up their engines on the track. Not the stock ones (stock meaning bone stock or headers and air box stuff), but the ones who have done any internal mods at all. Even rockers. There's something about that LS-series engine that likes to go boom when mod'd. Mod'd street ones seem to be fine. Road course? Different story. LS-2 and LS-3s definitely the worst on track as far as reliability.

I've driven a C5Z on the road course. I liked it - it was competent. But something was missing...

My 2000 ACR (street legal) hasn't had an easy day in the seven years I've owned it (or the two+ years prior - previous owner tracked it). LOTS of weekend HPDE and TT use. One failure in all that time - power steering pulley. I don't think a Chevy could hold up like these Dodge tanks.

My last 'Vette I sold three months ago. 1996 C4 (LT1 car), 228,000 miles. Ran great! It was a fun street ******, even with an automatic. Easy to service and repair, and uber cheap. Bought for $3500, beat the hell out of it for a few months. Totally SUCKED on the track, of course (crappy suspension, and the Auto trans is horrible on a road course). Just killed time that weekend. But it didn't break. Also recently bought/sold a stock '99 Z28. It was faster than that '96 C4.

If I could have only one performance car, though, Viper all the way. Plus, I just feel cheap when I drive anything with a bowtie on it (sorry, Silverado sitting in the driveway...).

Pappa Prich said:

As I'm obviously still learning about Vipers ... why? Is the stock diff a weak part, or is there not enough gear?

Click to expand...

Neither although many here will say the stock gears are too tall. It doesn't do a good job of keeping the rear straight when the fishtail starts. There's a combination of causes here but the "limited slip" feature of the stock differential is next to worthless in my opinion. The Giken or Quaiffe will help control wild fishtailing and will respond to the normal corrective measures the driver applies should the rear start moving around. They are not foolproof or failsafe but work FAR better than stock. That said, good tires and smooth driving will go far.

Again, everyone thank you for your opinions and experiences!

My heart was set on Viper and now even more so. I still need to drive one (a couple people have stepped up -- thank you!!!!!) but right now there's no question. I'm sure the drive will only seal the deal.

Other good news -- the sale is pending on my GTO!

Pappa Prich said:

Again, everyone thank you for your opinions and experiences!

My heart was set on Viper and now even more so. I still need to drive one (a couple people have stepped up -- thank you!!!!!) but right now there's no question. I'm sure the drive will only seal the deal.

Other good news -- the sale is pending on my GTO!

Click to expand...

Congrats on your decision!

Now, the only remaining decision is to determine the best color.

Which is YELLOW!

I own and drive both. The Viper is a much more "exclusive" ride unless you buy a ZR1. I have some friends who own Z06's, some stock and some modified, and none of them will agree to go to a nice steakhouse where we can watch our cars and whichever one gets the most attention the other one pays for the meal. My viper is on at least 100 camera phones. Uusually when I stop for gas, someone wants a picture or makes a comment about how cool the car is. When I drive my vette I see myself every day.

Andrew Zee said:

Congrats on your decision!

Now, the only remaining decision is to determine the best color.

Which is YELLOW!

Click to expand...

Thanks man -- but yellow's not the color for me