I drove a C5 Z06 today.
 

Didn't learn much, except that my standards are different than most peoples'. Again.

I have to give the platform the benefit of the doubt and assume that the one I drove was laden with a lot of poorly selected, poorly adjusted and poorly maintained aftermarket stuff.

What kind of mods?

Seriously. A C5Z works great with very minor mods and some sticky tires.

Crazy heavy clutch, ridiculous high-effort short shifter. Way past the grey area between manly and undriveable. Bump steer in the rear, undetermined reason. Might be worn out bearings. That's a weak spot on Vettes. With the bump steer, not sure whether the odd responses on bumps are bad shock tuning or something needing maintenance.

I've been telling myself that the only excuse for spending as much as I have on my Miata instead of just buying a C5 is the cost of C5 tires vs. 205/50-15s.

Why didn't you just write that shit in your first post instead of making somebody ask you for an explanation?

He wanted a super cool story bro picture.

lol

I'd take a c5z over a miata any day. shitty bearings and all:giggle:

I have the same clutch I had in the FRC, and an even shorter throw on this T56 as the last, but other then that, you pretty much nailed most the reasons I switched over to the Miata camp. Once you do some real work to a vette, you find out how much of a PITA they are. I'll own another one day, but it will be a new C6Z with a 100k mile warranty.

I've driven several different C5Zs on multiple occasions at high speed autocrosses with the Florida Corvette Racing Club. They are hard to turn good times with for several reasons. Even with r-compounds and sorted suspensions the steering is heavy and numb. The cars are very wide and quite heavy which makes them tough to flick and toss around in switchbacks. There is very little communication from the wheels back through any of the controls or the seat which leaves you guessing. Torque and throttle response are good throughout the rpm range. Braking was numb. Seats are comfortable and the legroom is superior to the Miata. All in all it feels much more like a grand tourer than a sports car.

At the club's dyno day four of them were putting down between 408-423whp on a Mustang dyno with no internal mods and stock or mild aftermarket mufflers/exhaust.

Really? Mine only made 412 with all my mods and a Formato tune...

Stock Z mufflers are not very restrictive.

Yes, it does feel a bit numb, but most like it that way. Its a PITA not having ABS in the Miata to nanny me the entire time..... keeping the tires from flat spotting.

It also takes a bit to get used to. They aren't like the Miata where you can jump in and go.

The factory mufflers are extremely light as well compared to many aftermarket offerings.

The active handling can be a bitch though.

Which is exactly what it was intended for. You thing the old guys that can afford them want raw sports car? No, they want to feel young again on the way to the wine tasting.

I switched from Borla Stingers to the Ti's and lost a good 25 pounds in the process. Active handling is shut off first thing before any auto-x event. The first time you try to whip the car around a cone, it would kick in and send you going straight.

I am interested to see what people say about the Grand Sport, as that is supposed to be a much more focused car, sort of like a GT3R compared to a basic GT3.

Its weak. They have the price tag of a Z without the mph

Uh, lol...

OK, bad example, but you get my idea.