Comments: 1-15, 16-18
Xenon headlight bulb burned out at 22,000 miles, fixed under warranty.
Brake rotors warped at 32000 miles, have had them shaved flat 3 times now, problem keeps recurring.
Windshield washer stopped working at 26000 miles, fixed under warranty.
Tires only last 14,000 miles, and cost $250 each, but are worth it!
The best handling car under $70,000!
Not a harsh ride, much better than the Toyota Supra Turbo I had before.
Routinely blows away Mustangs.
Has a back seat and a trunk.
An amazing bargain for $32,000.
Get the sunroof!
Only needs cruise control (for those speed traps) to be perfect.
Actually the c6 corvette is well known as the best performance car under 50k and the Z06 variant as the best under 70k including handling. Not to mention that the lancer evolution is a... Mitsubishi and a ratty looking one at that. No class or comfort whatsoever.
Yeah, the Corvette just screams class and comfort what with its Mattel plastic interior and its "let's feel every pebble on the road" ride.
The Corvette is a bargain, but let's keep things in perspective.
'Actually the c6 corvette is well known as the best performance car under 50k and the Z06 variant as the best under 70k including handling. Not to mention that the lancer evolution is a... Mitsubishi and a ratty looking one at that. No class or comfort whatsoever.'
Read it again. He didn't say it was the best performance car, just 'the best'. Typical Yank thinking straight line speed is everything.
And as for best handling, don't make my laugh, it may be great for powerslides on a track, but on public roads, its pretty poor.
Also how can you say the EVO has no comfort, when your talking about a Corvette that has 'leaf springs'...suspension that was developed decades ago and belongs there. It makes A 911 GT3RS seem comfortable.
The Z06 Vette is the best value under 70K there is no way of debating that.
A car that I think is an even better value then the Evo is the Subaru impreza STi. That car has much better quality, better AWD, and is not a Mitsubishi.
To commenter 6:12.
You sound like a typical brit. You know nothing of Corvettes, but because Top Gear doesn't like it therefore it's garbage. Have you ever driven a C6 corvette? If you have you'd realize that there is nothing primative about it. And The Z06 will spank anything that costs less than three times its price. You can drive it every day to work in comfort then take it to the track and embarrass Porsche's and Ferrari's all day long. Stick to what you know; traffic circles and boiled food.
Actually he does have a point, while the c6 'Vette is fast and not bad at handling it is no ferrari or porsche.
And Even a Lotus would beat one round a track, as they handle.
It's strange how in handling tests in american sports cars they test slalom and skid pan usually. What about testing round a race circuit with tight bends and corners with camber on etc. and then see how well it handles.
I'd put good money down to watch a 'Vette owner get there ass handed to them by any car almost from its price range (Caterham csr 260 or any superlight model for that matter, Noble, Lancer Fq modela from 300 onwards.)
In fact I think all cars listed above especially the Caterham are cheaper than the Vette and handle oh so much better I've seen one 'try' and go round the Nurbergring in Germany and it was a joke! They may be quick, but life isn't a straight line.
Jeb.
Shocking plasticcy interior, poor build quality & suspension that would be more at home on Fred Flintstone's car... The Corvette may have some great qualities, but its no all-rounder.
The Impreza STI wins hands down due to being brilliant in almost every way. The only concern being some peoples stereotypical views of the owners.
To commenter 00:51.
A Caterham? Your joking right? As a dedicated track car I'm sure it's wonderful on the auto cross course, but for a daily driver? And the Elise maybe on of the best handling road cars available, but it just slightly larger then a hotwheels car. A grown man looks ridiculous driving these insect like cars with their awful colour palate.
A Corvette is an excellent vehicle that works well on the track and driven everyday through rush hour traffic. It may not be the sophisticated vehicle, but it does wonders at a price that wouldn't buy you an empty shell of an Italian exotic.
The Evo 8 is a very capable car. With the Corvette, it's not like you're getting twice the car for double the price of a Evo. The Evo 8 and 9 are high performance bargains, along with STis no matter how you cut it. Evos take mods very easy and are built fairly tough. The Sti has a bit more refinement, but lacks the brute force of the Evo. Corvettes aren't that practical to me, but everyone is different. I very much like the idea of having a high performance car with four doors that is well engineered and well built that can easily carry four people through the woods or through 8 inches of snow. Corvettes are good cars, but the Evo is a better vehicle in my life.
Interesting to see the comments on EVO v Vette. Both are excellent cars and suit different people.
In terms of handling, you would be very surprised by the results of the Top Gear Power Laps. For those who don't know, these are laps driven by the same professional driver around the same track, but in different cars, hence provides a very good comparison. See the full list at http://www.bbc.co.uk/topgear/show/powerlaps.shtml
What you will see on that list is that the Z06 lapped the track in 1.22.4, some 7 places ahead of the EVO FQ400 which turned in a time of 1.24.8. This provides some fairly sound proof that the Vette' indeed does handle, beating other cars such as the M3 CSL, Zonda, Murcielago and Lotus Exige, and only a whisker behind the Porsche GT3 RS.
And no, I'm not an American or British.
'What you will see on that list is that the Z06 lapped the track in 1.22.4, some 7 places ahead of the EVO FQ400 which turned in a time of 1.24.8.'
True, but the FQ400 came off its turbo on 'The Hammerhead', which probably cost it 2-3 seconds at least. I suspect this may have been deliberately done just to prove how much turbo lag there is and the lack of power when off the turbo.
And yes, the ZO6 was very quick round the track, but most owners for the majority of the time are going to be driving it on public roads which is not going to be particularly fun considering the shocking suspension set-up.
To the previous poster, I would strongly contest the suggestion that the Stig does anything other than drive his best out on the track in every car. If you have watched episodes of the show you would realise that the TG team certainly do NOT favour American cars over others - to the contrary, I would suggest they do everything they can to slag them, therefore saying there was bias against the EVO is incorrect.
Of course you could argue forever regarding nuances, but at the end of the day, a professional driver drove both cars to their extreme and the Vette' was faster. If the 'turbo came off' or whatever is of no consequence - if a professional driver can't get it to perform better then I don't see how anyone else would achieve a different result.
My post was put in place precisely because people were arguing that the Vette' can't handle. This has been proved wrong. The debate wasn't about everyday driving, although I am sure the suspension of the EVO isn't exactly like driving on a cushion of air.
End of argument.
To my knowledge, the FQ400 was driven on the track that I thought was wet aswell!
I've been to track days at many British tracks and have seen everything from the Corvette to a Viper go round and can honestly say that the Brute force of an American muscle car is fantastic, but as an overall package the Evo suits me! My FQ340 will happily swallow lugguage and be as civilised as any normal car and then at any time I can unleash the mental performance (which I prefer)!
Not everything is about out-right performance, but the overall package of the Evo in my opinion is truely great!
Not many cars can swallow lugguage and have adequate space for 2 adults in the back and then can propel from rest to 60 in under 5 seconds!
All this for 22 grand!
Bargain!!!
Gents, I have your solution.
Forget the Vette, designed in the grand old USA when they simply have no idea what bends are!...
Evo.. awesome around corners... but if you want to get some major performance that beats both, and is easily proven to be a very quick track car and something that can be driven every day to work... BMW M3 SMG!
(I also have an FQ300 for weekend fun)
"Not everything is about out-right performance, but the overall package of the Evo in my opinion is truely great!"
Unfortunately for your point outright performance is what this whole conversation has been about.