No offence, but I think the Z06 is butt-ugly. If you're gonna go for a Vette, OK, but how can you go from a beautiful F-car to.......THAT? Get a Vette with the proper lines, please. I'll sleep better. Best! Wes
***NOTE: the following applies to post 84 years. 1. If you can tolerate the water based enamel paint, hope it lasts long enough when you decide to sell. (GM warranty will NOT cover this! Considered "normal wear and tear." Enough is enough, I am no sucker.) 2. Most GM parts are not in stock, always a 2 week delay in getting parts. Maybe things have changed.(in contrast---I get my Fcar parts DELIVERED to my door in 2-3 days. 3. Be prepared to work on it every weekend. 4. The vette will depreciate as you look at it. If you drive it, it will fall faster. 5. Going from a hand made work of art to a rough fitted megaproduced Detroit special made in a few hours from start to finish doesn't sound too exciting to me. Maybe I am wrong. 6. Hope the transmission holds up before you decide to sell it, if not, the automatic transmission is megabucks to fix. 7. Be prepared to rebuild the front end every 30K miles, replace front end parts with Moog suspension parts, those will last longer. Especially anything associated with the steering parts. 8. You will learn what the "convenience cluster" is. Hopefully not. 9. Hope rattling noises won't scare you. 10. But hey, you are helping the U.S. economy!
From someone who had many Corvettes, I could never take the Torque feeling out of my System. I sold my 1990 Corvette in 1993 and bought an NSX, I missed the torque of the Vette, but I didn't miss the rattles and heavy feeling. When the C5 came out I seriously thought about buying one, my first thought I was nuts. In 1999 I pulled the trigger and bought a 99 Coupe, after one month I sold it and bought my 355. Big Mistake selling the NSX for the Corvette. It haunted me for a while. Get a 328 or a CARB 308, but you will miss the F-Car if you sell it and buy a Corvette.
The vette will be like the cheap floozy you picked up at the bar - fun for a while and really exciting thinking about it. But when you wake up the next morning and realize what you have done, no amount of therapy will recover your lost self respect, sacrificed for a quick, cheap thrill. Your Ferrari on the other hand, is the love of your life, despite its imperfections and lack of ability to do unspeakable things to you. It will always be there, a constant reminder of what class and style and breeding are all about. Go on your fling if you have, but you will need an huge amount of disinfectant to wash the stench of ordinariness off you.
Well folks I have made my decision. After looking at the 308's in the showroom section I just realized how mauch I really do like the car. I guess I've become jaded to most cars now becuase I see all kinds of them everyday. But damn..what a beautiful little car..still my fav out of ALL the Ferrari's out there(well besides the F-40 and the 288GTO). So I'm going to keep her and throw some more money her way..suspension,brakes,wheels, little bit of body work(euro bumbers a maybe a GTO front light treatment but on a smaller scale). But I think I'm still going to grab a Vette..more then likely in the winter when I can grab one cheap from the auction. Thanks everyone..you have sved me from making a big mistake!!
Good move, Tom! Like you and others have mentioned here, I'm too smitten with the F-cars to let them go (unless it was for another F-car of course). The 'Vette purchase will be my wife's toy, and strictly an addition to the garage.
Look, I have an '84 308, I know it's not the fastest thing out there but so what! I go everywhere with her and never worry about it. Just keep her until you can trade up. Vettes are nice, don't get me wrong,but if I had to take one or the other, give me a Ferrari everytime. I just feel so good driving and listening to her. It's like Harley's, can you buy better, cheaper bikes? Yeah sure but does it feel the same or attract the same attetion? You be the judge.
Let me tell you my experience, I sold my '88 testarossa about 6 months ago and bought a new Porsche 996twin turbo, the Porsche kills the testarossa in every performance test, it is as relaxing as a nsx and totally crazy fast when you want it to be. It can do 0-60 in less than 4 seconds, but I can't shake the Ferrari from my head and have given a real deal of time thinking about the Testarossa. I am on the list for the F430 but I will have to wait at least 2 years to get mine. So how can I survive for 2 years without a Ferrari? The more I think about it the more I feel like I will sell the 996TT and buy a 512TR. The Ferrari wasn't the fastest of the line racer but I am not into drag racing anyways. I think I will be driving a 512tr before the years end.
The damn things are addictive, huh? Once you get a little taste you have to come back for more. There is something intangible about a Ferrari that makes us lust for them.
I've been working on a "little" suspension job on my 308...for nearly the last TWO MONTHS!! I have cursed this car, almost, I said almost, kicked it and have been following this thread at the same time. It got me thinking too...Hmm....for all the money I'm puting in this car I could be driving something like a Vette or a Viper or?? Just over an hour ago I put the wheels back on the ground and took it out for a quick "shakedown" cruise. The first stop was for gas and the show began. There were a bunch of youngster all saying "wow what a beautiful car". Now that's not why I bought the car in the first place, but come on and admit it, it is kind of fun. Then, after warming it up, I got it out on the highway and I knew right then and there that I'd never get the same feeling from a Vette or a Viper or??? I am hopelessly, and happily HOOKED!!! I was glad to see you decided to work out doing both cars. I'm thinking I may have to add a Viper or something in a couple years. Then again I may just want to "upgrade" to a newer F-car by then!! We'll see! John
If winning a race is all your worried about, why not keep the Ferrari, and buy an old Fox Body 5.0 with a relativly low ammount of miles to mod the hell out of. That way you can beat the hell out of pretty much anyone for a reasonable ammount of money, and when you want style you can just hop back into your Fcar. Just my opinion... Nothing against the Vette or the Z06, its an alright car, but its just not my style. If I were going to own a Vette though it'ed deffinatly be a ZR-1 (even though everytime I say that I get lectured about how superior the Z06 is.)
If speed is all you want the fully modified turbo fast and furious Honda Accord will beat the Corvett anyway... What sport car you own before the 308? It is a big step down to go from Ferrari to the Vett. 308 is now a classic. It's like the Dino 246GTB, slow car but it takes your breath away... I am glad you still with us...
