What to buy - Z06, F430, GT3, Gallardo, Exige????

Taking you at your word - "not a rich guy", there is no reason to spend anymore than will bring you enjoyment. Buying a Ferrari for "tracking" is an unnecessary extravagance. For the money, nothing beats the Z-06. It is cost effective and will beat most, if not any stock car on the track (certainly any costing under $250,000). I road race a Z-06 (older model). I own a new Z-06, Porsche Turbo and Ferrari 430 among others. I have had all on tracks and the Z-06 is both challenging and fast by comparisio. You can buy an Ariel or Nobel, etc. These kit cars offer a great deal of (efficient) fun as well. Best

 

thats a wide ass range. the F430 is a sports car not a track car (not saying you cant do it very well) but the CS is track focused, as is the GT3RS and GT3, RS is more focused and less livable. Exige S is much like the GT3 RS but less expensive but more harsh. Z06 is a great bang for the buck but has its faults in quality and just general percetion. GT? its much like the 430 in that it is a racy road car not a track car that is street legal. Vantage? its a Grand Turisimo, heavy and good for cross country. You need to figure what price bracket and how focused then you can decide. like high end track focused? GT3RS, 360 CS, Gallardo Super Legerra. Low priced (comparing) track focused? Z06, Exige. and GT3. Low end road cars that will be comfortable to drive say 3-4 times a week but will be good on a track, GT, F430/360 , Gallardo. Its really up to you but see the diffrence?

 

Have you driven the 997 GT3/RS? BIG suspension improvement over the 996 GT3/RS and very much 'livable'.

 

LOL yes i have im not saying its not, im just saying as you go down the line from "street to race street" 997S->GT3->GT3RS the comfort will degrade to a point. Many people find it very livable im just saying

 

I sold my 430 and I'm waiting for the 430 Scuderia. In the meantime I'm driving a 997 GT3. The car is perfect for carving up the canyons and taking it to the track. The size is perfect for me. I find the Z06 too big. I use the GT3 as a daily driver also. The ride is more raw than the 430 but it's not a negative. If I could have only one car in the garage it would be a Ferrari. But I can honestly say that I don't miss the 430 at all. The GT3 is that good.

 

I would probably go for the Z-06 - they look great, sound great, and are one of the fastest cars on the street. Plus they are good value on the "bang for buck" scale.

It is a well engineered car - I don't know how they manage to get the V8 that low and that far back!

And it has dominated Le Mans for the last few years, with nothing coming close to beating them until this year (although my DBR9 did beat one of the works Vettes last year......).

However, a Ferrari is a Ferrari..............!

 

mainly track then an exige nothing beats the feel of such light cars IMO..gallardo and 430 as others mentioned are not track cars and i don't like awd (gallardo)

for more balanced street/track a gt3 is great

ZO6 i respect but i don't like vette feel

test drive and decide for yourself because people value different things: power, weight, refinement,..

 

Having never driven any of the aforementioned cars I can only give you my educated however inexperienced opinion. I'd say, given the conditions you've described, a 997 GT3 would be perfect for you. Street and track ready and one hell of a good looking ride in my opinion. You could of course get an older CS or something but as you said you're not a rich guy (nor am I) and the GT3 is a fantastic car.

 

This is real easy. I'm selling my Noble M400 and you want the best track car available for realistic money.
It will hang with ANYTHING in production now for the cost of a base 911. I never have gotten to track my Noble due to my work schedule and it is sad to see it chillin in the garage. Must go to quality home.

I noticed you mentioned an Exige, it is similar except the M400 is more comfortable for the street and is on steriods.

 

I have owned 7 Corvettes and I am just tired of them being everywhere. I was a little nervous about tracking my Elise being that it is so low on power on paper. I was moving up to the Advanced level at our last track day and I was expecting to be passed all day. NO WAY! This little car is insane. I was passing 996TT Porsches, Corvettes on slicks and everything else that was in my way. I did get passed once in the long straight but I will never race anything but a Lotus again. Lightweight and great brakes beat anything else. This car is insane and I wish I could step up to the Exige. I will always have a Lotus in the garage from now on.

 

+100.. For what you are looking for - a car that you take to the track and want to use in the twisties and live with - its hard to beat the GT3..

I would also throw a CS in the mix too. But its probably $40-50K more.

 

Go for a GT3 RS - 997, You will never get become bored of it, or stop learning about it's characteristics, and it will take the punishment u give it on the track better then anything else on your list..

 

I would go with Z06, Stradale or Exige S. All so good. Such a hard decision though.

 

If you could combine a Z06, Ferrari, and Exige, you would have a Noble.. Hands down would fulfill all of your requirements of each car. Price/performance/exclusivity. I would skip on the exige if you dont plan on truely tracking a lot. Plus it has 220hp or so, not 400-500 like the rest of your cars. Will be a dissapointment. Like ANY of these "what should I get" threads, it comes down to what do YOU really want it for?? With the wide range of cars it seems you really dont know what you want and you just have the itch for something new. I would take some time and think about what it is you really appreciate about driving (confort, style, track-ability, etc). The Noble does drive very well as a daily, and will out handle any one of the cars you list, while being under 100k and you will have 1/220 cars in the US that will ever be built. If you really want the most pure driving experience available, go for the Noble. Otherwise, it seems the GT3 would be your best bet as a daily/track car.

 

Well in the last year I have had an 06 Z06, 06 BMW M5, and currently have an 07 911 Turbo and an 06 Mercedes CLS55 AMG to which I put a RennTech package in: remapped the ECU and removed the limiter, changed to a larger crankshaft pulley and added a carbon fiber airbox. I also added a Lorinser bodykit and low profile 20" Lowenhart rims(which of course arent the best in harnessing all that power). For a 4 door 4000lb+ 530 HP luxury sedan it certainly kept up with the Z06 although the 911 turbo pulls away quite easily from both, especially after I changed the stock exhaust to a new FabSpeed exhaust. I enjoyed the Z06 especially the bang for the buck(although I did pay $10K over MSRP for it) but while the power was intoxicating the ride was hard, the interior too plasticky, the gearshift got hot and to top it off I had 2 tops blowoff while on the freeway due to a factory recall on the hardtop(something to do with the paint messing with the adhesives which kept the top on).
Initially GM told me I would have to wait 2 months to get a new top(and the service center I took the car told me they wouldnt let me take the car back) so I had to raise hell, threaten lawsuit and get the BBB involved which miraculously got me a new top inside a week. Unfortunately it was one of the old tops so it blew off again 2 months later..anyway moving on..
If you are more interested in the track instead of getting the "best" car(obviously the Ferrari is in a class by itself) I would suggest the GT3. Before I bought my Turbo I drove a GT3 and found it like basically a racecar with a license plate however the clutch was very stiff and would not be fun sitting in traffic for awhile and I did not think it was as fast(4.1 sec 0-60) as claimed. While the GT3RS is slightly more proficient not so much that it warrants paying the extra $25K+ that most dealers are charging to get one. For the track the GT3/GT3RS is almost unbeatable and I have read countless articles lauding it in the various car mags both domestic and foreign. The Z06 in my opinion is definitely not a trackcar not that it wasnt a blast to drive(especially the day I bought it when we drove from LA to Vegas) and went from cruising with traffic around 85 to 168 in the blink of an eye when a huge opening arrived(pulled hard the whole way and actually didnt even get into 6th gear.. what a rush).
For what its worth I share your current dilemma in that I am debating about an 07 F430 and trading in my 911 Turbo, Mercedes and maybe a kid or 2 for my first ferrari. I have no access to a track unfortunately but the performance and the class of the ferrari is so captivating and while it is nowhere near as fast as my turbo its in a whole another world in terms of refinement and style. The only thing holding me back is that the 430 that came available is white(weird color for a ferrari) and not the black or red I desire.
So good luck with your dilemma, if you do got the Z06 route the 50K you'll save over the GT3 will make it worthwhile or if you decide to spend the 50k extra for the GT3 you ll get the ultimate track car and a decent daily driver on top of it... get the GT3

Enjoy the canyons
Marlin

 

He said ass......

If you want a kick-butt track car, go buy a Porsche 930 for under $20k, put $5-7k in it, and wipe the track with pretty much everybody.

And if you wreck it, so what? Personally, I couldn't afford to wreck a $70k car....

 

Consider Exige if you want to keep trackday running costs down, as less wear on consumables (tyres, discs, pads) but still a great drive. Lacks the charisma of some of the other engines though. 996 GT3 Clubsport will do the job too and be half the cost of 997 GT3 (if same pricing there as UK).

 

It doesn't matter what anyone tells you about each of these cars. Drive all of them and decide. They are all very different cars.

 

Dude, you have just locked down my decision to buy an Elise. Sha-weet.

 

Let me give you insight from another non rich dude who doesn't buy a track car and then garage it

F430: unreliable, expensive, etc. Not meant for track use. Maintenance on a Ferrari is totally inconsistent with track use. How much are F430 oil changes? I usually change my oil after every DE.
Gallardo: flashy, not visceral, not that fast for the money. This is a a car for getting attention. The end.
GT3RS: outstanding, but not worth the price IMO.
GT3: Best choice IMO. Reliable as hell, "cheap" to maintain compared to the Ferrari.
Exige S: So uncomfortable they can't even be driven to the track. Have seen two bend frames when going off track. Aluminum = bad idea!
Z06: Excellent choice. Fastest of the bunch, cheapest, easiest to maintain/repair, and good on reliability.
Ford GT: Absolutely not. WAAAY to many mechanical issues. They are build for nostalgic old dudes with money, nothing more.
Vantage? better off with a Bentley.

Z06 or GT3 get my vote. Cars intended for the track are best for the track

Don't rule out vette's because they're everywhere. You want a track car, not a collectible, right?

Don't take someone saying they passed tons of cars in X vehicle as a deal maker. I've see Miatas pass GT3's. Totally subjective based on driver.

 

lmao

 

I'll admit that I probably have no place chiming in here because I have never tracked...but I was told the Cayman S is a good choice and does great with no or little mods...thoughts? feedback?

 

Go to the dealers and request a few test drives. At the end of the day, its only people opinions, and almost everyones opinions differ. All the cars you mentioned are pretty nice, but you have to look at each one in detail yourself to make the decision.

 

Just cash out the college funds......let 'em learn the hard way.