Z06 in a nutshell: A legit track capable thrill ride right out of the box; simply the fastest machine I have owned. An amazing car, just not the one for me
For many motorsport enthusiast & track rats, the Z06 is a perfect fit. Here is the short list of why it wasn’t the right car for me:
1. Body fit and finish: This was a killer for me. The headlights bumper and fenders were all just a hair off. Take a close at look at a Z06 or ZR1 one and you will find that this is the norm. I zero in on detail and this drove me insane every time I walked up to the car. I went as far as taking the front end apart and re-aligning everything when I switched to black headlights. This helped, but the design is not conducive to perfect body panel alignment. What does this have to do with performance…nothing
2. Interior: Though I had plans to update the interior, the entire space needed a serious re-design. Really dated IMO and even shares steering wheel design with the Malibu. Again, not a performance issue but it took away from the overall driving experience. That said, they seem to have turned this around with the C7
3. Crashing value: Seemed to be depreciating quickly. I wasn’t 100% sure the Z06 was the car to build a business around and I was concerned I may not have the opportunity to sell without losing a bunch of $$$$$.
4. Reduced Inspiration to build: With the M coupe, I never lost the inspiration to modify, design and create. As much as I wanted it to, The Z06 just never got the creativity going. Part of this relates to design and I think part relates to rarity. For what reason, I like the design of the M coupe more than most cars. I do thing the wide body Z06 is a nice looking design, but just not the one.
5. Too Common: nuff said
6. Not an M car: The allure of the M car for me started at a young age when I could barely afford a used Acura Integra. The silver e36 M3 with cobra seats and motorsport wheels, then watching the e46 M3s’ battle the Audi S4s’ in the Lemans races in Monterey. Just a perfect balance of motorsport and refinement
7. No Zpost Community: Check mate. Sort of felt a drift without the Zpost crew. Just as inspiring as the cars themselves, the Z crowd. Like family. Really cool techy family with similar interests of course.
Next logical course of action, E92 M3. The NA High revving V8 powered M3 seemed like the stuff dreams are made. Found a 2011.5 Alpine White Competition package with 14K miles at the Local Porsche dealer and jumped on it.
