There are some good deals on '08 Vettes on CorvetteForum.com from time to time. That would be the route I'd go!

 

Ya, I have been keeping up with them. By the end of the year, the cost difference between a low-mileage 08 1LT Vette and a new 11 GT will be insignificant (assuming Ford doesn't start pushing big incentives). And as ZZTop said, a quality C5 Z06 will be even less.

 

With the choices you mention, I'd go with the 2011 GT.

In my case, I'd want a all-round car. One that can handle the occasion couple extra passengers, has a usable trunk, and is generally a fun car. Easy to run and easy to live with daily.

Corvettes are fun, but dropping into and climbing out of them multiple times in a day would take a lot of the fun out for me. Besides, to me, Corvette is a reward to yourself to take out on occasion.

If I were buying a Camaro, I wouldn't buy the SS, the V6 makes a far superior case. For 31-32 grand, right now the hands down choice is the new 5.0 Mustang. Camaro looks phenominal from the outside. Inside, it's a matter of taste. Last week I drove my 4th Camaro (this time a V6 rental) after running around in a V6 Mustang. The Mustang just seems put together better and made of better stuff. The interior puts Camaro to shame.

To boot, about 2 weeks ago, a new 5.0 Mustang handed me my B4C's lunch on the 101. I can vouch from personal experience, the 2011 Mustang has one hell of a punch accelerating from 60 mph.

Up till the 5.0, I'd say that all 3 V8 cars (Challenger, Camaro, and Mustang) were all in a dead heat on my list. All had good points followed by equally bad. The Mustangs bad was that it needed more juice and a better looking tail.

Now the Mustang has a LOT more juice.

I think that's enough to tolerate the tail.

 

This is my single biggest issue with getting a Vette. One of the reasons I sold my 99 T/A was the "fall in/climb out" aspect of the car.

Bob

 

It isn't like Mustangs and Camaros sit up like F150s and Silverados...

You guys must be getting old.

 

We all have our personal preferences and biases, and while I may be older than the average bear around here, I bet I get around a bit better than the average bear around here too.

Still prefer less of a "fall in/climb out" setup (though not necessarily a deal breaker.

 

I hope it was clear that I was just teasing!

Heck, even my 4th gen is a bit of a pain, though that's partially b/c I am always trying to minimize any rubbing on the side bolster when I get in and out. I hate seeing cars with worn-through driver's seats, so I try to avoid sliding across it...

 

Like everything I read on the internet, I took your words very literally and very seriously.

No no, really.

 

 

Let me say this....had my 5.0 with Brembo's and 3.73's since the weekend. My favorite car ever. Its a completely diffrent animal then the 2008 GT I had. The manual transmission is unlike any I have driven before.

If you want a 5.0, dont let the auto or vert be what you test drive. They are like diffrent cars to the Brembo coupes with manual. The auto has to much throttle lag. The vert suspension is to floaty.....really the auto cars seem a little floaty.

 

How is the axle hop? I see the MY2011 GT500 recieved upgraded LCAs I wonder if the GT recieved the same?

 

Cant say for sure on my car as I am still breaking it in. On the other cars I test drove there was NO axle hop. The only hop I have heard of was Evoloutions stock runs. I honestly put no faith in that as they are trying to sell suspensions. I have also seen where guys are putting on aftermarket lca's but at this point I have no firsthand knowledge.

 

Oh, and I was thinking......these 115/116mph "stock" runs may not have been so "stock". Some tuners claim 30rwhp with just a tune. That would make the 115/116 make sense.

 

I am shocked to see these cars running these times even with tuning only that's insane for a ford with no blower. But I would not buy one, I have seen many of them on the road and said," that looks crap", to myself each time. Now that I know they produce those times, It makes me not hate them so much; I was thinking," why the body change?" Now they are slow and look like crap, but man these new fords are not slow. Good job for ford, now they need to make some design changes and they will be good to go.

 

I dont mind the nose (although the Roush and Steeda front fascia kits do an excellent job of turing a so-so front end into something very good in my mind), the rear unfortuantely is the result of having added hips to the current chassis rather than designing them in from the get-go. The rear end is that way to lessen the impact of having gone with a set of hips on the 2010-2011 cars. Although I find the GT500's **** alot more palatable in that regard, had I the chance to order up a new GT, cosmetically I'd swap the front out for the Roush nose and get the GT500 rear with ducktail on the trunk. Get it in kona blue with some white stripes and something akin to HRE's Monoblock P40 wheels (saw them on a recent Steeda magazine car - the HRE's are kinda pricey though ) and I'd be set!