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[Z06] Odyssey: Life with the Z06 and 997TT

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Old 11-28-2006, 09:00 PM
  #281  
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Old 11-28-2006, 09:03 PM
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As always that was a great read. Looking forward to the next installment
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Old 11-29-2006, 12:52 AM
  #283  
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Wow, what an unexpectedly pleasant surprise! As a long time CF member who is on this forum regularly, I have learned to avoiding threads with the names of two different cars in the title, as the result almost always deteriorates into a ridiculous flame war.

Lucky for me I decided to click on this thread for a peek....as I have found another true blue car enthusiast who can celebrate the incredible variety of high performance iron out there rather than focus on nit picking negativity....not to mention the fact that he is also a first rate storyteller!

Looking forward to the next installment....
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Old 11-29-2006, 03:36 AM
  #284  
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Part 12

Who knows why we buy the cars we buy? For me, it is emotional – at the very least, the car has to present well and possess pleasing lines. Heck, if I have to look at the thing everyday, I figure it should please my eye. Gimmicky styling features do not hold my attention very long, so I tend to focus on simplicity and proven designs and styles. Overall, the Porsche earns a place high on the list when it comes to this criterion.

Yet, I am still willing to take a chance. The biggest risk I recently took in buying a new design is now my daily driver, the Toyota FJ Cruiser. You really can’t go wrong with a Toyota, the car is nearly indestructible. Perhaps the only offset to this design risk I decided to take was the fact that it was a Toyota.

It was yet on another Saturday back in May 2006. I wanted a new daily driver and had my eye on one those new Toyota “cruiser” things. I saw one occasionally zipping by me every so often on the road, and my curiosity finally got the best of me. It sure looked like it could be a good daily driver and it was kind of cool looking. And because it was a Toyota, there was a good chance that it would run everyday without any hassles. And after doing a minimum amount of research, I learned that it had the time tested V-6 engine under its hood. That was enough for me. Time to go have a more serious look, and bring the checkbook. I was a real buyer on that day.

The first stop was very quick - Thousand Oaks Toyota. They are a smaller store here in town. We have, at last count, about 58 Toyota dealers in a 100 mile radius. These folks don't get as many cars as the big boys do, so they try to hit a home run on anything new Toyota produces where demand exceeds the supply. Sound familiar? They had one available. It was a nice silver unit was perched up on their concrete ramp parallel to the curb of the boulevard. The geography was perfect, because my wife and I could parallel park on the street, hop out and look at it without any salesman interfering with the effort. Only a sidewalk separated us from the car we drove in and the car we came to look at. I guess the last thing I wanted to hear that morning was another salesman’s pitch that he just learned from the most recent motivational seminar. With my eyes about twelve inches from the window sticker, a rough voice came from behind, “This is the only one we have in stock right now, and it will be gone by the end of the day – these things are hot”.

“You want $5,000 over sticker”, I complained in the nicest possible way. “Yup, they put those nice chrome wheels and big tires on it and then mark ‘em up,” the salesman proclaimed. Notice he said they and not we. And no, I didn't let him get far enough to "take my offer to his manager".

Instead I said, “Well, I wish you luck, I can’t really blame you." So we left. We were there all of 10 minutes.

We liked the car, so I made a call to Power Toyota in Cerritos, CA where I had prior dealings with the sales manager. Although our contact wasn’t at the store that day, they assured me that the sticker price would be honored. Sure enough, they had three cars in stock, and they didn’t schmaltz them up with chrome and big tires, thank goodness. So we drove another 60 miles, test drove it, loved it and bought one of the three that had the options we liked most. At least we thought so. The salesman went to write up the deal and then disappeared for about 20 minutes. We wait. Then he comes back and said, “I’m sorry, we made a mistake, that car is sold.” “But you just told my wife and I that we own it, we gave you our check,” I said.

“We accepted a $1,000 deposit on the car yesterday and the customer has until tomorrow to pick it up,” the salesman said apologetically.

Nothing good ever comes easy I thought. So I asked them to contact the sales manager at home to see if he could resolve the confusion. Long story made short, we drove the silver unit home 45 minutes later. The moral to the story here is that had I waited six months, I could have bought it for $2500 off the window sticker. At least I didn’t pay over MSRP. So far, the car has proven to be a good value based not only on the features and performance, but on the price we paid. I’d highly recommend this vehicle. Here are a couple photos of this nice little truck:





The Porsche, as with any car I decide to buy, is subjected to hours of what I call “pre-buy thinking”. You think about it hour after hour, then week after week. Then you finally decide to buy. It is that exact kind of thinking that seems to carry over into the day to day ownership of the vehicle, the only difference being is that is becomes “post-buy thinking”. So a myriad of concerns bounce around in my mind, none in any specific order: it looks awesome, I’ll drive it on weekends and trips; the trunk has to carry at least one suitcase, it should handle well, it should be powerful and have a great 0-60 times, the quality is excellent, is the warranty good, where will I service it, and the list goes on and on.

The price of the car plays a significant role in the decision to buy, but not just from the obvious affordability aspect. Soon after you drive the car home and place it in your garage, the price you paid becomes even more important. Now you have plenty of time to better understand the value the car brings to you vis-à-vis the price you paid for it. It’s just you and the car, all alone. The friendship begins or the enemy is born. If we focus all of our time on just the way a car looks, our assessment tend to be emotional. If it is all about raw horsepower, the metrics to gauge value will be established at the local drag strip or on a dynamometer. If you chose the car because of its atheletic ability whereby it will slip through twisty canyons like a slot car on rails, you would weigh in heavily on the attributes of the suspension and those sorts of things. Or maybe you want it all and will try to find a balance. It can all be very confusing. I find that the Porsche 997TT is a good balance of many things, as it does many things well.

The exterior of the 997TT is understated. The front bumper and spoiler along with the brake intakes are different enough to notice, but the rest of the car is pretty much the same as the earlier version.



The rear end of these cars has a massive look and feel to it. But that’s the Turbo trademark, it’s all about wide.



When you look at the car from the side, it looks more stretched out, maybe a bit leaner than the older model. I’d say it looks less like an egg than the last generation Turbo. I apologize to the Porsche enthusiasts, as I used the taboo “egg” as a part of the description, but at least it was in a positive way. The car has a meaner stance to it and throws off the attitude that it means business.



Just walking around the car it you can see that the fit and finish of the body panels and hardware are high quality. The wheels, whether you love or hate the design (and they have been subjected to some severe criticism by Porsche fans), the quality and their desire for perfection was obvious to me. There wasn’t a mark or defect anywhere on the four wheels, at least on my car. The wheels are forged and then final machined. The interior portion of the wheel is painted a dark grey color, which coincidentally compliments the exterior color of my car. Interestingly, the grey painted portions of the wheel are the same regardless of the exterior color you choose.





The car has few frills and the frills it does have are provided to its owner begrudgingly. For example, the German auto manufacturers have never been big fans of cup holders. The ash tray was given most of the attention. Cup holders weren’t important to them, but smoking is, and it is obvious in the Turbo. I wish they would have spent more time on the cup holders. They are cleverly placed on the dash and will fold outwards when you push on them. I like a good cup holder like the rest of us, but I don’t trust these for some reason, so I avoid using them altogether. While some owners of Porsches dislike the phone system, I am baffled as to why, the system performs as advertised. All you do is place your little SIM card in this slide out drawer on the center console and away you go, 100% hands-free, nothing else to buy. This is almost like the drive on the front of your computer. It all works together with their NAV and Audio system called the Porsche Communication Management system. Here is a photo of the PCM in the center console. The strip of carbon fiber just above the glove box is where the cup holders are folded away and hidden:



To be continued…

Last edited by mastiffdog; 11-29-2006 at 09:33 AM.
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Old 11-29-2006, 07:20 AM
  #285  
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Old 11-29-2006, 09:57 AM
  #286  
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Originally Posted by mastiffdog
Part 12

Who knows why we buy the cars we buy? For me, it is emotional – at the very least, the car has to present well and possess pleasing lines. Heck, if I have to look at the thing everyday, I figure it should please my eye. Gimmicky styling features do not hold my attention very long, so I tend to focus on simplicity and proven designs and styles. Overall, the Porsche earns a place high on the list when it comes to this criterion.

Yet, I am still willing to take a chance. The biggest risk I recently took in buying a new design is now my daily driver, the Toyota FJ Cruiser. You really can’t go wrong with a Toyota, the car is nearly indestructible. Perhaps the only offset to this design risk I decided to take was the fact that it was a Toyota.

It was yet on another Saturday back in May 2006. I wanted a new daily driver and had my eye on one those new Toyota “cruiser” things. I saw one occasionally zipping by me every so often on the road, and my curiosity finally got the best of me. It sure looked like it could be a good daily driver and it was kind of cool looking. And because it was a Toyota, there was a good chance that it would run everyday without any hassles. And after doing a minimum amount of research, I learned that it had the time tested V-6 engine under its hood. That was enough for me. Time to go have a more serious look, and bring the checkbook. I was a real buyer on that day.

The first stop was very quick - Thousand Oaks Toyota. They are a smaller store here in town. We have, at last count, about 58 Toyota dealers in a 100 mile radius. These folks don't get as many cars as the big boys do, so they try to hit a home run on anything new Toyota produces where demand exceeds the supply. Sound familiar? They had one available. It was a nice silver unit was perched up on their concrete ramp parallel to the curb of the boulevard. The geography was perfect, because my wife and I could parallel park on the street, hop out and look at it without any salesman interfering with the effort. Only a sidewalk separated us from the car we drove in and the car we came to look at. I guess the last thing I wanted to hear that morning was another salesman’s pitch that he just learned from the most recent motivational seminar. With my eyes about twelve inches from the window sticker, a rough voice came from behind, “This is the only one we have in stock right now, and it will be gone by the end of the day – these things are hot”.

“You want $5,000 over sticker”, I complained in the nicest possible way. “Yup, they put those nice chrome wheels and big tires on it and then mark ‘em up,” the salesman proclaimed. Notice he said they and not we. And no, I didn't let him get far enough to "take my offer to his manager".

Instead I said, “Well, I wish you luck, I can’t really blame you." So we left. We were there all of 10 minutes.

We liked the car, so I made a call to Power Toyota in Cerritos, CA where I had prior dealings with the sales manager. Although our contact wasn’t at the store that day, they assured me that the sticker price would be honored. Sure enough, they had three cars in stock, and they didn’t schmaltz them up with chrome and big tires, thank goodness. So we drove another 60 miles, test drove it, loved it and bought one of the three that had the options we liked most. At least we thought so. The salesman went to write up the deal and then disappeared for about 20 minutes. We wait. Then he comes back and said, “I’m sorry, we made a mistake, that car is sold.” “But you just told my wife and I that we own it, we gave you our check,” I said.

“We accepted a $1,000 deposit on the car yesterday and the customer has until tomorrow to pick it up,” the salesman said apologetically.

Nothing good ever comes easy I thought. So I asked them to contact the sales manager at home to see if he could resolve the confusion. Long story made short, we drove the silver unit home 45 minutes later. The moral to the story here is that had I waited six months, I could have bought it for $2500 off the window sticker. At least I didn’t pay over MSRP. So far, the car has proven to be a good value based not only on the features and performance, but on the price we paid. I’d highly recommend this vehicle. Here are a couple photos of this nice little truck:





Very FJ40 ish. I almost bought one until my wife stopped me. They're great driving suvs. I've heard they're the real deal off road. I know my FJ80 was.
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Old 11-29-2006, 10:59 AM
  #287  
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Love the story as it unfolds and can't wait for the next "part". I can't seem to understand how you can love great cars like the Vette and Porsche and at the same time like the look of that fugly SUV. Well built and functional maybe but imo it's God-awful looking. Reminds me of some of the designs they had 40 years ago. .. or was that on purpose and Toyota's doing the retro thing too? *shudder* Obviously my taste in cars is very similar and different at the same time; no offense meant in any way. Again, can't wait for the next installment.
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Old 11-29-2006, 12:19 PM
  #288  
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Originally Posted by Hatdude
Love the story as it unfolds and can't wait for the next "part". I can't seem to understand how you can love great cars like the Vette and Porsche and at the same time like the look of that fugly SUV. Well built and functional maybe but imo it's God-awful looking. Reminds me of some of the designs they had 40 years ago. .. or was that on purpose and Toyota's doing the retro thing too? *shudder* Obviously my taste in cars is very similar and different at the same time; no offense meant in any way. Again, can't wait for the next installment.
Thank you. I understand your feelings on the FJ's. It is so ugly that it has become a thing of beauty for me, you almost have to feel sorry for it. And there is an entire community of owners (yes, there is a huge forum) that revere every aspect of this car, including the look.

This is one of those vehicles where you "don't judge the book by it's cover", the functionality and reliability are the key traits of the vehicle, especially as an everyday driver.
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Old 11-29-2006, 01:09 PM
  #289  
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Originally Posted by mastiffdog
Thank you. I understand your feelings on the FJ's. It is so ugly that it has become a thing of beauty for me, you almost have to feel sorry for it. And there is an entire community of owners (yes, there is a huge forum) that revere every aspect of this car, including the look.

This is one of those vehicles where you "don't judge the book by it's cover", the functionality and reliability are the key traits of the vehicle, especially as an everyday driver.


The FJ is a good vehicle and Toyota is a very good vehicle! I just bought a new Toyota Tundra 4dr limited 4x4 for my DD and love it.
Now I just need another Z to keep it company. I do like the 997TT also. Good looking car!

If you don't mind saying openly what is the price tag for it?...
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Old 11-29-2006, 01:35 PM
  #290  
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Another great read keep them comming. when can we expect to see #13 very intrested to see your z buying experience!
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Old 11-29-2006, 02:00 PM
  #291  
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Originally Posted by louieT
The FJ is a good vehicle and Toyota is a very good vehicle! I just bought a new Toyota Tundra 4dr limited 4x4 for my DD and love it.
Now I just need another Z to keep it company. I do like the 997TT also. Good looking car!

If you don't mind saying openly what is the price tag for it?...
If you are referring to the FJ Cruiser, a loaded unit with Auto Trans clears at about $29K +/- before fees and taxes.
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Old 11-29-2006, 03:55 PM
  #292  
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Default Toyotas rule

Ha ha, Toyotas reliable? Try a Toyota 4-Runner Limited purchased new in 1998 and we have NEVER BEEN to the dealer for any warranty or out of warranty repairs.

All we've ever done to her was gas it up, change the oil and filter.

Our 4-Runner even has the ORIGINAL battery. I don't think you can say the same for many cars out there. I hope Chevy is listening.

That's why we also have an '06 Lexus IS-350 too

I can't wait till they re-introduce the Supra.
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Old 11-29-2006, 05:12 PM
  #293  
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I can't believe I waited until today to see what was going on in this thread!!

I have enjoyed every word of your account; you definitely have a way with words. Your saying "I hope you will bear with my writing style" is like Mr. Spock saying "if my calculations are correct."

I will be posting links to this thread on the other forums I frequent.

I am far from the average driver of the C6 Z06. This is my first corvette, and my first manual transmission. I couldn't heel-toe to save my life. I have had two A4 LS1 Camaros, the 2nd a 35th LE modified to 407 rwhp.

I've easily already spent twice as much time detailing the Z06 as I have driving it. I use Zaino, but congratulate anyone with a nicely detailed vehicle regardless of how they did it.

Once I get a couple thousand miles under my belt with the Z, I'm gonna get schooled in HPDE. I really enjoy being able to read about folks who are able to push the performance boundaries of their Z06's.

anyway, not to hijack, really enjoying this well thought out and well crafted account of your getting two great automobiles. thanks for taking the time.
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Old 11-30-2006, 12:38 AM
  #294  
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Originally Posted by gauSSian
I can't believe I waited until today to see what was going on in this thread!!

I have enjoyed every word of your account; you definitely have a way with words. Your saying "I hope you will bear with my writing style" is like Mr. Spock saying "if my calculations are correct."

I will be posting links to this thread on the other forums I frequent.

I am far from the average driver of the C6 Z06. This is my first corvette, and my first manual transmission. I couldn't heel-toe to save my life. I have had two A4 LS1 Camaros, the 2nd a 35th LE modified to 407 rwhp.

I've easily already spent twice as much time detailing the Z06 as I have driving it. I use Zaino, but congratulate anyone with a nicely detailed vehicle regardless of how they did it.

Once I get a couple thousand miles under my belt with the Z, I'm gonna get schooled in HPDE. I really enjoy being able to read about folks who are able to push the performance boundaries of their Z06's.

anyway, not to hijack, really enjoying this well thought out and well crafted account of your getting two great automobiles. thanks for taking the time.
Hijack away, I enjoy hearing about everyone elses experiences, that's what it is all about.

What a nice thing to say about the story, thank you.
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Old 11-30-2006, 02:14 AM
  #295  
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Originally Posted by AP
Dude .. you are my hero (as far as car's are concerned)
I wanna be you when I grow up.

(especially the kalifornia part because I just walked 20 min in about 10 degrees F )
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Old 11-30-2006, 11:50 PM
  #296  
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mastiffdog if there was such a thing as the best, most entertaining post of the decade, even better of the century, you get my vote for it buddy. Can't wait to see how the events unfold

Thanks for your efforts and keep'em coming
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Old 12-02-2006, 11:43 AM
  #297  
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Mastiffdog... It was Saturday morning about 7:45am and just made the coffee thinking about all of the tasks at hand for the day and hoping to get an early start. That is... until I came accross YOUR thread. My hat is off to you and thank you. It is now almost noon and no work yet but enjoyed the story tremendously. I'm hooked... hope to see more!!!
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To Odyssey: Life with the Z06 and 997TT

Old 12-02-2006, 12:10 PM
  #298  
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You're making very interested in the 997TT , of course I would be the laughing stock of my brother in law who can't undrstand why I keep buying Corvettes, he drove Porsches since he got his driver liscence. In regards to the Toyota, well... I can only hope they can lend a hand to GM developing fine automobiles. Thanks very much for the great read
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Old 12-02-2006, 02:42 PM
  #299  
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Thanks to all for following the thread. Part 13 coming in a day or so. Tomorrow I'll be out at the Toys 4 Tots car show at the Country Wide headquarters in Westlake Village. They'll have plenty of Corvettes, Z06's and loads of other exotics out there from 9 AM - 2 PM.

I'll be out there with the Turbo - come by and say hello! If you do, please bring a toy along!



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Old 12-02-2006, 10:10 PM
  #300  
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mastiffdog,

I'm assuming from your username, that you have a gentle beast puffing and panting somewhere, running around & filling your lives with love and maybe some slobber too?

the reason I ask, is I have a St. Bernard and think the larger breeds have great, laid back personalities.

just wondered.

-Mark.
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