yeller z06

I like to work within a budget, it keeps me out of trouble. Sometimes.

First, background: I had C4 (my first custom-ordered car) which became a track rat and I had it for 10 years. Then a C5 Z06, followed by a C6 coupe at which point I had stopped driving on the track, so it was just a cruiser. Then a C7 coupe, and then I gave up on Corvette because it just got too difficult to get in and out of the C7, although I did the Spring Mountain advanced class and had a blast in their Z51 cars and wondered why I stopped going to the track. Shortly thereafter, I returned to the track in an M4. I sold that a few months ago because I had toasted a set of tires and it was just getting too expensive and risky with an $80K car on $1600 tires that couldn't last a couple of weekends. There is no camber adjustment on a BMW without aftermarket compromises that I'm not willing to make. And I don't like to own BMWs out of warranty...

So I thought, let's set a $30K budget and find something fun and reliable for the track that I can drive without modifications (other than tires and brake pads). No Porsche fits the budget, the little Subaru thing is cute and handles nicely but has only 29 horsepower and beats up this old body pretty badly, so I thought I'd look at Corvette again and decided on the C6. Nice, unmodified C6 coupes with a manual transmission are kind of rare, but they're out there and they can fall within the budget. Then I thought, well, a Z06 would be better (duh!) and they're just a little bit more. But as I look for those, I see prices are in the 40s and 50s, and of course there's the whole valve issue thing plus now we're getting into more money that I'd rather not spend. Getting a high mileage car lowers the price, but reliability is a big deal for me, and I don't want to spend my weekend at the track working on the car or trying to find someone to tow it home.

I can afford to buy a $50K car, it's just that I would be happier on the track if I were in a $30K car. I haven't had a crash since the 90s (in the C4) but I've had a few as an instructor in students' cars, and I know that even a small mistake can be disasterous, or it could be caused by mechanical failure, debris on the track or some idiot that hits me. Driving self-insured, these are serious considerations.

I ramble, there are lots of factors, I am just putting this out there for folks to chime in. Maybe I'm over-thinking it, and I should skip the Z06 idea and just get a base coupe and go slow...

yeller z06

I thought I'd add, I didn't sell the C7 just because of that annoying dashboard that my knee would hit when getting in, but because it smelled like a model plane glue factory. The C6 was sold (traded) because I just had to have a Porsche (which was a different mistake) and it would occasionally refuse to start, which I found very annoying. And of course, dealerships can never find/diagnose/fix intermittent issues like that. It was otherwise a great car and I regret selling it. The C4 had $16,000 of 1997 money spent on performance improvements (engine, brakes, suspension) and was awesome, but even so, the stock C5 Z06 was better, faster and more comfortable.

niphilli2

assuming budget is a main consideration (like myself and most of the rest of the world). With your goals I would look for a manual/dry-sump GS Ls3 with some miles on it.

yeller z06

I had forgotten about the GS, that is a fine idea, thanks!

torquetube

That $20K difference spent on track time plus consumables like brakes and tires would make for more fun and more speed than a more expensive version of essentially the same car. Seat time, setup and reliability are what matters anyway. Plus, as you say, if you can't afford to total it, you don't want to take it to the track.

yeller z06

Keeping in line with the budgeting idea, I looked at a low-ish mileage (24K) '08 coupe that was local, and priced at $25K which is decent these days. Unfortunately, it was a little bit rougher than I had hoped, had some surface rust on what little I could see, and they had put on "new tires!" which is great until I noticed that they were some cheap off-brand all-seasons. Come on people!

Even though it's going to be primarily for the track, it's not going to get stripped and modified and treated like a disposable car, I still want something nice, ya know? So the search and rationalization continues...

Racingswh

The only car I would consider would be a manual trans/dry sump GS. I have had them both, and knowing what I know now, a Z06 would never even enter my mind if the word budget was involved. Our C6Z is by far and away the most expensive car we have ever owned, and not by any small amount. I would not consider a base car either. I found the GS to be the perfect street/track car.

As far as totaling the car is concerned, just carry track insurance. Just because you can self-insure, why would you? If someone can't afford track insurance, they sure as hell can't afford to total the car, no matter what it is.

KennyPowers

I too wanted a track car, a few years back.. Went to COPART and picked up a 90K mile 07 STI.. fixed it up and tracked it for a year, stripped down to 2800# was fun. Outgrew it though. Sold it along with some other car project stuff and started shopping the wrecks again -> for what I saw first hand as the FASTEST car on the track, c6 Z06. About 8 mos later Hurricane Ian had finished decimating Florida and I got my first Z, 09 AO. Month later it was fixed, only problem was it was TOO NICE to trash at the track. I had a few $ left over from AO so started again.. a year later got Z #2 09 cyber gray.. I passed on a few CG GS.. for $20K id just buy another Z.. SO my recommendation should be OBVIOUS... buy a wrecked Z and never look back, fixed ones come up on FB from time to time.

(ALSO I will add this.. NOW IS THE TIME.. the past few months prices have been up $5-10K at COPART and IAA and I found out why when I went to buy parts for CG.. no cars around, the parts to fix were coming off a car I watched auction a few months before mine)

OR also fast and nearly equally as fun is the c5 Z06.. and for 20K you can buy one in good condition not salvaged etc.. Problem with the base c6 is the gearing is "less than desirable" supposedly, even though its the same gearing as the c6 Z06. GS and c5 Z06 share the same gearing btw

Cap'n Pete

If I could go back in time and buy the cars that I "should have bought", I'd have either a C5 Z06 or a C6 Grand Sport. But instead, I bought a C6 BASE (murdered it on track) and am now on my 2nd C6 Z06. I'll echo Racingswh's comment that the C6Z is NOT a cheap car to operate! (the LS7 is great, but not great .....).

Coulda, woulda, shoulda ............bought a C6 GS for under $60k (CDN$) in 2010. They've held their value over 13 years later!

KennyPowers

My objective for months was to make my second car the GS.. when it came time to buy i couldn’t get over 2 important things:

1) GS is NOT a true coupe with its removable top

2) Steel frame (no z06 alum frame)

Also worth noting, what brought me in the FIRST place buy/fix a wreck was months of research that ultimately says ->

“your z06 with a blown ls7 isnt worth didley”.. so why buy a $40k car and have the chance of it being a $15k car after the boom

Also nice about the wreck Z is if it does go boom, you can EASILY put in a drysump ls3 if you choose.. and you have the alum frame and true coupe(thats how my reasoning worked after way too many hours of the debate raging on)

Finding a decent wreck through the auctions did take years though, but you see fixed ones posted on FB every so often GL

yeller z06

Lots of great comments, thanks all.

I don't know what your experience has been like, but when I've bought track insurance it's come with a 20% deductible, which means that I'm still out of pocket quite a bit. And honestly, I don't expect (LOL) to total a car, more likely is that I'll run off and hit something hard enough to ding a few panels, maybe set off an airbag, you know, around $10-15K. So most of that's going to be the deductible. And I'm old, and slow, and really quite experienced, so the only thing that really concerns me is mechanical failure, track debris or a moron runs into me.

And I really don't want to get into the business and hassle of fixing up some old beater/wreck. Those days are behind me. See reference to "I'm old" above.

Racingswh

I was Co-Safety chair for our club for 3 seasons. In addition to tech we took care of all the crash reporting. The words we heard the most were "Lucky that I have track insurance" or "I wish I had track insurance". One or the other.

I honestly didn't expect my Wife to total her GS and need to be airlifted to the hospital either, but having the check for the entire value of the car minus the 10% deductible in my hands in just 4 business days made things a little easier.

KennyPowers

Thats why im recommending a salvage title perfectly fixed and beautiful car.. they ARE out there

Clean title vettes are great but if the goal is to track it why bother.. Have u seen track modded sale prices, they LOW since most vette owners want “pristine” and “unmolested”.

btw i am also familiar with “pristine”, sold long ago ‘66 427 roadster

(odds are youre going to land on a nice salvaged title Z since thats the price range youre shopping in)

hiznhrz

As far as making the decision you are trying to make, the only thing I can add is "I feel your pain". In my mind, and hands down for the money, there isn't a better car I'd want to navigate on a track at speed or enjoy with my wife for day, weekend, and/or vacation get aways with than a C6 Z06. Sounds like you are the better and more experienced driver but we are likely similar in age. That means young enough to still crave and need the adrenaline rush but getting old enough to be losing the ways that the itch can be scratched.

I'm an engineer which just adds to my dilemma. I have done more than a little do diligence on the LS7 valve drop "risk". What I've learned is I don't talk about politics, the military, religion, and the LS7 valve drop issue on social media other than to say it is real and it can be either totally eliminated or the risk reduced in a number of ways. To eliminate the risk and cover all bases is not cheap. To me, that means if you want to track a LS7 you have to be willing to accept double indemnity; 1) the risk of totaling the car and 2) the risk of not spending the coin or totaling the engine. Neither risk is a huge looming, life changing obstacle, just another part of the world we live in.

To me, the only choices are to spend the money and eliminate the risk with a LS7, get a C5 Z06, or split the difference and compromise by buying a nice C6 Grand Sport.

My problem is I paid too much money for the "perfect for me" C6 Z06 which I'm not sorry I bought. I am sorry that In my mind I haven't yet been able to decide if I am willing to enjoy it the way I intended without tearing into it just to document what someone else called (undocumented) "fixed heads".

One other possible alternative, buy a C4 ZR-1 with miles but one that has been babied. For me, it is not even close to the track car the C6 is but it sure is fun. I had mine for 26 years and it never let me down - not once. Problem is I could no longer get comfortable once I got in and getting in and out was, let's just say "a problem".

KennyPowers

hiznhrz

Supposedly the only documented real study done on ls7 valves, made my decision “somewhat” easy (all stock w/ bronze guides, pull/inspect/redo
often)

https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/14...xhaust-valves/

grinder11

The only thing I will add is that the info in that article is almost 10 years old. A lot of it is still current, but much has been learned in the interim.

yeller z06

OMG, I hope she has recovered and is doing OK now. Yeah, it's stuff like that, that makes me rethink this whole track driving experience. I've been in 3 crashes, only one as a driver (others were as an instructor) and I was hurt twice, albeit not badly enough to get on a helicopter. Still...

That's a great idea that I've also played with... I had a C4 (two, actually) and of all of the cars that I've owned (I'm fickle) that's the one that I kept the longest. However, I bought it when I was 30-ish, and even then it was a chore to get in and out of.

And a nice C4 ZR-1 is cheaper than a decent C6 in today's market. Hmmm....

Racingswh

She's fine now. She was on track in 3 months in her C6Z that we have now. Coming up on 10 years since the accident this coming April.

If budget is a consideration, there's no better car than the C6GS. If you do not want to do anything but put tires and brake pads on the car buy a C7GS.

Adrian Wlostowski at FAST Auto bought my wife's wrecked GS and turned it into a championship-winning car using LS3 power.






Or you can just go down the rabbit hole and get a C6Z.

yeller z06

So... to update the thread: The search continued, as I discarded the idea of a Z06 because of comfort, the GS because of price, and focused on low mile base cars, 3 pedals, natch. I found a few, the unmodified nice owner-owned cars are priced at the top of the market, and then there was a nice orange car that had only 1600 miles and a 3 owner history with a lot of time spent shuffling between dealerships. There was zero service history on the carfax. I guess, theoretically, only 1600 miles doesn't mean that the engine oil is bad, but seriously, it does age, it does get condensation, and that could be a problem. Plus, the dealer wasn't very receptive to negotiation. Then out of the blue, I found a one-owner car with annual service visits to the dealer with only 6800 miles. No NPP or anything else on it, but I like the base (non-chromed) wheels and I can live without HUD and homelink. So I bought it, yesterday. It also has the original 16 year-old tires on it, so I'm having it shipped. I'll spend January addressing all of the deferred maintenance, put on tires, and get used to it before we hit the track in the Spring.

It will be nice to be back in a Corvette.