'05' Vette stays true to its heritage
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4LT GS Roadster
Ken
Gone but not forgotten
New Version Combines Power, Performance, Sophistication
From The Detroit Free Press:
MARK PHELAN: '05 'Vette stays true to its heritage
New version combines power, performance, sophistication
August 26, 2004
BY MARK PHELAN
[font=helvetica,arial]FREE PRESS COLUMNIST[/font]
Bruce Springsteen is singing "Thunder Road" on a crystal-clear Bose stereo, the top's down, the road is open and the world is full of possibilities.
The 2005 Chevrolet Corvette convertible is not so much a car as it is a 400-horsepower state of grace.
Just the sixth all-new model in the Corvette's 52-year history, the new 'Vette lives up to its heritage as the great American sports car, but the new model, which GM code-named C6, offers a level of comfort and sophistication unheard of in earlier models.
The new Corvette has already sparked controversy with some of the car's devotees due to its fixed headlights and 5.3-inch shorter length, but for my money it's the best 'Vette yet.
The bright yellow '05 Corvette convertible I tested embodies all the virtues that have made the car a legend: Power, performance, dramatic styling and exceptional value.
The base price for the 2005 Corvette coupe is $43,445. Convertibles start at $51,445, while the option-laden model I tested will carry a $63,435 sticker. All prices exclude destination charges.
You may scoff at the idea that those prices represent outstanding value for a two-seat car with a small trunk, but consider the alternatives.
The most obvious competitor for the new Corvette it the equally stylish BMW 645 coupe and convertible. The BMW's 4.4-liter DOHC V8 produces a relatively paltry 325 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque, compared to the Corvette's 6.0-liter pushrod V8's 400 horsepower and 400 pound-feet.
Prices for a 645i coupe start at $69,300. The convertible starts at $76,300. I'll do the math for you; that's $25,855 more for the coupe and $24,855 more for the convertible.
Does the 2005 Corvette look like a good value yet?
If not, consider the Porsche 911 turbo, one of the few nameplates that can equal the Corvette's track record of consistently providing performance and panache over several decades.
The 911's 3.6-liter turbocharged DOHC flat-six engine produces 415 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque, more than the Corvette, but prices for the 2004 911 turbo coupe start at $118,400. That's the base price of two 2005 Corvette convertibles with $15,510 left over for gas money.
Some folks still think that a pushrod engine such as the Corvette's aluminum-block V8 is inherently less advanced than BMW and Porsche's tricky dual-overhead cam, variable-valve-timing power plants, but the latest edition of the Chevy small-block not only generates more power than the excellent BMW engine, it provides the Corvette with almost identical EPA fuel economy ratings.
The Corvette achieved city-highway figures of 19 m.p.g. and 28 m.p.g. with its six-speed manual transmission, compared to 17 and 25 for a six-speed manual 645.
The Corvette's four-speed Hydra-Matic automatic produced EPA numbers of 18 and 25, versus 18 and 26 for a 645 equipped with a ZF six-speed automatic transmission. The 911 turbo gets 15 and 22 m.p.g. with its sixth-speed manual or five-speed automatic.
At the other end of the price scale, the sports cars comparable to the Corvette tend to be much smaller and less powerful, such as the 225-horsepower $40,900 BMW Z4 and the $26,470 287-horsepower Nissan 350Z.
All of which is to say you can't really compare a Corvette to any other car. From its birth in 1953, the Corvette has been sui generis, one of a kind.
The Corvette is arguably the only car GM or any of the traditional Detroit automakers have built over a long period that they've never screwed up, Jim Hall recently observed. Hall, vice president for industry analysis at consultant AutoPacific, is one of the smarter people in the business.
Ford has built many good Mustangs, but it also produced the regrettable Mustang II; the T-Bird has been everything from a classy two-seat roadster to a bloated coupe, to a failed exercise in retro design.
The Chrysler Group built its share of exciting cars that lasted for just a few years before being dropped from the lineup. The Chrysler 300, for example, started off strong in the '50s, but then it disappeared for a few decades. Only the Corvette has stayed true to its roots as a two-seat sports car and been consistently good and frequently great. If DaimlerChrysler plays its cards right for the next 40 years, it might be able to make the same claim for the V10 Dodge Viper. Until then, the Corvette stands alone.
Chevrolet has no greater asset than the Corvette, a car generations have dreamed of. The company has wisely avoided greedy short-term decisions, always aiming to build one Corvette fewer than it could sell rather than risk devaluing the name by making the car too common.
Equally, GM has been smart enough to make Corvette chief engineer a destination job, the culmination of a successful career. It's a position people aspire to, and once they get it, they have no desire to move on.
Dave Hill has been Corvette chief engineer since 1992, though his enthusiasm for the new car might lead you to believe he just got the job.
The new Corvette is 5.1 inches shorter, 1 inch narrower, 67 pounds lighter and 50 horsepower more powerful than the 2004 model.
Even the controversial changes - like the 'Vette's return to fixed headlights for the first time since 1962 and the '05 model's shorter hood - make this a better and more contemporary car than the 7-year-old C5.
The high-intensity headlights provide exceptional illumination, and their clear lenses and body-colored fixtures make the C6 look more up to date. They also reduce aerodynamic drag and wind noise compared to the pop-up headlights common in every Corvette but the very first model that debuted in 1953.
The shorter nose combines with the new lights to give the Corvette a face and a profile that look at home in the company of other supercars such as the Ferrari 360 Modena and 612 Scaglietti.
The shorter nose is also more practical, making the Corvette easier to maneuver in parking lots than the previous model. The front air diffuser, a small lip below the bumper that helps the car's aerodynamics, rides so low that it's not likely to survive a month of rising driveways and parking blocks, however.
The Corvette's exterior design pays homage to previous models, with a subtle vee on the rear deck that recalls the second-generation '63 Stingray and sharp raised front fenders reminiscent of the third-generation 1968-82 model.
To my eye, the overall appearance trades on the best parts of the Corvette's heritage while trimming off the extra bulk that adhered to the car over the last 20 years.
None of that would matter without supercar performance, however. The C6 is the fastest Corvette ever, with a top speed of 186 miles an hour and a zero-to-62 m.p.h. time of just 4.1 seconds with the optional Z51 performance package. That's 100 kilometers an hour, and Chevy tested to that speed to make it clear the Corvette is not just America's supercar anymore. It aims to take on the world.
The 'Vette hasn't lost touch with its roots, though. The Corvette covers the standing quarter mile in 12.6 seconds and with a terminal velocity of 114 m.p.h.
The car's magnificent four-wheel disc brakes stop it smoothly and confidently, and it is simply glued to the road, hugging curves and digging in its heels when the pedal goes down.
The ride is extremely smooth for a sports car capable of such aggressive driving, particularly with the optional high-performance Z51 sport suspension.
The sticky Goodyear run-flat tires combine with electronic stability control to maximize power and control.
The Corvette I tested featured a six-speed manual transmission that uses GM's skip-shift computer program to reduce fuel consumption by guiding the shifter from first to fourth gear when you're not driving the 'Vette hard.
That feature allows the Corvette to avoid the federal gas-guzzler tax, and GM has made it much more user-friendly over the years, but it's still less than ideal.
The V8 has more than enough torque to keep the car moving smoothly through the first-to-fourth shift, but I frequently found myself moving the shifter straight up from fourth into third when I was pulling away from a stop. That led to sluggish starts, the occasional stall, and my conviction that I looked like I'd never driven a manual transmission before.
A generation of Corvette owners has learned to deal with a more cumbersome version of the same system, but it's time GM installed its seamless cylinder deactivation system on the Corvette. That system, which shuts down half the engine's cylinders when they are not needed, improves fuel economy 8 percent with no annoying side effects.
The 2005 Corvette benefits from another long-overdue improvement, offering the first power-operated convertible top in the car's history. The top opens or closes in just 18 seconds, requiring the driver merely to open or close a slightly clumsy manual latch and push a button on the dash. The convertible is also available with a manual top for race-oriented owners who don't want the power mechanism's added weight.
The interior also bristles with new features, including an exceptionally easy-to-use navigation system, a very good heads-up display that incorporates a lateral G meter that measures cornering force and an excellent Bose stereo.
The car's narrower width shows up in an inch less hip room, however. The interior combines black leather with attractive soft-touch black plastic and aluminum trim with a pleasant waffled surface.
Even the cupholders set a new standard. Specially designed to keep drinks safe through radical maneuvers, they held my Coca-Cola bottle snug through several fast laps around Waterford Hills Race Course near Clarkston.
Those cupholders are a microcosm of all the new Corvette's virtues: They are attractive, effective, compact and ready for whatever the road ahead of you holds.
Contact MARK PHELAN at 313-222-6731 or phelan@freepress.com
From The Detroit Free Press:
MARK PHELAN: '05 'Vette stays true to its heritage
New version combines power, performance, sophistication
August 26, 2004
BY MARK PHELAN
[font=helvetica,arial]FREE PRESS COLUMNIST[/font]
Bruce Springsteen is singing "Thunder Road" on a crystal-clear Bose stereo, the top's down, the road is open and the world is full of possibilities.
[font=Arial,Helvetica]ERIC SEALS/DFP[/font]
[font=ms sans serif,geneva,Arial,Helvetica]The 2005 Chevy Corvette speeds through the Waterford Hills Road Course in Clarkston. With such improved features as a power-operated convertible top and an easy-to-use navigation system, the all-new 'Vette is a bargain compared with other luxury sports cars that sell for thousands of dollars more.[/font]
The 2005 Chevrolet Corvette convertible is not so much a car as it is a 400-horsepower state of grace.
Just the sixth all-new model in the Corvette's 52-year history, the new 'Vette lives up to its heritage as the great American sports car, but the new model, which GM code-named C6, offers a level of comfort and sophistication unheard of in earlier models.
The new Corvette has already sparked controversy with some of the car's devotees due to its fixed headlights and 5.3-inch shorter length, but for my money it's the best 'Vette yet.
The bright yellow '05 Corvette convertible I tested embodies all the virtues that have made the car a legend: Power, performance, dramatic styling and exceptional value.
The base price for the 2005 Corvette coupe is $43,445. Convertibles start at $51,445, while the option-laden model I tested will carry a $63,435 sticker. All prices exclude destination charges.
You may scoff at the idea that those prices represent outstanding value for a two-seat car with a small trunk, but consider the alternatives.
The most obvious competitor for the new Corvette it the equally stylish BMW 645 coupe and convertible. The BMW's 4.4-liter DOHC V8 produces a relatively paltry 325 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque, compared to the Corvette's 6.0-liter pushrod V8's 400 horsepower and 400 pound-feet.
Prices for a 645i coupe start at $69,300. The convertible starts at $76,300. I'll do the math for you; that's $25,855 more for the coupe and $24,855 more for the convertible.
Does the 2005 Corvette look like a good value yet?
If not, consider the Porsche 911 turbo, one of the few nameplates that can equal the Corvette's track record of consistently providing performance and panache over several decades.
The 911's 3.6-liter turbocharged DOHC flat-six engine produces 415 horsepower and 415 pound-feet of torque, more than the Corvette, but prices for the 2004 911 turbo coupe start at $118,400. That's the base price of two 2005 Corvette convertibles with $15,510 left over for gas money.
Some folks still think that a pushrod engine such as the Corvette's aluminum-block V8 is inherently less advanced than BMW and Porsche's tricky dual-overhead cam, variable-valve-timing power plants, but the latest edition of the Chevy small-block not only generates more power than the excellent BMW engine, it provides the Corvette with almost identical EPA fuel economy ratings.
The Corvette achieved city-highway figures of 19 m.p.g. and 28 m.p.g. with its six-speed manual transmission, compared to 17 and 25 for a six-speed manual 645.
The Corvette's four-speed Hydra-Matic automatic produced EPA numbers of 18 and 25, versus 18 and 26 for a 645 equipped with a ZF six-speed automatic transmission. The 911 turbo gets 15 and 22 m.p.g. with its sixth-speed manual or five-speed automatic.
At the other end of the price scale, the sports cars comparable to the Corvette tend to be much smaller and less powerful, such as the 225-horsepower $40,900 BMW Z4 and the $26,470 287-horsepower Nissan 350Z.
All of which is to say you can't really compare a Corvette to any other car. From its birth in 1953, the Corvette has been sui generis, one of a kind.
The Corvette is arguably the only car GM or any of the traditional Detroit automakers have built over a long period that they've never screwed up, Jim Hall recently observed. Hall, vice president for industry analysis at consultant AutoPacific, is one of the smarter people in the business.
Ford has built many good Mustangs, but it also produced the regrettable Mustang II; the T-Bird has been everything from a classy two-seat roadster to a bloated coupe, to a failed exercise in retro design.
The Chrysler Group built its share of exciting cars that lasted for just a few years before being dropped from the lineup. The Chrysler 300, for example, started off strong in the '50s, but then it disappeared for a few decades. Only the Corvette has stayed true to its roots as a two-seat sports car and been consistently good and frequently great. If DaimlerChrysler plays its cards right for the next 40 years, it might be able to make the same claim for the V10 Dodge Viper. Until then, the Corvette stands alone.
Chevrolet has no greater asset than the Corvette, a car generations have dreamed of. The company has wisely avoided greedy short-term decisions, always aiming to build one Corvette fewer than it could sell rather than risk devaluing the name by making the car too common.
Equally, GM has been smart enough to make Corvette chief engineer a destination job, the culmination of a successful career. It's a position people aspire to, and once they get it, they have no desire to move on.
Dave Hill has been Corvette chief engineer since 1992, though his enthusiasm for the new car might lead you to believe he just got the job.
The new Corvette is 5.1 inches shorter, 1 inch narrower, 67 pounds lighter and 50 horsepower more powerful than the 2004 model.
Even the controversial changes - like the 'Vette's return to fixed headlights for the first time since 1962 and the '05 model's shorter hood - make this a better and more contemporary car than the 7-year-old C5.
The high-intensity headlights provide exceptional illumination, and their clear lenses and body-colored fixtures make the C6 look more up to date. They also reduce aerodynamic drag and wind noise compared to the pop-up headlights common in every Corvette but the very first model that debuted in 1953.
The shorter nose combines with the new lights to give the Corvette a face and a profile that look at home in the company of other supercars such as the Ferrari 360 Modena and 612 Scaglietti.
The shorter nose is also more practical, making the Corvette easier to maneuver in parking lots than the previous model. The front air diffuser, a small lip below the bumper that helps the car's aerodynamics, rides so low that it's not likely to survive a month of rising driveways and parking blocks, however.
The Corvette's exterior design pays homage to previous models, with a subtle vee on the rear deck that recalls the second-generation '63 Stingray and sharp raised front fenders reminiscent of the third-generation 1968-82 model.
To my eye, the overall appearance trades on the best parts of the Corvette's heritage while trimming off the extra bulk that adhered to the car over the last 20 years.
None of that would matter without supercar performance, however. The C6 is the fastest Corvette ever, with a top speed of 186 miles an hour and a zero-to-62 m.p.h. time of just 4.1 seconds with the optional Z51 performance package. That's 100 kilometers an hour, and Chevy tested to that speed to make it clear the Corvette is not just America's supercar anymore. It aims to take on the world.
The 'Vette hasn't lost touch with its roots, though. The Corvette covers the standing quarter mile in 12.6 seconds and with a terminal velocity of 114 m.p.h.
The car's magnificent four-wheel disc brakes stop it smoothly and confidently, and it is simply glued to the road, hugging curves and digging in its heels when the pedal goes down.
The ride is extremely smooth for a sports car capable of such aggressive driving, particularly with the optional high-performance Z51 sport suspension.
The sticky Goodyear run-flat tires combine with electronic stability control to maximize power and control.
The Corvette I tested featured a six-speed manual transmission that uses GM's skip-shift computer program to reduce fuel consumption by guiding the shifter from first to fourth gear when you're not driving the 'Vette hard.
That feature allows the Corvette to avoid the federal gas-guzzler tax, and GM has made it much more user-friendly over the years, but it's still less than ideal.
The V8 has more than enough torque to keep the car moving smoothly through the first-to-fourth shift, but I frequently found myself moving the shifter straight up from fourth into third when I was pulling away from a stop. That led to sluggish starts, the occasional stall, and my conviction that I looked like I'd never driven a manual transmission before.
A generation of Corvette owners has learned to deal with a more cumbersome version of the same system, but it's time GM installed its seamless cylinder deactivation system on the Corvette. That system, which shuts down half the engine's cylinders when they are not needed, improves fuel economy 8 percent with no annoying side effects.
The 2005 Corvette benefits from another long-overdue improvement, offering the first power-operated convertible top in the car's history. The top opens or closes in just 18 seconds, requiring the driver merely to open or close a slightly clumsy manual latch and push a button on the dash. The convertible is also available with a manual top for race-oriented owners who don't want the power mechanism's added weight.
The interior also bristles with new features, including an exceptionally easy-to-use navigation system, a very good heads-up display that incorporates a lateral G meter that measures cornering force and an excellent Bose stereo.
The car's narrower width shows up in an inch less hip room, however. The interior combines black leather with attractive soft-touch black plastic and aluminum trim with a pleasant waffled surface.
Even the cupholders set a new standard. Specially designed to keep drinks safe through radical maneuvers, they held my Coca-Cola bottle snug through several fast laps around Waterford Hills Race Course near Clarkston.
Those cupholders are a microcosm of all the new Corvette's virtues: They are attractive, effective, compact and ready for whatever the road ahead of you holds.
Contact MARK PHELAN at 313-222-6731 or phelan@freepress.com
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