Consumer Reports Rates Corvette in Top Three

[Rob]

In a competition among seven open-air sports cars performed by Consumer Reports, the Chevrolet Corvette was ranked number three overall, just behind the Mercedes-Benz SLK and the Porsche Boxster. The top three were followed by the Nissan 350Z, the Honda S2000, the BMW Z4, and the Lotus Elise. Here are some excerpts from the rating Consumer Reports gave the Corvette:

The Corvette provides abundant torque and power on demand, and sounds invigorating when pushed. It’s both a comfortable cruiser and an exciting sports car. It has a roomy interior and the optional power top is simple to use.

The Driving Experience – On the track, the Corvette is controllable at its very high limits. The standard ESC allows for aggressive driving, particularly in competition mode, but still keeps the car on course. The 400-hp, 6.0-liter V8 performs effortlessly in any gear. The six-speed manual has well-spaced ratios. Fuel economy is a respectable 21 mpg on regular.

Inside The Cabin – The Corvette has a nice looking interior. There is plenty of room, good pedal placement, and view forward. The wide seats are comfortable for most. Side bolsters can be adjusted for a snug fit, but some found the seatback too soft. Gauges and controls are easy to read and use. A heads-up display on the windshield can show both rpm and speed.

HIGHS – Acceleration, torque, V8 sound, relatively roomy cockpit and trunk, controls, uses regular fuel.

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[DRTH VTR]

What were the "lows"?

 

[04Lemans]

paraphrasing - soft handling response at lower speeds.

 

[The Drakester]

Behind an SLK and a Boxter - give me a break!

 

[cesully]

my sentiments exactly Drakester! seems the corvette will NEVER get a fair shake when compared with the German competition. not sure if that's by design or not, I wonder if these people who evaluate these cars feel the vette is just a cheap chevrolet that can't compare with the European cars. I have friends at work that would never consider a corvette- must be a porche or even a BMW because "these people know how to build an automobile".

There is just a lot of differences between these vehicles and their capabilities. But even with that I don't think the poor corvette will ever get a fair break because of the "American made" stigma.

One thing on their defense though- the American car dealerships are far and away unsatisfactory with regards to "customer service" yes- even Cadillac. I had 2 back a few years ago and the svc dept and over-all customer satisfaction was sub par dispite all the banners in the show room and service dept indicating NO 1 per JD Power and assoc's??!

I have to say I have a love/hate relationship with the American made automobile- incidentally I've never own a foreign automobile AND not too sure when and if I'll walk into an American car dealership again because I dread the very moment I have to take the car back for service and be treated like some sort of refugee??!!

sorry, had to get that off my chest- but in one case you've got folks that say the corvette is a poor man's porche and on the other- you own one of these fine vehicles and you get someone who doesn't care in the least about "quality one" and end up with more problems leaving the service dept there, than you did going in...

bewildered about the whole thing....

Sully

 

[Greg Gore]

Consumer Reports- Don't take it seriously!

Before anyone gets upset over this please consider the source of the judging. Consumer Reports is nothing but a bunch of gas mileage/ eco-consious tree hugging, green promoting hybrid Honda, Toyota lovers. Do you honestly think any of their testers would recognize an engineering masterpiece when they see it and do you think any of them are capable of competitive lap times in a good car? Give me a break here! Let them stick with judging Honda front seat comfort and leave the serious hardware for someone else.They should not be permitted access to a Corvette because they are not able to achieve the kind of performance results a car like that is capable of.

Regards, Greg

 

[JoeMackin]

I believe the people who judged this contest to be wrong.

 

[LT4man]

I did not know the Corvette uses regular fuel.

Some clarification, please.

Save The Wave!

 

[99 TorchRed]

Before anyone gets upset over this please consider the source of the judging. Consumer Reports is nothing but a bunch of gas mileage/ eco-consious tree hugging, green promoting hybrid Honda, Toyota lovers. Do you honestly think any of their testers would recognize an engineering masterpiece when they see it and do you think any of them are capable of competitive lap times in a good car? Give me a break here! Let them stick with judging Honda front seat comfort and leave the serious hardware for someone else.They should not be permitted access to a Corvette because they are not able to achieve the kind of performance results a car like that is capable of.

Regards, Greg

I've had a Consumer Report Subscription for many years and have noted (with disdain) that they continually berate GM, Ford, and Chrysler autos. If it isn't German or Japanese, it isn't diddly squat. :ugh I have owned a number of "American made" autos that I found to be very unlike the rating that was assigned to them by Consumer Report. There is no more recognizable auto than the Corvette. :cool Try getting a thumbs up from a 12 year old when you're driving a Mercedes,... aint gonna happen.

 

[invinceablevett]

I too believe they are wrong but they like many others don't give GM the credit they deserve regarding the Corvette.

As for service.....GM dealers' service sucks compared to Mercedes and Infinity.I speak from experience

My 1992 Corvette convertible will blow the doors off my 2003 CLK 430 convertible... talk about being ahead of it's time.

I don't think many of us wanting to buy a new Corvette care much about what they have to say anyway.

It's for people like them that GM should build a limited edition "SUPERCAR CORVETTE"

P.S......Did they compare prices?

 

[primeratec5]

Just curious-----------mpg rated @ 21 using "regular". Was that correct ?

 

[schmaltzr]

I'm with you Greg. When ever i've looked at information such as stereo equipment (of which I was a fanatic hobbiest for many years) they always pick something as mundane as Sony or Panasonic as their best pick. I owned Hafler equipment and it wasn't even on their radar. I don't even subscribe to Consumer Reports because I don't think they are very knowledgable or unbiased. Let the cars be evaluated by somthing like Road and Track or other magazines that spend their entire existance understanding vehicle performance. By the way, here in Seattle BMW's and Porche's are about as common as Honda Civics. Nobody actually takes a second glance at BMW's or Porche, but park the 'vette on the street and it gets noticed. Part of what makes them a head turner is their reputation for being a performance car. - Ron

 

[stuckatcuse]

"Regular" sounds strage to me as well. Maybe they put 87 octane in it and then pushed it. With a 10.9:1 compression ratio they probably got some knock and the ecm pulled some timing to prevent the knock. (This is what the ecm is programmed to do in order to allow the car to run on 87 octane fuel.) It probably wasn't the monster it should have been if it had 91 or 93 in it.
There are some dumbasses at consumer reports. This is what you get when you have people that know nothing about cars (or that can't read instructions) evaluating them for a magazine.

 

[Greg Gore]

Bottom Half of the Class Road Testing

50% of the engineers graduated in the bottom half of their class (like doctors), (tongue in cheek humor). Do you honestly think a capable engineer would be satisfied with a career at Consumer Reports? I subscribe and I do take their findings into consideration when I am in the market for a new washing machine or weed eater or something but I do not take their automobile evaluations seriously. They seem to report more on the lay person's level paying close attention to seat comfort and where the cup holders are and their evaluations are probably only important to a soccer mom looking at new SUVs or minivans but should be disregarded by a serious car guy. Road and Track, Car and Driver and Motor Trend all have more capable testing staff and their results do not agree with consumer reports. The Corvette is a far better car than any of those in the Consumer Reports test and if you think about it even a late C4 will outperform any of the so-called competition. Corvette is the best at delivering the most advanced world class engineering at an affordable price. No other manufacturer has ever accomplished this and fifty years of Corvette heritage proudly proclaim it. Ever see a BMW or Porche or Mercedes driver wave to each other? May they rust in peace!!

Regards, Greg

 

[rwpeders]

I've had a Consumer Report Subscription for many years and have noted (with disdain) that they continually berate GM, Ford, and Chrysler autos. If it isn't German or Japanese, it isn't diddly squat. :ugh I have owned a number of "American made" autos that I found to be very unlike the rating that was assigned to them by Consumer Report. There is no more recognizable auto than the Corvette. :cool Try getting a thumbs up from a 12 year old when you're driving a Mercedes,... aint gonna happen.

Consumer Reports is bias free because they do not accept advertising or donations from companies and they buy their test cars from a dealer just as we would. They don't avoid negative reviews or statements because of a fear of losing advertising revenue like many other magazines do. That said, while there is no organizational bias, that does not prevent a bias based upon a mind set of their testing staff. One of the things that does sway them is value for cost. I believe the Boxter is cheaper than a new corvette and the Mercedes is about the same cost.

It was either Motor Trend or Car and Driver that had a similar run off and they rated the corvette above the Mercedes and the Porche.