First, let me say, in reference to the lead post in this thread, that I was also at B.G. the weekend that Capt. Paul got to go with Tadge Juechter in a ZR1. While was I insanely jealous of Paul riding the ZR1, considering what he paid to win the auction, I was also thankful there are people in our hobby who support the NCM to that extent. Paul has a long history of being a patron of our hobby, originally in California, as founder of Corvette Club Santa Barbara and organizer of the SoCal Caravans and, of late, in North Carolina. We need more like him in the Corvette community.
Now, on the ZR-1 vs ZR1 and LT5 vs. Gen3/4 issue....
There is probably no one in the Corvette community better qualified to add some perspective to this thread than myself as I own a ZR-1, I covered the ZR-1 and the LT5 engine for various media starting in 1988 and I've done extensive research and reporting on the LS1, LS2, LS3, LS6, LS7 and LS9 engines.
The statement above...
Just different approaches to making the best of a generation.
...deserves the "Beacon of Reality Award".
However, the other statement above...
Many ZR-1 owners would argue that the C-4 ZR-1 was a higher engineering level and more elegant approach.
...deserves more examination.
If that's what many ZR-1 owners would argue...they'll loose, because the C4 "Z" and its LT5 engine, while it was leading-edge stuff and achieved a high engineering level in 1988; it's clearly not a "higher engineering level" today.
I'll also quarrel with use of the phrase "more elegant".
I mean, what is "elegant". Are we talking visually? If so, no question, the LT5 wins. But, if we are talking from an engineering and performance standpoint....
Not.
"Elegant" is getting better performance from an engine which weighs less and is smaller...and I'm not talking about the LS9 or even the LS7. Both of them have larger displacement than the LT5 and one is supercharged.
No...let's go back to '02 and the LS6. At 5.67-liters it had slightly less displacement than the LT5. It also weighed significantly less and was a smaller package, yet...it produced the same power as the later LT5 (405hp) but had a better torque curve. That, my friends, is truly an engine which is elegant.
Yes, the LT5 was an elegant design for its time, just as the Gen 3/4 engine family is elegant, today.
But, the LT5 "more elegant" than what GM Powertrain has available, today?
Sorry, but that's a stretch.