Is the Corvette Still Relevant?

[Tropicalvette]

Relevant?

It sure is relevant, and not only relevant, but it is a National image issue. As bad as things are, who can imagine an American Auto Industry without icons like the Corvette, the Mustang, and even the Viper. It's a matter of Marketing identity, the US Auto Industry must survive and show the rest of the world that it will prevail and continue producing the quality vehicles it always had. It is well documented that the market has ups and downs and that this present economic situation will eventually (hopefully, sooner rather than later) be corrected.

What is important is that because of the media and certain entities the Government could feel the need to push the Auto Industry to a point in which they decide to eliminate specialty vehicles that are made to satisfy, as someone mentioned before, our fantasies. This should be avoided!!

The Corvette is the car that has filled the dreams of many of us that saw that red '62 owned by that guy down the block, when we were 12 years old, and that eventually pushed us to strive to eventually get one, anyone, even if it's not that '62 but it's still a Vette. I hope that Government folks that are pushing for action from GM understand that certain things must remain, especially that there is a need to continue with this segment of "The American Dream".

 

[65-to-00]

z06vette2003, don't know a darned thing about a "Z" car other than I wish I had one.

However, that said, when I got those high numbers it was on trips to and from mid-state Maine from New Jersey. The trip to my sons school is about 1000 miles on the nose round trip.

The variables that worked in my favor were good timing regarding the times I travel and running the tire pressures just a tad high. I think I listened to GM Junkie or one of the old timers on here and it's been almost a year so ..... I forget what I was running but I can assure you that it was like only three pounds over book pressure.

All of the numbers were double checked with pencil and paper ... and .... I did my own gassing ... and .... man I was shocked when the manual calculations were pretty much dead on with the computer. All of the numbers were like 29.8 ... 30.1 .... and such.

The other thing that works in favor of the 6 speed (motor is dead stock), is the fuel capacity. I can make it from like easy .... Farmington ME to Flemington without a gas stop.

Key here is leave early and return late with minimal traffic on the I-States.

I can assure you that my gas mileage was not quite that good while touring the coast from Kennybunk to Canada with my son. I let him drive on his permit ..... and ..... he would not take the car out of 5'th gear ... refused to put it in 6'th.

When you are in 6'th doing like 70 ... the darn thing has got like a tad over 1000 on the tach!

Other variable .... I keep it just a tad over ... like .... 74'ish on those trips since I often did an "up&back" .... yeah .... 1000 miles in a single day.

Ask Mac .. why ... just a tad under 74?

 

[BuckIVette]

I have to agree with you 100%. I've had to defend myself @ gas stations because I'm driving a car that gets poor gas mileage.


At least I don't have to deal with the people that tell me to "Buy American" next time...as they fill up their Honda Accords.;squint:

FYI - Honda Accord is made in Marysville, OH. Bought a '92 new and had it for 8 years and it was a flawless car. Of course, I had younger kids then (and less disposable income). At least they learned on a decent stick...

 

[Howard Wolf]

My 99 FRC never has gotten very good MPG.
YouTube - chuck wolf's C5 at pinks all out

 

[hotrod_john]

Relevant is Relative

It sure is relevant, and not only relevant, but it is a National image issue. As bad as things are, who can imagine an American Auto Industry without icons like the Corvette, the Mustang, and even the Viper. It's a matter of Marketing identity, the US Auto Industry must survive and show the rest of the world that it will prevail and continue producing the quality vehicles it always had. It is well documented that the market has ups and downs and that this present economic situation will eventually (hopefully, sooner rather than later) be corrected.

What is important is that because of the media and certain entities the Government could feel the need to push the Auto Industry to a point in which they decide to eliminate specialty vehicles that are made to satisfy, as someone mentioned before, our fantasies. This should be avoided!!

The current mood and political climate is such that anyone with something not considered "PC" will be considered irrelevant, irreverant and dangerous to the "greater good" of the community. Although memories are short in the media, GM was the #1 automobile manufacturer just last year, with Toyota #2. How did Toyota become #1? - by making bigger trucks and copying the vehicles that were selling from the "Big 3". In other words, they outdid the "American" manufacturers at their own game. Sales are down now because people don't want to spend money (or don't have it to spend). We have yet to see if the vehicles being pushed by the current political and media groups will ever sell in the quantities needed to sustain companies (and today it was reported that the current Administration said that the Chevy Volt was not a viable alternative before it is even released(e.g., not relevant)). I expect that 5 years from now, most of the automobile manufacturers will be mere shells of what they are today; none of them will be selling anywhere near the numbers that they sold in 2008; and no one will want to purchase the types of vehicles they will be making at that time. The sad part is that a lot of really good products will have been lost in the meantime.

The ONLY reason the Corvette (and many other fine automobiles) will survive this crisis is if we become vocal enough to make it RELEVANT to the people that make the business decisions.

BTW, I have a 2000 C5 6-speed that I drive to work daily. It gets an average of 24 to 26 mpg back and forth to work (with it very seldom getting above 5th gear); and, when I take it on vacation on the interstate, it regularly gets 29 to 30mpg. And no, I don't drive it like a granny! BUT, there is the perception that I am anti-establishment and anti-environment by the general public because I drive a Corvette (which just HAS to be a gas-guzzler). I just love to show them the DIC read-out that shows them that I am getting better mileage than they are getting from their PC-vehicle.

 

[65-to-00]

The question should be .... are we relavent to our Corvettes? :W;squint:

 

[NORTY]

FYI - Honda Accord is made in Marysville, OH. Bought a '92 new and had it for 8 years and it was a flawless car. Of course, I had younger kids then (and less disposable income). At least they learned on a decent stick...

Correction~ Accords are assembled in Ohio from parts that are imported from the land of the rising sun. Does Honda trade in yen or dollars?

 

[gonetobama13]

Despite what the current administration feels about the kinds of vehicles we should be driving, in the long run it will continue to be the consumer who decides what kind of vehicle we want to drive, whether it be a Suburban or a SmartCar. Right now, people aren't buying anything, large or small, not because of gas mileage but because of factors external to the cars themselves.

My same thoughts apply to the Corvette. It goes without saying that many people of my generation (Boomer) hope that the Corvette lives on forever (or at least until we kick off). The key issue here is how our kids (and their kids) think about it. Do they have the same passion about the Vette as we do? I've had my 2004 Coupe for almost six years, and I can tell you that I constantly get thumbs up from all ages. Just today, I let an 18 year old supermarket grocery bagger get behind the wheel and start it up. He was just about drooling. We owners need to be active in promoting our Vettes to all ages if we want it to survive.

As for gas mileage, I routinely get 30 MPG while cruising at 75 mph on the highway in sixth gear. When asked how I do it, I tell them that at that speed I'm running a mere 1600 RPMs and with 350 Ft Lbs of torque, I can keep it in that gear climbing moderately steep hills.

So, let's not only keep up the wave, but also flaunt our Vettes whenever possible. Let them know how much we love our rides!

LONG LIVE THE CORVETTE!!!!

John K.

 

[88C4]

Nancy Pelosi...make mine a blue ZR1.[/QUOTE]


I will take a 2010 White Grand Sport with black top and red interior!:dancenaughty