Sports Car or Muscle Car

[Stallion]

What would you classify our Sharks as? I have seen both titles for our third generation beasts, but I want to know what you think.

Sports Car sounds more 2L Porsche to me, while Muscle Car is a 396 Chevelle. So, you know my decision...

Stallion

 

[Flared69]

there is nothing like a car that sounds good, and looks *mean*. I

 

[22229stingray81]

Sports

I voted Sports car, it only has 2 seats and has independent rear suspension. Also class and style... muscle cars, to me, are bare bones dragging cars, cheap and powerful, big engine but nothing else. -Tatortot

 

[Tom73]

You should have added a selection for a GT car.

All depends upon how the cars are defined. This is how I would define them.

Muscle Car is a mid-sized two door sedan with a big block stuffed in it.

Sports Car is a no frills go fast machine.

Grand Touring car is designed to carry two people in comfort at high speeds over a long distance.

So I would say the Vette is a GT.

tom...

 

[Brett]

Definitely a sports car. It's a two seater.

Muscle cars have a back seat.

GT is just a more specific classification of a sports car.

 

[AKRAY4PLAY]

Tom,

i disagreee with you slightly. the Vette is all of things you mentioned. depending on creature comforts from the factory, Vettes can range from comfy to abusive to drive. no a/c in Arizona or stiff suspension on rough roads. i would like to see the catagory of "everything the 'others' are'nt". the C3's ranged from highest hp to the lowest, so opinions change. they are a muscle car in the since that everyone is using them as a performance benchmark. sports car for insurance and handling. and a GT for the nice leather, power windows, a/c and power steering. versitile fun about sums it up, great package at a great price! Brian

 

[rmonty]

Sports car for sure. My '79 doesn't have a ton of power to the wheels but it is a blast to drive on the winding mountain roads of Colorado!

'79 L82 4 Speed!

 

[brit_trader2003]

I think it depends on the Shark. Early Big Blocks are abit of both. I have a 69 with a 454 Engine and 4" Side Pipes. Its is definitely a Shark but has definite Muscle Car attributes !

 

[vette-dude]

I can't vote either way cause I am looking for a 68/69 AMC AMX which is a two seater with a big block 390 in it. It is both a muscle car and a sport car by definition, is it not?:confused

Randy

 

[Corvette-Pilot]

Sports car


Muscle cars were made to go fast in a straight line

 

[vmrod]

Sports car. I believe a sports car car a properly designed suspension, brakes, and drivetrain to handle 'sport' driving.

A musclecar is an automobile that has a big engine in it, but it was not really originally designed with 'sport' driving in mind.

 

[Mike Baskette]

Well this may start something. I have owned Porsches for ten years, so I know what a true sports car is supposed to be. Currently I own a 71' LT1. Other than a C5, in my opinion, Corvettes of the past are GTs and some of those are marginal. Until one drives some of Europes finest then it is difficult to judge. For those of you who have only owned Corvettes it may be quite a challange to provide a well rounded answer.

 

[78SilvAnniv]

Sports Car

While thinking about the question you posed, I had to consider the overall production numbers...

Overwhelmingly, most of the C3 generation has what is considered 'low' factory horsepower, so overall I must consider the Corvette to be a sports car. However the early Big Blocks can do double duty as a sports car with muscle. These C3 vettes can be built up to increase hp, but from the factory, few came off the line as what I would consider a muscle car.

From my perspective, the Corvette is more of a performance car with many desireable traits.
Heidi

 

[billyvette]

In my opinion, the corvette has always been a sports car, from 1953 until present. Even the lower hp cars would run circles around 95% of all cars around it on the road with them.

An AMX is definitely a muscle car, due to the fact it has little cornering ability in stock configuration.

Corvette's sports car intentions were what separated it from the T bird in the 1950's.
All Corvettes have cornering ability when new, muscle cars are modified version of existing cars or platforms for cost reduction and their goal has always been straight line acceleration (1/4 mile) and affordability. Affordability for the masses has never been a goal of true Corvette designers.

 

[vette-dude]

I think it is both!!

 

[Edmond]

I went with sports car. When I hear muscle car, I'm thinking about something with a big engine and not much else. When I hear sports car, I hear refinement with a good amount of muscle.

 

[vette-dude]

more info on AMX

http://www.amxfiles.com/amc/breedlove.html

Enjoy.

Randy

 

[GerryLP]

I tend to agree with the conventional wisdom that the Corvette is a Sports Car. Muscle cars had base modles that were optioned to include High Performance upgrades, and typically are cars that carry more than two people...maybe??

 

[RedRagTop]

Sports car!
1) 2 seats
2) manual shift
3) convertible

I know, before you all start spouting about coupes and automatics I remind you that it was Zora himself who picked the Willy's Jeep as America's first true sports car based on the above criteria.
The BB mid-years leaned heavily into the mucle but hey, there was a war on...

 

[BeaterShark]

It's all relative to the time they were produced.

Corvettes are and have always been sports cars.

Just because my stock '99 muscle car (Forumula Firebird) will run circles around any stock shark (even with 16" or 17" low profile tires) doesn't mean the Corvette is not a sports car.