My lady and I cruised down to San Diego on Friday for a wedding. When we got to Orange County, we were suddenly in Corvette Country. I mean like serious Corvette Country. The highlight (of course) was the cherry red split window coupe. But we also saw C3s, C4s an overload of C5s and lots of C6s. While I was explaining the difference between the LS1, LS2, LS3 and LS7 mills, my girlfriend (between yawns) asked, "Why do all the drivers look exactly alike?" And… she was right. All of them were wearing open-collared shirts and dark aviators. I explained to her the rivalry between the 911 and the Corvette, and while the butt-engined Porsches are technically more expensive, Porsche guys get around that by dismissing the new models as having lost the plot and only buying used. Until the new ones come down in price and they can then afford them. Los Angeles, where we live, is Porsche 911 Sudetenland. Yeah, we got Boxsters, but Boxster owners aren't Porsche guys. Boxster volks just like driving (or being seen), but 911 guys are a different animal entirely. And they all dress exactly alike, as if any minute they might be forced to show up on a red carpet and pound red bulls till 4:00 am. Porsche guys of course despise Corvette guys, and vice versa. The funny part is that each thinks their particular mode of transport is the very, very best in existence. I find them all tedious and prefer spending my time in the company of Viper or Se7en owners. You?
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I prefer the import crowd. You may dismiss them as silly ‘ricers’ but there’s something to be admired transforming a pedestrian Civic something that can legitimately challenge Vipers.
I encountered the ultimate 911 driver/douche yesterday. Driving up Hwy 126, which winds gently along the McKenzie River, this 60 or so year old and his lady were doing 40mph(!) in his 911 Cabrio, with the flashers on! This is on a 55mph marked road where traffic normally moves at 60-65. He wanted to enjoy the scenery at his preferred top-down speed, and couldn’t care less about holding up traffic. Wouldn’t pull over. I’ve never seen anything quite so brazen.
Maybe….. he just forgot how to shift his Triptronic transmission ?
Aston Martin girl…..
There are more important things than BHP and power.
Grace, elegance and style are paramount.
Both are respectable from a performance standpoint, but the Vette is a little more of my flavor. To me, it is a car that looks good, but not a car that makes me look good and that’s what I want. Vettes attract attention, but not in a tacky way. They seem more about the car itself rather than the driver. Porches seem a bit too exclusive for me and I’ve never driven one, so I guess that makes me a Corvette guy, though I’m most certainly not in the market for either.
Count me among the import crowd. When I was poor, Mazda and Toyota offered me cheap but high quality (for the price) and somewhat fun cars to drive. As I grow less poor, I’m sticking to them (so long as they’re still in the segments I care about… Mazda certainly is).
The imports have no heritage or history only for people who can’t be bothered to look them up.
How about Morgan guys?
I saw a silver Morgan Aero 8, top down, for the very first time today driving into work. There was for a time a BRG Morgan Roadster parked in my office lot last year and we could never figure out who owned it. I did catch it being driven into work one day and reflexively waved, and he waved back. Both cars were driven by older guys, little surprise.
KatiePuckrik :
Aston Martin girl…..
There are more important things than BHP and power.
Grace, elegance and style are paramount.
Haven’t the footballers ruined the image of Aston?
As for me, I’m definitely a Classic Sports car guy.
Porsche suits UK roads much better than the Corvettes…
Is this an extension of the BMW vs Audi, Lexus vs Mercedes, import vs domestic, Ford vs GM truck and arugula vs iceberg lettuce eaters feud or just another marketing granfalloon?
Personally I think there are really only two kinds of cars – good ones and bad ones. Some manufacturers make some good models and all of them make some bad ones.
Porsche guy here. While I can appreciate the attraction of the Vette, Porsche just appeals to me more. Oh, and there are jerks in any owner group.
There is no way a hopped up civic can challenge a viper……unless in a straight line which is IMHO one of the most boring ways to measure performance.
Here are my (not necessarily true) stereotypes:
Corvette guys – Middle age, prefer automatic.
Porsche Guys – Think their stuff is the best and dismiss other better performing, cheaper cars as having crappy interiors. Often middle aged as well.
Boxster guys – The porsche guys who can’t afford a real porsche. Can be early 30’s
Squids – Motorcyclists without helmets or gear, aka “INSANE”. All ages, equally crazy. Not the sharpest pencil in the pack.
Ricers – Guys who think the exhaust sound is more important than actual performance. Annoying in general. Spend tons on mods to look ridiculous”
Ferrari Guys – Flamboyant style, good performance.
“Playas” – Take mid 80’s american boat and mix with largest rims available. Optional: Mix with modern 6000+ suv for the high end “playas”. Bonus points for setereos that make you deaf if you are within 1000′ of the car. Extra-super-duper bonus if there are at 2+ shapely women in the car with you.
BMW Guys – People who generally lease and want to “look like they have made it”. Exceptions go to people buying the M series, a sub 3 year old 5/7 series and maybe the 330/335
=====
I am not sure exactly where I fall since I have both a gsx-r 600 and a wrx-sti completely bone stock which is basically unheard of.
Oh wait, I fall in the “married” category :)
I’m a BMW guy, so I should say Corvette guy because the enemy of thine enemy…
But most of the ‘Vette guys I know could care less about the fact their car’s handle amazingly well, as well as go stupid fast in a straight line. So I’m gonna say Porsche, because oddly, none of the Porsche guys I know are jack offs. They also know how to properly pronounce Porsche, and none of the Corvette guys can be bothered to say “Corvette”, they all say “‘Vette”.
However, almost all of them are quick to dismiss Boxsters as “not really Porsches.”
I’d vote for the Corvette guy. I met this one guy who had a Ron Fellows edition Z06, and he was nice as hell. Hell, every Vette owner I came across was nice. YMMV, of course.
Porsche guys aren’t too far behind, either. I crossed paths with the guy who owns Champion Porsche. He’s a great guy, and I would love to buy a Boxster S off of him.
I was Porsche guy, until I found out that a Corvette is faster and an oil change is $64.95, not $649.95.
I can affort to buy a Porsche, but I can’t afford to own it….
I drove a Corvette for a couple years. C5. I wasn’t uppity about my ride, nor about anybody other’s ride as not being as good as mine.
Hell’s bells, I had my own problems, just keeping that “lady” happy! She was much more expensive than any human girl I’ve gone out with.
Expensive, not so much because of cost in DOLLARS to fix things. The expense was in time lost, which is nigh unforgivable. Time lost driving and time lost at my job being late or having to burn vacation time while she was in the spa…
Now, the divorce; that was cheap and easy. I left her at a Carmax, with no alimony, and not even a goodbye wave. I ran off with a Z3; she was shorter, but in no way was she frumpy! She was a much more fun gal; more carefree, not so whiney about getting wet or driving on for long hours.
Hehe…
All of them were wearing open-collared shirts and dark aviators.
And are generally white guys in their 60s driving under the speed limit.
I’d love to say that Porsche owners are all pricks, but to be honest, I see most porsches being driven reasonably well, at or around the speed limit. Corvettes are often driven veeeeerrrrrrrryyyyyyyy slow.
I’m more of s “sleeper” guy, so an Audi S4 avant would get my vote.
To paraphrase The Onion, “stereotypes are a real time-saver.” I’m a Porsche guy, my dad is a Corvette guy. My first car was a ’79 Corvette. I guess that makes me a little bit of both.
There are jerks everywhere. When it comes to Corvette vs. Porsche, I’ve found that the jerks are generally the people who own the car as a trinket, not as a machine made to actually drive and enjoy.
True gearheads don’t discriminate. My local PCA chapter runs an autocross with the local Vette club and the atmosphere is fun and supportive with everyone cheering each other on. Real car people don’t discriminate and appreciate a cool car for what it is rather than the name on the nose.
I prefer an Italian Alfa Romeo. But if I only had to choose between the Porsche and Corvette I would take a Porsche 911. A late model 993 with a Targa top and original fuchs rims.
All of them were wearing open-collared shirts and dark aviators.
Could that be more a case of where you live, I haven’t seen anyone dress like that Vette or Porsche since the late 80’s. Remind me of this old guy in his 60’s that would ride around Market square in Savannah in his new drop top Camaro hoping to pick up some young honey, the passenger seat was always empty.
I’m an I-wish-I-could-afford-either-one guy.
The two Corvette owners near my house are both really nice guys, though I will agree that Porsche drivers (911 drivers anyway) seem to be rather good drivers. Which brings me to the true Porsche abomination. It’s not the Boxster; it’s the Cayenne. I had the misfortune of getting stuck behind a neighbor who owns a Cayenne. The guy was driving 5 mph under the speed limit, and when it came time to enter the freeway, he took the 25 mph on-ramp at 25! If you’re going to drive that slow, why waste money on a Porsche? Just get a Dodge Durango or something like it.
I see most of the posts say what kind of car guy they are unrestricted to Porsche or Corvette. If money weren’t an issue, I would be a ’68 Mustang GT350 guy. Not too ostentatious but definitely awesome. I also prefer the aesthetics of the classics over the modern cars.
P.S. A ’69 Corvette would be nice too.
Is there any noteworthy car model that isn’t primarily driven by pricks? Seriously – I can’t count how many times I’ve said “I’ll never drive a [brand X] because [brand X] drivers are a-holes.” When I bought my S4, it seemed like the only performance vehicle I could find that did not evoke such thoughts. I suppose that the WRX STI might fit the bill, now that it doesn’t look like it was cobbled together by a teenager with a Pep Boys gift card.
Oh, was there a question? If forced to choose, I would choose Corvette. Because I would never pick a (new) 911 over a Cayman or Boxster in the first place, and apparently those don’t count as Porsches. Also, the Corvette and 911 will both make you look like a prick, but at least if you buy a Corvette you’re a prick who buys American, and thus probably less of a prick than the 911 driver.
Pashaw.. the whole question is fake. The stereotypical automatic vette drivers and lawyer porsche drivers is true to a point. But I thought this site is about enthusiast drivers. I’ve hung in a gets-along-fabulously multi marque crowd since I seriously started track driving in 1997. The ‘rivalry’ tween vettes/vipers/porsches/etc is all very good spirited so “who would I rather hang with” is a specious question.
Vroom Vrooom
Shiny Side Up
David
Personally, Porsche for me.
As to which ‘crowd’? If you’re a car enthusiast, you’re okay in my book.
Just about every owner I’ve ever engaged with a, “Hey, beautiful car…” — be it 911, Corvette, Viper, Mustang, whatever — has responded with a smile and a willingness to engage in Piston-speak for as long as either of us have time.
Yeah, there’s a stereotype to both the 911 and Corvette buyer. And yeah, they tend toward 50+, unless they’re in the Lucky Sperm Club. (One has to labor away to save the bank necessary to drive one of these beauties, ya know.)
So for most of these owners, the car is their personal reward for years of late hours at the office, weekends, overtime, what have you. And yeah, they drive ’em around careful and slow.
However, I find more 911 drivers taking part in their local club events — driver ed track days, autocross, rallye days, etc — than the Corvette drivers.
So whichever car everyone here drives, if you’re pumping gas or loading groceries someday and someone comes up and says, “Hey, great car!” I hope you smile and talk it up for awhile…we just may meet that way in person.
I have not driven a Corvette to date, although I am a big fan, especially the Z06. I would take mine Black on Black w/ black BBS ultra-light wheels. Sick.
I have driven several 911’s. I would never buy one new, I think they are way overpriced (it only has 300 or so hp! and its 80K MSRP.) The market has correctly adjusted the price for used examples. The thing that hooked me to moving to a nice 996 next is the chassis feedback, the sound, the backseat, and the decent MPG.
I agree there are donkeys in all car subcultures.
With both makes I prefer the cheaper younger brothers (the Cayman S in the case of the 911 and the Solstice Turbo Targa in the case of the Corvette).
I don’t know any Corvette or 911 owners well enough to have a preference, but I’ve found that women that drive cars with manual transmissions are better in bed, if that is at all related.
@pharmer
Pretty much summed up what I was going to say.
In the Corvette community there’s also the C3 vs everybody else crowd and when the C5 came out the C4 guys complained about the jerks who would not wave back to them while passing each other. This was a huge cardinal sin.
Whatever, I drive a C4 cause it is (mostly) inexpensive fun, I don’t really care what people think.
Porsche for the track, Vette for the street. There are Vette racers but a 911 has several series just for itself. OTOH seeing a 911 on the road weirds me out. Plus the Vette has good trunk space for a sports car.
Full size pickups beat everything.
I am a Super Stalker Builder/Owner/Driver but would love a Cayman or Elise. 911’s and Corvettes just seem a bit common. I want a drivers machine, but not one anyone else actually recognizes! If I am going to see one everywhere I go, I want it to be totally below the RADAR, like a dirty E36 M3 with the badges stripped…
I’m a “Save Your Money” guy. Any time I see somebody driving in a car that cost more than, say, $40k I just end up rolling my eyes. It’s a rather silly way to impress people, really. I love cars, but I’m against ostentatious displays of wealth. Fancy cars are just so in your face, I think it doesn’t always speak well of the owner.
Of course, if you’ve got the money, might as well spend it, ’cause you can’t take it with you.
I almost became the used-Porsche guy, but I didn’t want the rear main seal popping out (the only 996s in my price range were in those year ranges) or a multi-thousand dollar clutch job (used boxster)
I’ve ridden in a C5 Z06 before. Performance-wise, it’s hard to beat, but one thing that bugged me a bit was the way it rides over bumps, which feels something like a pilates ball.
Ah the lesser of two evils. Im gonna go with Porsche guys. Reason being they rarely try to accelerate past me for no apparent reason(in my “poser” Audi), they mind their own business and dont galk at my girlfriend. Put simply Vette guys always have something to prove, Porsche guys have already proven it. Because I drive a womans car, I am often mistaken for one, probably the hair, this drives Vette guys crazy lol. I’m from LA too and I prefer Mclaren SLR girls.
@KatieP: I’ve never met a lady Aston I didnt like, actually Ive never met one at all, which sucks. BTW Corvette girls are cute as hell… hell, cute uhum.
Jonny, I’m gonna let the dealership experience decide for me. Porsche all the way, for good coffee, plasma screens, modern bathrooms, and great looking women.
Part of me wants to root for the home team and say Corvette #1, but in my heart of hearts, the humble Cayman S is what I really desire.
Can I say “Classic Jaguar Guy” without being pinned as a homo? Now where’s my E-Type, please (despite the fact that it’s old enough to be my grandfather).
But sticking to the question, I actually like both Porsche and Corvette. I would personally go with a Porsche only because it doesn’t punch me in the gut as badly as a Corvette does on roads.
Me? I just find the incessant Clarksonian need to “peg” people by their car choice a fool’s errand.
Johnny Canada
Porsche dealers actually use a variation of an old con where a hot woman (let’s call her the sales associate) lures a person in, and then a thug that’s secretly working with her (let’s call him the service department manager) beats that person up and steals all his money.
Also, the difference in price between a 911 and a C6 will get a person a very nice coffee maker, a couple of widesreeen HDTVs and a redone bathroom for their own home.
Great question. I respect both Porsches and ‘Vettes, although if I had the dough I’d definitely be in a Porsche (Cayman). I love the refinement of the Porsche. I prefer handling, steering precision, etc., to raw power.
Also, I have an odd habit of collecting engine valves, and the Porsche valves are the most beautiful. The Corvette valves are pedestrian by comparison, although much, much nicer than more mundane American cars. I made a menorah out of Porsche valves, which you can see on my website, motorlegends.com.
Benz valves are the only ones I’ve seen that are as beautiful as Porsche valves. I’ve never seen ferrari or Aston Martin valves.
Not even need to ask…
CORVETTE
I have a couple of neighbors with Boxsters, very nice guys, as well as one friend with a Boxster, who is also a very nice guy. The friend is a big booster of the high school we went to (he hosted a reunion at a restaurant he co-owns), and both of his kids, young adults, are also car nuts. I don’t think I know any ‘Vette owners. One of the neighbors is a research psychiatrist at one of the Harvard affiliated institutions. His wife drives a MINI.
Then there’s the guy with the truthaboutcars.com website. He also owns a Boxster, and I’ll vouch for his character.
Corvette for me. Who can’t enjoy ticking off the greens with something so energy-efficient? If GM had ten models as good as this one Robert wouldn’t bother with this site.
Though I’m more of a kart guy. You guys have nothing on karters for brand bickering. They’re really all just about the same aside from paint, so not even the authority figures can sort anything out.
I think the problem with the rivalry is this:
The Porsche costs $80k (I know the list is much lower but I think seats and a steering wheel count as options in Stuttgart), while the ‘vette can be had for less than $50k. You can definitely tell when sit in both which car costs $30k more, but the horsepower should be equal if there is already a $30k premium. Apples to apples performance wise, the delta is closer to $60k. All that being said, I love ’em both and I’m happy that we live in a world where both exist.
Neither actually, though I can appreciate both.
I’m a “car guy” not a “(make/model) guy”. I’ve driven 911s, and I’ve driven Corvettes. Both are fine machines. To be honest however, I think the Boxster/Cayman have them both beat, as far as new cars go. Sure they are not as fast at the very top end, but they handle circles around the 911 & ‘vette.
As for “rivalry” between sub-sets of car guys… I find those sorts of things baffling. What’s the use?
David you’re welcome to a valve (or twelve) I have lying around from the rebuild of the Jaguar XK engine from my dad’s old E-type. ;)
And BlueBrat, you’re welcome to a test drive in it if you’re ever in the neighborhood.
–chuck
http://chuck.goolsbee.org
Personally, I would have to say Corvettes just because I like the current iteration of them so well. If you were to ask me the same quesiton back in the ’80’s I’d be a Porsche guy. Right now I would have to say my favourite Porsche is the Cayman Turbo. It really is the high-performance daily driver, and I think the more appropriate comparison with a stock C6 for ‘Vette vs. Ferdinand debates…save the 911 for the Z06.
911’s these days are great cars, but they are awfully expensive and in a demographic where a guy can go get a Ferrari for only slightly more (relatively speaking!) money. For bling, the Porsche 911 can’t touch a even a used Ferrari Modena, so I would have to view posers buying 911’s as “real enthusiast” 911 drivers’ view of Boxster posers: trying for all the bling their bank will risk on them – but having to settle for second-best. I imagine that probably incorporates the jerk-off types who drive Porsches that some people here have complained about. Jerk-offs who buy ‘Vettes are tend to be graduates from Camaro class, mullets and all.
Its kinda funny that Porsche has so many rides to choose from now too. Are you a Camaro or a Cayman guy? Definitelly Cayman guy here! Are you a ‘Burb guy or a Cayenne guy? Childhood memories make me go for the ‘Burb! (but I’ll take a Cayenne over a Sclade anyday). Panamera guy or…Malibu guy? Panamera’s faster, but it looks as ugly on the outside as the new Camaro’s interior does from the inside…tossup!
There is no way a hopped up civic can challenge a viper……unless in a straight line which is IMHO one of the most boring ways to measure performance.
So how about a hopped up Civic challenging a Ford GT?
right click & save as
http://www.smallmountain.us/images/movies/Ford%20GT40%20chase%202mbps.wmv
I’m a Corvette driver, but I can appreciate Porsches as well. I just don’t have that lust for a Porsche though. I don’t think the 911 (since they all look the same, this goes for any of them, from the first year to the 2009 models) is a beautiful car at all, and I couldn’t see myself spending so much money on something I don’t find that attractive, unless it could perform much better than any other car in its price range.
Since a Base Carrera can’t even keep up with a Base Vette, not to mention the (still cheaper than any 911) Z06, I can’t see myself ever spending money on one (even though the 911 has the Vette beaten in steering feel and agility). When you move from the base 911 to the GT2/GT3 or 911 Turbo, you get incredible performance, but I’d rather get a Viper or R8 over a GT3, and a Ferrari/Lambo over a GT2 or 911 Turbo. There’s just no price point I can think of where I’d go for a 911 instead of another sports car.
That said, I was very close to getting a Cayman or Boxster S instead of the Vette, and when it comes time for my next car I might go that route for a change of pace
Never met a corvette or porsche owner I didn’t like and cant remember any of them doing anything bad on road near me.
Yes Corvettes seem to have no more than 25 hp on tap, from where I sit.
You didn’t ask what I would want to drive. Which would I rather drive slow in? Cayman base model. Don’t really understand the late era 911 for the real world, the Cayman is more in spirit of the original Porsche idea. Light and nimble vs supercar.
I understand the Corvette is affordable supercar but where can you pound on it and not die/kill/get caught?
Ideally I would want a fresh 550 and to be crown prince of some alpine county.
i only know a handful of people who drive either of these cars and i like them all [no need to be friends with people i don’t like].
and as far as the cars are concerned, i obviously have my favorite marque and of the four examples i have extensive experience with – 356 / 911 / 986 / 987 – i can share two observations. [1] their individual driving dynamics are quite different from one another and [2] each of them have been ‘fun to drive’ which is why i bought them in the first place.
here in san diego, there is a place in birdrock where one can rent exotics by the hour/day. i stopped by a few months back and explored the possibility of getting a gallardo or a 360 modena and after much deliberation on my part, i asked the guy talking with me which one he thought was more fun to drive? without missing a beat, he pointed directly to a 911 coupe sitting at the curb.
i’ve driven 911s and they are great cars to be sure – but for real-world road operation, i have found the mid-engined models more fun to drive.
if you haven’t already had the pleasure of piloting a boxster or cayman, i strongly urge you to visit your authorized porsche dealer and inform the salesman that you’ve been thinking seriously about buying. he’ll have you behind the wheel before you know it and give you an informative brochure as a lovely parting gift.
believe me, there are worse ways to spend a saturday morning.
I guess I’m neither. The Corvette has always struck me as the automotive equivalent of a blunt object. Porsches drive better but are high maintenance and somewhat behind the times in terms of conveniences and creature comforts. That’s why I drove an RX-7 for many years and replaced it with an Infiniti G37S.
Boy Jonny, that demo breakdown was spot on. The boundaries aren’t exactly blue collar/white collar. It’s more like successful engineers vs successful contractors. Plus the whole compensator thing…(It is sometimes rumored that Porsche drivers need to compensate, ‘Vette drivers, not so much.)
To be honest, I’m not a fan of either car. Too many people who know too little about cars own both of these vehicles. Chances are that someone driving something a little less well known would be truly knowledgeable about the car they drive instead of having money burning a hole in their pocket. In the Porsche line, I much prefer the Cayman to the 911.
It’s not what you have, it’s what you do with what you got. I like both Vettes and 911s when they are burning a set of tires up at an autocross or a track day, or when they are packing the mud in their wheel wells at a rally or rallycross. I have little interest in garage queens or cruisers.
If I had to choose one, it would be a C5 or C6 Vette….cuz my honkin’ frame would fit in it.
I’m a 911 Turbo owner and guess I’m the odd ball. I don’t dress up for a possible red carpet moment. I always dislike hanging out with guys who dress the same & drink red bulls!
I’d guess you are NOT talking about those of us who lay in their driveways on the weekends changing the oil on their 27 year old 911SC. I know there are differing opinions, but I think Porsche died when the the SC went out of production.
Hmmmm….which mid-life crisis car would I prefer to be seen in ?.
Before I get to that I’d like to point out the similarities between the 911 and the Corvette. Take a design (front engine or rear engined), stick with the design for over 40 years and keep perfecting it through racing, have your engineers working on it be a small group of dedicated enthusiastic “car guys”, and you’ll wind up with a world class vehicle.
I’ve always liked Porsche as a company due to their dedication to racing their sports cars, and outrageous cars like the CanAm 917-30. However, the 911 isn’t a car I’d want to own if I had to work on it myself as the engine location would make it a pain in the ass to repair.
If I had to choose between the two cars as a daily driver that I could work on myself I’d take a Corvette. If I had to pick a Porsche to drive for the street it’d be something crazy like a 1974 Carrera RSR replica, a 911 with a 935 body kit, a road registered 962, or one of those Australian built 917 replicas…with full Martini racing livery !.
A guy down the street has a 70’s Stingray and a Z06.
He liked the LS7 in his new Corvette SOOO much, he bought a crate engine LS7 and Spent nearly 5,000 dollars to put that engine in the Stingray.
(a huge waste of money (and a death trap) BUT DAMN DOES IT GO FAST! faster than its newer brother on the strip in fact!!
So… Im an American guy, Im A CORVETTE GUY!
Porsche, Porsche, Porsche… and when I actually develop taste and restraint, Aston Martin.
I’m in my late 30s and I don’t recall the Corvette being considered a young guy’s car since around 1980. Most of the owners I’ve known tend to be middle-aged white guys with their own fencing companies. For geographical reference, I am a proud native of the Great Commonwealth of Pennsyltucky.
The Corvette and Porsche 911 share a common trait: both required about 40 years of engineering effort to overcome their principal, originating, design flaw. Or design feature, if you are forgiving.
The Porsche’s great flaw, of course, was the decision to place the engine in the worst possible place, hung out over the rear axle. The Corvette’s flaw was the decision to build the car with a completely non-structural resin-glass-fiber (now SMC) body. All of the car’s structural strength must be built into the frame.
In the Porsche’s case, while relentless engineering refinement has yielded a highly communicative, competent car, its central flaw was really solved by the tire companies, not by Porsche itself. In the Corvette’s case, the long campaign to design and build a stiff structure for the car while retaining the relatively light, non-structural, SMC body was finally solved within GM through a combination of good engineering and real manufacturing innovation. So the overcoming of the Corvette’s original flaw is a more heroic story than Porsche stubbornly ignoring physics while waiting for the gumball makers put things right, though Porsche wins points for yearly relentlessness sans Chevy’s occasional backsliding.
So between the two, I’m Corvette, not Porsche, and have owned the former. It doesn’t help that the last Porsche two seat sports car I can fit into is the pre-911 356 coupe. Plus the Corvette is by far the better thousand miler, and that’s a vital criterion for a continental North American roamer. It’s able to consume I-5, Route 46, Highway 1, Mulholland Highway, the 405, I-40, Laguna Seca and Buttonwillow with equal aplomb.
That said, the two camps have more similarity than difference as car aficionados, especially once you wander out of the effete zones distorting social behavior in the urban & suburban wealth districts. If you really want to narrow the perceived schism between Porsche and Corvette communities, skinny them down to Z06 owners and those loyal to the vintage RS 911s.
Phil
Technologically, Porsche 911’s are quite better, especially 2009 cars with new PDK transmission. More powerful engines, better transmission, much better handling charactheristics (especially Turbo and 4S), better acceleration makes Porsche’s a better drivers’ car. A 911 C2 may be worse than Z06, but a Turbo or GT2 is in an other league.
Aesthetically, I will choose Porsche 911 to every other car, as it is the grand son of VW Beetle.
About comfort, Porsche still seems a bit better. Porsche has a perfect (it took 40 years to perfection) interior, and Corvette is too American to my taste.
Coming to price, you can buy 2 or 3 Corvettes at a price on a 2008 Porsche 911 Turbo.
I thought Farago drove a Boxster – so he’s not a “Real” Porsche guy? Hmmmm.
As a former Corvette driver (several), who moved to 911 (air-cooled ’89 – some say the last real Porsche – period) and then to a Boxster S (and I can afford another 911 BTW), I find people who claim the Boxster is a “lesser” Porsche have never driven one. Certainly not an S. Believe me as someone who actually owns (or owned) these cars, the Boxster (including the Cayman) may be the best overall sports car in the world.
I still very much like Corvettes and think that GM has done an amazing job – for the money. But the fit, finish and overall feel of a Porsche seems somehow “finer”. It like the difference between a Rolex and a Timex. Both keep time very well but once you have one, you understand. Those that don’t, can’t.
@1981- HERE!HERE! I fully agree! For my birthday, my best friend bought me a huge book detailing the history and progression of the 911. I still lust after a clean SC Targa. Something just seemed “right” with that variant and the thought of pulling the targa off on a Sunday morning for a drive down the backroads always makes me smile. While the new 911s surely are awesome machines, something about the relative simplicity of the SC is very appealing to me.
enderw88: I am a Super Stalker builder/Owner/Driver…
Whoa, you’re hard core. That’s what they call “low flying” isn’t it? Those machines feel fast even when their moving slow. I am suitably jealous.
My 1965 Corvette convertible with the L76 small block was a maintenance nightmare for the seven years I owned it. When it worked, it was glorious. I can’t remember any Porsche even coming close.
Corvette. Particularly the orange Z06 I saw at Berger Chevy a few months ago (when it was still cold out). It spoke to me like the sirens in the Odyssey.
That said, I’ve been in a number of Porsches (not recently, though) and find them fantastic machines. Just wish I could afford one of them. Or the other.
In the real world, I’d be happy with a well-maintained used C4.
I’ve still got another kid to get through college…
im a mix between vette, porsche, and import guy. i have a tuned 08 wrx which would put me in the import category, but unlike most rice-patty poppers my subaru sounds legit considering i got a catback exhaust and not some super riced-out one. then thing may be a ricer but it doesnt sound like it. Vette = cheaper sticker, great performance. Porsche = pricey sticker, get what you pay for performance and luxury.
I say there are two types of sports car drivers. Those that actually drive it for the performance, the enthusiasts. And then those who drive it around because it is a status symbol.
I love racing with Vette guys and 911 guys, because they race, not b/c of the type of car.
Before I bought my first BMW (a 2001), I was convinced that the majority of people who bought one did so only for the propeller image on the front and the back. After a number of BMWCCA track events, I find that there are a surprising number who actually enjoy the way the car drives, and go out and enjoy improving their skills as drivers. I suspect the same is true for virtually any performance car, including the Porsche (excluding Cayenne) and Corvette.
Conversely, the percentage of performance-oriented drivers of family sedans is like quite small; as someone pointed out, “married” and “children” place a different demand on one’s time and finances.
Even with my prediliction toward track performance, both the Corvette and the Porsche seemed a little over the top, hence my second car, a Honda S2000. Lately, though I have been admiring both the Cayman and C6; both are excellent cars and the value of the base 435 hp Corvette is extraordinary.
As far as the stereotype, I am a Corvette owner and I drive around with a T-Shirt and flip flops on, wearing anything but aviators, which should only be worn by (Maverick and Goose).
For the cars I’ll take the Corvette any day. I am a driver and like to go fast when there is no one else on a road. Why spend the money if your not going to drive it like you stole it once in a while. I’m not 60, I’m 35 and now is when I feel I can enjoy a car like this. Although I think the next car will be the Pontiac G8 GT with a magna supercharger if you want to know the truth. American muscle with four doors to boot.
Throw out the stereotypes and drive what you enjoy!
Corvette all the way as the best performance value on the planet
give me a lotus any day!
blood> I’m also a fan of the elise. I’d love to try one one day. if I had $50k, I’d grab an elise before a porsche or vette.
I’ve had Porsches and Corvettes and like them both. Currently have a C6 Z06 and a 1993 Carerra 2. Started late into Vettes, but they have won me over. Traded a C6 for a Cayman S and that for the Z06. I missed the HP and didn’t fand that the Cayman handled any better.
As for as the people go, I find Corvette people more friendly and they really love their cars. (I was surprised when I found out that Vette drivers wave to each other, having had Porsches for 12 yrs prior). Porsche people tend to be boy racer types or money snobs.
I used to be Corvette all the way. Then I drove Farago’s Boxster S for like 5 minutes. Now I’m in a state of conflict. So I’m an undecided voter, much like a huge section of America.
Robstar – I suggest you google some time attack stuff – Civics can challenge almost any car on the planet – there’s something about a 1900 lb hatchback with proper suspension tuning (double wishbones) and the ability to swap in motors from Big Brother Acura that turn this little rollerskate into a world beater.
That said, its still a Civic at the end of the day, even when it can out accelerate, out brake, and pull more lateral Gs than an Enzo.
For me . . . . . not Porsche (owned them, hate them and their maintenance) or Corvette (I don’t own any gold chains) guy – more of an S2000/NSX/RX-anythingrotarypowered kind of guy.
Both, or neither. All true car enthusiasts are, in a way, supported by the poseur wannabees that make up the majority of the sports-car buying public. Without them, the cars just wouldn’t exist.
Nothing…and I mean nothing…sounds and feels like a well tuned V8 engine….so I’m going with the Porsche….as long as it’s a 928. ;-)
@doctorv8: Nothing…and I mean nothing…sounds and feels like a well tuned V8 engine…
Unless you’re talking about a well-piped flat six, or possibly a Carrera GT V10, or perhaps a Ferrari V12… Then again, the F430 makes nice music also, and it IS a V8. I guess nearly all of them can sound incredible, except for the ack-ack-ack-ack idle of a big hp rotary.
Ferrari V8s use a flat plane crank making their exhaust note a lot different than a 90 degree V8. I find Porsche’s sound identical to forklifts at idle speed. Whereas a lumpy cammed V8 is the best sounding engine at idle period. I’m partial to vettes. Part of the lucky sperm club. Mine’s been used and abused, driven the way it was meant to be driven IMO.
I like pushrods!