The Fastest Cars Under $50,000

[l3rewski]

Originally Posted by volinbham

Pistons, valves, crankshafts are all old technology too

Hell, coil springs are over a century old too.

[milohimself]

Originally Posted by l3rewski

And? It works, and quite well at that. The transverse mono-design is quite different and way more advanced than the typical leaf spring arrangement most people associate with buggys or old pickups.

Not that I feel differently about the C6's handling, but the leaf springs thing is just a common way to rib Vette guys.

Originally Posted by Nerd-Vol

Go on...


They are using skid pad numbers. Tires equipped are going to make a big difference.

You gotten a chance to drive the 458 and the Audi to compare?


Also, I have never liked motor trend. Always been a C&D guy myself.

I have driven neither a Ferrari or the R8.

Originally Posted by GreatWhiteNorth

1. 2012 Chevrolet Corvette Z06

Figure Eight: 22.8 seconds @ 0.98 g (avg)

Skidpad: 1.13 g (avg)

This Corvette Z06 not only went for the murdered-out look but it murdered the figure-eight rankings too. The sixth-place finisher from the 2011 Best Driver’s Car feature is the current king of the figure eight, and one of only three cars ever (out of thousands of vehicles MT has tested) to break into 22-second territory. One of those three cars was a full-on race car. The C7 has big shoes to fill.



Read more: The 10 Best Handling Cars Motor Trend Tested in 2011 - WOT on Motor Trend

Milo must be the Stig to complain about the handling of this car...

So you agree with the implication that the Z06 is a better handling car than one of the better road cars Ferrari has ever produced...?

Originally Posted by volinbham

Pistons, valves, crankshafts are all old technology too

So are pushrods

[Roughneck]

Originally Posted by Nerd-Vol

Also it's made in AMERICA.


American made, makes American jobs!

You could say the same thing about a Camry too.

[Nerd-Vol]

Originally Posted by Roughneck

You could say the same thing about a Camry too.

Your point?



The R8 and the Ferrari are not built in America.

[GreatWhiteNorth]

Originally Posted by milohimself

So you agree with the implication that the Z06 is a better handling car than one of the better road cars Ferrari has ever produced...?

Not necessarily. I do think it handles a hell of a lot better than you are giving it credit for.

[milohimself]

Originally Posted by GreatWhiteNorth

Not necessarily. I do think it handles a hell of a lot better than you are giving it credit for.

It was an old job of mine at a high-end performance shop. The pay was crap so I moved on, but I had the chance to drive a huge number of faptastic cars.

I love Corvettes. They look awesome, they're far faster than reasonable, but their handling is completely mad.

Top Gear Season 14 Episode 2 - Car Videos on StreetFire

Here's the Top Gear episode with the R8 V10 vs. ZR1 comparison. At the end of the power laps, Jeremy said the only reason it went around that fast was because the Stig was at the wheel.

The dudes that post those Nurburgring times and various SCCA track numbers? They're all professional or really, really good drivers. They can coax great cornering and lap times out of a Vette.

But to you or me or probably anybody reading this thread, the Z06/ZR1 definitely on the unwieldy side.

[GreatWhiteNorth]

I'll give you that...the reviews I've read of the Corvette, and especially the ZR1, have indicated that the car is difficult to drive at its limit.

[WallyBalls]

Originally Posted by Orangesmokey

Long of Chattanooga. Been in parts for over a year now and two years before that was in service.

It's crazy to watch them grow and what they are doing with their design.

Cool, i was at Grayson in knoxville. Ihated the dealership world, but parts was a great gig. Always fun getting a body shop fax requesting 10k in parts for some dingbat that wadded up her Veracruz...easy money.

And dealing with some of the mouth breathers who couldn't pronounce a single model name (Tuck-san, Sinatra, Variablecruz, et al) was entertaining...


Is Mac still the regional rep, or did he finally retire?


As for the genesis coupes, we had just taken delivery of our first 3 a month prior to me leaving. I loved the one 6 speed 2.0 we had...

[Roughneck]

Originally Posted by Nerd-Vol

Your point?



The R8 and the Ferrari are not built in America.

My point is that most cars driven in this country were for the most part made here, even the "foreign" ones.

[Nerd-Vol]

Originally Posted by Roughneck

My point is that most cars driven in this country were for the most part made here, even the "foreign" ones.

I never said anything contrary.

Where are you going with this?

[Orangesmokey]

Originally Posted by WallyBalls

Cool, i was at Grayson in knoxville. Ihated the dealership world, but parts was a great gig. Always fun getting a body shop fax requesting 10k in parts for some dingbat that wadded up her Veracruz...easy money.

And dealing with some of the mouth breathers who couldn't pronounce a single model name (Tuck-san, Sinatra, Variablecruz, et al) was entertaining...


Is Mac still the regional rep, or did he finally retire?


As for the genesis coupes, we had just taken delivery of our first 3 a month prior to me leaving. I loved the one 6 speed 2.0 we had...

Mac is still here. He isn't going any where any time soon. He loves it way too much.

Body shop orders are usually pretty nice depending on the body shop.

People crack me up trying to pronounce the different models.

[volinbham]

Of the Ferrari, the R8 and the Corvette Z1 I'd say the R8 is the only one a normal driver could drive reasonably well. Put another way, driving the Corvette or the Ferrari at the limit requires a highly skilled driver. I fail to see how that's knock on the Corvette.

[milohimself]

I dunno about the Ferrari. My old boss had a chance to drive the 458 in Dubai late last year, and said that once you get over the fact that you're in a high f'n end Ferrari and let the nerves calm down a bit, it becomes very driveable. He can handle his business at the local karting track that has he 50mph karts, but he's by no means a great driver, either.

Lamborghinis are the ones that classically will bite your head off (except the Gallardo, which is essentially an Audi with an audacious body)

[milohimself]

Originally Posted by volinbham

Of the Ferrari, the R8 and the Corvette Z1 I'd say the R8 is the only one a normal driver could drive reasonably well. Put another way, driving the Corvette or the Ferrari at the limit requires a highly skilled driver. I fail to see how that's knock on the Corvette.

Point is that in the budget supercar lineup, the hallmark these days is both great performance and a setup that allows the average driver to take it near the limit. It's the case with the GT-R, R8, Vantage/DB9, Maserati, XK-R, Gallardo and Ferrari California. And probably the M6 when that hits the market as well.

The ZR1 and most of the high-end AMG Merc line-up are the only 'budget' supercars out there that are completely outside of the ability of average drivers to take anywhere near the limit.

EDIT: Since you're a Porsche man, I left them out since they tend to be their own deal with their own way of handling. If you're a Porsche guy, you get it, if you're not, you don't.

[WallyBalls]

Originally Posted by Orangesmokey

Mac is still here. He isn't going any where any time soon. He loves it way too much.

Body shop orders are usually pretty nice depending on the body shop.

People crack me up trying to pronounce the different models.

Mac was awesome. I always got the impression he was the only guy that hated some of the idiots parts guys have to deal with as much as I did. He used to have a couple of his other dealerships call me for help using Arkona. Always fun when your busy.

I can't say I blame him for staying. He's got a pretty good gig going.