Used Market: C5 Corvette Z06
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Before the ZR1 became the hottest car in GM’s line up, there was the Z06 Corvette. Though it might be eclipsed by the current generation’s base-corvette on power, the sub-$25,000 price tag for an adult-owned car with less than 30,000 miles might just be the weekend-warrior toy that you are looking for.
For the 2001 model year, Chevrolet made serious modifications to the fabulous LS1 engine and called the LS6. Unlike later generation engines, the LS6 did not increase displacement to make more power. Instead the engine block, pistons, cylinder heads, camshaft, and other bits. This increased power by 12 percent in later models, producing 405 horsepower and 400 ft lbs of torque.
The engineers at GM chose the hardtop-coupe body style for the Z06 as it had the best-rigidity of all the body styles, and not to mention one of the lighter ones. The suspension was upgraded using a bigger front sway-bar and stiffer rear spring. Wheels were changed to gunmetal-grey wheels which were lighter than those on the standard Corvette.
All this translated into serious performance. Straight line performance translated into a 0-60 time of 3.9 seconds, the quarter mile in 11.9 seconds and a top speed of 171 miles an hour. Handling wasn’t compromised either, it would produce 1.03 G on a skid pad, and was one of the first street cars with a Nürburgring time under 8 minutes, matching most of what Europe had to offer.
Most of these cars were purchased by more mature Corvette enthusiasts, so finding a low-mileage, pampered example for under $25,000 is not hard to find. This car has to be one of the performance bargains on the used market today.
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