why should i NOT buy a Corvette E-Ray?

Do it. I know a dentist who can blacken a few teeth. That and some tattoos will complete the look. Only problem is your wife, she is way too good looking to hang with the Vette crowd!

 

I’ve arrived to the same conclusion as you. I’m turning into a pretty big Vette guy. If I could could get my hands on one at msrp I would. Maybe I’m just being more pragmatic these days, or maybe all cars have become so amazing that the diminishing return on “investment” is making it hard to rationalize more expensive and higher maintenance vehicles; but I’m finding it increasingly harder to justify 2-4x spending for something that won’t dramatically increase my driving experience or comfort. Then again, I’m no millionaire; maybe my disposition could change in that event. However, all else being equal I’m starting to question whether I’d buy a 458 over a C8 Z06 if pricing was the same, which would have been blasphemous for me to say even a year ago.

Regardless, I now have a very high regard for the Corvette brand after what they’ve managed to accomplish with the C8’s. I think we’re seeing a transformation of the image one usually associates with Corvette buyers with this generation.

 

Ditto! You know, one weird things that grew on me with the e-ray was the sound. Although not the biggest fan of Emelia’s YouTube content, she called out something interesting in her video while riding in the e-Ray. The electric sound it makes is very similar to the Batman motorcycle in the Dark Night series. So it’s pretty cool getting the raw v8 along with that intense electronic sound. Once I made the connection I liked it even more.

Skip to 10:02

 

Because it's a first year model for a GM hybrid drivetrain.

I would wait. At least for a couple of years.

 

as someone else said, performance has got so crazy and unusable now that some of the 'cheaper' sportscars are really appealing - though they commonly lack the sex appeal you get with expensive cars

 

I constantly think of this dilemma while straddling the exotic car line .
Here are my thoughts, relative to the things that mater to me.

Value vs bespoke - I've had a few nice newer Vettes and each time I recall thinking to myself as I begin to drive off "What a value, what a beautiful interior and plethora of options , what am I doing wasting my money on the Ferrari in the garage" Each and every time this excitement died after a few months. There is no Vette that will ever have the quality interior and electronics and the driving stability and emotion of a Ferrari. Seat time in the Ferrari is rewarded well beyond that of my seat time in a Vette.

Performance comparisons . Not sure that matters for daily driving. But with a Vette you could , should drive it daily , to work way more seat time than the Ferrari (I can't bring mine to work) . The Ferrari is for the weekend blast , car show, and show off which can be fun. That said then the Vette might take on more miles and become more worn that the Ferrari .

Recognition , yes the new Vettes look great and surely catch a lot of eyes probably same as a Ferrari . Actually the Vette might get more thumbs up than the Ferrari . I recall my ZR1 drew more spectators than any of my Ferraris. So from that standpoint a Vette fits the bill.

Long term quality . Probably got to go with the Vette. Damn maintenance , service and repair costs for the Ferrari are obscene . I don't recall ever having to have repair the Vette, perhaps I didn't own it long enough.

So I'm curious about the reviews and what people are saying about this new Vette. Every year I wonder if there will be a new something that can replace the Ferrari esp in regards to the things that mater to me.

 

Too heavy. If it is a putt around town car, go for it. If you want to push it, you will feel the weight.

 

And this is the way ALL of the vette vs Ferrari arguments end.

 

Perhaps the visit to the Chevy dealer isn't the best, but you're still just dropping off a car. I just dropped my F430 off at Ferrari of Austin. Yes, everyone was nice and well spoken. Yes, it was nice to walk around and see the cars they have for sale and talk about the brand. But I also could have just dropped the car off and gone home, as I do with my other brand vehicles. I think the learning aspect is more applicable to the Z06. I don't think the E-ray will be as big a deal. The V8 is old school, and battery tech more straight forward, and less complicated, than something like turbo's.

Maybe it's just me, but I've recently started to wonder if car aficionado's are no longer the target market for Ferrari. What I really liked about Ferrari compared to competitors was the design, emotion, and racing heritage. I get the impression that the brand is becoming more of a luxury fashion statement, than a brand serious about its heritage. I'm not going to complain, because it's now a public company and it wants to maximize its margins. However, I think its focus has become being something more akin to a nice handbag, than a serious fire breathing sports car. People seem genuinely excited by the Corvette products, I don't think I've seen that type of excitement on the Ferrari side, aside from just having the latest and coolest Ferrari. Plenty of gear head excitement for the older models, but the new ones seem more of an accessory.

Or maybe I'm not wealthy enough to get into the echelons of the real target market who may be able to better enjoy tracking their Ferrari's regularly, or have a challenge car, and that's why I don't see it anymore. Yet that brings up another point, how does Ferrari plan to bring in the next generation. What is the entry level car to hook the next gen of people into the brand and make them level up? I just listened to the Ferrari sales person talk about how they are desperately trying to get younger people more involved in events. Culturally, the other brands have more appeal. See the general public's response to Lambo's as the rock star sports car, and other brands vs Ferrari.

For context, this is coming from someone in their late thirties with many years of purchasing power ahead.

I'll admit, I haven't had a lot of seat time in anything past the 458. However, I remember thinking when I got a quick drive in the F8 that as cool as it was, there was less emotion, and the experience was muted. Maybe it was just too fast and I couldn't get into the "experience" power band as it was a short drive. I just did not feel the excitement I felt in the 458 and older vehicles. Check out the Throttle House video with the Z06 and Speciale, and the love they had for both of these cars. Why wasn't a F8 or 488 there?

 

Someone said “do you really want to visit a Chevrolet dealership at all?” This is some thing worth considering at least a little.

Last year I decided to buy a Ford bronco sport just to drive onto some job sites for work. I simply needed a cheap AWD that I could flip a few months later for minimal loss. These vehicles had just came out and were kinda hot. After calling around for a week, I spoke to a sales lady who is willing to sell me one at MSRP. Everyone else I had talked to did not have one on hand but they had some incoming.

So I go down there to buy the vehicle. The place is absolutely full of screaming, crying children. They literally had a hotdog stand in the middle of the dealership serving fountain sodas, popcorn, and hotdogs . my sales lady wore a Crossbody bag and took it with her everywhere. She told me it wasn’t safe to leave her purse at her desk. I made it clear to her that I wanted to pay cash and be out of there in less than one hour. She told me it was mandatory that I visit the aftermarket sales person before I went into finance and paid cash. I laughed and told her it’s not gonna happen. She had to go get her boss. Her boss came over to me and after feeling me out, he looks at the sales lady and says “you know what just skip aftermarket”. Then I go into finance. After signing everything, he asked if I have a check. I said let’s just swipe my debit card. The finance guy says yeah I don’t have a credit card machine on my desk. We have to go to the concession stand to swipe your credit card. So we literally walked over to where they were serving the hotdogs to swipe my debit card and print out a receipt. Let’s just say it was quite the experience.

 

Other then some folks here that may question your purity bona fides (not including me of course) - I believe GM hit it out of the park. I think you should get it! I can't think of any reason why not. There is not a small contingent on this very forum that say anything hybrid is a glorified golf cart.

Or, if you think like many here this "ev thing is a novelty" and just a fad, you should avoid it as well.

Cheers

 

I can just hear the guy working the hot dog stand when you told him you need to swipe your card for $35k...... "Are you sure you want 15,000 hot dogs?"

 

This 100%. They have shoved some significant issues under the rug for years now on C7 and C8 variants. It'll be a fantastic car, but I wouldn't want a first year car with a hybrid from GM.

 

What?

It's a completely new drivetrain. What other Corvette has AWD?

Moreover the AWD system is a system where the front wheels and rear wheels are not connected to one another. The front is driven purely by the electric motor, and the rears by the LT2-V8.

Then there's the small issue that it now has an electric motor that has a separate open E-diff.

That's a very complicated and nuanced system. Does't matter if GM is using off-the-shelf parts from a separate source, it's putting it all together to make it work as one unified system is what really matters.

It's like asking if someone has every made pizza before and they say, "No, never, but don't worry, I bought all the ingredients from an Italian market, so we're good to go. Just need to put it together."

Hmm, yeah, not so much.

 

That's like being able to return a bad pizza to the kitchen.

Good in theory, but you're returning the pizza to the same chef and kitchen that botched the first pizza.

 

Just do what I did
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Very nice! I hope to replicate your picture in the near future, but in my garage!