Do you trust the Brits to give it an honest chance?
Recently, Top Gear tested out the C8 Z06 Corvette to see if it really does beat out any hardcore performance sports car from Europe like some people claim. Now, the British host claims “America” is the one that says such things, but last we checked the one thing we Americans do best is argue and disagree with one another, so that claim sounds dubious at best.
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Anyway, not-Jeremy Clarkson explains in the video, which we’ve so graciously provided, that they’re going to pit the 2023 Chevy Corvette Z06 against the Ferrari 458 and Porsche 911 GT3. Why those two cars? According to him, the 458 was a blueprint of sorts for Corvette engineers when relocating the engine and such. Then they benchmarked the C8Z against the GT3. So that’s why.
Right off the bat, this test is going to be something Europeans in general will be all uppity about, as well as some Americans. After all, European sports cars are held at high esteem by many, which is why they can command sums which rival the mortgage on your average house. And Americans are supposed to be the snobbish ones.
For a long time, many European enthusiasts have looked down their nose at the Corvette. Sure, Jeremy Clarkson gave it some backhanded compliments and those who didn’t entirely understand his accent or use of the King’s English thought he was solely heaping praise on America’s sports car. So it’s interesting to see how Top Gear approached comparing it to two of the most venerable modern performance machines hailing from Germany and Italy.
Not too far into the video, the first shot comes when the guy is going over the C8Z’s styling, calling it “a bit my first supercar” for him. Yeah, that’s not a raving compliment, all delivered with the panache of a Brit wearing a hoodie, jeans, and tennis shoes.
Thankfully, not-Jeremy Clarkson has some great things to say about the C8 Z06, although he points out it’s not without some flaws. Check out the video for yourself and see if you agree with the assessment of the Chevy versus the Ferrari and Porsche, because the conclusions are interesting.
