After wanting a 911 turbo for a long time I ran across a blown c5 z06 a couple years ago and purchased it as a DD, and having a junk suv for winter driver. It was just too much and I couldn't handle it for my 25 mile 1 way commute. It had stock exhaust but long tubes and high flow cats, so it wasn't that loud exhaust wise, it was the road noise that was killing it for me day after day. So I bought a trailblazer Ss for the commute and sold the vette. it's quiet but my fiancé liked it better and I drive her saab 93 most days which...is like torture. So I bought her a cayenne turbo which I have fallen in love with, but, it's hers...so driving it is out of the question but man is it nice.

so, I'd like to get back to having only 2 cars because 3 is a pain with the current housing situation, and we only need 1 suv to launch the boat. My question I guess after my lengthy history (sorry about that) is, am I going to wind up in the same situation again? I've never driven a 911 turbo, so I don't know how well the interior is insulated from the road noise, I'm hoping some here have owned both or maybe some DD their turbos and can offer their opinions. Thanks in advance!

 

There is dd post going on rennlist now.

 

I have had a C5Z for a couple years and now the Turbo for a couple years. The C5 only ever saw DD status for a few months while I was between DD's. Never DD the 911.

The 911 is better in nearly every way except a couple: utility, cheap parts, and out of the box handling.

The 911 has great visibility and comfort. You will be better insulated from road noise, especially on stock suspension and mounts. The stock exhaust is quiet and boring.

The C5z has a more aggressive suspension out of the box. The Turbo really is a touring car, not a track car, though with a few simple mods you can really make the Turbo worlds more fun than the Z06 (in my opinion)

The C5Z can fit larger things in it. I used mine whenever I had to bring home boards or pipe because the cabin is open from the trunk to the dash. The 911 has plenty of space for grocery bag sized things. You're not bringing home any lumber in it... but I guess you have the SUV for that sort of thing.

The interior in the C5 is just abysmal. I joke that if I ever got another to use as a track car that the interior is so cheap and cheesy that I would actually gain weight by removing it. Meanwhile, my 911 has leather and alcantara covering all surfaces. Seats don't rock, and everything is just plain sturdy.

I'd be happy to answer and specific questions comparing the two.

 

I have been using my TT as a DD for over four years - summer and winter. I have an aftermarket exhaust so it is a little louder than stock, but music from the inside. I plan on keeping it until it dies.

 

Thanks rmc, the thread I found was about a standard 996 so it really didn't answer my questions.


Thanks sin king, that's what I was looking for. The C5 seats were abysmal, zero lateral support, the saab has better seats. And yes the interior sucks, same as going from the cayenne to the Ss I feel like I'm getting into into an econobox.

I am a turbo junkie so hearing the turbo to me is as rewarding as a nice v8 exhaust. Utility is not much of a concern as I'll only ever carry some golf clubs and a few grocery bags and that's about it. I did once see a keg in the Z06, trunk closed lol and yes it was a useable area, I did haul a large piece of plywood once I think 2 x 8 so that was nice. But with the cayenne it'll never be a concern.

I did hear once that the shifter in a 911 was like stirring a screwdriver in a box of rocks, but that may have been on an old model, hopefully they are better now, the vette was nice in that regard, but I guess I'm just nit picking. I'd love to drive one before buying but the car I'm looking for while more than likely be out of state


I appreciate your insight, thank you.

 

Its on the tt forum but your getting the same info here but take a look there also.

 

^ sinking summed it up pretty good. I have both still but before I turned the C5Z06 into a full race car (runs NASA ST1) It was a pretty good DD, fun to drive, great MPG if you have a freeway commute and you can't believe what you can fit in the back. Even stock the C5 Z06 is fast on the track. The Porsche turbo was born into a different league all together its a much nicer place to be. Beautiful interior, stock its very quite and smooth. Once I got the turbo I started driving it the most and just turned the Z into a full time track car. BTW gutting the interior of the C5Z06 barely broke even in weight with the race build

 

Funny timing. Sinking did a nice job of answering your question. I'll throw in my 2 cents. I just sold my C5 ZO6 two hours ago. I daily drove it for 5 years. I had a blast with that ZO6. Yes it was loud and the interior wasn't that great but for the money I considered it a poor mans GT3.

The 911 turbo is better than the C5 ZO6 in every way except two. You'd be amazed what you can fit in a Corvette, even the notchback ZO6. The Porsche cargo space is quite limited in my opinion. I've read that you have a suv so that should suit your needs for hauling around stuff. Also the ZO6 got great mileage for a sports car. I would routinely get 28 or 29 mpg on the highway in the Z.

I don't think you'd end up in the same situation that you found yourself in before with the ZO6.

 

Thanks guys all good stuff. If I could have both I would, but the vette would be a lumpy cammed loud sob. Someday I'll get back into the LS world when it won't be a DD, but for now I need quiet, must be getting old...

Mileage was impressive for a 600 hp car though, I would park in the fuel efficient spots at whole foods, 30 mpg 600 hp, that is efficient lol. Fortunately though I don't pay for gas.

 

With the right aftermarket exhaust you'll hear those turbos and it should be livable. The exhaust I have now - NOT livable and being replaced, the drone in these cars can be ungodly! I have yet to drive my car with a new exhaust but I've been in another with a ProtoMotive exhaust and it was night and day different. Suspension? Livable if you don't drop it down too far. Golf clubs might be a squeeze, back seat is useless IMO. Mileage for me is bad, likely traffic and my right foot, under 20mpg. Clutch feel out of the box, admittedly with an aftermarket clutch and 997 flywheel, was rough. Removing a spring on the clutch pedal fixed this for me, GT2 setup would be better, made driving SO much better for me! Read up on the water fitting issue, I've not done mine and worry. We don't have the IMS bearing issue thankfully! Small gas tank, you'll be filling often. Tires are expensive, try not to curb a wheel. Can't think of anything else, the car can be a DD IMO and I've known some who have done it :-)

 

I had a 2003 Z06 and then moved into a 2002 911 Turbo. Both cars are excellent in their on unique ways and I'd own a Vette again if I didn't have kids that fit in the back seats of the Porsche.

In my opinion if you have the 911 you at minimum need to get a Tune for it. In stock form it just doesn't deliver like you think it should. For $2-3K a tune will turn into a rocket and it'll leave a stock Z06 in the dust. That being said, for $2-3K on the ZO6 you can add a lot of upgrades for much bigger power and the outcome on speed compared to the 911 TT with a tune will be about the same in my opinion.

The Z06 was much more balanced as can be imagined and was much easier and more comfortable to drive at the limits. The Vette had noticeable under steer into high speed turns and power oversteer coming out if you didn't manage the throttle properly, but both were easily manageable on that car.

The Porsche can be a little scary at the limits if you're not used to the rear engine set up. The Porsche has much more oversteer coming out of the turns and don't let off the throttle quickly or you'll being doing donuts in the turn. But with some practice the car is very manageable at the limits.

The Z06 interior wasn't great to look at but neither is the 996 interior. Both are from the 90s design book. But the Z06 interior is very plastic and squeaked a lot, which was annoying around town at slower speeds. The 911 interior is solid and it only creaks when I go over abrupt elevation changes such as pulling into a parking lot that is elevated.

Both have crappy Bose stereos. The ZO6 stereo is worse because they only put small speakers in the B-pillar to save weight and there's no subwoofer. You can easily swap those out for improved sound.

Some of the earlier post give some other good comparisons. The Z06 has tons of storage but the frunk on the 911 is also very spacious and you have rear seats to put items as well.

In the end I think it's a toss up between these two cars. I don't think you can go wrong. If money's an issue then get the Vette and use your savings to eventually add a cam, heads, long tube headers, exhaust and a custom dyno tune. You'll be near 600HP with that set up on a car that weighs 3118 lbs. That's good enough for low 11s in the quarter mile. You'll need a bit more than a tune on the 996 to get there and more money of course.

 

I have both, and used to dd my vette for a couple years before I got nuts with it. The gas mileage will be a lot better than the vette. The vette has more interior room, but as far as driving I love the turbo. Snow, rain,many crap weather the turbo is way better. The ground clearance on the porsche is better to. Interior noise, rattles, quality is all 100x better in the porsche.

 

I had a C5Z a few years back, and at the time it was my daily for a ~100 mile round-trip commute. I drove it in pretty much all weather conditions, and although at times it kept me on my toes it was always fun car.

I would feel a bit of fatigue after awhile, but it wasn't terrible. The worst experiences when DD the C5 was that no one on the road seemed to see it in traffic. I even was side-swiped by a FedEx truck at <5mph because "he couldn't see me".

The 996TT to me is the best of both worlds. Its no luxury sedan, but its also not nearly as rough around the edges as the Vette. Plus, you get a real cup holder

 

all good info guys, i really appreciate the insight. ive decided to go with the 911 turbo, and will begin the fun part, the hunt! really want white with a black or saddle colored interior, which i see is a bit of a unicorn, so i may settle for black, which isnt all bad.
thanks again!

 

If you want to keep the interior a nice quiet place, don't do an exhaust. The interior noise is pretty high relative to over cars, including my E46 M3 with an exhaust.

I actually think the interior noise of a 911TT with exhaust is louder than the C5 Z06.

Later, Steve