The 2009 Chevrolet Corvette has a new color and the Z06 has new wheels. The colors for the Corvette are pretty limited, sticking mainly with primary and conservative colors. I like this middle gray though.

My first Corvette was silver, not quite as dark as this, but pretty close. My last two have been black which is not very suitable for the Arizona climate. No color is really suitable for Phoenix.

The demographic for the Corvette is aging despite it being a steal of a sport cars on the market. A new Corvette starts at around $45,000 USD and the fully optioned LT4 is approximately $ 55,000. Cheap in comparison to other 430hp sports cars but still pretty expensive. The performance models, such as the Z06, go for much more - starting at approximately $ 70,000 - while the ZR1 which is a short run has apparently been marked up to $ 170,000 by some dealerships.

While there is plenty of horsepower out of the LS series of small block engines, the aging demographic has meant that compromises in seating position have been made. The C6 Corvette is more muscle car than sports car, the previous model, the C5, which sold from 1997 to 2004 was much lower in seating position, and harder to get in and out of. The current model is taller and with more headroom. The downside of this is that you feel like you are in a car, not a sports car. But 50 years old don't fold up as easily as 35 year olds do. The market is forcing that direction and compromise.

Corvette in AZ

I am a fan of the Corvette and consider it one of the great American cars. I will probably have one in some form or another now for as long as I can. I use my current one as a daily commuter car, as I did with the one previous. Mine are not treated as precious toys, but everyday tools.

Chevrolet is turning the lights off on the Kentucky factory which builds the Corvette for a week in October. Between rising gas prices, a weakening economy and the current dealers having Corvettes sitting on their lots - manufacturing will be suspended for a week on the normally recession proof Corvette.

However, the ZR1. What a car. I treat my C6 as a daily driver and the ZR1 is too much car for what I do in it. Always a good excuse to post a pic of the ZR1 anyway.

An old and rare 1963 Grand Sport is up for auction. These were built with the purpose to compete with the Shelby Cobras. So they are stripped down sleds with the most powerful V8 of the time wedged into them. Nice looking cars and an interesting piece of competitive automotive history.

Technology moves so fast these days. I have owned three Corvettes now, one from each of the last generations; and the leaps in technology, drivability and quality are significant. My old 1988 Corvette with its 250hp does not compare to the C6 I have and its digital-microchip everything pumping out 400hp and traction control.

The Grand Sport is a lovely car, but probably a road going Corvette is now faster and safer than it. IIRC Top Gear did a show where they compared a racing car from the 80s and then put them on a track with a modern road going car. A road-going Evo VIII beat the pants of an Audi Quattro rally car and so forth. Technology is rapid.

With the Volkswagon Beetle and Ford Mustang popularizing the retro car in a modern skin there have been numerous other entries to the genre; from the Camaro, Challenger, Mini, etc, etc. This is a rendering of what a retro looking C3 on a C6 Corvette donor chassis would look like.

Apparently the guy will have a prototype next year. I like the C6's body shape as it is closer to the C4 style which I still think is the best of the Corvette shapes. I considered my C4 more aggressive than either my C5 or C6 in the flesh.

The ZR1 has the nicest of the Corvette wheel styles, especially on the C6 body shape. Mid America Motorworks has made reproductions of them for lowly run of the mill Corvette owners. Other than the exhaust, I have kept my Corvettes pretty stock. There is a couple of things I would do to the C6 before I got new rims for it, but if I did get new rims, it would be ZR1 wheels.

Shots of this concept have been seen as it is being used in the Transformers movie. The Chicago Motor Show was its first proper unveiling. I doubt the C7 in 2011 will look like this; hopefully it doesn't anyway, not sure I like the design lines on this concept.

The WSJ has an answer on how to avoid breaking a low air dam on a corvette. The C6 Corvette is actually quite a high car, it is exceedingly rare that the rubber air dam drags on anything. So it is an odd question.

Corvette outside Meteor Crater

The C5 and C4 I owned were much more low slung and caused all sorts of problems getting in and out of driveways. Even speed bumps in parking lots could be an issue with those two cars.

The warning not to remove the air dam is true too. On the C4 I damaged the front air dam and had to remove it. The car ran about 10F hotter with it removed as the main radiator intake for fresh air was guided up by the air dam under the nose of the car. I don't see that being an issue with the C6 though and its wide grinning grill.

I consider the C6 more of a muscle car than a sports car. It is higher in stance, the seating position is much higher as well. If you look at the roof-line of the C6 it isn't that much lower than a standard sedan either. I can understand that the demographic who buys Corvettes is constantly aging, but in many respects I consider my old C5 a better sports car than the C6.

Via autoblog, photos of the Corvette GT2 on the track. It looks Mad Max. Given Mel Gibson's newly found marital status of divorced, Mad Max would definitely ditch the old Ford XC two-door coupe for a Corvette. After all, even in the apocalypse an aging action star needs to get around in comfort with a good dose of power and style. That being said the GT2 looks pretty good.

For reference, the XC Ford that stands guard outside the Silverton Hotel.