"Car and Driver" Idiocy

[JKD COBRA]

It is such a waste of time to go on another car forum and try to set people straight, especially when we were NOT BASHING THE Z06. If you think that people in the "other" car forums are being ignorant, then let them be that way. There is no way your going to change someones mind about their car. Also, its the same way, if not worse at the corvette forums. My buddy has an 03 right now which he is going to trade in for a Z06 so he checks out the corvette forums now. He says he gets annoyed a lot because of how much trash talk there is about the 03 cobra. But I am not going to defend my car over there, its their forum, let them talk about what they want. Its really not that important. Lets just have fun and not take things too seriously. :thumbsup:

 

[03CobraBro]

*Takes deep breaths*... ... ... I wont flame... I wont flame... :nonono:

 

[JKD COBRA]

who?

 

[03CobraBro]

The 2k3 guy.

 

[realsmith]

The car magazines are out of touch with reality. The truth is the Mustang is as still alive and thriving despite the opinions or desires of the magazines. Writing an article about an automobile is much easier than laying out $35k of your hard earned dollars and living with it day in and out. People vote with their wallets.

If it's not a new design, don't expect many good reviews in the magazines. (Just because a design is new doesn't always indicate that it is better.) Remember that the M3 beat the new ZO6 in one well-known review.

I am not really all that interested in trying to impress people with my new status car. I've hopefully outgrown that. I bought my Cobra because there is nothing that offers more this kind of fun/dollar.

As for Mustangs on road courses, I doubt any Miatas would stand a chance against a new Cobra on a road course. There was an article in one of the magazines (C&D) where the better handling and much more powerful (than the Miata) S2000 could not compete against F-bodies on the road courses. As a former C5 owner, I would say the 2003 Cobra would compete very favorably vs a standard C5. (Remember something like 75% of C5's are automatics.) Also, the only place that most of us truely care about performance is in the real world (on the street) where potholes and dips make a lot of sports cars about as much fun as being kidney punched for an hour. A hundred miles in an S2000 and you are ready to take the bus home.

Remember you don't have to prove anything to anyone and you don't have to please anyone but yourself. (I was approved to buy a new ZO6 as well.) The only thing that will ruin my enthusiasm for this car is if it becomes unreliable.

 

[meat eater]

2K3Z06 are you :chicken:

 

[Dana]

I don't know about anyone else, but I bought my Cobra to go fast in a straight line (about 1/4 mile long). It does that exceptionally well. Better than 99.9% of the mass produced cars today.
I don't know anything about circle track racing or what it takes to be competitve in that arena, nor about xcrossing either. But then again I don't care.
If the mags are going to compare cars, the intent of the designer should also be a factor in the ratings. I think Ford intended this care to be somewhat of a compromise between course type racing and drag racing, but leaning toward the drag racing, in order to draw a bigger group of buyers.

And as far as the mags down grading the Cobra, let 'em. I hope everyone that owns a different type of car reads their articles and believes them. And then want to put their money where their mouth is...

Dana

 

[TruBlu03]

Originally posted by 2K3Z06
I used to own a mustang. Most of the guys here are actually pretty down to earth. But some people post that if you don't drive a cobra, your a, what was it, "pathectic, old, balding, hippie wannbe" that obvisouly don't know anything about cars. my apologizes to those of you that have been on a road course and know what i mean................... Read the May issue of MotorTrend.

Haha, I am truely sorry if you feel that you fit into that group! I've owned many vehicles in my time, I'm not as young as you probably think and appreciate many. I did not say or insinuate in any way that a non-Cobra owner knows nothing about cars or is a "pathectic, old, balding, hippie wannbe". I said the auto magazine writers/testers are "pathectic, old, balding, hippie wannbe"s. What I insinuated, (your post confirmes) is bias towards any and all Mustangs especially from the magazine world. For whatever reason, the sports car/auto x/magazine crowd has been that way for some time now. It is un-founded, inaccurate and a shame as it clouds the judgement of those with little performace experience. Being the owner of a "past" Mustang in no way makes you qualified to compare an 03 Cobra. You obviously have not driven one and are completey wrong about it's handling ability. In the magazine comparo,(which was totaly stupid btw and not the right vehicles to compare) the Cobra won every performance category. Granted, it's not the best auto x vehicle out there but neither is a Viper, Corvette, Ferrari etc. Is that your only/primary qualification of a performace vehicle? I would have to assume noy since you own a Vette, so you are a dis-gruntled past Mustang owner then??. You also assume that we are all drag racers. I've yet to run at the drag strip, I have however run on an open track(non race), twice with my new Cobra and many times in previous Mustangs. You have no clue what you are talking about with regards to the 03 Cobra and it's handling abilities. This is a stout automobile to say the least and can require a tad more skill to drive well. Don't sprinkle sugar on sht and tell me it's candy, I ain't buying it.

Whatever floats your boat brother! Pick the ride you like but don't make it into something it isn't like the magazines do. Don't knock my ride because you don't like Mustangs and don't try to tell me a Miata is a performance vehicle. Speed/power is apart of performance and the Cobra like the Viper and Vette are well rounded performace/handling vehicles. Sure the chasis is old, so what, it does pretty damn good for itself as old as it is.

There are many open track/road race events where Mustangs do quite well for themselves. They run on SpeedVision from time to time but imports are more popular(hence part of the magzine bias). Gotta sell magazines afterall!

To summarize, my rambling point is/was the auto mags and many people are biased towards Mustangs. Your post only solidified that. If people keep reading these biased magazines they always will be.

 

[meat eater]

LLCoolStang; nicely said :thumbsup: i hope he takes me up on
my challenge

 

[03CobraBro]

Good Show Coolstang. Easier for others to listen to someone that has some experience to back there words unlike myself.

 

[03_Sonic Blur]

Originally posted by 2K3Z06
I used to own a mustang. Most of the guys here are actually pretty down to earth. But some people post that if you don't drive a cobra, your a, what was it, "pathectic, old, balding, hippie wannbe" that obvisouly don't know anything about cars. my apologizes to those of you that have been on a road course and know what i mean................... Read the May issue of MotorTrend.

It has been a long time since I believed a word of what Motor trend had to say. The obvious bias in the magazine speaks loudly enough. Same with Car and Driver.

If I want an opinion about how well my car will perform against a 'Vette, I'll go out to the track and find out for myself.

Oh yeah, even though I'm almost 44, I am not balding, or a hippie wannabe, I have much high speed driving experience and am fond of the versatility Ford built into my car. A little exhaust mod, a little intake mod, a little of this, some of that and I've still spent less than $40k and I'll have more than 500 RWHP. That's FUN!! Have you fortgotten Fun? Isn't that what this is supposed to be about?

One more quesstion. Why does every Z06 driver in the world run in the daytime with their parking lights on? :shrug:

 

[Blades]

Well said coolstang.. I am not renewing my subscriptions to these magazines..

2k3Z06: To each his own. No need to lecture us kiddies.. now you scoot on back to starbucks you little weiner :rollseyes

 

[silvercoffin]

yeah

Yeah Car and Driver sucks, but I have heard more crap from people who have heard bad things about 03 Cobra on the internet. I have had many people ask me if I have had problems with my car or ask "It hasnt blown up yet?" A SS guy asked me that once in Rt 18 to etown. I told him to follow us to etown and race but he chickened out.

 

[DD2000GT]

Isn't C&D the mag that rated the 03 Cobra 13.2 in the 1/4 mile because that is what their "professional" driver ran it in? I stopped reading that mag right then and there when my stock car ran a 12.8 with my very "unprofessional" butt doing the driving. I try to stick with mags that know what they are talking about. Therefore, I would not get upset at anything they said in that article any more than I would get upset at opinions on my car from a inexperienced Z06 guy.

 

[HotRodHarry]

Also guys...most people have no clue about the 2003 Cobra and what they are made up of. I have talked with numerous so called Mustang guys and they had no clue about a standard supercharger and iron block and manley rods etc....so when the word gets around in the real world(not internet), then reality will set in.......fast!

Harry
www.HotRodHarrys.com

 

[p3pete]

Originally posted by Blades
2k3Z06: To each his own. No need to lecture us kiddies.. now you scoot on back to starbucks you little weiner :rollseyes

Now that was freaking funny - :burnout:

 

[JKD COBRA]

sonic blur - I think those cars come with the daytime running lights, I think. . .? A guy I knew had a Firebird Ram air and his yellow parking lights came on when he started the car.

 

[Blue03Cobra]

Originally posted by 2K3Z06
Guys, i like the cobra, but you gotta realize that there is a lot more to performace than going fast in a straight line.

But have you ridden in or seen on a road course a 2003 Cobra? So many compare the latest version (yes on the same chassis, but not even close to the same car) to previous Cobras.

Originally posted by 2K3Z06
After spending the day at the track, and watching the front tire smoke off several mustangs/cobras, I gotta agree with the car magazines. The fox chassis was a hasbeen 20 years ago. The cobra is great a far as mustangs go. But, there is so much better out there.........

Really. You saw a '03 Cobra "smoke off the front tire on the track"? I guess that's why the Cobra beat the new Infiniti G35 coupe (same car as the 350Z), with a brand-new-for-the-21st-century chassis, around the Streets of Willow with whatever car magazine editor was behind the wheel (of each).

Back to corvetteloser.com :whine:, thank you...

 

[2K3Z06]

KevinJKD,
You are right, I shouldn't come on to a cobra forum, talking smack. Thats just disrespectful. Flame wars get nowhere. And i guess i was asking for it. My point was that, I believe that a road course show the abilities of any car, acceleration, as well as handleing, braking. But I guess a lot of that will be dependant upon the driver. And, yes i have not driven an 03 Cobra, so i was expressing 2nd hand knowledge based from magazines. So i should keep my mouth shut until, i have actually driven or rode in one, then i could express opinon based on experience.
My bad, I will be more respectful of the site in the future.

 

[DD2000GT]

Well - at least your cool about it. :beer: