German Car Zone

Dang. Bravo 335i - it's the born overachiever of the BMW family.

Speaking of the Z06 - Chevy "Rev It Up" kicks off July 6th. Among other things, you'll have the chance to ride with a Pro Driver in a Corvette Z06. I did it last year and my testicles basically shot out the back of my head. It's a scary fast car.

Check out revitup.com if you live in the San Francisco, Orange County / LA, Huston, Orlando, New York or Washington DC areas.

Here in Europe the R8 and GT3 is priced at about the same level too! Oh, how I would hate to be forced to make such decisions... ;-)

Good showing by Z06, R8 and 335. Good to know the new M3 has a good base to build on.

But 997TT disappoints me with each test. Was a long time 911TT fan - since I saw a black 964TT in some magazine when I was a kid - but gone are days when it dominated the opposition - that mantle has passed on to the Z06. Looks like Porsche has decided to morph the TT into a GT for the well healed pot bellied dentist - for whom opposite lock would as well mean some grip he uses to pry one's wisdom tooth out. Also, gone are the days when Porsche could afford to not play the HP game - for the longest time it never had any real competition except for super expensive Ferrari or the ailing Lotus, but now with Audi and Aston Martin getting in to the game and Corvette lifting its game it can't afford to lag behind. It hurts to see an icon being taken down slowly...

It's like watching the majestic dung beetle getting eaten by a swarm of fire ants. It's a sad fact, but all of the iconic "cars of record" such as the 911 or the M3 will eventually be vanquished by the sheer force of competitive pressure.

Oh sure, they'll remain desirable status symbols. But their once unquestioned domination will have to be shared. Take the 335i and G37 for example. Yes, the 335i remains the standard, but its performance credentials are no longer "unparalleled." Rather, they're quite legitimately paralleled by the G37.

I think we're reaching a point in automotive history where, in many aspects, Swiss watches were in the late 1960s. Omega, Mido and Rolex were still cranking out brilliant movements, but the Japanese had caught up and even surpassed them in the sheer aptitude of their movements. The Swiss watches remain desirable, but their claim to unparalleled engineering prowess is long gone. The Swiss then rigged the game in their favor by establishing the COSC - discarding quantitative standards altogether. No longer could the Japanese beat the Swiss, because there was no longer anything to beat them at.

In the future - The Germans will have their heritage to fall back on, and that's what will ultimately move cars.

Yup, I guess it is the free market forces at work. The competition is not going to watch praise and dollars being poured into the market leader and not do anything about it.

Upcoming Nissan Skyline and Honda NSX is going to surprise Porsche, ferrari. Its a underestimated car and easily forgotten but watch it, a newcommer is coming to fight the top.

Very well said Josh - I think we see a normalisation of standards here, cars reaching their peak, until something big comes along to shake up the entire industry.

Absolutely agree with you! The two cars you mentioned plus the new Blue Dveil/SS/Z07 (whatever they call it) would make a lot of engineers and marketing departments scratch their heads! I would love to see the final curb weight for that Skyline

As long as price = performance, no doubt. But i would like the G37 to reach its next iteration before saying its on par.

But these minor pionts aside, you are absoultely right. And if you add the greed of sales to the saints (M3, 911 Turbo etc.) basic design you will find a watered down product. This has happened to the 911 Turbo and the Civic Type-R (which in both cases has grown soft) and im pretty confident that when we get our first impressions from the combined impressions of the motor journalistic forces i believe the verdict over the M3 will be something not that different from what we see regarding 997 Turbo and Civic Type-R. In these cases the manufacturer has come up with new models that will please the purists, i.e. 997 GT3 (RS) and that hardcore version of the Type-R. If im on the right track considering the new M3 the new real M3 will be the CSL, but nontheless, the name is soiled in the name of sales and market shares...

How dare you people doubt Porsche's ability to rule the sports car segment as they have for decades! People who buy a Porsche aint thinking about know bodies damn M3, CLK BS, or even the Audi's R8. Known of those cars can hold a cup to Porsche's name recognition. How soon we do forget the CGT, and their's a reason none of these cars are ever compared against the GT3! Shame on anyone who believes Porsche is losing it's luster!