The C6 Corvette 427 Convertible is the best modern Corvette

"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein) 11/17/2015 at 19:59 • Filed to: None

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I like convertibles. I also like Corvettes, for all the usual reasons that people like Corvettes. While the C7 Corvette is objectively much nicer than the C6, to me, the C6 427 is still the best.

GM produced the Corvette 427 Convertible for only one year, 2013. It was kind of a going-away present for the C6 before the C7 appeared in 2014. The 427 was essentially a convertible Z06, but with a steel frame instead of an aluminum one like the Z06 and ZR1 coupes. To put it another way, it was a Grand Sport convertible with the 7.0 liter LS7 motor from the Z06.

Some people are hardcore track rats (or people who delude themselves into needing the stiffest possible chassis because they’re serious about performance while driving around town) and don’t like convertibles. I like convertibles. I don’t have any hair to mess up in the wind. Driving a car with an open roof is great. Take a fun car and chop the roof off? I’m there.

There are many reasons why objectively speaking, the 427 is not the best Corvette. It’s a little heavy for a Corvette at 3400+ lbs. It has the C6’s still-kinda-shitty interior. It doesn’t have the aluminum frame from the C6 Z models and C7. It lacks the fancy eLSD from the C7. But it’s still kinda great.

Chassis-wise, the 427 is basically the same as the C6 Grand Sport. While still riding on a steel frame, it has the wider track, stiffer suspension, and big brakes from the Z06. It has an LSD. It’s got GM’s magic Magnetic Ride Control shocks. It handles quite well thankyouverymuch. Take that chassis, add in the drop top, throw in what is probably the best Corvette motor in a long time in the LS7, and you’ve got a great recipe for fun.

Sure, the C7 Z51 Convertible is probably just as fast, with a much nicer interior and the eLSD, but the C7’s Transformer-like taillamps look especially stupid on the convertible, and it doesn’t have the widebody C6’s lurid fender flares.

Sure,the C7 Z06 convertible has a crazy supercharged V8, wild bodywork, and super extreme performance. But it’s also crazy expensive and GM still needs to sort out some reliability issues.

The 427 on the other hand, has a motor that had already been in reliable service for several years before the 427 came around, it’s got that great normally-aspirated 505 hp, and basically as an overall package it hits the sweet spot of being slightly insane without being total overkill.

I want one.

gin-san - shitpost specialist > Textured Soy Protein 11/17/2015 at 20:10

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A big 7 litre engine and unlimited headroom, sounds pretty damn good to me.

Not sure if you know, but was the steel frame for cost-savings? I thought aluminum offered greater strength/rigidity compared to the same weight in steel.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Textured Soy Protein 11/17/2015 at 20:30

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LS9 is best corvette motor. period .

Opposite Locksmith > Textured Soy Protein 11/17/2015 at 21:14

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“Sure,the C6 Z06 convertible has a crazy supercharged V8, wild bodywork, and super extreme performance. But it’s also crazy expensive and GM still needs to sort out some reliability issues.

The 427 on the other hand, has a motor that had already been in reliable service for several years before the 427 came around, it’s got that great normally-aspirated 505 hp, and basically as an overall package it hits the sweet spot of being slightly insane without being total overkill.”

-two issues with this, the C6 Z06 doesn’t have a supercharged v8 like the first above paragraph, and the 427 is kinda reliable, it had some valve issues

quarterlifecrisis > Textured Soy Protein 11/17/2015 at 21:54

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I love the C6 427 Vert, in an irrational way. It’s a complete old man car, especially with the white exterior, bluish stripes, and blue interior...but I love it.

This is someone who bought a C6 at 25, and has better than 60,000 miles of seat time in that reasonably crappy interior. Still love it.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/17/2015 at 22:58

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Sorry but you're wrong. Old-school NA big block is the way to go.

Axial > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/17/2015 at 23:24

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Doesn’t have shit on the LT5. Not even the LS7 has shit on the LT5. Where the LS7 will seriously consider throwing a rod or the LS9 will pull due to heat-soak, the LT5 will keep on spinning. World record at 171 MPH for 24 hours, I believe it was.

Also, only DOHC engine put in a production Corvette, ever. So there’s that novelty...

Axial > quarterlifecrisis 11/17/2015 at 23:26

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24 and in a 1990 ZR-1. I know crappy interiors! :p

Love the C6 427 Convertible. The blue interior is one of the selling points for this car. We need more indigo guts for cars.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Axial 11/18/2015 at 00:11

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I like c4s, but the c6 ZR1 will always be the daddy, even if it isn't the fastest or most powerful, it is still the coolest.

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE 11/18/2015 at 00:12

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Nah bro . The ZR1 is just batshit insane, where the Z06 is just normal insane.

Textured Soy Protein > Opposite Locksmith 11/18/2015 at 00:25

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Erm, meant that to be C7 Z06 vert.

Textured Soy Protein > gin-san - shitpost specialist 11/18/2015 at 00:35

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I don’t know the exact reasons for the steel frame on the 427 vs. aluminum. I remember reading something about how the C6 Z06 and ZR1 had magnesium-reinforced fixed roof panels that added to the overall chassis stiffness, so GM would have to totally re-engineer the aluminum frame for convertible duty.

The steel frame in base C6s, Z51s and Grand Sports was designed from the start to have a removable roof panel in the coupes, and a convertible version. It was heavier but not necessarily less stiff, and GM already had a convertible version of it in production. Rather than design a whole new set of reinforcements for the aluminum frame for what is essentially a final-model-year parts bin special edition, they took the existing convertible frame and threw in the bigger motor.

For the C7, GM went to aluminum frames even on the base model, and the Z06 now comes in targa and convertible versions, no more fixed roof. So they had to design a convertible version of the aluminum frame, and the cost of that is spread over way more cars than just the small number of 427s.

Textured Soy Protein > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/18/2015 at 00:40

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Ok, but GM never put the LS9 in an open-roof Corvette.

The LS7 may not be the best Corvette motor. But the 427, as an overall package of a wide-body C6 convertible with magnetic ride, big brakes and LS7, is the best Corvette.

BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/18/2015 at 01:40

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ALL MOTOR IS BEST MOTOR

911e46z06 > Textured Soy Protein 11/18/2015 at 01:43

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I dig convertibles too, but if you’re an enthusiast, and you’re buying a Corvette, you’re buying it as a weapon. I’ll take that extra rigidity please. Buy an old Conti or something If I want to cruise around town.

911e46z06 > Textured Soy Protein 11/18/2015 at 01:44

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Counterpoint: LS7 is the best Corvette motor.

Axial > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/18/2015 at 02:25

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Being coolest is fair, but I gotta draw the line at best Corvette motor. :p

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Textured Soy Protein 11/18/2015 at 07:49

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Very true. Damnit, now I want a 427 with a ZR1 motor .

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > BReLp7dzHM3ytYsE 11/18/2015 at 07:50

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Lel

Opposite Locksmith > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/18/2015 at 08:16

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Hahaha can't go without that extra 133hp and whine?

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Opposite Locksmith 11/18/2015 at 08:17

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Nope lol. I actually prefer forced injection, and the zr1 is still one of my dream cars.

Opposite Locksmith > V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches 11/18/2015 at 08:23

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Forced induction? Me too, love my WRX and I put a turbo and tiny intercooler on my old montero

V12 Jake- Hittin' Switches > Opposite Locksmith 11/18/2015 at 08:34

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Cool !

gin-san - shitpost specialist > Textured Soy Protein 11/18/2015 at 10:05

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Ah that makes sense - the cost of re-engineering the aluminum frame, plus the additional weight it would add, just didn’t make it worthwhile.

I wouldn’t be too concerned about a bit of extra weight with 7 litres and 505 horsepower. For a car that’s meant to be enjoyed on the streets rather than pushed to the limits on a track, this is an amazing car.

While I like the C7s very much, I think the C6s had very nice proportions and was a good looking car.

Textured Soy Protein > 911e46z06 11/18/2015 at 14:57

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I don’t need the absolute best-performing car possible for my enthusiastic driving that mostly amounts to driving spiritedly in town, and bombing around country back roads. I like convertibles, and I want the best-performing convertible I can get. I’m not going to the track. I just want my convertible to do as well, for a convertible, as possible.

There’s probably more people who feel how you do than I do, which is why stuff like the Z4M Coupe is way pricier than the Roadster, and Caymans cost more than Boxsters.

JR1 > Textured Soy Protein 11/19/2015 at 14:26

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I want to agree with you but after being in a Zr1 on the track 640hp makes a really strong argument.

Textured Soy Protein > JR1 11/19/2015 at 14:39

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People talk about going to the track a lot but the reality is most car enthusiasts, even ones who know tons of stuff about cars, never (or rarely) go to the track.

I’ve been so obsessed with cars since like age 4 that I can quite literally name every single car I see on the road and tell you its displacement, driven wheels, engine type and horsepower. I can identify almost every pair of headlights in my rearview mirror at night in an instant. I’ve had my driver’s license for 17 years, have owned many performance cars in that time, and other than a couple autocrosses and one track day, I’ve never been on a track, and I don’t care.

I don’t buy performance cars under the mistaken impression that I am a race car driver and I need the most suitable tool for the job. I spend tons of time driving cars for fun, because I like them. I buy performance cars because they’re fun.

You know what else is fun? An open roof, whether it’s a convertible, targa, sunroof, whatever. Every single vehicle I’ve owned has at the very minimum had a sunroof or been a convertible.

Personally I think far too many car enthusiasts get hung up on BUT THE ONE WITH THE FIXED ROOF HAS MORE CHASSIS RIGIDITY, BECAUSE TRACKDAY BRO. None of us are really spending all that much time on the track, and I don’t need my hobby to be validated by lap times.

The best convertible Corvette is more appealing to me than the best Corvette on a racetrack. I just don’t care that there’s another version with a faster Nurburgring time because that car has a fixed roof and I’m not going to be racing people on the Nurburgring. I’d rather have a drop top and still-pretty-ridiculous performance.

JR1 > Textured Soy Protein 11/19/2015 at 14:53

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I really understand all of your points and agree with most of them and I doubt as an enthusiast I would ever go to the racetrack. And if I did it wouldn’t be very often. But again 638hp is hard to argue against. But you and the 427 Corvette make a very very good point