Places You Wish GM Spent A Few Extra Dollars on Your ZR-1?

[Erik]

As much as GM spent on the ZR-1, and as much as the option cost, there were still some choices that they made that seem forced on them by the accountants. Then there was the still contentious decision to make the ZR-1 visually almost indistinguishable from the regular Corvette. Would the ZR-1 have sold more, had the car looked more dramatically different?

Seeing as how the ZR-1 market, at least in the first years, was pretty price insensitive, I figure GM could have added an extra $10k to the price easily, with no negative effect on sales.

Where do I wish they had spent the extra?

1) Structure - They knew from racing, and from the changes forced on them with the last minute change to the targa, that the structure was too flimsy. They could have easily added something like Killebrews frame reinforcements, and had a more solid car. Or maybe a stronger version of the the convertible X frame, but cast from aluminum.

2) Interior - If you really gonna take on Lamborghini or Porsche with your car, the interior should have been upgraded accordingly. Just too many pieces inside that feel like they are sourced from a Cavalier. They could have even used the same pieces, but finished them differently. I don't know. Maybe a piano black finish on the plastic, instead of grey, just so your $60k Vette doesn't look exactly the same as the $30k one your neighbour just bought.

3) Exterior - I do think that a little more could have been done to differentiate the ZR-1 from regular corvettes. It doesn't need to be dramatically different, just enough.

What do you guys think?