On paper, the Z06 Corvette is the best car here. It accelerates as quickly as the 911 Turbo through the quarter and wastes both the Porsche and Ferrari at speeds above 120 mph. How about 0 to 150 mph in 17.7 seconds? That’s up there in Ford GT territory, if not as stupid fast as a McLaren F1. The Z06 has the most grip at 1.01 g and the best braking performance. On an autobahn, it was still accelerating while the Ferrari was topped out in sixth gear at 186 mph. Around our road course, it was an easy victor, 1.7 seconds quicker than the Porsche on a near-76-second lap. It does all this for about a third of the Ferrari’s price. The Z06 is the best performance value in the world, period.

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But impressive as it is, the Z06 just isn’t as good as the two others. It might stop from 70 mph in the shortest distance — 146 feet — but the brake-pedal feel isn’t as good as the Ferrari’s and Porsche’s. The shifter is a bit crude and requires relatively high effort. The steering has plenty of weight but isn’t very linear and lacks feel.

Around the handling course, light weight works to the Corvette’s benefit, but it is tricky to drive fast, and you had better be able to deal with power oversteer. If you can, it’s a lot of fun. In the wet, with the stability system disengaged, the car is a horror show, understeering on turn-in and snapping into oversteer with power. Correct, hold the attitude on the throttle, and — whoa! — the car snaps back the other way as you straighten, a corollary of the slightly numb steering and vicious torque reaction. At speed on the highway, we didn’t think it was as stable as the other cars here, the way the hood and mirrors flapped around was disconcerting, and the ride was choppy over broken pavement. Hit a bump in the middle of a corner, and you can become a passenger.

Also on the debit side, the interior looks decidedly low rent in this company. Sure, it’s the cheapest car here, so we will cut it some slack, but we’re confident that Z06 buyers would be willing to spend an extra five grand for an interior that has plastics and leather that are comparable with the Porsche’s. And although the seats are comfortable enough over long journeys, they lack lateral support and feel flimsy.

So the Corvette places last, but being a strong contender in this company is a victory for Chevrolet. Look at it this way: Finishing third in this test is like getting a date with Jessica Simpson rather than Claudia Schiffer or Monica Bellucci.