hammerdwn

I am considering lowering my vette 1". I have read a lot on how to do it. My question is what are the pros and cons to lowering on the stock bolts and what does everyone think about the look? I like the look but don't want any hassle with chassis or shock problems. Opinions are appreciated.

WARD473

I'll be interested in opinions as well. I'd love to lower my vert, but already close to scraping my driveway and don't want to sacrifice any ride quality?

jrose7004

I've had 2 C5's and lowered them both. I can't say anything but that it's a no muss no fuss way to improve the look of your car!

meflyfrc

I agree. You do have to pay more attention to speed bumps and entering driveways. The stock height is too high.

Blitzkrieg

It makes the car look so much better and you scrap on things at stock height anyway, 1-2 inches will not matter as you just learn to drive with more caution. I have the fat daddys in the front to protect the radiator craddle from getting banged up

DarkBlueC5

I just did mine a week ago. See my post for pictures and comments (http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c5-g...ock-bolts.html)

It's not hard to do, the rear takes 5 minutes. In the front you can find tons of "how to" articles. You probably know it involves removing the front wheels, but one thing that doesn't show up in all the articles I've read, that you will definitely want to do, is that you need to put a jack under the front leaf spring and raise it a bit to relieve some of the pressure on the front bolt or it is really, really hard to turn it.

Good luck! You'll love the look when you're done.

raydawg357

I think the lowered vettes have more of an aggressive look. I'm considering lowering mine very soon. Another thing to remember, is to get the vehicle re-aligned after it's done.

Thickraybans

My car is lowered as much as possible without going to coil-overs. While it looks great,there are drawbacks. It absolutely will not clear a speed bump. I have to park on the street if I visit anybody who's drive isn't dead flat. I was driving one day and heard a loud bang followed by a metallic scraping sound. I pulled over to find a pop can had caught the end of one of the exhaust clamp bolts and was grinding away on the street. A lot of paved secondary roads here are poor, and I have to avoid them too.



Oh,and the cleanup after straddling a road kill skunk was some fun.

renegad44

Mine is lowered, maxed out on stock bolts, and I love it. You have a bunch of excellent responses here to help with your decision.

Papas02C5

I slammed mine with after market bolts in the rear and cut the rubbers off the front bolts. I love the way it looks and it handles much better as well. My car came with the Z51 Package on it from the factory but lowering it helped alot.....

Sherpaboy

Lower that thing pushing 2"s here it makes the car look so much better and no issues just be carful around speed bumps ect.

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Mike98SilVert

If you plan on driving the car every day then I would suggest leaving it at stock height or maybe lowering it a maximum of 1/2 inch front and rear especially if you have F45 or F55 suspension. I have F45 suspension and have mine lowered 1/2 inch with no ill effects. Even at stock height these cars are pretty low and you have to be very careful of speed bumps, cross roads, entrances and exits, driveway ramps, road debris, etc. I don't see how anyone could drive a C5 lowered more than 1 inch without damage to the front facia or undercarriage unless they plan out a route in advance where they can safely drive with none of the obstacles I listed above or if they only go to local car shows and on ocassional weekend drives to familiar destinations. Whether you decide to lower your car or not you should install Elite or A&A rocker rails underneath and SAC City Fangs in the front for protection of your undercarriage.

LMFD296

Coilovers or bust IMHO. I was lowerd on bolts, to much side to side movement from the vehicle, got some pdafts, LIKE RAILS! Plus i slammed it and it rides better than stock.

Sherpaboy what wheels are those?? Look sick!

Pfadt Racing

Keep in mind that the lower you drop the car on the stock lowering bolts, the more suspension travel you're effectively eliminating from the system. We would suggest to lower the car no more than the stock bolts allow. Going too much lower with aftermarket lowering bolts can eliminate enough suspenion travel that you may bottom out on the bump stops over bumps, which makes for a really rough ride and can eventually destroy the bump stops themselves. The best way to lower the Corvette while still allowing for proper suspension travel is really with coilovers.

That being said, a modest drop on the stock bolts won't hurt anything and will improve the look of the car.

Sherpaboy

Thank you LMFD296

CCW SP16A Wheels 19X10 Front 19X11.5 Rear
Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 Tires 275X30X19 Front 305X30X19 Rear

MrGary2011

I bought my vert used and can't tell if it is lowered already or not. Already I am bottoming out on a speed bumps at work on the front dams. My rear end seems a bit high and the car has a tilt dowward, is this a modded/lowered front end? Can someone give me some some easy measurements for me to check (stock wheels tires).

4SFED Z

So easy. Looks great.....
If you drive carefully. If you like doing 15 mph over a speed bump, its not for you

Vetteman Jack

Lowered cars look great, but if you have a steep drive or a lot of speed bumps/rough roads, etc., be prepared for some scraping.

hotwheels57

On oem bolts and uncut bushings. It's within the GM recommended parameters of 5/8" in the front and 3/4" in the rear. I would never go lower unless it was coil overs or dropped sprindles. Function over form.

My driveway is quite steep and I have to be careful upon entering or leaving.

BWF07

I would love to lower mine, but with the ACI splitter it would not last a day around here. Even backing out of my drive I need to cut in on a big angle and go slow so it does not scrape.