Corvette SSX

First off, let me make clear that I'm not complaining as I love my new 07 C6 with Z51. Having said that, I was under the impression that the trans gearing and the rear end gearing were the same on the C5 Z06 and the Z51 equipped C6. When I had my 03 z06 I could break the tires loose without even trying. The car seemed like a monster. The C6 however, does not have that same raw power, at least I haven't been able to find it yet. Does the power come on as more miles are put on the car? What am I missing?

CHASLS2

Dont know how many miles you have on your 07, but the car should wake up after 4000 miles.

I have a 06 a6 with 6600 miles and it drives like a beast, just added a Vararam and it really made a diff on how the car feels.

JACK FRISSINA

Having a 03 c5 z06 myself for 3 years i know exactly what you mean,the c6 will never turn on like you hope it will.Listening to c6 owners saying they have a fire breathing monster ,yea right , take that with a grain of salt .Some guys have taken 03zs into the mid 11s bone stock ,mine ran 11.98 and 12.0s all day,c6 with air intakes ,exhuast,headers,are lucky to see sub 12.5s,thats why i refuse to spend my hard earned money on mods to go nowhere .Every one are chasing the new 08s taking a severe beating on there c6/06 /07s .There are no 08 going to match a c5z either ,you can read all the gm crap and magazines you want but until you own both you will never know the truth ,i can pick up a low mi.c5z for high 20s. Im so glad you posted this, truth be told the c6 can;t hang.

jschindler

Hot summer Houston weather is your culprit. In November you'll be posting a different story. My 2005's would roast the tires in first and second gear in cooler weather without trying. And I know for a fact that a stock LS2 will stay with a stock C5 Z06 from a roll, but the Z06 feels a lot faster due to the refinement differences.

jschindler

Jack - you are wrong. I've had two 2005's, and now a 2008. My "opinion" is not a guess. I've run against serveral C5 Z06's. Forget the 1/4 mile for a minute because the launch takes a lot of skill, and I'm the first to admit the C5 Z06 launches better with a very skilled driver.

Those sub-12 second Z06s were only done by a very few outstanding drag racers. In side by side roll-ons a LS2 C6 will stay with a Z06, and a LS3 will outrun it. If you don't believe me, bring a C5 Z06 on down to Houston and I'll prove it to you all day long.

C6~Missle

If it was all about going a whole .2 faster.. then maybe I would have kept my 04 Z06.... but on the street and in real life, there is more to it then .2
I like to see at night, like the looks better not to mention all the refinement.
I have an 08 on order... A 05 -07 wasn't enough to make me trade up.. but the 08 is worth the move.. Just wait for the 08 numbers to start coming in...

Corvette SSX

I don't think that's the problem. I had my z06 over three summers and never had the same problem.

dgcarver

Have it tuned and the torque management turned off. It made a world of difference on mine. Of course the headers helped also.

gitgone

Having just sold my C5Z a couple of months ago and driven several C6s since, I'd have to agree that the C5Z06 does feel more raw and powerful.

Heck, I even think the C5 Z06 "feels" faster than the new C6 Z06!! Obviously the new Z06 is faster, but I think it was the refinement that Jim was talking about that makes the C6's deceptively fast.

My old (03) Z made all sorts of delicious muscle car noises - drivetrain, tires, wind and the steering seemed a little more "direct". It all added up to a more unrefined and powerful feel. I think it will always be one of my favorite cars.

But since my next Vette will be a daily driver and used for some long road trips, it's no contest - the C6 will be my choice.

Besides, if needed, I can always mod back in some "unrefinement"

jschindler

Yes, and let me further elaborate. When I got my first C6 (a 2005) I had two good friends with virtually identical C5 Z06's. They both had headers, cold air and a tune - and dynod at 382 hp (30 more than stock). One of the guys and I swapped cars. His Z felt LOTS faster than my stock C6. But in side-by-side comparisons, we found that his car was just barely faster than mine. I had the same experience with my other friend. You would not believe how close we were.

I've had an opportunity to do a similar "comparison" with my LS3, and I can tell you that even the modified Z06s of my friends are not faster than my LS3. Due to forum rules, that's about all I can say here.

JACK FRISSINA

Im surprised that in all of 05 ,06,07,that the 1/4 mi gurooes have not been handed a c6 and wring it out bringing out these numbers u speak of,know why?they can;t .i had to keep bfg drag radials on at all times for saftey reasons, with stock tires shifting real hard to second would take me off the road.At the track i have destroyed vipers , cobras , the best they had , im afraid c6s have fell short of the mark ,if u take all your mod money and add it up in the long run a z would be a better choice if u could afford it,lets face it we have all been fooled, please stop with the hot weather stories ,oh god i can;t race u till winter,come on now i live in fl. it doesn;t get much hotter , this is getting to be a joke, the guys up north can;t ride there cars becuase it to cold and snowy and it doesn;t perform well in summer becuase its to hot and it sucks in the rain so when is it actually a good time?? If your chasing low 12s with mods its doable anything more buy a z ,why can;t u just enjoy what u have a great riding car that looks great , once u start chasing 1/10s of a second u become a poor man.

Corvette SSX

You bring up a good point and maybe that's the answer. The C6 is more refined all the way around so maybe some of it's "rawness" is hidden. It may be the lack of feedback from the car that gives me the impression that it's not as powerful. Chances are I'll feel different when I install the B&B Bullets, an aftermarket air box of some sort, and a shifter that feels better than Jello. At least that's what I'm hoping.

TBIRD57

what is all this "arguing"among vette owners!
want to go as fast as hell?get the soon to be released new '08 zo6
want to have A fast car? get a c5 or c6 (c51)and modify the hell out of it?
want a fast car but don't want to sink much money in modifications?get a c5 or c6(z51)
want a fast car AND get plenty of sun"get c5 or c6 vert.
now stop all this bickering. YOU ALL OWN A LEGENDARY SPORTS CAR.
just avoid a bugatti if you chance one.

Bills Z06

What's the argument? Both the C5 Z06 and the C6 are FANTASTIC cars! We're only talking about tenths or hundreths of a second difference in the quarter. The way the cars are geared also makes them "feel" different. My .02

jschindler

I'm not totally sure what you said here, had to read it a couple of times. But maybe you missed what I said. Yes, I said his poor performance may be due to the weather - but the Z06 will be effected the same. Maybe you also missed that I'm not making excuses. I've backed up my talk with actual experiences, and I've offered to run any stock C5 Z06 - and I'll do it in any weather.

1.8t

Everyone needs to read this. This isn't bench racing, but an ACTUAL head to head comparison. TM will probably keep these cars from ever performing at the strip the way they can from a roll.

edv2122

Had an 03Z06 myself and the my 06 does not compare to it in power or performance. I know what you mean by breaking those tires loose with the Z06 that was so much fun. If it were not for the cosmetic improvements I would go back to the C5Z. I love the way the C5Z looks but the front end didnt age as well as the rest of the car in my opinion. I added a VRAM, 160stat and tune and my 06 woke up but still not to the level of my 03Z, close but no cigar. My 03Z was in fact my favorite Vette. But the C5Z is a special vette and should have that legendary performance. Mid 11's bone stock is outstanding.

LMBC6Brian

EXACTLY! Have it tuned, and when all the crap is turned off and the car is tweaked it IS a monster. Mine can roast the tires from a slow roll.

Brian

Snowman

Except for mine of course.

DP

Purvis

Launch is pretty important, which is why C5Z's will still be posting slightly better times. The power to weight might be the same now in an 08, vs an 02 Z, but the Z will still launch harder and more predictably, which will still lead to better 1/4 times.
Plus there is not as much torque management in the 02-04Z, and the computer does not pull as much timing when they are hot lapped.
It all makes a difference. Gearing and power to weight is not the whole story.

Roll-ons are for front wheel drive ricers.

BTW, my 02 Z went 11.8 and 11.9, back to back passes, with just Nittos and a filter. The best part was, it was posting 120-121+mph traps all day.