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Any 08 to 2011 Z06 owners who have never touched the heads?
C6 Corvette ZR1 & Z06General info about GM’s Corvette Supercar, LS9 Corvette Technical Info, Performance Upgrades, Suspension Setup for Street or Track
You are lucky - my oil never hits 170 unless on the track or in traffic lol
Synthetic oil for the win - she goes to pound town once coolant is warmed up and oil usually is around 100 by then. Giver.
I had the same issue. Blocking off the oil cooler helped, but not enough IMO. Removed the cooler, now on a 90* day it will hit 210*.
If I decide to reinstall the cooler, I'll put a thermostat on it.
I had the same issue. Blocking off the oil cooler helped, but not enough IMO. Removed the cooler, now on a 90* day it will hit 210*.
If I decide to reinstall the cooler, I'll put a thermostat on it.
Synthetics do not need to be hot to be effective for protection. Warmer oil does give better mpg though (as does thinner oil you see running in cars 0w20)
Synthetics do not need to be hot to be effective for protection. Warmer oil does give better mpg though (as does thinner oil you see running in cars 0w20)
Good to know. I knew it was better in very low temps. One of my concerns was for it to get hot enough to remove any condensation.
Synthetics do not need to be hot to be effective for protection. Warmer oil does give better mpg though (as does thinner oil you see running in cars 0w20)
What do you think would be a safe oil temp to run the 1/4 mile? Car gets cold quick sitting in line.
What do you think would be a safe oil temp to run the 1/4 mile? Car gets cold quick sitting in line.
Honestly it’s to a point where it doesn’t matter that much. Coolant temp is good to pay attention to in making sure your bores are up to temp but oil really doesn’t matter that much as long as it’s not something like -40
Bought my 06 z06 almost a year ago. It was intended to be an immediate palliative for the withdrawals I was having after going like nine months unable to start my 92 3000GT VR4 that was upgraded in my garage by one of the most highly skilled, knowledgable and experienced engine mechanic/upgrader/tuner and hand built custom mods builders known in the 3S world (CAI, SS catless catback dual tip exhaust, performamce clutch and cromp flywheel, pre ign clutch assist delete, boost system hose delete, MAFT, BOV, HPFP w/ in line fuse direct to battery hotwire, gutted pre cats, AEM Wideband, 550cc injectors, regapped copper plugs, MSD 8.5mm plug wires, performance crank shaft, egregious delete, and upgraded oem 9bs with TD04 15G twin turbos, custom on board live real time engine management, tuner amd data logger w oled display, automatic boost control and afr managen); due an exceptionally rare failure of the maft unit. It caused a cascade of electrical events ending in catastrophic damage to tje engine electrical system, including shirt circuit img of TWO OEM ECUs worth $850 market belue if one cam be found.
in October 2021 I took possession of a black 2006 ZO6 with what someone say is an insane amount of mileage on the odometer which read 120,000 miles. Which absence Aid of the carfax report would seem like a really big gamble. However carfax report indicated that in 2009 with just 32,000 miles on the odometer that owner experienced a catastrophic engine failure which led to an entire engine replacement as well as inspection of all the oil system for metal parts and changing out at anything that was affected or damaged as a consequence of the engine failure.
the most Salient aspects that convince me to buy the z06 were actually on the Carfax which was the replacement of the engine in 2009 which was subsequent issues that were corrected at least based on GM's statements that led to failures in the engines manufactured by one manufacturer or engine blocks specifically in a 2006 models. In addition Carfax indicated that a new clutch was installed 15,000 miles prior to my purchase as well as a multitude of recommended service inspections and part Replacements that would be expected to take place between 90,000 and $120,000 miles on any car of that type including my VR4 actually.
But the fact that the engine has 32,000 rewer miles on it than the ofo reflects and was built in 2009 means it's not OEM per the year of make. And the retail establishment out of Clearwater that sold me the car did not indicate any significant upgrades having been made.
However subsequent that purchase and from what I have learned after taking ownership over the past year. I do know that an air raid intake swapped in for the OEM air intake.
Personally I don't no how much increase in airflow the air raid intake and filter add. But I do know that the filter is a K&N and they have excellent filters which was the main reason why I keep it on the car..
And I believe that it is has has Kooks headers installed. However I've not confirmed that is a fact. But it has had long tube headers added and catalytic converters eliminated. Because I only have two working O2 sensors the front ones; the back ones are gone.
The other modification I most recently discovered. And that is that it has had the butterfly valve override procedure that inclvolves resectioning of the Mufflers internal tubes themselves so that the exhaust system is wide open continuously. If you look up I'm a forum there is a discussion Thread about the procedure that I'm talking about. It involves removing the back end of the exhaust including the mufflers and actually cutting a square on both sides of each Muffler bypassing the squirrely internal pipe that turns the quad exhaust into a dual exhaust meaning one exhaust Outlet per Muffler. Then fire retardant batting insulation is stuffed into the muffler to eliminate resonance and drone and then the rectangular cut out plates are welded back on and then the original Mufflers are reinstalled. That modification cost $1,200 I believe or roughly so back in 2012.
As opposed to getting heads and valves etc dome, etc., I purchased what's called insurance from a third party company Mepco wwho services various Underwriters. And I purchased a gold or platinum plan that covers the powertrain engine and transmission with the exception of a handful of parts and of course a monetary limit which is understandable however I worked at an arrangement that increase that coverage. To the point which I pay about $145 a month and if anything goes sideways with the engine or the transmission I pay $200 deductible and probably $300 worth of Diagnostics so maximum of 500 out of pocket and the rest was confirmed by the representatives in writing that I spoke to is being covered in full which of course would max out my total coverage amount.
So I am driving my car with the same purpose for which it was built. Though I do not track, drag or stree race. But because I bang the gears I too let my vehicle idle for 10 minutes oh my God! I live in Kansas automobile inspections don't even include sticking anything in a tailpipe they just verify your VIN that the car's not stolen lol!
so ultimately my 2006 has an engine that was replaced in 09 thus hypothetically it should be after GM corrected the issues with the 06 06 LS7 engine block. It has never had anything done to the heads or the valves that I know of based on the carfax report. But it also hasn't been excessively modified. And as mentioned modifications limited to an aerate intake which isn't going to produce that much more based on what I know from modding my vr4. And then the cook Setters which nominal but still I don't think creating as much stress as some other headers might. And finally the exhaust which simply means that you're driving me with the butterfly flaps open as they would be during unmodified wide open throttle acceleration.
OP There you go. 130000+ on the odometer now engine still has under 100,000 on it. three mods if you will air taid intake, long tube headers and exhaust surgery lol!
And I warm my vehicle up for 10 minutes or so before I drive and then when I drive I account for ambient temperature. And allow the rest of the drivetrain too acclimate and come up to standard operating temperature as well. Only, then will I bang away
And I bang away pretty substantially.
One thing that I am experimenting witn is frequent oil changes with mobile 1 synthetic. As in when the lifters/etc engine noise becomes remarkably obvious. Aoiut every 1000 miles. Can't wait to hear how I'm wasting money in doing this. But considering the $26k that I paid for ownership amd delivery of the car from Clearwater Fla to me in Topeka ks via covered 2 car trailer.... with the amount I saved compared to what the market was like then and even now, I can afford an awful lot of oil changes, lol!!!
To the OP, there are going to be thousands of Z's in those ranges without heads touched. Not everyone is on the forum, or aware of the "issue".
perhaps it's the same reason folks drop serious coin on them and only drive them 1k miles a year. Or never drive except for warm sunny days. Or folks that swear their 2006 has NEVER seen the rain...funny, because I've worked at the Corvette plant in Bowling Green a few times and they actually store them brand new Vettes.......out in the elements. So literally all Vettes will see rain, snow ,sleet, besting sunshine, dusty winds, etc. It's a car. Their built to be driven . Some would say for the track yet how many actually track their cars? Why own one? Should have bought a base model . I say to each their own. You bought it, do as you please with it. Rev it to 4k or bounce it off the redline. My neighbor drives his year round. His father rarely cranks his up.
What do you think would be a safe oil temp to run the 1/4 mile? Car gets cold quick sitting in line.
If it helps any on our engine dyno we always do full pulls at 145f-155f oil temps. That just the standard we use to keep numbers constant for comparison sake (different oil temps result in different power numbers) and its a safe temp where everything has expanded, etc....
So in short anything over 140-145f (oil temp) and your good to run the 1/4 mile at or above those temps...
An option you can add to the car is a oil sump heater. We use one on some of our engine dyno sumps to keep the temps up since the big room fan just sucks all the heat out of everything right away. A Nitrous bottle heater blanket is what we use on the dry sump tank with an on off switch wired to the console, works well...
So, on this I'll chime in. I have AHP pkg 4 heads on my 08Z and have nothing but good things to say about them. This was first thing done, at 6k miles (10,000km) when I bought the car 4 yrs ago. It was done as a matter of course. No back/forth, wishy washyness. I knew there was a potential problem and wanted to address it.
I bought the car to be a street/track toy to replace W2W racing which I had just retired from...and now do about 4 track days annually. I also try to enjoy the car on some road trips, etc. Bought it to use...not to atrophy. Life is short and I need the rush of WOT and that LS7 bellow!
On track I usually upshift around 6500 (stock cam for longevity and reliability), but also spin up close to 7k on sections to avoid an upshift before some corners....both in 3rd as well as 4th (close to 160mph)...Lap after lap after lap after lap.
Having said that, I baby it with regards to maintenance and am extremely kind mechanically. Always rev-matching downshifts, not banging shifts, drag racing, or even autox type drop clutch starts on a cold drivetrain. Everything is brought up to temp.
Normally, I have a 110v heater wrapped around my 10qt Lingenfelter oil tank. I plug it in 1/2hr before firing up to get oil temp around 100~105f...whenever feasible. ****? perhaps. But I feel its 'special' and an 'event' every time it fires up and comes to life.
I never load the engine or spin it above 2500~3000 unless oil is over 150f and to that end, have added an Improved Racing Oil Thermostat kit to help it warm up a bit faster. It helps somewhat.
I use good oil, with added protection of ZDDP. Either 10w-40, or 20w-50...depending on temps anticipated. I'm certain that contamination of my cats is non-existent. They're superheated on track and burn off.
Conversely on track it's been an endless battle against high oil/coolant temps, which I'm uncomfortable with. Although others feel it's acceptable to run oil at 260f+, I don't. Also, others may not experience this issue, perhaps running on tighter, slower tracks, less time at WOT...whatever.
I do, however think I've finally addressed this shortcoming (I mean on a budget!). There's another thread where this is all detailed, but I ran out of time this season.
Just want to add that I suspect that with such tall gearing, and torque, some owners may be inadvertently lugging their engines. Especially since 6th is so tall...its easy to go under 1500rpm in traffic,etc. I think this is far worse than revving a warm engine towards redline. This is true mechanical cruelty and can create weird harmonics in the valve train and bottom end (bearing issue?). Having been accustomed to small revvy engines,its something I'm very cognizant of.
Just want to add that I suspect that with such tall gearing, and torque, some owners may be inadvertently lugging their engines. Especially since 6th is so tall...its easy to go under 1500rpm in traffic,etc. I think this is far worse than revving a warm engine towards redline. This is true mechanical cruelty and can create weird harmonics in the valve train and bottom end (bearing issue?). Having been accustomed to small revvy engines,its something I'm very cognizant of.
Interestingly, in the owner’s manual the recommended upshift speed from 5th to 6th is at 50 mph which would be slightly over 1100 rpm. It is easy to lug with the abundance of low rpm torque!
Interestingly, in the owner’s manual the recommended upshift speed from 5th to 6th is at 50 mph which would be slightly over 1100 rpm. It is easy to lug with the abundance of low rpm torque!
If you have 1% throttle sure…but some people will floor it at that rpm to pass someone. That is instant death rattle and bearings crying for help.
Yup. It was one of the things I had to get used to with this car
But, even so many new automatical cars seem overly eager to upshift at low throttle opening…you can feel the shudder.
Yup. It was one of the things I had to get used to with this car
But, even so many new automatical cars seem overly eager to upshift at low throttle opening…you can feel the shudder.
I fully believe this is where the rod wear and valve stem wear comes from. Low rpm is terrible in creating a proper fluid film and no oil gets past the stem seals to help lubricate.
I fully believe this is where the rod wear and valve stem wear comes from. Low rpm is terrible in creating a proper fluid film and no oil gets past the stem seals to help lubricate.
09-28-2022, 01:18 PM
