GM has already passed on

-a truly modern DCT transmission (I have fully read the "reasons, no need to quote them here"
-a truly modern automatic transmission (no ZF, as was once the rumor)
-a truly modern e-diff (the 959 had a more advanced one nearly 30 years ago)

They have opted for extremely outrageous styling, at a modest price.

I cannot even fathom how they, after alot of corner cutting on the C7 "stingray" would bother to opt for a carbon chassis on a Z model. I mean maybe, and that would be cool, and the weird front is ok if they change the peculiar rear but...

I doubt it. At this point I think anybody who was optimistic of an out of the park result for the C7 has been smattered into silence.

We are getting a new gen of Vette that will remain pretty well behind its international competition for modern tech. I don't think they will forgo all of the above and then opt for a carbon chassis. A 36k Mitsu Evo has more tech than a C7 and... certainly no carbon in meaningful amounts. Chevy already added some carbon, then jacked on 100+ pounds, and then added nothing state of the art but the displays. Which may still not yield as much data as a GT-Rs.

Or maybe they are suckering longtime vette retiree owners into buying a slushbox tranny only to announce a DCT next year. Clean out that old inventory. Screw the customer.

I'm hoping the plan is to roll out fairly dramatic changes over the years. But I'm worried that Vette lovers will be waiting for C8, say in 2022, to catch up with tech other car lovers had in say 2007.

Well i think Ferrari La Ferrari and the great 458 will have something to say about the best engineered car, for me Ferrari still the best.

A limited production Vette with a Carbon Fiber chassis would be a dream come true and i think if the CF cost continue to come down in the future it would be not out of the question to see a Ultra High Performance Vette with this material in its frame.

Shrink and not enlarge the gas tank...use titanium exhausts.....more carbonfiber...less sound deadening....and not allow fat heads to buy the car.. (Kidding)

LOL...now some think weight is a good thing!!

:willy::rofl::ack::toetap::D:rock::crazy ::yesnod::lol::crazy2:

right.... but are these z06 width wheels? Otherwise, its irrelevant is it not? You are comparing apples to oranges.

And as far as weight of z06 wheels goes, im still pretty sure the cast c5 z06 wheels 2002 and later, were 18ish up front and 20ish on rear.

My numbers are not for Z06 wheels, but you said "that's about 10 lbs lighter than any wheels they offered on C6." That's not correct.

The rest of the discussion is outside of my interest.

The answer to the Ops question is: Gm will not reduce the weight of the hi po version. We will be lucky if it does not weigh more.

:D Would expect lighter weight in the high performance/track model.

IE. C7 Z06 version... following same history as the C5 & C6 Z06.

May see more carbon fiber body panels( or thinner glass/hybrid clothe), light weight glass & carpet, less sound deadening, Alum. drive shaft. Some magnesium chassis structure.

GM will be hard pressed to come in below 3200lbs. but I suspect that's the target.

:cheers:

I'll be shocked (and thrilled) if they get anywhere near 3200.

I won't be shocked if it's an FI model if it comes out north of 3400.

The new Z06 (or whatever name) will come with a free membership to Jenny Craig. That should be a good 100 lbs or more for some owners. :leaving: :rock:

there are tons of luxury options that can be stripped. electronic locking glove box, add only a 2 speaker sound system, lighted vanitys, power dimming mirror, sound proofing, back up camera, console materials, exhaust, the trans tunnel will likely go back to aluminum. that should be 100lbs there, easy.

:bs

Remember the FRC of '00, well perhaps a stripped down version of the C7 with engine upgrades could be the way to go. As much as everybody wants everything including a kitchen sink in their car perhaps a track version of the C7 would be an interesting alternative, Porsche does it so why can't Chevrolet? Take out all the "luxury" items, put in light weight, non power seats, remove the power windows, use light weight rims, get rid of the high powered sound system, etc........Just a thought.

I just can't read anymore of this thread. This OP is correct. A lot of things could be done to reduce weight. But at what expense? The GTR guys won't complain. Lastly, I'm sure some ideas could be implemented, but what happens to the overall performance and most of all the extra $'s to produce it. Then we would have complaints about the cost of the car.
AS it is, we have a C7 that is better than other generations! Cost is great, performance as we have seen from the reports is fantastic. Will there be some problems along the way, more than likely. Nothing is perfect. It's a winner in my book. If weight is an issue, maybe the owner could drop some weight. That would help both.

I think it's likely that rather than reducing weight from the present Z51, the engineering effort will be more directed at how to manage the weight gain.

I think we'll see these things add weight:
-a TVS blown 6.2
-wider wheels, new stickier tires based on the new Michelins
-Wide Bodywork / or new aero


Some weight reducers:
-CC brakes
-loss of AFM / change driveshaft material
-more CF

I'd love to see a new sequential tranny, but I'm betting against it. As an intermediate step, maybe an improved version of the present auto? Probably see some further refinements to the shocks and the PTM algorithms. 3400 pounds give or take a little.




.

does anyone know the weight gain of the steel tunnel vs. the aluminum?

I will bet there will be no AFM on the hi-po car so there will definately be aluminum there.

Yoo meen the torque tube? The same probably less. We are talking elastic section modulus. The aluminum would have to be thick walled and the steel thin. The shape of structures can add strength. Porsche and BMW 2 door small car uni bodies are lighter than if they were made of aluminum and stronger than a steel spaceframe.

What I don't understand is how come the C7 got heavier in its newest gen but the Porsche 911, which is also bigger, ended up lighter? The Porsche has all top quality interior materials which would not be lighter and the whole body shell is made of galvanized steel. So where does the weight of the C7 come from?

The Z06 will be lighter, I would guess around 3,200lbs. The ZR1 will be about the same weight or a tick heavier, 3444-3500lbs with 700+hp.
:yesnod: