Just watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8px4Q...eature=related

Enjoy!

 

^^Sweet vid. Love that blue one at the end. Z06 is a great car. When the Europeans are forced to overcome there bias by the sheer talent of the car you know GM made something special....

 

Bone stock C5 Z's have run low 12's high 11's. They get to 60 in less then 4, and almost hit 190. With a few bolt on's they will run with a C6 Z. They actually weigh about 100 pounds LESS then a C6 Z too.

 

For track duty a C5 is a good choice and they are a lot cheaper.

 

For the same amount of money you'll have to put into a C6Z, you could get a C5Z with a hell of a lot better parts on it.

Budget C5Z build
Brakes and tires: Street stoptechs or brembos with wheels and stickies: ~12K
Accusump: 1.3K
Safety eqpt: 3.5K
suspension... you don't gotta do much actually; the stock suspension works quite nicely, maybe lower on stock bolts and get consistent and THEN jump to next level.

That's 43K right there, and your still under the price of a C6Z that needs brakes and safety eqpt as well.

Besides... the C5Z is the best looking vette there is. Scientifically proven hahaha (I'm biased)

 

Z06 has proven to be a great track car. People that complain about the dry sump system usually fail to realize that in most cases that have been reported the drivers were runnning sticky tires such as hoosiers which willl obviously allow the car to corner harder. That being said I Would get an 09 if possilbe since they have an updated dry sump. Other wise there are after market companies making them.

Suspension is all a personal preference. Pdfat is coming ou with a set up in early 09 that allows to adjust teh suspension from inside the ****pit. Seats would be a deffinate upgrade for track use. Cavaggio makes some real nices ones but they are pricey.

 

Great thread. Me and a fellow 6er Jnixon just bought a 06 C6Z fully loaded with 7700k miles for 47500k for the very same reason to track. We already placed an order with ben at WB for C93 19's and PS2's all around with 345 rears,eibach coilovers,brembos gt with 15 inch ft/6piston and 14 rear 4 piston,b&M short shifter. Car runs great and very different from our turbos. We also have heard of the oil issue so we will need to look into this prior to hard track dutie. We are both beginners so as hard as that can be at our stage. Perhaps with non drag/cup tires and at our level of exp we will not encounter the oil issue but we will want to be safe not sorry. Thanks for the info. Prices and options are vastly avail. Only minor regret is that I did not drive the Viper srt10 coupe before making the decision. I went to drive one just after buying the Z and it was pretty fun and raw and sexy imo.

 

Yes it's a great track car, but the oiling is an issue. It's not one to take lightly. I've seen quite a few blown LSx engines because of oiling issues; LS7 and otherwise. The only way around it is to short-circuit it with accusump for the wet-sumps (or full blown dry sump lube conversion) or swap the pan for the LS7 and talk to Dailey or Armstrong.

It's not like we're flogging an unknown horse when it comes to GM oiling issues. Those who recommend upgrades typically do it from experience or with knowledge from those who are considerably more in the know. I don't know the exact specifics about the LS7 failures; however I've known about it for the past year and half. I won't be upgrading the RFZ06's dry sump system because it's a street car and is considerably less of a track weapon that its sibling.

I thoroughly enjoyed dealing with Armstrong of ARE in finding a solution for my C5 and highly recommend conferring with him. There are solutions out there, they just take time searching! It's part of the fun. Heck, there are probably a few more options out there now that the issue is more in the open.

The biggest thing is to keep things in mind, cars are cars, and to get them to last every situation costs time and money. If you know the cars limitations and your own, then your on the path to saving money and time, but if your plans are unknown the future but trending towards pushing the envelope; it's something to consider.

 

I had a 997S and an '08 ZO6. The ZO6 brakes were generally as good, but with the rear weight of the 911 platform, I'm not sure anything stops quite as well. With race pads, the OE ZO6 brakes are fine. At 6K miles, my engine failed from low oil pressure. It was replaced at the factory, and I sold the car shortly thereafter. The reported fix is the larger ZR1 oil sump, which is now standard on the '09 ZO6. I can't verify its success, but it is the factory line. I think the ZO6 is a great track car, albeit with the potential need of fixing an oil starvation issue. I would not make any significant suspension mods, or go to sticky tires, without further investigating the engine oiling situation. And if you do anything to it, you risk losing an engine replacement under warranty. My dealer told me if their scan had picked up even a tune, they would not have covered it. The seats in the Vette are not very good, and replacements are few. You will lose the airbag function. Personally, I would either leave it stock, or, go to a full track prepared car with roll cage. And if I were doing it for DE use, I would not spend the extra money on a ZO6, but get an LS3 car instead and have Phoenix build it essentially as a T1 car. I expect you can find such cars for sale and save money.

 

The only LSx with a dry sump in the LS7 though....I've owned four LSx's and never heard or delt with that issue.

 

SSINSTR,

I have seen them blow on acquaintance's cars, and it's why I went with a 3 stage scavenge system using an OEM pump for pressure for my LS6. I'm only familiar with the LS1/2/6 lubrication issues directly. LS7 problems mystify me, I just know that there are corrective solutions that exist that rectify the symptoms.

 

Strange, like I said. I've owned 4, and built a few. I am on the largest LSx board in the world have never heard this. I know some LS1's do use some oil, and there was a TSB for a ring fix. But this is totally different then the issues with the LS7. A dry sump oiling system is great, most race cars used them. To bad GM didn't put a decent set-up in the ZO6 until '09.

I'm in the market for a '02-'04 ZO6, all I have heard are great things about the LS6 in those.

 

If it were me, I'd get a C5 and use the money I saved on brakes/tires/track fees. Work on the driver before you dump loads of cash into the car.

 

It only becomes an issue with coilovers, lightened weight, and seriously sticky wide meats. You won't find much about it on LS1tech as most people don't road race on there.

 

I haven't heard anything about it either, and the website i'm on, the owner races his C5Z, the vetgirl series was shot in his C5Z, he finally blew the engine up, but not from oil starvation. The coolant temp was well north of 300* and i'm sure the oil temp was around too i'm sure. It was blown up at the Corvettes of Carlisle burnout contest..

and there are quite a few people racing their C5's in both stock and heavily moded (slicks and coilovers and cage) forms. with no problems what so ever. So what is this oiling problem on the LS1,6,2,and 3?

{Please provide link to people that have had the oil problems}