C6 - Z06 - The first 1000 miles...
Discussion
I’ve just completed my 1000th mile and felt it was timely to write a report. I picked up my Black C6 Z06 from Corvette Leeds in early April and driven the car for both the daily commute and pleasure trips. Firstly I wish to recommend David and his team at Leeds Stratstone Corvette for their pre-sales and handover service. No problems encountered and all queries answered efficiently.
RUNNING IN
I took the advice to ease the car in for the first 500 miles, mainly for transmission and brake callipers / pads. Initial concerns on the drive home was getting used to left-hand drive and found a tendency to drift to the centre of the road. After 2 days of town driving I became fully familiar with sitting on the left mainly due to brilliant visibility from the drivers seat. The car feels alot wider than my previous (997 C2S), but I can say I’ve only found on two occasions, in 1000 miles, problems with visibility - mainly overtaking on narrow lanes. First weekend job was to fit the “mild 2 Wild” exhaust switch. Eight minutes later I have a true sounding V8 engine on idle. Great accessory and should be standard.
Other comparison observations with previous cars were the great boot space and roomy cabin. The seats are comfortable but fail on been supportive enough for fast road / track driving. The gearbox is not as efficient as the 911 but by no means notchy or difficult to use. The brakes offer adequate feedback but should have more bite in the early stages of depression. The steering is a let down – it needs to be far more direct and it’s far too light at moderate speeds. Specification is first class and the HUD is stunning, should be in all cars. For a 500bhp+ car the Z06 is surprisingly easy to drive in town traffic with a very light clutch action plus smooth transmission. The interior is not up-to comparative German cars but by no means disappointing. It’s very functional plus very clear instrumentation – not an I-drive in-site thank god. Road noise is poor on concrete surfaces but again not overly intrusive.
The looks of the car is stunning and it creates alot of constructive attention. Most comments are – What is it?, What engine has it got? How fast will go? Is that the same car that does well at Le Mans? Most conversations end with “wow”.
500 MILES - HERE COMES THE REDLINE..
I haven’t mentioned the performance yet, as I tried to run-in the car properly, well almost! I knew the performance was going to be good from previous test drives, but I wanted to understand the handling characteristics with this amount of power available. I can start off saying the engine dominates the experience in this car, it is truly stunning. The gearing is theoretically silly for a performance car but the engine makes fantastic use of it. The car accelerates aggressively at virtually all rev ranges in all gears apart from sixth. The low-end torque is used every day, and given enough space, the savage top-end acceleration is quite simply stunning. The power band is linear throughout the range and whether accelerating from 10-20mph in second or 120mph in fourth (runway of course officer) this engine will bring a smile to anyone’s face. I use sixth gear purely for fuel consumption benefits and motorway cruising.
How does the engine and suspension get on? On poor surfaces heavy acceleration in low gears is tire wrecking, but generally you can use the most of the power in even slow turns with carefully modulation. The car has little under-steer on corner entry and can be put into balance with mild throttle in almost any gear. Exit performance needs care, but basically storming. Any mistakes on entry line or speed can be corrected by power, this car just loves to oversteer. I might be brave enough in the dry to use the power but yet to test in the wet.
The chassis is firm but no worse than previous 911 and my only complaint again is the steering ratio for slow speed cornering. So 500 miles in and I was pretty happy with my purchase and now booked the first track day with 850 miles on the clock.
THE FIRST TRACK DAY....
I booked into an open pitlane evening session at Donnington with my aspirations to enjoy and understand both handling and performance but try to give the brakes and tyres an easy time. I’ve driven on track days for about 18 years now and always try to develop my skills that get the most grip out of the tyres, basically smooth driving using correct circuit lines and power modulation and maximizing tyre contact points. I was amazed that at no point did the traction control come on with over 35 laps completed. On a smooth surface the handling is stunning and all the power can be used with smooth driving. Nothing passed me all evening (helps with two long straights) and it was funny seeing so many Caterham’s go back in the mirror. Biggest and only disappointment was the brakes. Their strictly for fast road use and nearly as bad as a BMW M car on the circuit. I will look into upgraded pads / callipers later on. Tyre wear was minimal and will wait for a airfield drifting session when they need replacing. Top speed at the end of the back straight was 141mph and my highest lateral g was 1.19 – I’m not sure if that’s any good? Again the power dominates the driving, get the entry line or speed wrong and you can use a blip of power to get you back to the apex. After my fifth session on the circuit I decided the brakes and seen enough action and decided to go home fully intact. From leaving the circuit to reaching my front door I had no vibrations, brake fade or engine issues that previously had affected other cars after track days. Very impressive.
So 1000 miles in and I’m very happy and very lucky to be driving this beast. It has problems, namely steering and circuit brake performance. Driving on the left is not an issue at all to me and I have to say, it even makes the car feel more special. You just don’t jump in and casually drive, you apply more attention and you end up with greater awareness of the day to day driving experience. So my review to date can be summarised as having enjoyment in a car that constantly puts a smile on your face and those who ask for a ride out in it have all said wow. I will post pictures of my car from the Donnington track day when I receive the disk.
COMPARISONS TO MY PREVIOUS CARS..
Z06 v Porsche 997 C2S
Pro’s
- Acceleration
- Turn-in grip
- Power flexibility on cornering.
- Looks
- Exclusivity
- Engine / exhaust noise.
- Specification
- Boot Space
- Costs
Con’s
- Brakes
- Steering
- Lack of rear seats
- Build quality – not by much though.
- Rear end grip under power – actually not a negative point to me, this car loves to slide!
Z06 v BMW M3 CSL
Pro’s
- Acceleration
- Overall Grip
- Comfort
- Looks
- Specification
- Brakes – Every M car I have driven struggle with brake fade.
Con’s
- Gearbox – Paddle shift is fantastic on the M3.
- Seats – Again CSL buckets were very effective.
- Lack of rear Seats
- Steering
Z06 v Mitsubishi EVO 8 (340bhp)
Pro’s
- Top end acceleration.
- Driver involvement
- Looks
- Exclusivity
- Engine / exhaust noise.
- Fuel economy – averaged 16mpg in Evo, currently 21 in Z06.
Cons
- Lack of rear Seats
- Cornering speeds.
- Brakes
- Steering feel.
RUNNING IN
I took the advice to ease the car in for the first 500 miles, mainly for transmission and brake callipers / pads. Initial concerns on the drive home was getting used to left-hand drive and found a tendency to drift to the centre of the road. After 2 days of town driving I became fully familiar with sitting on the left mainly due to brilliant visibility from the drivers seat. The car feels alot wider than my previous (997 C2S), but I can say I’ve only found on two occasions, in 1000 miles, problems with visibility - mainly overtaking on narrow lanes. First weekend job was to fit the “mild 2 Wild” exhaust switch. Eight minutes later I have a true sounding V8 engine on idle. Great accessory and should be standard.
Other comparison observations with previous cars were the great boot space and roomy cabin. The seats are comfortable but fail on been supportive enough for fast road / track driving. The gearbox is not as efficient as the 911 but by no means notchy or difficult to use. The brakes offer adequate feedback but should have more bite in the early stages of depression. The steering is a let down – it needs to be far more direct and it’s far too light at moderate speeds. Specification is first class and the HUD is stunning, should be in all cars. For a 500bhp+ car the Z06 is surprisingly easy to drive in town traffic with a very light clutch action plus smooth transmission. The interior is not up-to comparative German cars but by no means disappointing. It’s very functional plus very clear instrumentation – not an I-drive in-site thank god. Road noise is poor on concrete surfaces but again not overly intrusive.
The looks of the car is stunning and it creates alot of constructive attention. Most comments are – What is it?, What engine has it got? How fast will go? Is that the same car that does well at Le Mans? Most conversations end with “wow”.
500 MILES - HERE COMES THE REDLINE..
I haven’t mentioned the performance yet, as I tried to run-in the car properly, well almost! I knew the performance was going to be good from previous test drives, but I wanted to understand the handling characteristics with this amount of power available. I can start off saying the engine dominates the experience in this car, it is truly stunning. The gearing is theoretically silly for a performance car but the engine makes fantastic use of it. The car accelerates aggressively at virtually all rev ranges in all gears apart from sixth. The low-end torque is used every day, and given enough space, the savage top-end acceleration is quite simply stunning. The power band is linear throughout the range and whether accelerating from 10-20mph in second or 120mph in fourth (runway of course officer) this engine will bring a smile to anyone’s face. I use sixth gear purely for fuel consumption benefits and motorway cruising.
How does the engine and suspension get on? On poor surfaces heavy acceleration in low gears is tire wrecking, but generally you can use the most of the power in even slow turns with carefully modulation. The car has little under-steer on corner entry and can be put into balance with mild throttle in almost any gear. Exit performance needs care, but basically storming. Any mistakes on entry line or speed can be corrected by power, this car just loves to oversteer. I might be brave enough in the dry to use the power but yet to test in the wet.
The chassis is firm but no worse than previous 911 and my only complaint again is the steering ratio for slow speed cornering. So 500 miles in and I was pretty happy with my purchase and now booked the first track day with 850 miles on the clock.
THE FIRST TRACK DAY....
I booked into an open pitlane evening session at Donnington with my aspirations to enjoy and understand both handling and performance but try to give the brakes and tyres an easy time. I’ve driven on track days for about 18 years now and always try to develop my skills that get the most grip out of the tyres, basically smooth driving using correct circuit lines and power modulation and maximizing tyre contact points. I was amazed that at no point did the traction control come on with over 35 laps completed. On a smooth surface the handling is stunning and all the power can be used with smooth driving. Nothing passed me all evening (helps with two long straights) and it was funny seeing so many Caterham’s go back in the mirror. Biggest and only disappointment was the brakes. Their strictly for fast road use and nearly as bad as a BMW M car on the circuit. I will look into upgraded pads / callipers later on. Tyre wear was minimal and will wait for a airfield drifting session when they need replacing. Top speed at the end of the back straight was 141mph and my highest lateral g was 1.19 – I’m not sure if that’s any good? Again the power dominates the driving, get the entry line or speed wrong and you can use a blip of power to get you back to the apex. After my fifth session on the circuit I decided the brakes and seen enough action and decided to go home fully intact. From leaving the circuit to reaching my front door I had no vibrations, brake fade or engine issues that previously had affected other cars after track days. Very impressive.
So 1000 miles in and I’m very happy and very lucky to be driving this beast. It has problems, namely steering and circuit brake performance. Driving on the left is not an issue at all to me and I have to say, it even makes the car feel more special. You just don’t jump in and casually drive, you apply more attention and you end up with greater awareness of the day to day driving experience. So my review to date can be summarised as having enjoyment in a car that constantly puts a smile on your face and those who ask for a ride out in it have all said wow. I will post pictures of my car from the Donnington track day when I receive the disk.
COMPARISONS TO MY PREVIOUS CARS..
Z06 v Porsche 997 C2S
Pro’s
- Acceleration
- Turn-in grip
- Power flexibility on cornering.
- Looks
- Exclusivity
- Engine / exhaust noise.
- Specification
- Boot Space
- Costs
Con’s
- Brakes
- Steering
- Lack of rear seats
- Build quality – not by much though.
- Rear end grip under power – actually not a negative point to me, this car loves to slide!
Z06 v BMW M3 CSL
Pro’s
- Acceleration
- Overall Grip
- Comfort
- Looks
- Specification
- Brakes – Every M car I have driven struggle with brake fade.
Con’s
- Gearbox – Paddle shift is fantastic on the M3.
- Seats – Again CSL buckets were very effective.
- Lack of rear Seats
- Steering
Z06 v Mitsubishi EVO 8 (340bhp)
Pro’s
- Top end acceleration.
- Driver involvement
- Looks
- Exclusivity
- Engine / exhaust noise.
- Fuel economy – averaged 16mpg in Evo, currently 21 in Z06.
Cons
- Lack of rear Seats
- Cornering speeds.
- Brakes
- Steering feel.
Whoa, excellent write-up Sagman! 
You should submit that whole article to me for submission onto www.auto-journals.com!
I agree with all your points, although I think if you drive it on bumpy roads/tracks, you will also be looking to change the dampers and maybe ditch the leaf springs.
The brakes are not up to track use, especially compared to Porsche's excellent Brembos and I have changed mine in a number of areas, but I've bitten the bullet and forked out for some 6 pot Brembos that are shortly going to be on their way over.
It will be interesting to see how you pad wear is working out as mine were shot after 1.5 track days.
You do know that the discs are vaned the wrong way round for the right hand side?
Some bean counter at GM should have been shot for that one...
You should submit that whole article to me for submission onto www.auto-journals.com!
I agree with all your points, although I think if you drive it on bumpy roads/tracks, you will also be looking to change the dampers and maybe ditch the leaf springs.
The brakes are not up to track use, especially compared to Porsche's excellent Brembos and I have changed mine in a number of areas, but I've bitten the bullet and forked out for some 6 pot Brembos that are shortly going to be on their way over.
It will be interesting to see how you pad wear is working out as mine were shot after 1.5 track days.
You do know that the discs are vaned the wrong way round for the right hand side?
Some bean counter at GM should have been shot for that one...
Hi Godzilla, I will submit report Auto-Journals, probably later today. Can you clarify the brake disc issue on the right hand side. Are you referring to the cross-drilling pattern?
My comparison to the Sagaris is as follows:
Z06 v Sagaris
Pro's
- Linear power performance.
- Torque
- Greater front end balance and feedback.
- Comfort
- Specification
- Paint finish and panel fit.
- 3 year Warranty which is still valid!
- Day to day useability.
Cons
- Looks
- Interior material quality
It looks like I did'nt rate my TVR but that is not true. It was an fantastic car that was an experience every time you drove oit. Problems were the day to day living issues (low ride height, tempermental engine etc) and the lack of confidence I got putting the power down. I wish they have built the car with a different engine (even the Rover V8) and given the engineering department more time on functionality rathere than the designers looking to impress. Having said that at current prices it is excellent value, but no warranty!
My comparison to the Sagaris is as follows:
Z06 v Sagaris
Pro's
- Linear power performance.
- Torque
- Greater front end balance and feedback.
- Comfort
- Specification
- Paint finish and panel fit.
- 3 year Warranty which is still valid!
- Day to day useability.
Cons
- Looks
- Interior material quality
It looks like I did'nt rate my TVR but that is not true. It was an fantastic car that was an experience every time you drove oit. Problems were the day to day living issues (low ride height, tempermental engine etc) and the lack of confidence I got putting the power down. I wish they have built the car with a different engine (even the Rover V8) and given the engineering department more time on functionality rathere than the designers looking to impress. Having said that at current prices it is excellent value, but no warranty!
SagMan said:
Hi Godzilla, I will submit report Auto-Journals, probably later today. Can you clarify the brake disc issue on the right hand side. Are you referring to the cross-drilling pattern?
Yes the cross drilling pattern gives it away, but the real issue is the fact that the internal cooling vanes are facing the wrong way on the right hand side, i.e. they are trying to blow hot air into the centre of the hub! BTW, what driving mode were you using on track? I find Competitive Driving mode useful when learning a circuit, but if it's dry then all driving aids off.
Leaving the Active Handling on will dramatically increase brake wear, particularly on the left hand side front on a clockwise circuit, as the brakes are used to try and keep the car neutral.
I'll drop you an email about auto-journals.
I used competitive driving for the most but I was very surprised how non intrusive the traction control was even when all systems are on. Having said that I wasn't looking at the dash to notice any traction messages I was just feeling the balance from the seat and steering. The only real oversteer corner is the exit of the last chiquane entering the home straight. The car drifts a little on entry but traction is good (I think camber has been altered last couple of years) and the exit onto the main straight is very wide allowing good 2nd gear acceleration / sliding. But I was protecting tyres and brakes for first track day.
SagMan said:
Hi Godzilla, I will submit report Auto-Journals, probably later today. Can you clarify the brake disc issue on the right hand side. Are you referring to the cross-drilling pattern?
My comparison to the Sagaris is as follows:
Z06 v Sagaris
Pro's
- Linear power performance.
- Torque
- Greater front end balance and feedback.
- Comfort
- Specification
- Paint finish and panel fit.
- 3 year Warranty which is still valid!
- Day to day useability.
Cons
- Looks
- Interior material quality
It looks like I did'nt rate my TVR but that is not true. It was an fantastic car that was an experience every time you drove oit. Problems were the day to day living issues (low ride height, tempermental engine etc) and the lack of confidence I got putting the power down. I wish they have built the car with a different engine (even the Rover V8) and given the engineering department more time on functionality rathere than the designers looking to impress. Having said that at current prices it is excellent value, but no warranty!
Thanks My comparison to the Sagaris is as follows:
Z06 v Sagaris
Pro's
- Linear power performance.
- Torque
- Greater front end balance and feedback.
- Comfort
- Specification
- Paint finish and panel fit.
- 3 year Warranty which is still valid!
- Day to day useability.
Cons
- Looks
- Interior material quality
It looks like I did'nt rate my TVR but that is not true. It was an fantastic car that was an experience every time you drove oit. Problems were the day to day living issues (low ride height, tempermental engine etc) and the lack of confidence I got putting the power down. I wish they have built the car with a different engine (even the Rover V8) and given the engineering department more time on functionality rathere than the designers looking to impress. Having said that at current prices it is excellent value, but no warranty!
I can confirm that the Z06 brakes are completely unsuitable for track-work.
This morning I got banned with my track car at Bedford due to the noise, so I decided to take the Z06 on the track, after two laps the brakes were completely cooked, the fluid was clearly boiling, no brake effect at all
This morning I got banned with my track car at Bedford due to the noise, so I decided to take the Z06 on the track, after two laps the brakes were completely cooked, the fluid was clearly boiling, no brake effect at all
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