In my opinion the c6 (especially the z's) are the perfect race car for the average man. The platform for modification is insanely vast and the car is already very capable in stock form as it is. My goal is to own a C6Z eventually. I just got my hands on an 00's f body camaro and for now it's close enough to vette performance for me, but the upgrade to a c6 is the plan
You're heading down the same road as me. It will be interesting to see how your path plays out. My car is on stands and hood off for the 2023 upgrade cycle.
Corvettes have a history of having killer brakes!! I still wonder about drilled vs not. I recently saw a brand new Jag at a dealer with the biggest engine option...575 hp. And the car doesn't have drilled rotors. That doesn't seem to make sense. Even the 2006 Corvette Z51 that I previously owned came new with drilled...just saying. Beautiful car!!
Just FYI I had Bilstein B6s for a year on my C6 and just swapped to Koni Sports. The Bilsteins were comfy and pretty controlled, but the Koni Sports are a lot better match for the spring rates on the car when the driving gets sporty and fast.
If the car has been tracked previously, you might look at the wheel bearings, tie rods, and ball joints. Bearings take a beating on track. The tie rods and ball joints can get heat damage from the brakes that can cook the boots. This is an area you might want to put heat shield if doing other upgrades for track use.
@@pinkwheels3 I'll take a close look at them, but it doesn't make sense to me that this could be a suspension issue if it's only being felt under braking with hot brakes? When brakes are hot, it's a ton of judder/vibration felt through steering and pedal, no matter how much brake pressure. Once brakes cool off, it goes away.
@@JoshVanVeldIt’s possible heat could transfer to the wheel bearings and expand the outer race and exacerbating the play. Give the front wheels a good twist test with the steering key locked with it on the quick jacks to see if there is any play left to right.
@@shize9ine Thanks for the tip! I hadn't thought of getting the steering to lock before checking for play. Stay tuned for the next video - I think we're going to get to the bottom of it.
Thanks Patrick! It’s the first time I’ve had a garage set up like this and I love spending time out there. After the floor was installed the kids wanted to “camp” in it 😂
For your next tire swap hit up Scott Blair from 2U Tire has a mobile tire operation in Georgia. Dude knows his stuff. Affordable and comes highly recommended from Finnegan’s garage.
Man when you said something about rain I said he gotta be here in GA, And Yes you Are. I got the Powr stop Carbon Ceramic brakes for my Z06 And Man They work. I have a coworker that have that car I mean identical, Hope to run into some day
When you did your brakes did you get your rotors turned? They can turn drilled and slotted rotors and anytime you put on new pads you need your rotors turned. If you didn't now you have to get them turned and replace the pads you just added with another set of new ones. Just a FYI.
GM’s relearn process is fairly easy but you have be really close to the sensor / stem to trigger it. The sensors are hit and miss with some dying a few weeks or months after install.
not sure if you can beat a gt3 with those dampers. I guess some high performance set should work better idk. then the gt3 has some aero work that gives it a significant advantage. you are probably going to need a big rear wing and font splitter and diffuser, then for those possibly higher spring rates. brake vibration can be caused by oil/grease on brake pads
The Bilstein dampers are meant to be a stop-gap since one of the originals was blown. I plan on doing a bigger suspension upgrade a little down the road.
Did you properly ‘bed’ your new brakes before tracking it? You should hit new rotors with a couple heavy brake cycles and let them cool down fully before hitting them again. Wise to do this routine before any on the track use with new brakes. You probably had brake pad material deposited on your rotors.
Also, rumor is the pistons in the calipers can stick causing major uneven pad wear. It seems like many people move to the Wilwood Aero6 kit or the AP, if you really wanna get serious.
Sticking pistons is a great theory. It's the only thing that makes sense to me so far as to why the issue would only happen when the brakes get hot. I have "serious" plans for the brakes in the future but I still want to get a decent baseline lap time. I just don't know how far I want to chase the issue before giving up on the stock front calipers.
@@JoshVanVeld If you’re itching for more content, you could do a video on rebuilding the seals in the caliper. But the stock units aren’t too great even new, they don’t handle heat well and there is some flex in the casting.
Yeah I think it's worth doing just for the sake of giving the "stock" setup as fair a shake as possible. Any recommendations on where to get a rebuild kit? I saw Doug Rippie sells stainless pistons but I'd hope my stock pistons aren't deformed, just in need of clean-up.
Heads have not been addressed. I'll talk about that issue in a future video. I say a little prayer to the valve guide gods before each drive and it calms my fears somewhat.
Greetings fellow Josh! That's the fob I got from the previous owner, in fact I've got two of them. I wonder if GM changed them at some point? I assume mine are original but maybe not. The gauge overlay is thanks to the GoPro I have mounted on the steering column and some masking in Adobe Premiere. Glad you like, it I was pretty proud when I figured it out 😆
The pad transfer doesn't look completely uniform, I might have been a little aggressive bedding them on the street... but after I got them hot I didn't touch the brakes until they were cool. When I first drove on the track there was no sign of vibration. It was literally new brakes > bed the brakes > drive to the track > terrible vibration on the 2nd flying lap, which was not a hard lap at all. I agree that long-term those pads wouldn't cut the mustard for my purposes, but I think they should be OK for a couple of laps. The fluid definitely needs to be changed, but that shouldn't be related to vibration. I think a sticky piston in one of the calipers is a plausible scenario. What are your thoughts?
@@JoshVanVeld Could be. If it's only one caliper that's sticking the effected rotor should look way different from the other. You could also take temps with an infrared thermometer after doing some heaving stops to see if you have a large temp difference between the rotors.
@@JoshVanVeld I see ppl have been suggesting some serious brake kit options. My suggestion of zr1 brakes is more like a "budget oem build" if you can find some used ones from one who upgraded. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking it a step higher and buying more intense brakes!
Just goes to show you that even using simple, cheap, upgrades that aren't over the top do make a difference in the performance of your vehicle. I'm glad to see your Z getting some much needed treatment, can't wait to see some high performance mods coming down the line. Future reference, use EBC brake pads, they're a little more on the spendy side but you really do get better performance from them, I recommend getting the "Red Stuff" pads from EBC for Goldie.
How'd you like the B8's on the road? I've heard they're a bit stiff, but I'd imagine they are great for the track. Do you think they would get annoying for frequent road use?
I had B8s on my old C5Z and they weren't overly harsh at all. I have fewer miles on the C6 but the ride is fine. If you told me it was the stock setup I would believe you. Then again, the roads around here are pretty smooth, so your mileage may vary!
Yeah the Hawks are a stopgap solution until I do a more substantial brake upgrade. I wasn't doing them any favors by not changing the brake fluid before I tracked them.
On your mark get set hate me, but valve drop issues, broken shocks at 50k miles...I'm looking at buying a C6Z because I love the way it looks, and a 427 engine that revs to 7k is wonderful, but at what point do we just admit that C6Z is lemon?
@@JoshVanVeld Awesome, I can't wait for your take. Just discussing the C6 in general, I've talked to a guy on UA-cam, several on Autotrader and on facebook that have dropped valves, so I'm convinced the odds of it happening are pretty good (10-20%). I see cars with replaced bearings here, and pumps there, and sensors, and the cars have ~30-50k miles. I'm really beginning to think these C6Z's are lemons.
@@sabrewolf479 I think they built around 30K of them so at 15% that would be around 4,500 with dropped valves. That seems pretty extreme to me, but without official numbers, who's to say? Drive one and it's hard not to get a little bit obsessed with them. Ironically the first one I drove (I did a review a couple years ago) grenaded its motor, but it wasn't a dropped valve.
I’ve owned two, and the things I’ve done in them on and off track…boiled the brake fluid on the road course, pushed a piston through the top rings under boost and drove the transmission for several hundred miles without fluid (no dummy light). Broken axles, broken trans mount ears, blown shocks out etc. I can’t remember everything and I’m still building on it years later (tsp 427 rpm trans and YSi etc). I’d do it all again.
They were made in the rough times of recession. One thing about Gm vehicles you know when the US was in a rough patch because it shows in the cars. BTW stock ls7 lifters are junk too. Ask me how I know haha. Do yourself a favor brother, get the heads worked and get Johnson or morel lifters. I love these cars, would hate to see you drop a valve on your awesome project.
I want to make it somewhat fair for the GT3... 🤣 That was the first session of the day and I didn't realize it would be the last one. Don't worry - we'll give her a fair shakedown lap as soon as I get the brakes sorted out.
Nice to see so many C6 “super car killer” type builds popping up on UA-cam in the past few months. This car deserves the attention.
In my opinion the c6 (especially the z's) are the perfect race car for the average man. The platform for modification is insanely vast and the car is already very capable in stock form as it is. My goal is to own a C6Z eventually. I just got my hands on an 00's f body camaro and for now it's close enough to vette performance for me, but the upgrade to a c6 is the plan
Ran a very similar car for about 4 years. GT3’s are the only car that ever game my car trouble. They’re fast, stop like hell, and really turn quick.
You're heading down the same road as me. It will be interesting to see how your path plays out.
My car is on stands and hood off for the 2023 upgrade cycle.
Great video. Love seeing how fixes/upgrades translate to track time. Can’t wait to see the progress!
Corvettes have a history of having killer brakes!! I still wonder about drilled vs not. I recently saw a brand new Jag at a dealer with the biggest engine option...575 hp. And the car doesn't have drilled rotors. That doesn't seem to make sense. Even the 2006 Corvette Z51 that I previously owned came new with drilled...just saying. Beautiful car!!
Wow! This is my dream come true. One day I'll be able to go to the tracking, turn some laps
How did your oil temps in the car cooling go during the lap times?
Awesome video and looking forward to watching the ZO6 build! I know you'll catch up to and eventually beat the GT3.
I like your confidence!
Just FYI I had Bilstein B6s for a year on my C6 and just swapped to Koni Sports. The Bilsteins were comfy and pretty controlled, but the Koni Sports are a lot better match for the spring rates on the car when the driving gets sporty and fast.
If the car has been tracked previously, you might look at the wheel bearings, tie rods, and ball joints. Bearings take a beating on track. The tie rods and ball joints can get heat damage from the brakes that can cook the boots. This is an area you might want to put heat shield if doing other upgrades for track use.
I don't believe it's been tracked before, but of course you never know. I'll definitely inspect that stuff and look at heat-shielding. Thanks!
Second to say bearings and ball joints! My '16 BRZ chomps through ball joints at AMP and its always a terrible vibration when they are shot.
@@pinkwheels3 I'll take a close look at them, but it doesn't make sense to me that this could be a suspension issue if it's only being felt under braking with hot brakes? When brakes are hot, it's a ton of judder/vibration felt through steering and pedal, no matter how much brake pressure. Once brakes cool off, it goes away.
@@JoshVanVeldIt’s possible heat could transfer to the wheel bearings and expand the outer race and exacerbating the play. Give the front wheels a good twist test with the steering key locked with it on the quick jacks to see if there is any play left to right.
@@shize9ine Thanks for the tip! I hadn't thought of getting the steering to lock before checking for play. Stay tuned for the next video - I think we're going to get to the bottom of it.
I love a good project video. Looking forward to seeing Goldie take shape!
I am surprised that you are not putting drilled rotors on. Don't think I've seen a C6 or a C7 Z06 without 'em...
Had to go to my garage for a quick check. Z06 = drilled rotors. M5 = ditto.
Fun video 🙂
I am new to your channel and just want to say i LOVE your Garage setup and your c6 of course!
Thanks Patrick! It’s the first time I’ve had a garage set up like this and I love spending time out there. After the floor was installed the kids wanted to “camp” in it 😂
@@JoshVanVeld bahaha gotta love the kids wanting to camp out there with the race car! That sounds like a fun time right there!
For your next tire swap hit up Scott Blair from 2U Tire has a mobile tire operation in Georgia. Dude knows his stuff. Affordable and comes highly recommended from Finnegan’s garage.
Dude I’m deeply thinking about doing the same I can’t wait to follow your lead. 👍
@6:17 that’s a massive tripod for such a small shop light, like putting race car brakes on a bicycle!
😂😂😂
Man when you said something about rain I said he gotta be here in GA, And Yes you Are. I got the Powr stop Carbon Ceramic brakes for my Z06 And Man They work. I have a coworker that have that car I mean identical, Hope to run into some day
A good buddy of mine is now looking for a C6Z to the same. He actually runs them GT3s down with his current C5Z.
I believe it.
I am super excited to see what this car can do
Thank you! That makes two of us! 🤣
Track day. Let's go 💯💯💯💯🔥🔥🔥
Velocity yellow 💛
When you did your brakes did you get your rotors turned? They can turn drilled and slotted rotors and anytime you put on new pads you need your rotors turned. If you didn't now you have to get them turned and replace the pads you just added with another set of new ones. Just a FYI.
GM’s relearn process is fairly easy but you have be really close to the sensor / stem to trigger it. The sensors are hit and miss with some dying a few weeks or months after install.
not sure if you can beat a gt3 with those dampers. I guess some high performance set should work better idk. then the gt3 has some aero work that gives it a significant advantage. you are probably going to need a big rear wing and font splitter and diffuser, then for those possibly higher spring rates.
brake vibration can be caused by oil/grease on brake pads
The Bilstein dampers are meant to be a stop-gap since one of the originals was blown. I plan on doing a bigger suspension upgrade a little down the road.
Want to laugh? The C6 Z06 beat the GT3 on multiple tracks with stock dampers & leaf springs ……………
Did you properly ‘bed’ your new brakes before tracking it? You should hit new rotors with a couple heavy brake cycles and let them cool down fully before hitting them again. Wise to do this routine before any on the track use with new brakes. You probably had brake pad material deposited on your rotors.
Also, rumor is the pistons in the calipers can stick causing major uneven pad wear. It seems like many people move to the Wilwood Aero6 kit or the AP, if you really wanna get serious.
Sticking pistons is a great theory. It's the only thing that makes sense to me so far as to why the issue would only happen when the brakes get hot.
I have "serious" plans for the brakes in the future but I still want to get a decent baseline lap time. I just don't know how far I want to chase the issue before giving up on the stock front calipers.
@@JoshVanVeld If you’re itching for more content, you could do a video on rebuilding the seals in the caliper. But the stock units aren’t too great even new, they don’t handle heat well and there is some flex in the casting.
Yeah I think it's worth doing just for the sake of giving the "stock" setup as fair a shake as possible. Any recommendations on where to get a rebuild kit? I saw Doug Rippie sells stainless pistons but I'd hope my stock pistons aren't deformed, just in need of clean-up.
What lift is that? Looking to get one for my c6 z and that looks quite nice. Good job with the build and anxious to see the progress 👍
It's a QuickJack 5000 lb lift. I think it's the XL model. Super handy and tucks out of the way.
@@JoshVanVeld Awesome. Thanks Josh!
וואו. זה היה 16 דקות מעניינות ויפות כל הכבוד
That looked like a Publix sub. If so, you are a man of high taste and sensibilities.
Did you or has the C6 had the heads reworked, I am nervous about pushing mine hard without the heads being fixed?
Heads have not been addressed. I'll talk about that issue in a future video. I say a little prayer to the valve guide gods before each drive and it calms my fears somewhat.
This is the same track itsjusta6 goes to, nice video!
Yes, I've seen him out there a couple of times. Thanks!
what do you do for a living ? just asking
Hey Josh, any updates on the engine?
I just posted an update the other day: ua-cam.com/video/lGCBlHyB8Wc/v-deo.html
If you actually want to beat them around the track, you’ll need to ditch those stock brakes for some AP brakes as well.
Stay tuned! 😎
dude where'd you get that key fob? looks cooler than factory. and how'd you overlay your gauges on the video on the track?? that's awesome!
Greetings fellow Josh! That's the fob I got from the previous owner, in fact I've got two of them. I wonder if GM changed them at some point? I assume mine are original but maybe not.
The gauge overlay is thanks to the GoPro I have mounted on the steering column and some masking in Adobe Premiere. Glad you like, it I was pretty proud when I figured it out 😆
I like the color 😂
Josh, how do the rotors look? Are there spots of uneven pad transfer? The HP Plus may not be enough pad for what you're doing.
The pad transfer doesn't look completely uniform, I might have been a little aggressive bedding them on the street... but after I got them hot I didn't touch the brakes until they were cool.
When I first drove on the track there was no sign of vibration. It was literally new brakes > bed the brakes > drive to the track > terrible vibration on the 2nd flying lap, which was not a hard lap at all.
I agree that long-term those pads wouldn't cut the mustard for my purposes, but I think they should be OK for a couple of laps.
The fluid definitely needs to be changed, but that shouldn't be related to vibration. I think a sticky piston in one of the calipers is a plausible scenario.
What are your thoughts?
@@JoshVanVeld Could be. If it's only one caliper that's sticking the effected rotor should look way different from the other. You could also take temps with an infrared thermometer after doing some heaving stops to see if you have a large temp difference between the rotors.
Trust me bro get zr1 brake setup. It's worth it. They put them on the faster car for a reason.
@@swappedoutZ71 Stay tuned for the next video 😎
@@JoshVanVeld I see ppl have been suggesting some serious brake kit options. My suggestion of zr1 brakes is more like a "budget oem build" if you can find some used ones from one who upgraded. But there is absolutely nothing wrong with taking it a step higher and buying more intense brakes!
Just goes to show you that even using simple, cheap, upgrades that aren't over the top do make a difference in the performance of your vehicle. I'm glad to see your Z getting some much needed treatment, can't wait to see some high performance mods coming down the line. Future reference, use EBC brake pads, they're a little more on the spendy side but you really do get better performance from them, I recommend getting the "Red Stuff" pads from EBC for Goldie.
How'd you like the B8's on the road? I've heard they're a bit stiff, but I'd imagine they are great for the track. Do you think they would get annoying for frequent road use?
I had B8s on my old C5Z and they weren't overly harsh at all. I have fewer miles on the C6 but the ride is fine. If you told me it was the stock setup I would believe you. Then again, the roads around here are pretty smooth, so your mileage may vary!
You better get those heads fixed. I know personally 2 C6 z06s that have dropped valves.
Yikes 😮😮😮
check ur rubber bsuings in the AArms...might be dead and/or moving out of A Arms
I'll take a look, thanks! I don't think it's likely to be suspension-related because there was no vibration until the brakes got hot.
@@JoshVanVeld Could be hawks pads too...Im not a fan
get rid of hawks ASAP, get carbotechs 1520 or XP8
Yeah the Hawks are a stopgap solution until I do a more substantial brake upgrade. I wasn't doing them any favors by not changing the brake fluid before I tracked them.
check new rotors might be out of balance
I think that's unlikely given the car behaved fine when I was doing the bedding procedure and the initial laps.
@@JoshVanVeld inspect the tie rods wiggle the tires in the air at 3 and 9 o'clock.
@7:10 Sounds like me
On your mark get set hate me, but valve drop issues, broken shocks at 50k miles...I'm looking at buying a C6Z because I love the way it looks, and a 427 engine that revs to 7k is wonderful, but at what point do we just admit that C6Z is lemon?
I mean... you're not wrong!
I'll talk about the valve drop issue at some point.
Technically only one of the shocks was blown 😬
@@JoshVanVeld Awesome, I can't wait for your take. Just discussing the C6 in general, I've talked to a guy on UA-cam, several on Autotrader and on facebook that have dropped valves, so I'm convinced the odds of it happening are pretty good (10-20%). I see cars with replaced bearings here, and pumps there, and sensors, and the cars have ~30-50k miles. I'm really beginning to think these C6Z's are lemons.
@@sabrewolf479 I think they built around 30K of them so at 15% that would be around 4,500 with dropped valves. That seems pretty extreme to me, but without official numbers, who's to say? Drive one and it's hard not to get a little bit obsessed with them. Ironically the first one I drove (I did a review a couple years ago) grenaded its motor, but it wasn't a dropped valve.
I’ve owned two, and the things I’ve done in them on and off track…boiled the brake fluid on the road course, pushed a piston through the top rings under boost and drove the transmission for several hundred miles without fluid (no dummy light). Broken axles, broken trans mount ears, blown shocks out etc. I can’t remember everything and I’m still building on it years later (tsp 427 rpm trans and YSi etc).
I’d do it all again.
They were made in the rough times of recession. One thing about Gm vehicles you know when the US was in a rough patch because it shows in the cars. BTW stock ls7 lifters are junk too. Ask me how I know haha. Do yourself a favor brother, get the heads worked and get Johnson or morel lifters. I love these cars, would hate to see you drop a valve on your awesome project.
Why are you hauling an extra 250 lbs?
I want to make it somewhat fair for the GT3... 🤣
That was the first session of the day and I didn't realize it would be the last one. Don't worry - we'll give her a fair shakedown lap as soon as I get the brakes sorted out.
maybe a first gen gt3
Pshhh no sweat! 😄
You need to let your brakes bed in for at least 250miles or what the manufacturer wants. You've warped the discs again