Let's talk about the C8 vs the GT500

[Hack]

Not a professional journalist or YouTube millennial influencer. I've now owned both. Hate to say it is so, but I do like the ZL1 a little better. No troll, I 100% understand I am in the minority on this.

That is great for you. You're able to get a great deal buying a car that few people enjoy driving.

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[shogun32]

That is great for you. You're able to get a great deal buying a car that few people enjoy driving.

Yup, me too. I gotta say though that the Corvette/Camaro clutch is an affront to all car-kind. No wonder they are going DCT and manual takeup is crashing. If I paid 60k+ for a car with this bad of a clutch I'd be tempted to drive it thru the dealership er make that GM HQ's lobby window.

 

[jake_zx2]

so, GT500 officially weighs 4225lbs...

Anyone still think it's going to be faster on track than a C8?

 

[Hack]

so, GT500 officially weighs 4225lbs...

Anyone still think it's going to be faster on track than a C8?

I still think it will be faster than the base C8 on most tracks. Parking lot tiny tracks maybe/maybe not.

You think 260 additional HP is meaningless?

 

[jake_zx2]

I still think it will be faster than the base C8 on most tracks. Parking lot tiny tracks maybe/maybe not.

You think 260 additional HP is meaningless?

On a road course? largely

Otherwise, the GT350 wouldn't be so close in lap times to the ZL1

 

[Hack]

On a road course? largely

Otherwise, the GT350 wouldn't be so close in lap times to the ZL1

I guess we will find out fairly soon. At least I expect GT500 info to come within the next month. Might be a while for C8 info.

But I would be surprised if the all season tires, brakes and cooling on the new C8 are up to hard core track use.

GT350 is a track car with good tires for track use. Not all seasons.

 

[shogun32]

You think 260 additional HP is meaningless?

"yes"
HP is a side-effect of torque. Torque in excess of what can be applied in a hooked up manner (actually contributing to forward motion) is useless. Yes, big HP is quite useful if trying to set a land speed record, be it quarter or half mile at a time.

 

[Hack]

"yes"
HP is a side-effect of torque. Torque in excess of what can be applied in a hooked up manner (actually contributing to forward motion) is useless. Yes, big HP is quite useful if trying to set a land speed record, be it quarter or half mile at a time.

On bigger tracks the power will help more. Long straights especially.

 

[martinjlm]

I guess we will find out fairly soon. At least I expect GT500 info to come within the next month. Might be a while for C8 info.

But I would be surprised if the all season tires, brakes and cooling on the new C8 are up to hard core track use.

GT350 is a track car with good tires for track use. Not all seasons.

Z51 package replaces all that with better brakes, more cooling and Pilot 4S tires.

From the 2020 Corvette info microsite....

Z51 Package
Summer-only performance tires.† Massive brakes. eLSD. Front splitter. Performance exhaust. The list goes on and on. When you demand even more agility and performance from your Corvette, the available Z51 Package is what you get.

 

[shogun32]

On bigger tracks the power will help more. Long straights especially.

sure. I don't have time to trawl thru https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_auto_racing_tracks_in_the_United_States#Road_courses
looking for the top 6 tracks with the longest (semi) straights. Most tracks have lots of turns because turns are way more fun than going in a straight line. Corner exit speed is also a key factor in terminal velocity at the end of the next straight.

I agree with some of the commentards that this was an opportunity missed. I can't seem to find weight figures for 2.3 and 3L superchargers but I can't believe the gear and supporting equipment is very much more than 200lbs. Where did all the extra weight come from? Is this DCT a hefty 100+lbs more than the previous 6MT? 4000lbs was the number I hoped they would hit. The weight balance ever more canted toward the front is not going to do it any favors.

 

[shogun32]

But I would be surprised if the all season tires, brakes and cooling on the new C8 are up to hard core track use.

Nobody with 2 brain cells takes their car to the track with performance intent while equipped with OE tires no matter what 'grade' they might be. I like to run around on a variety of tire types because I'm more interested in learning the limits of my equipment and skill, rather than setting lap records.

Anyone buying a high performance car with delusions of track grandeur can trivially afford no less than a second set of wheels and multiple sets of appropriate tires.

 

[martinjlm]

sure. I don't have time to trawl thru https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_auto_racing_tracks_in_the_United_States#Road_courses
looking for the top 6 tracks with the longest (semi) straights. Most tracks have lots of turns because turns are way more fun than going in a straight line. Corner exit speed is also a key factor in terminal velocity at the end of the next straight.

I agree with some of the commentards that this was an opportunity missed. I can't seem to find weight figures for 2.3 and 3L superchargers but I can't believe the gear and supporting equipment is very much more than 200lbs. Where did all the extra weight come from? Is this DCT a hefty 100+lbs more than the previous 6MT? 4000lbs was the number I hoped they would hit. The weight balance ever more canted toward the front is not going to do it any favors.

Not sure what the Tremec DCT weighs, but the DCT in the GTR is something like 250 lbs. I would expect the more modern Tremec design to be at least a little bit more mass efficient. How does that compare to the GT350 6MT?

 

[shogun32]

How does that compare to the GT350 6MT?

http://www.tremec.com/menu.php?m=104 would imply it's around 135'ish pounds

 

[jake_zx2]

Yes it us heavier, but the extra ponies do matter. Rule of thumb I've always used is that each horse can carry 10 lbs (the horses the put inside the engine are very small so they can fit inside the cylinders). All things being equal, you can increase speed by either being lighter, or by having more power. 260 HP minus the weight difference is still a 170+ HP advantage.

But then the question becomes “how much does that really mean on a road course”, to which the answer would be “very little”

 

[JohnnyUtah]

Nobody with 2 brain cells takes their car to the track with performance intent while equipped with OE tires no matter what 'grade' they might be. I like to run around on a variety of tire types because I'm more interested in learning the limits of my equipment and skill, rather than setting lap records.

Anyone buying a high performance car with delusions of track grandeur can trivially afford no less than a second set of wheels and multiple sets of appropriate tires.

This isnt always true. The OE tires on many high performance cars are perfectly suitable for track use. For example, any car that comes with sport cups... which is a lot of vehicles.

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