jmorgan07z06

I finally made it out to MSR cresson this past weekend as you may have seen in the post entiled "another track day" in the C6 Z06 discussion. Now we forum members have something to compare the improvements from the stock suspension to the LGMotorsports suspension. In September of 2009, with OEM suspension, I ran MSR cresson and logged data with my traqmate. This weekend, February 20, 2010 I headed back out to the track with the following suspension modifications.

LG G1 front and rear sway bars
LG Quiet endlinks
LG GT2 adjustable coilovers
LG track alignment
Bump Steer Kit

Here are the results.


STOCK SETUP 1.24.5





LG SETUP 1.21 per stopwatch





Here is a link to this suspension package if you are not familiar with it.
http://www.lgmotorsports.com/catalog...oducts_id=2210

Now I am looking forward to comparing this setup with the LG G2 Bilstein setup that Anthony at LG is in the process of building for me.

rustyguns

did you have stock alignment the first time? i did a race alignment with stock Z 51 suspension and was well over a second faster

jmorgan07z06

Yes it was a stock alignment.

There may be some other variables at play such as that in September the Temp was 90 degrees or more so I had a lot of grip then. In February the temp was around 60 degrees which I would count for less grip and more HP. In the September video, I was on my second consecutive day and my 6th session overall so I had a lot of practice to reach that 1.24sec lap. In february, this video was shot on my first session of the day and the last time I was at the track was December 4th and we ran a different track configuration. I had to knock the cob webbs out and had a 180lb passenger and still managed the 1.21+/-.

In my opinion, this pacakage is the majority of the improvement.

Lovin it!

ryan0

hehe... i could make the same post with six months in between track days and put the improvement on the fact that 'i slept at a holiday inn' the night before.

but properly set up, should be worth a second or two..

jmorgan07z06

yeah...the passenger may have also only been 160lbs not really sure.

Your are correct...this is not exactly Road & Track or scientific in any way but it does make for a good feeling for a recently inflicted track junkie like me.

ryan0

more of the variable right there... new guys tend to improve TONS over the first year.

have fun!

jmorgan07z06

I am a newbe no doubt but I do have a little bit of experience at this point. I have been tracking my car since 2007 and have completed more than 14 two day events and a few one day events in between. Of course MSR is my home track.

Yes... it's all about having fun!

Jason

95jersey

The LG package helped me a ton and I had 8 years experience after 3 vettes when I first got them. First thing I noticed was how much better the car braked because the nose wasn't standing on itself. This also greatly improved initial turn in response, as the suspension didn't need an extra 1/2 second to recover from all the weight being transferred to the front of the car. I was more confident the car could do it, and therefore I was faster.

Car is flat as a pancake in the corners without any drama, extra stiffness is a must if you really want serious cornering speeds. I felt I could throw the car around much better and it got rid of the "boat like" feeling I got with the stock suspension. Don't get me wrong stock suspension worked well and the car out of the box handles great, BUT, I personally had more confidence in the feedback the car was giving me with the coil-overs. I felt the car "moved" around on the stock suspension, which I attributed more to the soft bushings. After going through the poly mess on my C5Z, I was NOT going to put poly's on my $60k Z06, and the LG coilovers really helped clean up the "movement" in the OEM suspension.

Only downside is with sticky tires and coil-overs, you will be replacing bushings more often due to the increase cornering G's, but you can't have it all.

jmorgan07z06

with everthing you said. My confidence may be a big reason for the improvements plus the car no longer rolls left and right. I would bet that without a passenger and a few more sessions to get my lines down, that I would be able to beat that 1.21 mark. The fast guys in full race car ACR vipers and Porsche Cup cars are running 1.18 and 1.19 so I am very happy. I need some downforce now!

ace996

Why would you be going to the G2s from the GT2s?
Thanks.

jmorgan07z06

I have been having LG slowly but surely upgrade my car over the past years. It all started with Longtubes, K&N and a Tune. Soon after I added the Borla Stingers.

Then Hoosiers.

I began getting faster and had them install the Stoptech front brake kit, brake ducts and Colbalt pads.

Went to MSR and got spanked by a friend in a C5R. This made think, I have to get some suspension to hang with this guy. So I bought the LG G1 sway bars and did a little better. I have always been interested in video and data loggers. When I got home, I created a video with data overlay and sent it to Anthony. I was simply wanting to tell him that LG products kick *** and let him see this product in action! The car ran flat and I was able to pass everyone on the track. The G1 sway bars make a huge difference alone.

As I am a speed freak, I would gladly sacrifice a little "streetability" for performance. Anthony is very helpful and we began to talk about coil-overs. I told him that I would like to get a set of the G2 Bilstein coil-overs that are race proven. He explained that these are all custom built for the driver's style and that it would take a short while to get all the parts needed for the build. I told him that I was not in any big hurry because I needed to get the ARE drysump upgrade anyway and that sucker is expensive. We started talking about the GT2's which LG had just recently put on the market. He explained that they were designed for the guy who daily drives his Vette and does maybe 3 or 4 HPDEs a year. He had a set and showed me them. He was kind enough to say, " Hey while you wait for the G2's and the ARE setup give these a try and tell me what you think". So that's what we did. I have had them on my car for 3 months now and they are great. You can see the improvements in the video. The feel is way superior to the OEM stuff. Now I will soon be getting the G2's and I wonder, will they be any better. We will soon find out the pros and cons.

63Corvette

Jason thanks for posting some great video.

jmorgan07z06

You bet! I enjoy filming and use it as a very valuable learning tool.

ace996

Thanks so much for the detailed reply, I appreciate it.
I do more than 3-4 HPDEs a year and am in the market for coilovers, which leads me to await your opinion between the G2s and the GT2s.
I have been debating between the GT2s and Pfadt's coilovers, as I do prefer adjustable and know how to tune them for my driving style, but wonder if I'd just be better off (in the long run) going for the better Bilstein-based coilovers...even if they are non-adjustable.

Again, thanks,
TomK

jmorgan07z06

Cool...I will certainly post an update. A week ago LG installed my drysump upgrade and Anthony informed me that they were waiting on some hardware to be machined and it shouldn't be too much longer. Hopefully I will be able to get back to MSR within the next 30 days. Unfortunately, I am not a member so I have to wait for an invite or pay for a HPDE with my local driving school http://www.thedriversedge.net

SouthernSon

As has been stated, there is no substitute for experience. However, suspension improvements do seem to 'magically' improve times. This improvement is not necessarily something that must be definitively vetted (pun intended). It is usually immediate and profound after modification. One's communication with the car is not always such a tangible. Of course, once you experience the feel of a well tuned suspension on the track, it is very hard to go back to a less communicative, stock setup.

jhester

Anthony and the guys may want to hold me honest, but I believe the GT2 base valving is very similar to the G2 Bilstein damper.

The G2 damper was raced exclusively during the 04-07 years in SPEED World Challenge, with several poles, race wins, and fastest laps set against the likes of Hensler (Porsche) and Pratt & Miller (CTS-VR).

Personally, I'm not sure you can go wrong either way.

jmorgan07z06

I wouldn't doubt it. I am not saying that OEM suspension is bad in any way but if you track your car periodically or even regularly your gonna want some of these along with G1 sway bars and LG quiet endlinks.

The bump steer kit and alignment is nice as well. I am completely infatuated with this setup right now. I have been driving around town hugging the inside curbs with great ease, confident that I will not be curb rashing my wheels. I would have never done that with the OEM setup because there was not enough feeling in the wheel and an ever so small "play in the wheel".

jmorgan07z06

Here is some more video that includes a simultanious view of 2 laps with LG GT2 setup in the main window and the factory setup in the lower window. Once again, this is not a scientific study and not intended to be for anything other than fun!

Enjoy

vette113

Jason, First, good driving with a passenger. Good driving, period. Aggressive. I would like to have seen a video of you behind his black Z06. I went to Hoosier A6's three weekends ago and in the cold weather it really made a difference over the R6's. I left those on another set of CCWs for when it warms up. I did go through the right front A6 in three days (12 20 to 25 minute sessions) so AJ is getting me two more A6s for the front for a couple of weekends from now. Glad you called me a friend as I you are going to be a really good driver. I did not spank you. I just passed you and moved on but it will be much harder now with the improvements you are making. I will have to get through Big Bend and make up a second to 121 now but I really need to be at 120 for sure. I drive too conservative AJ says. I am really impressed with the LG set ups. As you know I have the Penskes at three times the cost but I would not think three times the value on the track. Did you see you getting tired and wide going into Buzzards Neck or Tombstone or whatever it is called. I saw a second there because of the turn in. Too wide last two laps. You were down shifting to second so come in closer and keep the power in. You were also losing some grip so I think in this cool weather the A6s would help you, too. It looked like it was pushing as you made the corner. Hope you do time trials in March. I wish we could drive more together. See you soon. You do need to spot me 2 seconds for age though. I need more power! 313