jlutherva

I'm looking to move to race tires this season for the last 5 of 6 2-day HPDEs. What all can I expect to be overstressed by the race tires? I have upgraded the dry sump tank to a 2009 version with the Aviaid baffle insert. In another thread, the following have been discussed:

• Alignment needs to be reset for race tires
• Front control arm bushings will require replacement after several events
• Front shock bushings will require replacement after a few events

What about front & rear wheel bearings?
What else should I expect?

Thanks for any input.

Jim

Bill Dearborn

I doubt you will see any real wear with the useage you will be getting this year. The R compound tires can require a different alignment especially if they are Hoosiers. Hoosiers will rapidly wear on the outside edge if they don't have a lot of negative camber.

The most stressed parts of the car are the wheel bearings, tie rod ends and the control arms. On the 97 I went through 4 wheel bearings and a couple of tie rod ends. On the 03 I went through 6 wheel bearings and 6 tie rod ends. The rear tie rods went more often than the fronts.

I don't think the C6 control arm bushings will push out any faster than the C5 bushings did. On my 97 I had to replace the bushings after 5 years of HPDEs and Autocrosses. The LCAs slid backwards on the bushings to the point the LCAs were rubbing against the cradle. The UCA bushings really weren't that much different than a brand new set so really didn't need to be changed. On my C5Z I put double the track and autocross miles on that car and never touched the control arm bushings. They were good when I sold the car after 6 years of ownership. If the LCAs do slide backwards you can live with it until they hit the cradle. The biggest issue will be a change in alignment where you lose the ability to set a high caster angle.

The shock bushings shouldn't need replacment. I never replaced a shock or a shock bushing on either C5. The tire doesn't place stress on the shock or its mounts.

The power steering may be stressed a little more but most of the stress it gets is from the high rpms and hot power steering fluid.

If you did the same number of HPDEs each year for 3 years I would say you would need to start looking hard at the wheel bearings and tie rod ends near the end of the second year.

Bill

John Shiels

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

Jason

With the C5 we expect one fairly maintenance free year of HARD running on R's Then expect to start replacing stuff on a regular basis. I'd expect the same from a C5.2

jlutherva

Thanks Guys!

Jim

dvandentop

lol love the c5.2 comment

how much do you plan to drive on the street, there is a hard fine line to find if you are going to be doing alot of street driving and getting the good camber into the race tires.

i tore my street tires up quickly when running a good alignment for track tires

jlutherva

Hey Derek,
The objective is to keep it street-able. Reality is that I set it up for track use in June and it stays that way until November. At least, that's the reality of last year. The previous year, I did swap the track brakes in and out between events; however, with more events, that went away.

I understand your point. A proper alignment for Hoosiers on the track is way off a proper street alignment and it's $80 per alignment.

With the GHL exhaust, I don't think the little wifey will be driving it anyway

Jim

jlutherva

That's for sure. I'm pretty analytical about expenses and events on street tires cost between $750 and $1250 per day. Toss in a few control arm bushings, ball joints and wheel bearings and that goes way up!

JIm

larryfs

all the paint will be chipped up from the amount of pebbles thrown up by sticky tires.

jlutherva

Good point! I already have that covered. I went with the 3M clear bra over the front, mirrors, and after this spring, the ZR-1 splitter and the areas behind the doors.
Thanks for the input,
Jim

AU N EGL

Ball joint insulation with High temp hose.

Bills Z06

racerbob4

GM must have bought the cheapest wheel bearings they could find. When we raced a corvette we had to replace them about every 3 races, usually the outside front.

Jason

State of the Art in 1983 when Corvettes made 200hp and ran on 255 tires.

John Shiels

but in all fairness they were not building a race car they are building a street car with street tires for the average dude tooling down the road.

John Shiels

Never did much of that if I did I would have come to my senses sooner. It is not hard to figure in your head while driving what the very basic cost are with the standard wear items. Then dump and engine, tranny, diff, torque tubes, clutches and it really brings up the cost per mile.

Hoosiers alone are a three day affair on my car or twelve 20 minute sessions. Never ever does a tire last passed a forth day. Front brakes and rotors near the same with rears about double.

I'll say my VBP bushings have lasted much longer than you are expecting.

jlutherva

Hi Tom,
I use the fire tape then cover that with heavy gauge aluminum foil secured with a wire tie. I do the same for all of the ball joints. I also have the high temperature hose option from Quantum for the bake cooling kit.

Thanks for the input and see at the NCM VIR event!

Jim

jlutherva

Hi John,
Uh, yeah, you are absolutely correct. Those cost DO NOT include engine, et. al., just the more normal wear items. I rational that by only driving about 80%., OK, maybe 85%.

I'm following our government's example "Figures don't lie, but liars can figure."

Jim

bobmoore2

On top of everything said above, your brakes will get a little hotter too, meaning the pads, rotors and fluid will need replacement more often.

The increased grip will allow you to go faster and brake harder, which means your brakes will be converting more motion into heat.

jlutherva

Bob,
Thanks for your input.
I believe I have cranked all of this into the plans:

• Katech splitter w/ under tray and brake ducts (on order)
• Cobalt Friction XR2 pads w/ AFX 2-piece rotors (Planned)
• Prestly use ATE Super Blue and bleed after each event

From watching Katech's videos, the splitter w/ brake ducts coupled to the Quantum cooling kit should significantly increase air flow.

Jim