Biggun6969

I have the following:
2000 Corvette with an automatic and 70,400 miles
fairly new tires
Cold air intake
Borla straight pipes
New plugs and wires
Everything else is original

This is my first Corvette so I have nothing to compare it to. My question is about power. If I floor it from a dead stop in a straight direction, let's say a stop sign or red light, the rear tires will not break loose.

Now, if the road is wet, or if I am turning, then yes the tires will spin. I have tried in competition mode as well as active handling/traction control off.

Is this the norm for a stock car? I expected it to "bald the tires" when I so desired, but that is not the case. Could it be that in 95F heat on hot blacktop that I am just getting great traction? Or, could it be that by removing the mufflers and decreasing the back pressure that I lost low end torque?

I would appreciate feedback from those in similar cars (automatics) with similar mods (intake and exhaust or stock) please. Thanks.

Fed Up

The LS1 is very sensitive to high / hot conditions; that said, what gears are you running?

I have a well tuned 2001, similar mods and good tires. While I can almost always get a chirp with a quick throttle tip in, when it's hot she typically won't break loose. It's not so much a power issue; it's a very well designed a$$-end, which has gobs of traction well before TC kicks in. Locking differential, grippy surface and good tires can all contribute to a smoke-free launch, especially with tall gears. I have 3.15s, and really only can bark 'em on a smooth surface (obviously with TC off).

If you're worried about your engine's state, go to a good tuner shop and have your machine dyno'd and tuned. After, of course, looking at basic stuff like the health of plugs, wires, throttle body and intake cleanliness, o2 health, etc- And it sounds like your machine is good to go already, so give it a shot.

RicardoFors68

A4 with 2.73 rear end is not designed to peel off, chirp, or squeal. Highway miles and speed is what you'll get. Dont know if this is what you have, but its what I have and have never heard anything remotely resembling a chirp due to me overpowering them. Go up in gears would be my advice, other with more experience will chime in soon. Good luck.

Fed Up

Exactly. I'm thinking you have 2.73s- Even with my 3.15s, a hard peel-out really is only possible when involving the steering wheel.

Biggun6969

Per the codes in the glove box, G90 and G92, from which I understand means that the car came with the optional 3.15 ratio. But it sounds like my car is performing adequately in comparison to your cars. Thanks for the responses gentlemen.

Sledge Hammer

Apparently there is quite a difference between the A4 and M6. Flooring my '02 Z06 while rolling at 25 mph in first breaks the tires loose immediately. The shift to second does the same. Third also breaks loose. Haven't tried in 4th as the speed was already pretty high in third.

Fed Up

Well, there's quite a difference from your 3.42s to 3.15s, and in your 405HP vs 350... and the M6.

jhopper408

My 2003 Z06 breaks loose all the way through 4th gear. I don't think that it will break loose in 5th,I'm already going 150mph by then! Yeeehaaa!

Vetteman Jack

I have an A4 with 3.15 gears and it is really hit or miss on whether or not the car will spin the tires for any length of time. It will spin them (depending on the road surface/temps), but hooks up pretty quick.

Not that I'm complaining since I hate to abuse the tires with needless burnouts.

imgn tht

Interesting. I have to see what gears I have in my '04 Coupe A/T. I haven't ever "floored it" in fear of losing traction and crashing...even with the TC on.

I'm a similar mod setup to the OP, with new Michelin Pilot Super Sports. Always looking for that perfect open road where I can test it out and not A) look like a fool and B)put anyone in danger.

66dts-v

I'd rather put the power to the ground than up in smoke. I'm not a burnout guy, but I wasn't a wheelie guy on the moto, either.

Corvette_Ed

I can do pretty much the same in my manual coupe.

Toque

I have an issue maintaining traction...
Not that I'm complaining.....

Toque

Stroker87

I agree I dont mind one bit that my c5z will light up yeah bad for racing but sure is fun

Toque

I have always said that its better to break the rear tires loose.
Its when they STICK that you usually find that you break something in the drive line...
I little rubber lost off the rear tires is cheaper than a transmission, or rear end, or half shaft, or torque tube.... etc...etc....

Toque

PhysicsDude55

Manual transmissions will always have an easier time losing traction than automatic transmissions (just ask any one who takes their car to the drag strip )

The manual transmission maintains a rigid connection from the engine to the wheels (except for the rubber torque tube couplers and maybe clutch), so any blip in the throttle will be a blip at the wheels.

When you add a fluid filled torque converter for an automatic transmission, the viscosity of the fluid in the torque converter smooths out the power, so that the wheels feel less of a "jerk" on them, which makes them less likely to lose traction.

On top of that, automatics have a much taller overall gear ratio in 1st gear (final drive X 1st gear):

6.77 Automatic C5 with 2.73 differential
7.81 Automatic CT with 3.15 "performance axle" option
9.10 Manual transmission "M6" C5
10.16 Z06 "M12" manual transmission C5

As you can see, even ignoring the automatic vs. manual transmission, the gearing of an automatic C5 makes it much more difficult to spin the tires than a manual, and especially Z06 C5. (although Z06s come with larger tires, so that's a factor too).

FWIW, when I first got my C5, I dropped the clutch at 2000 RPM just for kicks and giggles to spin the tires a little bit, and I ended up almost doing a 180 in the car. It actually scared me quite a bit, although I was on old runflats, so they got terrible traction.