The Darkside

On my old c5 i was able to adjust the stock lowering bolts about a half inch or so. Ultimately that wasn't enough for me so i put the WCC lowering bolts in which worked good for a while but ended up having problems with them. On the new Z0 i would like to lower it about an inch and a half but am not looking for issues.

Do the stock 2011 Z06's bolts have the ability to be adjusted? if not what lowering bolts are reccommended that wont lose their rubber bushings after a while?

THanks in advance...

qualitycare

Yes, the C6 has user adjustable lowering bolts. It is actually a very easy self mod. Here is a thread about it.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-t...wering-c6.html

986_C6

Great info...I had my mechanic do the lowering on my c6, but I will give it a try on my Z06. This site rocks!

fasthwks

As the others said very easy, I did end cutting one rib off my bushings to get the height where I liked it. Just turning the down only gave me about 3/4 inch.

The Darkside

Awesome... that will be my project this weekend! When you cut the bushings, which is was i ended up doing on my c5, did you have to remove the bolts to do this? i heard it is possible to do it while they are installed using one of those wire saws or something that effect. My only concern would be getting a straight cut not exposing any of the metal plates between the bushings.

thanks,

rovers2000

The c6 lowering is day enough but watch out for dips in the road. Your nose will drag the road.

fasthwks

I used a cable saw from Home Depot in place of removing the bolts. Worked well but I will tell you to buy 2 or 3 of them because you will break a few of them in the process. I have no problems driving, I am yet to scuff the nose on anything in 4k miles. Good luck!

The Darkside

Awesome.... Alignment afterwards mandatory or unnecessary?

HeadTurner

I also used a wire saw from Depot, and it worked great..just be ready to work a lil bit... I did not get an alignment on my car, it drives fine. I know some people need an alignment afterwards.

Turbooo2u

I also cut the bushings myself but you might need to put some pressure on the spring to expose the bushing high enough to cut comfortably.

fasthwks

I did not get an alignment either, car drives great!

The Darkside

Got the car jacked up then lowered it onto the leaf spring using another jack. Was able to expose the bushing and wire saw it off pretty easily. Took the advise from fasthwks and bought a few of them. FYI, the box stores have the wire saw for $14 but also sell a "wire pocket saw" used to cut wood when camping for $4.95. Same exact thing minus the rubber padding on the handle and think it actually cut better. Car looks awesome! i'll get some pics posted as soon as it stops raining down here.

Thanks again for everybody's input!

davidfarmer

as long as you know lowering beyond the OEM adjustment range (ie cutting) will hurt both handling and ride quality, go for it. You should absolutely have your TOE reset as a bare minimum...it's easy to measure and adjust, and you've hurt your suspension geometry so much anyway you really want the tires point in the right direction at least when you are going straight.

ChevyCobb

My right rear hub bearing is currently being replaced. Mechanic at the dealer said it was because it was lowered too much and put strain on it. Could not be fixed under warranty until put back at stock height and an alignment was done. It was lowered all the way down on stock bolts.

Just be sure you keep track of how many turns you make on each bolt. I couldn't find where I wrote it down, so they are having to do it for me, and charge a little extra.

forg0tmypen

I wouldn't want to go any farther than stock bolts, maybe just a 1/2 in or so all around. Something subtle. Can anyone elaborate of the extra strain lowering the car puts on the suspension as the gentleman above mentioned?

ChevyCobb

Actually, I would like to know more too, because as soon as I get the car back I want to lower it again.

CivEngineer

Does anyone have an idea of how much lowering you get with each full turn of the the stock bolts?? Or does anyone know the exact amount of lowering they got with the exact amount of turns so we can figure it out.

It would be nice to know before getting under and doing this for the guys that only want to adjust a specific amount that may be less than what the oem bolts can offer.

r6elmo

Every car seems to be a bit different. I believe I lowered all of my stock bolts all the way out and I have more gap in the front than the rear. I'd say I got maybe 3/4" down on the rear and 1/2" in the front. Not nearly as low as the white car pictured.

The Darkside

okay so minor hickup...! the car is lowered... looks awesome! got the alignment done. drive nice and straight. But I am getting kind of like a chattering sound from what i think is the lowering bolts shifting around on the control arm. There wasn't any lube on the bolt when i snipped the bottom ring off. Any ideas on what this could be?

Thanks,

forg0tmypen

bump.... for my question above...