WhiteAndBlackC7

I have never owned a Corvette before, especially one with Mag ride. I have ordered mag ride on my C7, and can't wait to use it. I'm sure it's worth every single penny.

Anyway, I have noticed the fender gap on the Z51 models is just not going to work for me. I would like to lower the car about 1" which should look more aggressive and also keep it from looking too low, as well as not making it more susceptible to road hazards, driveways, etc.

I am wondering how this would affect the mag ride system? Has anyone a C6 ever lowered their car with mag ride by just using the factory ride height adjustment bolts?

I do understand I will need an alignment afterwards, I just wanted some input on how it worked out, if it is possible(?), and any other pros/cons. If it's a bad idea I won't do it, but if there are not many technical issues to worry about it will be one of my very first mods.

Thanks

BlueOx

I think it is a bit early for anyone here to know how this version of the MR system will work as far as lowering it. That is a great question for the next Corvette chassis expert to speak to. Maybe even email some of the Corvette communications folks about this. Try this guy...but I don't guarantee you'll get a response.

Monte Doran
Chevrolet Communications
Renaissance Center 100 / 30 / D66
monte.doran@chevrolet.com

rijowysock

hopefully someone with a magnetic susp c6 will chime in, because asking a chevy communications person will just yeild "we set the vehicle up to be the best it can be, we create those bolts for adjustment and not altering ride height, blah blah blah"

i plan on talking to my dealer about adjusting since they have special tools for it... i hope to lower around an inch as well. but some pics i see online aren't that high and i assume settled..

some cars have spacers in them to fit on trucks easier.. so this might be the ones we see that are sky high.

Jesterissimo

I'm waiting until I see the car on delivery to decide if it needs to go down or not, but I am wondering if this is something that should wait until after the car's first service appointment so things can settle in / break in. Anyone think it matters?

BlueOx

Yeah because dealers are so sharp about this stuff. I sure wouldn't trust half of the dealers in this country to know siccum about that.

I'd guess that yes, they do have specific adjustments that should be taken into account. Is that wrong? I guess I'd rather have that info up front than just assume it's fine to jack around with something I/you don't fully understand.

Mariano

I just sold my 2010 Camaro to make room for the C7. The Camaro was highly modded, 650 HP, supercharged, headers, exhaust, wheels, etc, etc. I also installed Pedder's suspension components including their lowering coils. With the lowering coils, the car was "slammed" 1.2".

Did it look aggressive, hell yes! Did it corner better, oh yeah, it did. But everything in modifying a car is a compromise and if you lower your C7 your will have to be willing to accept some compromises, especially the ride and road noise.

You don't want to have to get one of those mouth pieces that football player use to protect your teeth.

Will I do it again and 'slam" my C7? No way!

Alfie

rijowysock

it's not complicated, a bolt... a shim, a control arm and a spring... the distance between spring and control arm is the height... they make heigh adjustable to cross balance...

if you lower the height, it can move the weight around, but if you had someone with proper equipment, u could dial in the weight properly.. most shops have dead weight bags so u can get the corner balancing perfect with your weight in drivers seat.

i think i'm going to let it settle.. then go locally for a proper corner balancing with my 180lbs in driver seat..


from the factory the alignment will be proper to account for settling.. so i assume letting it settle is ideal.

magentic susp... the magnetic part is the fluid inside.. lowering compresses the piston meaning less travel but i assume lot of travel is built into the shock.... so 1" should not hurt much, youre just decreasing the travel... the adjustment in the spring/control arm is obviously put there by engineers.. so i would assume using stock bolts wont HURT the susp. but could leave you with a sitffer ride due to more compression.



i've done suspension on many cars, but all were macpherson, or a strut setup... never a corvette with it's unique spring setup... it's a smart setup for the vehicle... but again unique... i would reccomend against aftermarket bolts however or cutting the stoppers... that much adjustment was clearly not engineered into the vehicle... and over compressing a shock is a bad idea, especially when they are expensive to replace.

RicK T

Here's a quote by WayneO who has been the defacto F55 expert in C6 since '05:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/1575938180-post18.html

BlueOx

Great post and exactly the concerns I was expressing. And this is older C6 info. The C7 may have more complexity involved in adjusting it.

rijowysock

pretty sure your camaro had coil springs, and to make them shorter... the brands often change the spring rates or eliminate dead coils to reduce the size... going from a progressive spring (soft then hard) to a fixed rate spring (hard and hard).

in coil springs, there are tons of variables.

on the corvette it's not a coil spring, the spring requires no change to lower... the spring will be identical lower or higher... the only change is the compression of the shock.

i am not a corvette expert but i do know suspension and how it works and functions... this being said.. the ride will not require a mouth guard on a corvette.. the spring is what takes the bump=wont change... the shock however is what dampens the bump.. and that will slightly change with added compression.


also, given your mods on the camaro, why did you not opt for full coilovers? they have larger shocks, more travel at a lower height... ones with remote reservoirs move a lot of fluid for a small amount of height change which makes the ride amazing.. with coil spring cars, i always go full suspension (new threaded height shocks and fixed springs)... the ride is firm yet not harsh

WhiteAndBlackC7

I appreciate all your replies thus far. It seems I will likely just be patient and enjoy the car how it comes from the factory and wait for others to attempt and report their findings.

I hope these cars we have been seeing with the 4X4 style wheel gaps are the result of the suspension not being fully settled. Also, the pics are not taking into an account a 215lbs guy sitting in it. Hopefully stock will be fine!

rijowysock

my personal plans are get the car, i plan on 2k-2.5k miles the first week..

will have the car on a lift around 1500 when i get to my NC house... will check out all the susp and take pics.

when back in florida, going to adjust and align before my new wheels get measured and made for the vehicle..

i'm sure it will adjust like the c6's.. i plan on 4 turns... most say each turn is 1/8" instantlu but settles to around 1/4" drop..... so 4 turns being 1".. i'll adjust myself.. and then have a shop do fine adjustments from there to bring the balance back w/ my weight.

i have a company doing custom CNC monoblok wheels, 19x9, 20x11... on 255 and 305... going to increase the OD's .4" front and .6" rear... most people undersize the rears because an exact OD isn't available... but i hate the way those undersized OD tires look and feel.. slightly oversized wont affect anything besides a slight gearing change and i'll keep the same front/rear bias % wise.

should be an awesome car.

rmarks

Be careful, the lower you go, the more the front radiator mount hits the ground. The more it hits, the more it breaks.

Mariano

You pointed out the totally different suspensions between the two cars that I wasn't aware of. Therefore, perhaps it is possible to lower a C7 without the compromises. It looks that way and I'll stand corrected.

Coil overs? Yes, if I had to do it again, I certainly would go that route.

Alfie