Mig233

Hey everyone. I'm fairly new to the c6 z06 community having just picked one up in April. I am coming out of a 2004 z06, which I sold in March. I thought that car was very well damped, and I'm not crazy about how my new 2009 z06 feels. Grips like hell, but feels floaty and a little unsettled at speed. My car is stock, with a fresh set of Potenza RE-11s. I only plan on getting an alignment and slightly lowering the ride height. I do not plan on tracking the car, but I want the car to respond and feel like a z06 should.

I have read outstanding things about the DRM Bilsteins and was Planning on ordering a set due to the rave reviews and Randy's recommendations. However, I also stumbled across Viking double adjustable shocks for a couple hundred more dollars. Are these worth the extra money? Does anyone have any experience with either or both of these shocks?

I used to race motorcycles and have had some experience tuning my own suspension on 2 wheels. But I don't want to be messing around with adjustment screws every time I drive the car. I would like to get it set and just drive. Any input is appreciated.

MongoZ06

Here'a bump for you on this one. I'm curious about the Viking products as well. I got to mess with them at a PRI show a couple of years ago and they seemed like quality pieces but feedback on them in the corvette world seems scarce.

froggy47

I would go with some shocks that have a history, track record, proven results. Never heard of Viking, sorry.

Mig233

Good advice. Honestly that's why I'm fishing for some info. Apparently they have been around and are big in the mustang and muscle car community. They recently (2015?) came out with products for c5 and c6s. I'm 90% sure I'm going to get the DRMs, but I just figured I would vet all my options before I pull the trigger next week.

chetly

I'd go with the DRM. Unless Viking can provide you with a few things. Are they rebuildable here in the US? Also, at what cost? Do they provide dyno sheets for the shocks your buying showing what the compression and rebound ***** do? My JRi's did. Do the ***** act independently or in conjunction with each other?

Realistically, if your not autocrossing, doing HPDE events or racing door to door you don't need double adjustable shocks. Chances are they will just confuse you and you'll end up with a worse ride than stock.

acrace

Vi-King has been best known for their street rod shocks and suspension bits. I believe that their Corvette stuff is relatively new. I hadn't heard of them until I met one of their engineers who was at the 2015 Columbus Good Guys event, supporting Tony Grzelakowski's Chevelle (driven by Matthew Braun - finished second to Danny Popp in the sponsor shootout that year).

Braun now has their shocks on his C5 Z06, which has done pretty well in SSR class SCCA autocross competition (just won the PittRace national tour this past weekend, and second at the three Pro Solos he's run, right there with Strano, Reeve, Peters, etc). To my knowledge, he's the only top tier Street/Stock category autocrosser running Vi-King shocks.

acrace

I've been doing a little homework on the Vi-Kings (considering them as a daily driver/light autocross duty shock for my C5 Z06), but don't know all the answers. I did see dyno graphs on their website for their drag and street rod shocks. The engineer I talked with last year said that he's dyno shocks for me but we didn't talk specifics.

One thing I found interesting is that they do have rebound revalve instructions on their website.

But given what I have in my "inventory", I'd be more inclined to rebuild my well worn Penskes first.

BTW, agree with your comments about the "necessity" of double adjustable shocks for a purely street driven car.

acrace

Last of my three replies

I had the same complaint about the damping on my C6 Z06 (2009 MY). Particularly the rear felt unsettled, particularly over mild pavement undulations while cornering.

I do have a set of DRMs on my C6 Z06 now. Much more settled for that condition, and not as much "harshness" over potholes, etc.

C5 Hardtop

I know what you are talking about, the C5Z is stiffer and I loved that. Especially lowered with some camber dialed in, damn it rode good.

The C6Z just doesn't have the same stiffness over bumps, but I never lowered it. The air dam seemed to scrape more at stock ride hight. I'd call DRM and tell them you want the same stiffness and ask what they suggest to address the problem instead of asking for a specific part.

BrianCunningham

DRM has been around for years
I got my latest springs from them.

Never heard of the other guys

Seen to many vendors come & go.
Go with the ones with a record

froggy47

My observation on when a "top driver" uses a particular brand of anything, is that these guys can drive a (insert the name of the worst handling car you have ever driven) to a top place finish.

So personally, I'm not swayed by that.

Now if the 50% of the trophy cars in a class at nat's are using the same piece of equipment, I pay attention.

acrace

Then all those with autocrossing as a priority ought to run Koni 3013s!

Mig233

From what I read the DRMs are pretty much optimized for the C6z. The question is, is it going to be enough of an upgrade over stock for me to be satisfied. And if not, will the Vikings have enough adjustability to allow me to find the right settings for my intended use (canyons, highway ramps, high speed fun). I doubt it will be seeing track time, but it doesn't mean it can't be set up for the track.

Mig233

I guess what it comes down to is...can I replicate the DRM valving with the adjustability of the Vikings? If so, it's a done deal. Because I will have their optimized setup plus the ability to tailor to my butt feel. If not, then I will probably lean toward the professionally set up shocks, and leave it alone.

0Anthony @ LGMotorsports

You will find a lot of 'new adjustable' shocks hitting the market every year and as time goes on they typically fade away as well.

If you want to keep a stock replacement style shock on the car then stick with a name brand. There is a reason guys like ourselves and DRM use Bilstein shocks (even the OEM) is their decades of experience both OEM and on the race track. Their floating pressure chamber and nitrogen charged mono tube shock design is unbeatable price per performance seen on track.

You have a number of choices from either a off the shelf HD or Sport shock to the DRM valved units if you want a OEM replacement set. You can go with something custom built like our Sport shocks which use a Motorsports Bilstein shock package as well and our own mounting kit or a coil over.


As for the adjustable part...if you are going to do an adjustable shock, then spend the money and get an adjustable shock. I would state these two things....1. Is it worth it to spend $5000+ on shocks only? 2. Do you know what you are doing when adjusting bump and rebound? If you can not wholeheartedly say yes to both of those questions then I wouldn't worry about it. Ohlins, Penske, and Bilstein all do a single, double, and triple adjustable shock but those are about the three names only I would use when picking one.

Mig233

Hey Anthony thanks for the response. I didn't know LG makes a sport shock. I thought you guys only made the g2 coil overs. I would certainly be interested in speaking with you about different shock packages. I plan on retaining the stock leaf springs. I haven't found any quantitative data to prove coilovers are better than the stock leaf springs, so i just want to improve on the stock set up and not spend a ton of money and completely reengineer it. Again, im looking to make a corvette gt3.

0Anthony @ LGMotorsports

https://www.lgmotorsports.com/corvet...rt-shocks.html

Yes sir.

davidk72008

I had the Viking DA coilovers on my old 4th gen SS. Those shocks were great for drag racing, but when you stiffened them up for auto-X or road course they just didn't provide the ride that my DRM Bilsteins do on my C5. They gave me a very bumpy wagon like ride when they were stiffened on my Camaro.

The Corvette feels planted on the track and it still rides very comfortably on the streets with the DRM shocks. I love them.

Now, I know these are two very different cars, but in my opinion, I would go with the DRMs for your car if you're looking at autoX or track performance.

Mig233

Thanks for the response. That's kinda the feeling I was getting. The guys who went to Viking shocks were drag race and half mile guys. I just wasn't sure if it was possible to set these up for the road course. I'm looking for a road race setup. I think I'm gonna leave the valve adjustments to the pros and get the DRMs and hope they meet my needs.

chetly

In think that's a smart move...