Hi guys hope you are all doing well


For those who drive their Z06 wet or dry, just wanted to get your opinions on how the Z06 drives in the rain? I'm coming from a 350Z and driving the 350Z in the rain was a nightmare (no traction control or anything related etc.) If I took a corner too quick or too sharp of an angle I would easily spin out (nothing major/no accidents luckily).

One of my concerns is having a car I can drive in the rain with no problems. I obviously won't be flooring it when it's wet but I want to be able to drive it without worrying too much. I know the Z06 has active handling/traction control and I was wondering if that really assisted in the rain.

I'm also considering an AWD car like an evo or sti as well but I am leaning towards the Z06 and just trying to make sure I do all my research before buying one. Thanks.

 

Living in the Seattle area I drive mine in the rain with no problems. I have all season radials on the car and just take it a little easier on the take off and cornering. The only real downside is the car can get very dirty quickly. However, they do not melt or rust away and they do wash. And GM thoughtfully provided windshield wipers.

 

Hi there!

First off, the active handling and stability work perfectly in the rain. You may not be able to floor it from a stop or take a corner at 10/10ths but it can still put a smile on your face even in the rain with a nice set of rubber.

I've had this car for two years now as a daily driver and I've never had to leave at home it for *any* weather conditions.

If you can be somewhat reasonable you can drive this car year round.


make *sure* you have a good set of tires though.

 

Mine is not a Daily Driver, But I have been caught in a few down poors. I'm thinking a lot of this is depending on your driving style and the type of tires your running.

I have BFG KDW2 on my Z06 and I have had no issues running in the rain. As far as cornering goes, I can't say I would recomend pushing the limits in the wet, but I'm sure the car is capable in the right hands with the right tires.

 

They are so clever

 

thanks for the replies

I live in California so the weather is not too bad but we don't have the best roads. . .I'm not an aggressive driver but if I do get a Z06 it will have to be a daily driver and I just want to be able to drive it in the rain with no problems.

If I remember correctly the tranny is located in the rear on the Z06 correct? One problem with the 350z I had was it had no weight in the rear what-so-ever so the back end kicked out pretty easily even on dry roads.

 

You'll have no problems in CA, rain even in the mountains there is never really heavy enough to leave much standing water on the roads(lived in CA for 37 years). The only issues I have here in Ohio is when a T-storm drops so much so fast, it's got nowhere to go. I have an ATI TracMem, so I have to remember to turn the TC back on when I drive in the rain/storms out here

 

The rain does make the car a little interesting... I think as people have already expressed if you have decent all season or wet weather tires you will be fine when dealing with a lot of rain year round. Even in summer tires year round, when it does rain in AZ its not too bad to drive but you definitely have to be very aware that you have a significant reduction in traction so keep the active handling on and make sure to never give it gas while in a corner lol.

When it rains in the winters here even though it doesnt get that cold(mid 30's at night) its even another reduction in traction. I really dont know how people use the full potential of the z06 in places like Seattle or any place that gets rain/snow consistently.

Being that you are in CA I would not look over the z06 simply because of rain as you dont get enough if it yearly for it to be an issue. It will be more fun than any AWD option in the same prices range.

 

and BFG KDW2's are a great rain tire.

I have Nitto NT05's on my car and took it out of town the day before 4th of July which was mostly rain in the morning. Those tires do NOT do well in moderate to heavy rain on roads that cannot shed water quickly. I hydroplaned a handful of times that day. Nothing serious but too much pucker factor for me on the street. On the highway for the most part I had no problem with the cruise set to the speed limit during the rain though. Other than that the NT05’s rock.

 

I drive mine daily, through the winter except in anything more than a dusting of snow, in Redmond (Seattle; a lot of hills; Oceanic unpredictable weather; wet most of the time). On Michelin PS2s. Zero issues.
That said you cannot gun it everytime in those conditions. A little bit of caution and fore thought and you should be fine. I drive mine like i would drive a commuter car in rain/snow and it didnt give me any issues so far.
I would recommend getting the EBCM looked at. It has saved me many times, when i am pushing my luck
Rain is a non issue.
Temperature is a different thing. As long as it is slightly wet at worse, below 45F, i.e. no ice, let the engine warm up before driving, especially in high strain cycles like quick errands or commute. Rule of thumb for me is 10mins. You can check the oil pressure difference on a warmed car vs morning start and accordingly idle warm it. Also in those temps you need to get the tires warmer before you go over 2500rpm. shift @2000 for about 20-30 mins. Gentle with the clutch. Dont match revs on downshift.. its risky.
dont drive on accumulated snow or of course ice.
I would highly recommend following the manual's recommendation of 5w30 all the way down to below 0F (when you shouldnt drive this car; unless you can find winter tires). Dont follow others who think they can outsmart the corvette engineers whove developed the engine, by choosing a weight they think would work somehow "better".
Above all follow the manual's maintenance like a hawk. You should be good.

You dont need an AWD car unless you have ridiculously steep grades to climb in the winter.
Snow tires work incredibly well on ice. Just snow is a non-issue in snow tires. My sedan on winter tires makes me feel like its dry outside till i get out and try and walk straight on ice.
AWD sporty cars like an STI or an EVO or Audis would be a completely different driving experience. They are great cars but you are comparing apples to oranges. An STI on summer tires in heavy rain makes about the same sense as a 454 chevelle in winter. Traction is the only thing that matters. Tires and driving manners, within reason of course, make all the difference. I mean winter tires on teh 454 chevelle wont get you anywhere in a blizzard. I dont know where youre located so if you get a lot of rain and no snow, C5z06 should work without problems. If you get snow, you should make alternate arrangements in winter.
It is a powerful vehicle but torque is linear from idle. it isnt a diesel, just a powerful production car. A well thought and designed production car at that.

Cheers

 

What's rain?

Sincerely,
Drought City, Texas

 

Tires.

That's really the only thing you need to know. Having the right tire for the conditions is the secret.

I have PS2s that are great in the rain (up till they are 3/4 gone) as long as the temp is above 45 deg, but they are still drivable in colder temp (and some snow/not much though). Just let the TCM/SC systems do their job and use some common sense...

Living in the Tahoe area, snow can happen anytime of the year.

Mark

 

I have an '02z that I've used for a DD in the summer months for 7 years. Every day, all weather, from the time the snow melts to the time it comes back, Ontario Canada. The car had 40,000km when I bought it, and now with 192,000km and counting this car has been a fantastic DD.

The last 6 years and ~112,000km have been driven on Nitto 555RII "competition" tires. These are larger sizes than stock (285/35-18 F, 305/35-18 R), and come with only 5/32" tread depth when new. MOST tires evacuate water better than these do.

I'd be lying if I said I never ever had a "white knuckle" moment behind the wheel on wet roads, because I have, but I've never been in a situation where I lost control. I use common sense and drive slower when it's raining hard enough to leave standing water on the roads.

Wheel alignment is VERY important to how these cars handle wet roads. I use ZERO toe and -0.7 degrees of camber. This allows the car to keep tracking straight even when you hit some standing water and you can "feel" one of the tires start losing grip. Very seldom have I had both front tires lose grip at the same time, and the rears have never lost grip as the fronts plow the majority of the water away.

I'm sure with any "normal" tire with a greater void ratio and more tread depth the car would be far better in the rain. Having said that, the OEM Goodyear F1 Supercars were not all that great as far as hydroplaning resistance goes, but were still better than the Nittos bu quite a bit.

As far as weight distribution goes, I believe the C5 Z06 is 52/48 F/R. Yes, the transaxle is in the rear. The chassis is fairly neutral but will still understeer slightly at the limit (unless you're foolish with the throttle). The car has never felt unstable to me when pushed, and the few times I've gotten it to act up the EXCELLENT Active Handling System has straightened the car out with alarming speed and accuracy.

This car has been an absolute blast to own as a daily driver; good looking, fast, fun, surprizingly comfortable on long trips and very confidence inspiring. Take one for a drive.

 

The secret to driving in the rain with a Vette or any other car is common sense.

 

My '02 Z06 is my only car, no problems at all being a daily driver here in the Atlanta, Ga area (maybe 2-3 day of snow a year on average is the only stuff I try to avoid).

Only problem I have with rain is I don't want to get the car dirty, otherwise it drives perfectly fine IMO. Have to be a bonehead or have some tires really poorly suited to rain to have serious trouble I would think.

I had michelin PS2s originally which were fine, and now BFG KDW2s and both have worked awesome wet or dry. Honestly the BFGs seem to stick better than the PS2s, but maybe they were already old age-wise and not up to max performance when I got the car or something (plenty of tread left though)...

Anyway, I would buy with confidence, wet weather drive-ability is really a non-issue IMO. The car is freakin' awesome...

 

The SuperCar tires after a little wear had a tendency to hydroplane in the rain. However, with a good set of rain tires the car is great in the rain. When Hurrican Katrina made it to upstate NY I was at a BMW Club driving school at Watkins Glen. It poured for the whole day. I had brand new Firestone Wide Oval tires on the car and it handled everything that nature could throw at it. The track wasn't wet it was covered in water and cars were leaving rooster tails and wakes as they drove through it. As long as I kept the speed below 110 or so it didn't hydroplane anywhere. There were places where the standing water wasn't as deep and I could hit 130 in those areas.

Bill

 

86 the stock tires and get a set of Michelins, no problems...

 

I'm on Toyo T1Rs with stock sizes. This car rides in the rain PERFECTLY! I dear say it feels like an AWD car in the rain. I drive on all sorts of crappy roads in the rain too. Hydroplaning is a seriously unnerving thing for me because I crashed in my 2002 WS6 from hydroplaning at 40MPH!

The active handing and traction control on these cars are a great help, but these cars just drive well in the rain with good tires.

 

Do you dear, are do you dare?

 

LOL Damn grammar ****!