Hey all, does anyone have experience track racing either a c5/c6 z06 with hyperco leaf springs? Are they worth the money? I've been looking into different coilover setups and to be honest i kinda like the idea of sticking with leaf springs and running an adjustable shock. From what i've read hyperco makes both street and track version leafs. Has anyone run the track version on a daily summer driver?

 

I have not, but I've heard others say it will beat you up pretty bad on the street...just like the T1 suspension. Once you pay for leafs at about $500/ea, and pick up some good adjustable shocks like Koni's for $1200...you've spent more than some of the more popular coilover set-ups cost.

 

Which is why most guys go with coil overs. I do however don't really see a point in coil overs for many reason and think that depending on the performance of the hyperco leafs with a good shock might be a better setup for a street/track car. I really don't see myself adjusting ride height much once if find a comfortable street/track height which can be done pretty easily with leaf adjusters. As far as shocks go, a good set of adjustable's will give me the tuning flexibility i need. Now i'm not certain on this but i would assume composite leafs are lighter than coilovers at the control arm, and probably even throughout the whole leaf. Considering only 30% of the leaf is actually put on the arm and its lower in gravity in its weight placement in the body. Is there really a strong advantage to coilovers over a leaf/adjustable shock setup besides easier ride height adjustment?

 

Most people go to coilovers because they lowered the car way beyond what the factory suspension geometry was intended to do. I'm lowered on factory bolts, and that's plenty for me...so I have no use for coilovers either. I would just recommend sticking to the street springs and a good set of Koni's if slamming your car is not a priority. IIRC, I think there's a guy local to me running the hyperco streets...maybe he'll chime in?

 

I've heard that coilovers handle better than leaf springs for instances when the suspension is rapidly unloaded (like for sudden elevation drops). Our stock suspension feels great to me around the Streets Of Willow Springs, except for the end of the straightaway coming out of the bowl. You're doing 100+ mph and the road drops slightly but suddenly and bends just a bit. Almost feels like the tires leave the ground . I think coilovers are supposed to help keep them glued to the road a little better. This is the first I'm hearing about aftermarket leafs though, so I'm not sure how the Hyperco's would compare.

 

I really hate when people put down coilovers cause they dont think they are needed... When in fact they have never been in a car with them. I just installed Pfadts in my Z and they are amazing. The car handles better then my NSX and feels planted. One major flaw I felt in my leaf springs was that if I hit a bump the whole car reacted. (makes sence since the leaf springs attaches from one side to the other) the Second I put the coils on and hit a bump that wheel took the hit not the whole car.

The ride feels better then stock, I'm not getting thrown around and my back is just fine. They are damping adjustable so if its to rough you can make them softer.

DONT WASTE YOUR TIME WITH LEAF SPRINGS, you will be more then happy with coilovers. I had 3 corvette owners go out and buy coils after riding in my car.

 

I'm not trying to bash coilovers i'm just trying to look into leaf springs. I happen to actually be ASE certified in suspension and steerring and have a good idea how differant setups "function". Was more or less looking for some insight on hyperco leaf springs specifically. Btw which pfadt system are you running? They just redesigned their whole coilover line.

 

I have the old version, I'm annoyed that I wasnt given a heads up on the release on the new version. The day I finished the install, I logged on to see they had came out with a new design.

And it wasnt directed to you just people in general who say its not worth it but have never driven in coiled car.

 

I have the VB&P sport springs which are stiffer than the Hyperco springs. The ride is fine as long as you have a shock that can handle the added spring rate. After speaking with many of the to autocrossers The recommended staying with the leafs and shocks over the coil-overs. In fact they said unless you are dropping big money on something like a penski or Moton, They have yet to see a coil over work better. Coil-overs do allow you to lower the car, but lots of people forget that the control arms must be kept in their correct range or handleing suffers. LG was on here not that long ago saying if you want to really lower the car you need drop spindles that drop the car and keep the arms in the designed spec

The other thing said to me is that with a coil over system in the lower-end price range you are stuck with what ever the manufacture decided in the valveing they want you to have, where as you can have koni, penski's etc valved to your needs. In other words coil-over can be better, but the price range to get the measured improvement is steep

 

I would bet that those top autocross guys were sticking to class rules. ASP comes to mind. You're not allowed to change to coil overs. I've run VB&P springs for years, because of this. I ran 04,06 GM shocks, Dbl. Penske, Tri. Penske and Pfadt inverted shocks with those springs. Recently I decided to heck with the rules and bought coil overs. LG G2. When it's all done and said, I really can't tell the difference. But you do save 12 lbs total going to coil overs. If rules don't matter, I would just go with coil overs to start with.

Steve A.

 

The people I was speaking with, I wont use their names but they are all instructors with the Evo school were talking about setting a C5 up for SSM. You basically said what they said, after trying coil overs they saw no difference , except you are stuck with whatever shock valving LG or Pfadt uses. Stepping up to a Penski or moton you get whatever valving you want, In my case that would be a negitive as I would have no idea what I needed. There is a significant price increase to step up to these products. They did all agree that coil-overs make it easier to lower the car, but they also agreed that the extra lowering that they allow detracts from the cars handleing
In summary, there is nothing wrong with coil overs, but they are no better than leafs and shocks

 

While it's hard to argue with the success in Autox that some of the instructors of the Evo schools have had, coilover technology has come a long way from where it was in previous years. Unless you're rebuilding your own shocks you're always going to rely on someones expertise as to what will work well for your vehicle. Not only are the engineers here at Pfadt experienced with the special packaging requirements needed to design a world class Corvette coilover system, they are experienced drivers as well. Aaron Pfadt has won competed in multiple NASA National events, including winning the 2008 NASA National ST1 Championship, and two extremely close calls in 2009 and 2010. Employing his proven engineering experience and race pedigree we feel there absolutely is a performance edge to be had with a proper coilover setup.

We agree that extreme lowering doesn't have positive effects on cars not running aggressive Aero packages. Although where you will see a benefit in a properly designed coilover is the extra travel available versus a leaf and bolt on shock. Even at low ride heights there is still sufficient shock travel to keep the shock from bouncing off the bump stop and upsetting handling.

For those of you running race classes where a full on coilover isn't allowed and looking to run a premium shock, it's possible to run our new FeatherLight Generation Double Adjustable without the springs installed. This will give you the benefit of a shock actually designed to be installed onto a Corvette, with damping rates that will work well for which ever leaf springs you choose to run. One new Corvette specific design feature is the newly designed BOA (Ball On Axis) upper mount, which works functionally similar to a ball joint, without the binding and friction losses of a traditional Pin Top Shock.

We know that Corvettes running in race classes where coilovers are allowed will see benefits from one of our coilover systems. But for those who can't run or choose not to use a coilover, we have an ultra high performance shock option that is performing extremely well on cars once equipped with Penske or Motons.