Abnmarine

I'll be installing the shocks, swaybars with metal end links. I'm looking forward to the improved handling.

What were your experiences with this setup?

James2002z06

With everything that you've done you could have bought a Z

Vetteman Jack

Can't give you any feedback now, but one day that is the setup I will have on my car.

Abnmarine

Not at the price I bought my Corvette for.

James2002z06

Not sure what you gave for yours , but I've seen the Zs in the low 20s
I'm impressed with the amount of work that you've gotten done this past week the car is looking great , thanks for keeping us updated

ZEE-OH-6

... he said C6 ... . . . I must laugh and I have to go potty . .

Abnmarine

Thanks.

Bought mine for under $9,500. Already had heads, cam, intake, exhaust and several other mods. Power train and body is solid. Just had a couple things needing fixed like the SWPS and headlight gears.

I thought running the C6 Z06 shocks and swaybars on a C5 was a nice improvement. Figured more people were running that.

Here are the differences.

Corvette Sway Bar Specifications

Suspension Front (mm) Rear(mm)

C5 base 23.0 19.1
C5Z51 (97-99) 25.4 21.7
C5Z51 (00-04) 28.6 23.6
C5Z06 30.0 23.6
C6 base 25.5 17.5
C6Z51 31.0 25.4
C6Z06 31.0 28.0

skydiven4fun

I'm running the set up you are referring too and it really made a difference in how my car drove and tracked through the corners, I also had the car aligned at the same time, if I was going to do it all over again I would stay with the same set up. For street use and spirited driving its really all you need.

pewter99

one of the best things I did on my C5

TriplBlk

Abnmarine- What size rear tire are you running. I always read on here if its ~ 315 and below Z51, if your running a 325 and up go with a C6Z.

jcsperson

I have the C6 Z06 shocks, but went with the C6 Z51 sway bars on my base 2001 coupe. My car had already had the metal end links installed. I didn't change anything else like wheels or tires, so any changes in handling were just due to the C6 add-ons. My car had only 49K miles on it, so the original shocks would not be considered worn out.

The first thing I noticed was that the ride height increased by a third to maybe half an inch. It has settled slightly since then, but is still higher than it had been. After driving the car the first time, the ride was definitely firmer, but that there was a much larger improvement in handling than there was a deterioration in ride quality.

I do HPDE with the car and the first thing I noticed was that the car tracked flatter through the turns. The car wallowed over the gators before and wanted to let them "steer" the wheels. Now you get a firm thud when you hit them but the car doesn't want to change course. The car is much more stable when coming to the bottom of a hill and turning like Hogpen at VIR.

This isn't a cheap alternative to coilovers and adjustable sway bars, but it's a great budget mod at less than $550 for everything including an alignment.

Phanni

This guy hasn't clue what he's talking about.
The changes you're making are inexpensive, easy to do and will improve you handiling immensely. I have done it to all three of my C-5s (I still have two of them). Your car will feel like it's on rails, although the ride will become a bit more harsh on rough surfaces.

The toal cost, if you DIY, is less than $400. There are two bolts per bushing mount (8 total) 2 bolts on each end link (8 total) and that's it.
Shocks replacement proceedure is well documneted here on the forum (4 hours max) two hours if you've done it before and take a 45 minute break....
If you don't take the A arms loose when you replace the shocks (use the tie wrap solution) you won't need an alignment.

slvr bulit

I did this years ago. Switched from base C5 shocks and sways with plastic end links to C6 ZO6 shocks and C6z51 sways with metal end links. Also put on C5ZO6 rims and new toyo tires. This mod really connects the car to the road and to me was a huge difference in handling. Do it and you wont regret it.

James2002z06

Your are I don't , so I have a question Im getting ready to up grade to the C6 shocks , you had said that yours now sits a little higher , does this mean that if I upgrade that I will have to lower mine again ?

Phanni

I didn't say mine sat any higher. I said the ride would be a bit harsher on rough pavement.

Abnmarine

I'm currently running a 285/30/19 rear tire but that will change later this year. I currently have Blistiens HD up front and sports in the rear. I have no idea how long they have been on the car. They don't appear to be new.

tiojames

Changed over to that set up a few years back. Noticeable improvement over stock C5. Went to coil overs a couple of years ago and it was like night and day.

hdkeno

Have the same combo including the toyo's on my 00 coupe, and it is one of the best low cost upgrades for the c5...

frcspeed

I have a 2000 frc that had the original z51 package, the front sway bar is as stiff as you can get before a T1 setup, but I did put the c6 Z06 rear bar in and changed my rear leaf spring to a c5 z06 spring since it was stiffer. I did some reading on the forum and from what I could tell the c6 z06 shocks are pretty harsh for street driving, I had a pair of slightly used pfadt adjustable shocks presented to me fro a good price so I installed those. I run a 295 street tire and a Nitto NT01 315 tire for autox/hpde. The combination noticeably helped keep the rear end in line, I would definetly suggest an alignment no matter what you do (look on pfadt's website for specs). I like that I can adjust the shocks for sure. Goodluck

3dNomad

After much reading the forum last year, I went from the base crap to the c6Z06 swaybars and metal links. Very happy.

There's a certain freeway transition curve nearby that has 2 bumpseams(where 2 large concrete sections join, for lack of a better term):
before -with the base I can feel the body wanting to break away when running over the bumpseams, very loose.
after - its so much tighter running over the bumpseams, more confidence.

Granted the shocks are still the same, I'm just planning ahead for c/o's.