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Biting The Bullet Shocks

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Old Mar 6, 2018 | 09:27 PM
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Dropping the 04 very off Sunday night for some brake work / retune / tranny shifting issues and yes new shocks. I currently have the F55 option. Since I’m not paying those prices (unless someone knows someone) so I’m thinking C6 Z06 replacements. Only issue I have is this is a daily driver. I’m not looking to stiffen the ride per say. I’m looking for comfort and the enjoyment of a vert. Never tracked the car and probably never will.

Guess my question is are there any other shocks besides the C6 Z06 shocks. An air shock perhaps? Or is the Z06 the best shock out there.

Thanks in advance, Bonz
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Old Mar 6, 2018 | 10:32 PM
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Bilsteins makes good shocks, but I would say the C6 Z06 shocks will not make the ride unbearable.
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Old Mar 6, 2018 | 10:43 PM
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I put a set of Z06 shocks on my base 2001 Coupe with FE1 suspension. It did not make my car ride hard it just seemed to make the suspension seem tighter than with the original shocks.

IMHO the ZO6 shocks are the best bang for the buck.
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 12:22 PM
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That's what I keep hearing so I guess I'm going that way
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 02:10 PM
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C6Z51 or C6 base shocks are good alternatives if you're not looking to stiffen up the ride, with C6 base being the softest

You can try checking Ebay to see if someone is selling used F55 shocks. I got a set of 4 for about $240, and two of them still had the shock stuffers inside.
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 04:02 PM
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I would kill for 4 F55 shocks for under $500, Let me take a good look. Again I don't believe the c6 F55's fit the C5's
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 04:14 PM
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Look for used 2004 Corvette shocks. The electronic shocks have corrugated boots. The ones I got weren't listed as F55 shocks, just regular shocks. I was able to tell by the pictures they were F55.

​​​
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 04:28 PM
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I have a 2004 vert with the standard shocks. I swapped them out for Koni FSD shocks in 2012 and at the time I liked the ride, however over time, it seems as though I have more movement when driving over dips in the road, etc. as they don't seem as firm as they used to. At the time, I was also considering C6Z and Bilstein shocks, so I may relook at those.
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 04:46 PM
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I'll keep looking on ebay but I do have a call into my corvette guy to see if he can get his hands on any used ones or try out the c6 Z06 unless he thinks there is something better out there. He did my PFADT long tubes / X pipe and high flow cats as well as swapped out my rear from 2:73 to 3:42 so I trust his knowledge so lets see how this all plays out
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Old Mar 7, 2018 | 06:31 PM
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I have the C6 Z06 shocks and C6 Z51 sway bars waiting to go on my 02. I'm thinking I paid only $550 for all of it from Gene when he had a 10% off deal.
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 09:44 AM
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Originally Posted by bonzo
I'll keep looking on ebay but I do have a call into my corvette guy to see if he can get his hands on any used ones or try out the c6 Z06 unless he thinks there is something better out there. He did my PFADT long tubes / X pipe and high flow cats as well as swapped out my rear from 2:73 to 3:42 so I trust his knowledge so lets see how this all plays out
You might check out Koni FSD shocks.
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 11:10 AM
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Just put bilstein sports on it & call it a day. Keep searching the web for em & you'll start getting pop-up ads w/ ever increasing better deals. I have an '03 C5Z & one of the first things I did besides tires was swap out the stock shocks, despite only having 13,500 miles on em the car (@ the time) was 11+ years old. I have 36k miles now so the shocks have about 22k + 4 years use & they feel like the day I had them installed. I put Bilstein HD shocks though, which are a bit stiffer than the sport ones - you can also get DRM valved bilsteins for an even more finely tuned shock specific to the C5.
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 11:22 AM
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Drm???
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 11:38 AM
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Originally Posted by tigertank
Drm???
doug rippie motorsports, I think they're an approved vendor, they worked w/ bilstein & developed a version of their C5 shocks w/ more custom tailored valving meeting DRM's specs for their race packages.
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 02:25 PM
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Shes going in Sunday no matter what Brakes are beyond shot. Wife took the car up to GA this past weekend for some curve action while I had to work. Half way home (FL) she started to hear a noise when she was braking. Thus my Sunday appt. I need to get the tranny shift points changed and brakes / shocks. I don't have the garage space or the lift / tools to do the work myself. This I am going to pay a premium to have her fixed up/ I'm just trying to figure out what I'm looking for ahead of time so I can get in and out as she's my daily driver! I'm reading these answers and researching all replies. Thanks much
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Old Mar 8, 2018 | 08:28 PM
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Thx c5dobie
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