Hello im new here and new corvette owner '02 Zo6. Freakin awsome. I have a few easy questions for you guys. First is spark plug cables. I have purchased new spark plugs, AC Delco Iridium and am trying to find better cables. Are these going to be the 8.5 mm MSD super conductor? (I looked for 8.8mm but could not find for '02) Is there a fix for the active handling being on when I start the car? I want this to be off when I turn the key. I have Kumho ECSTA tires on my car and im slidding around. How do these compare to the Pirelli PR, MTs and Nitto? Does anyone know where to find a seperator for the hatchback to seperate the cabin and trunk area? Vararam... I have purchased a Vararam for the vette and have not installed it yet. The way the vararam is designed, wouldnt it be possible to open up where the license plate goes in the front and have a 3rd tunnel of air coming in? Has anyone played with this? What does the ZO6 indicate/mean? Is this technical for anything besides torque monster?

Dave
stock (for now) 02 Z m/t

 

Welcome to the forums and the club!



plug wires: MSD Super Conductor wires are good enough for me. I think you are right about them being 8.5mm. I just installed them a month ago when I swapped in new NGK's. I am pleased with the car's throttle response improvement since I made the changes.

Active Handling: get a LapTrax

tires: Falken Azenis RT-615's for my Z06 right now (nice tires), but there are several good options out there. There's always a trade-off of grip to longetivity.

Yes, there is a partition available for the FRC/Z06. Search "Z06 partition."

Yes, it is possible to open up the front and allow air through the license plate area. DIY or aftermarket production pieces are your options.

Z06 option/RPO was first available when Zora Arkus-Duntov was racing Corvettes, back in 1962. Does the Z refer to Zora? I think it's a distinct possibility.

 

Better wires MUCH cheaper .... order the GM Performance Parts plug wires. The kit (8 wires) is GM part number 12495519. The supporting parts vendors here on the Forum are the best place to order them.

Active Handling ..... If you are new to the car I'd recommend you leave it ON. The AH system on a Corvette is one of the most sophisticated in the world. It does not intervene when the car is driven "normally" and even on the race track I can get the car into mild oversteer without it intervening. It will jump in and possibly save your butt in a severe over/understeer situation

Tires ... tons of posts on tires .... SEARCH is your friend .... "best" tire depends on what you want to use the car for (best drag racing tires are not gonna work as the best road course tire).

C5_4_me is WAY OFF on his description of where "Z06" came from ......

GM has a system of codes called "RPO" codes ... they are three digit alphanumeric and are assigned for Regular Production Option to make ordering and tracking options on a car easier. IN GENERAL (they brreak this "rule" sometimes so it is not a guarantee) RPO codes have a pattern ..... some examples ....

Lxx codes (such as LS1, LS2, L88. etc.) are assigned for engine option packages.

Mxx codes are often gearbox options

Uxx codes are usually assigned to entertainment (radio, CD player) packages.

Zxx codes are usually assigned for "performance" packages (ever heard of the Z28 Camaro ???)

When the first year C2 (Sting Ray) was offered for Model Year 1963 one of the option "packages" offered was RPO "Z06" (that's a Z followed by the numbers 06 ... even though people say it "Zee Oh-six" the center charachter is a zero). The option was offered for those who planned to race their Corvette on road courses. The package included, as best anyone can document ....

L84 engine - 327 cu in rated at 360 HP @ 6000 rpm with a Rochester fuel injection system

G81 Positrac differential

J65 brakes - sintered metallic shoes and finned drums

M20 close-ratio Muncie four speed gearbox

The package also included suspension upgrades (stiffer shocks, larger springs and a larger front sway bar), knock off wheels, and a 36.5 gallon fuel tank.

Out of about 21,000 Corvettes assembled in 1963, only 199 were built with RPO Z06. The option was only available in 1963, but the code number became legendary in the Corvette world so when Chevy was looking for a name for the 2001 upgraded car, they decided to revive the Z06 code as it had not been used since 1963 and spoke to both the cars heritage and performance.

 

Great! thanks for the replys. One more thing the guy I bought it from said he wasnt using premium unleaded (which is all I will put in it). I want to get the most out of my car, would regular unleaded over say 20,000 miles on the engine be something I should concern myself with from the previous owner? Is that sitaution going to cause any kind of build up or "dirty" any of the fuel system/lines/pumps? Do I need to run an additive? Replace anything or do just a visual check? TIA

 

Unless he was taking the car to a race track (and even then it is unlikely) the most damage he did to the car is making it run as fast as a Monte Carlo....

The engine has Knock Sensors that prevent damage from low octane fuel. If you have now switched to a higher octane, the only thing that will happen is the engine will provide you with better performance.

Running a Corvette on low octane fuel is like feeding an athlete junk food ... it won't kill them, but they are not gonna perform as well as if you fed them a better diet. Once you put the athlete back on the "correct" diet, the performance will pick up again.

 

Just to clarify something, active handling and traction control are two completely seperate things, even thought they are under the same button. Traction Control is just that, off...spin tires freely, on....computer controls wheelspin. Active handling uses a very intricate set of algorithms to keep your car from getting out of control when you are checking your rev limiter. I would leave this on. About the only time you will notice it, is when you are so far out of control that you were probably going to hit a tree if it wasn't on. If you want to spin the tires, push the Active Handling button down for 5-7 seconds, the words Competitive Driving will appear on the DIC (Driver Information Center) under your gauges. This will leave the Active Handling on, but turns the Traction Control off. Now, you can spin the tires all you want, but don't have to worry about hitting the ditch.

http://www.caranddriver.com/article....ticle_id=10252

That's a great analogy.

Just to add one thing to what BlackZ06 said. The computer in your car has two sets of Spark Control tables. One is for low octane fuel and the other is for high octane. There is a noticeable difference in performance between running crap gas and premium. Be sure to try and buy gas with Techron in it or add it yourself and don't buy any with ethanol.