Wheel Hop.......
Thread Starter
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2001
Posts: 5,577
Likes: 3
From: Southern Maryland Maryland
Wheel Hop.......
Anyone know what would cause wheel hop on my 99 Corvette(6sp,ac/tc,z51)? I am running stock rubber and the suspension hasn't been lowered. Any suggestions on how to cure this?
Phillip :rolleyes:
Phillip :rolleyes:
Drifting
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 1,514
Likes: 38
From: Woodland Wa
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Ryan2002C5)
My 79 never had wheel hop, nor did my 94 or 96 ever ever wheel hop, laying rubber was a blast in those cars. The 1st time I dumped the clutch in my C5 I almost cried. GM has done a bad thing in the C5, I wont ever foregive them. Wheel hop in the C5 is terrible and very upsetting to me. IRS suspension? show me a post on the C3 or C4 board with a wheel hop complaint. You may dig one up but I never ever experienced it in any Corvette except the C5.
It was wheel hop that brought me to search out a Corvette website back in 1999 when I found this site, guess what my 1st post was about :mad
It was wheel hop that brought me to search out a Corvette website back in 1999 when I found this site, guess what my 1st post was about :mad
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 26,714
Likes: 344
From: Houston, TX
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Sixguns)
Try feathering the clutch just slightly instead of dropping it hard. I find this eliminates the wheel hop most of the time, even when the tires are spinning hard. Don't feather too much though, as the clutch does not like too much slip. Yeah, it's a weakness of the C5.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 1999
Posts: 2,521
Likes: 0
From: Houston, TX
Re: Wheel Hop....... (jschindler)
Try feathering the clutch just slightly instead of dropping it hard. I find this eliminates the wheel hop most of the time, even when the tires are spinning hard. Don't feather too much though, as the clutch does not like too much slip. Yeah, it's a weakness of the C5.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2000
Posts: 6,518
Likes: 0
From: Toms River NJ
Cruise-In II Veteran
Cruise-In III Veteran
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Mike Siska)
I second that ... it sucks !!!!!!!!!!! :mad :mad :mad :mad
Yeah, it's a weakness of the C5.
The Z06 is even worse!
:mad :mad
The Z06 is even worse!
:mad :mad
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Drifting
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 1,993
Likes: 0
From: Joliet IL
Re: Wheel Hop....... (z06bliss)
Here's my most recent experience. I took off slowly from a light in 1st gear. I took the rpm's up to 2500 and then floored it. Guess what, the tires broke loose and started hopping on me! :mad
BTW, it was a cold morning below 32 degrees because I never broke them loose during the summer doing the same thing.
BTW, it was a cold morning below 32 degrees because I never broke them loose during the summer doing the same thing.
Drifting
Joined: Jun 2000
Posts: 1,754
Likes: 0
From: Redwood City Ca
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Phil97SVT)
This has been a topic on the Forum over the years. I've heard that lowering tire pressure can help. The stock EMT's are definitely not a good traction tire. I usually have a wheel hop problem going from a slow roll, and clutching it around 2000 rpm. Feathering the clutch is good advice.
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,517
Likes: 1
From: Stockholm
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Phil97SVT)
I think you are missing the idea behind the C5, it is built to handle in the best possible way. The old generations of corvettes or any other car mentioned in this thread handle like the C5, not even close !
The suspension in the C5 is not optimal for hard launches as at a dragstrip. To gain it's handling capabilities we have to sacrifie something, in this case we get wheel-hop.
I've had coilovers from when my car was new, I've tried different tires and tire-pressures but I get wheel-hop at one out of ten launches. There are other tricks you can use to get rid of wheel-hop as mentioned earlier in this thread but none of them guarantees you to completely get rid of wheel-hop.
I'm not a suspension specialist but I've found that the C5 do not get any weight transfer to the rear as in other cars with old-fashioned suspension technology. My cure was to use adjustable shocks making the front very soft when dragracing getting much weight transfer to the rear. No more wheel- hop ! I've been reading about forum members that disconnect the front shocks completely when dragracing(cheap adjustable shocks :) ).
My primary use of the car is roadracing which I think the C5 is built for.
Please no flames. This is only my personal opinion.
:seeya
[Modified by seanr, 8:00 PM 12/20/2001]
The suspension in the C5 is not optimal for hard launches as at a dragstrip. To gain it's handling capabilities we have to sacrifie something, in this case we get wheel-hop.
I've had coilovers from when my car was new, I've tried different tires and tire-pressures but I get wheel-hop at one out of ten launches. There are other tricks you can use to get rid of wheel-hop as mentioned earlier in this thread but none of them guarantees you to completely get rid of wheel-hop.
I'm not a suspension specialist but I've found that the C5 do not get any weight transfer to the rear as in other cars with old-fashioned suspension technology. My cure was to use adjustable shocks making the front very soft when dragracing getting much weight transfer to the rear. No more wheel- hop ! I've been reading about forum members that disconnect the front shocks completely when dragracing(cheap adjustable shocks :) ).
My primary use of the car is roadracing which I think the C5 is built for.
Please no flames. This is only my personal opinion.
:seeya
[Modified by seanr, 8:00 PM 12/20/2001]
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 1,188
Likes: 0
From: Dallas TX
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Phil97SVT)
No real fix unless you get a solid rear axles. You can control it by feathering the clutch, but you'll probaby significantly shorten the life of the clutch. I just try to feather the gas pedal. My times will never be as good as they should be, but at least my clutch will last a bit longer.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 824
Likes: 0
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Phil97SVT)
For those of you saying there is no solution to the problem, it's no wonder you still have it. It has nothing to do with IRS, it's a lack of shock valving control. It can be dialed out with a properly valved set of adjustable shocks. We discussed it in great detail recently:
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=188162
http://forums.corvetteforum.com/zerothread?id=188162
Team Owner
Joined: Jun 2001
Posts: 26,714
Likes: 344
From: Houston, TX
Re: Wheel Hop....... (TeamZ06)
By the way, I agree that is has little to do with IRS. Back in the muscle car days, several cars went to staggered shocks to get rid of axle hop (one shock in front of the axle, the other side on back of the axle).
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2000
Posts: 1,517
Likes: 1
From: Stockholm
Re: Wheel Hop....... (Phil97SVT)
The cure for wheel-hop is adjustable shocks such as Ohlins shocks. To the left my front Ohlins coilovers, to the right my old non-adjustable front bilstein coilovers.
Several of the supporting vendors have adjustable shocks to offer. The most common adjustable shocks (at least when reading posts on this forum) seems to be HAL's, they are optimized towards dragracing. If your major use is roadracing go with Ohlins or Penskes.
[Modified by seanr, 12:48 PM 12/22/2001]
Several of the supporting vendors have adjustable shocks to offer. The most common adjustable shocks (at least when reading posts on this forum) seems to be HAL's, they are optimized towards dragracing. If your major use is roadracing go with Ohlins or Penskes.
[Modified by seanr, 12:48 PM 12/22/2001]