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What mods and at what price would it take a stock 6 speed coupe beat the Z06 on the quarter mile and in 0-60 times? Also what suspension parts would have to be upgraded? But just in a reliable manner what would it take to make the coupe beat a Z? I want both methods as in:
1. Putting the LS6 parts into the LS1
2. Doing other mods just to beat the Z.
Thanks.
C5 or C6 Z06?
You don't need suspension work to beat a Z06 in the quarter mile or 0-60 run.
Assume the C5:
You need a bit more than 60hp and maybe a rear gear swap.
Cheapest.......100 shot of N20.
FI..........$5K to $15K
NA.........Long tubes, CAI, LS6 intake, cam, tune
Driver training because a dead even equipment situation will give the win to the better driver. Maybe the Z is modded as well and then you are back to needing more power.
When my '02 C5 MN6 coupe had just Longtubes, catback, x pipe, CAI, patriot 226cam and tune I was running dead even with a BONE STOCK all the way down to paper filter '04 C5Z.
What the Z has that you don't is better flowing heads, larger camshaft, different intake, steeper gearing, lighter weight. Do your best to improve all those aspects on your car and you'll gain on a Z.
Rather than upgrading to just Z06 heads and cam, spend a few bucks extra for a set of ported heads ~$1000.00, larger cam ~$350, lifters $100, LS6 intake ~$300, long tubes ~$500 - $1500, and if you wanna get really fancy a set of 4.10's.
There's no reason to change blocks. The LS1 block has been used in countless high power applications and does fine.
To beat a Z06 in a straight line, a small aftermarket cam (TR224), headers, and 4.10's would be enough. As others have stated, the M6 has better ratio spacing so I would not swap in an M12. While the M12 1st gear may help with 0-60 times, it will make it harder to maintain traction as power levels increase (due to it being a very low gear). And the M6+4.10 will make for a better overall combination for the 1/4 mile.
Handling wise it depends on what you're starting out with. If you have a Z51 car then endlinks, shocks, and non runflats will make you competitive with a Z06. If you have the standard suspension, then you will need springs, bars, shocks and non runflats. I would suggest going with an aftermarket sway bar set and a good set of aftermarket shocks, like Bilsteins. These will out perform the Z06 pieces.