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Just picked up a new (to me) 2013 GS coupe, 24k miles. Drove her four hours home from the dealer and noticed quite a bit of a "loose" feel in the way the car drives at higher speeds (60+).
The best way I can describe this is that the car gets really squirrely at high speeds, so much so that I don't have confidence to drive her hard or take some good corners. It also blows around in the wind.
The alignment is slightly off and that will be rectified, but I don't think that's the entire problem. The ball joints, tie rods, etc are all tight.
Tires are brand new Firestoe Firehawk Indy 500's.
I had a 2008 Z06 and it was a scalpel - it was point and shoot and it could hang at 120 all day without budging on the highway, and that's how I know something's up here.
Are there any differences between the GS and the Z06 from a steering and suspension perspective that could be causing this?
Wow can't really answer your question. My 2012 GS with 39k miles doesn't behave like that at all. It feels like it is driving on a rail for the most part.
Wow can't really answer your question. My 2012 GS with 39k miles doesn't behave like that at all. It feels like it is driving on a rail for the most part.
Yeah there has to be something amiss for this to be happening. I hit some very fun curves on my way home when I hit the backroads almost to the house. Many are rated at 25-30, and I am taking them at 50-60. Granted some are way over cautious in the warning signs.
One thing I have been curious about, is the amount the car can safely take. My Camaro SS (non 1LE) would take these same turns at a good bit slower speeds and I would start to get a little squeal from the tires, but I knew where the breaking point was. I haven't heard a squeal really on the GS yet and curious, how much give is there at that point. LoL. All that rubber, I wonder if they behave in the same manner, or if once you hear the squeal they are going lose.
Originally Posted by backstroke3229
Hi all, I had a 2008 Z06 and it was a scalpel - it was point and shoot and it could hang at 120 all day without budging on the highway, and that's how I know something's up here. Are there any differences between the GS and the Z06 from a steering and suspension perspective that could be causing this? Any help will be appreciated. Thanks!
When you say the car could hang at 120 without budging, are you talking in a straight line? The GS shouldn't have any issues with that. They are the same car minus the LS7, aluminum chassis, the carbon fiber fenders and of course the fixed roof. Which was one of the main reasons I didn't go with a Z06. Love taking the top off.
Sounds like you have an alignment issue and/or need some new shocks. The GS is perfectly stable, especially at a benign 120mph. My guess is that the previous owner got an alignment to maximize tire life at the expense of handling.
I have a 2013 GS also and when you said you put new tires that sort of threw a monkey wrench in because I was waiting for you to say you had the original Goodyears on which would have been your problem. So on that note the bad alignment could very well be what your feeling. Get a good alignment and report back. However next time you are on the highway put the car in "competition mode" and that will firm up your steering feel by way of adjusting the pressure in the steering rack. See if it feels any better.
I hage a 2013 base coupe and I have a firm solid feel,on the road. I have had 120 on track and still solid and steady. When I put my new Michelines on I had an alignment done and the car no longer followed the ruts in our roads like it did with the OEM Goodyears. I have 38K on the car.
if you had another C6 and have an issue like this, something is wrong.
you say the suspension is straight and tight? if so, I hope the alignment fixes it. I'd make sure the suspension was straight and tight. I assume you feel it from the rear.
Thanks everyone. I'll check the direction of the tires and we'll see what the alignment brings tonight.
It's weird- there's a ton of body roll, and if I do a quick jerk of the steering wheel on the highway (say to avoid a pothole) it's really unsettling.
Could the difference im feeling be the lack of a fixed roof? I'm not sure how much stiffness you lose going from a Z06 to a targa top.
Feels like there's a significant delay between when I quickly jerk the wheel and when the car follows. I have almost no feel in the steering- it's hard to tell what the wheels are doing.
This might sound crazy but if those are directional tires were they installed correctly? Could explain why it feels 'loose' or unsettled.
Also make sure the psi is right. A lot of tire shops put max psi in the tires when they mount them and too high psi in the tires will make a car squirrely.
Thanks everyone. I'll check the direction of the tires and we'll see what the alignment brings tonight.
It's weird- there's a ton of body roll, and if I do a quick jerk of the steering wheel on the highway (say to avoid a pothole) it's really unsettling. Could the difference im feeling be the lack of a fixed roof? I'm not sure how much stiffness you lose going from a Z06 to a targa top.
Feels like there's a significant delay between when I quickly jerk the wheel and when the car follows. I have almost no feel in the steering- it's hard to tell what the wheels are doing.
Definitely shouldn't be a noticeable difference like that. The Targa Top is very snug and the C6s don't flex like the older models do when jacking the car up you used to need to crack the doors. The C6 shouldn't give you what you are experiencing even with the top off. I can cut the wheel back and forth to dodge pot holes and feels perfectly stable with no noticeable roll.
You did mention the new tires and the alignment being off, perhaps that is simply it. Did you drive the car before the tires, or is this something that was done right before you bought it?
When you say it blows around in the wind, what do you mean? The car physically feels to move with heavy winds? Something is definitely amiss.
I was going to ask the same thing. Or do all the tires match?
The tires do all match - brand new Firestone Firehawk Indy 500's. Perhaps the specific kind of tire is causing an issue?
Originally Posted by jchappies
I would start with a Pfadt alignment spec.
Do you have mag ride?
No mag ride, unfortunately. Can you elaborate on what the Pfadt alignment spec is? What are the specs, what are the pros, and what are the cons? Thanks!
Originally Posted by kgh06688
Also make sure the psi is right. A lot of tire shops put max psi in the tires when they mount them and too high psi in the tires will make a car squirrely.
It was set at 40 initially, but I reduced it to 30 cold and unfortunately didn't see much of a difference.
Originally Posted by SPSandman
Definitely shouldn't be a noticeable difference like that. The Targa Top is very snug and the C6s don't flex like the older models do when jacking the car up you used to need to crack the doors. The C6 shouldn't give you what you are experiencing even with the top off. I can cut the wheel back and forth to dodge pot holes and feels perfectly stable with no noticeable roll.
You did mention the new tires and the alignment being off, perhaps that is simply it. Did you drive the car before the tires, or is this something that was done right before you bought it?
When you say it blows around in the wind, what do you mean? The car physically feels to move with heavy winds? Something is definitely amiss.
I'm checking the tire direction and hopefully getting it aligned tonight. When I mention the wind, I mean that the car feels more like driving my Tahoe than it does a low slung race car. It feels like the stronger winds at high speed affect where it goes. Sometimes it'll just randomly blow around the highway, it's weird.
I'm glad to hear this isn't normal for a GS though. I wasn't sure if I was being paranoid, but I'm honestly glad to hear that I'm not and that the car can be improved.
Two questions for the group:
1) How does the steel frame in the GS vs the aluminum frame in the Z affect the handling? Could that be what I'm feeling, or is the difference pretty insignificant unless you're driving hard on a track?
2) Let's say everything looks as it should (ball joints are tight, tires and alignment are correct, etc) and the something is still clearly wrong. Where do I go to truly get to the bottom of it? Any Corvette specialists in or near southwest PA?
PFADT alignment spec, I run the street performance and it rides like I'm on rails. With as much sway as you say your getting make sure you even have sway bars, never know if someone took them off. Since you don't have mag ride look at shocks too.
The tires do all match - brand new Firestone Firehawk Indy 500's. Perhaps the specific kind of tire is causing an issue?
No mag ride, unfortunately. Can you elaborate on what the Pfadt alignment spec is? What are the specs, what are the pros, and what are the cons? Thanks!
It was set at 40 initially, but I reduced it to 30 cold and unfortunately didn't see much of a difference.
I'm checking the tire direction and hopefully getting it aligned tonight. When I mention the wind, I mean that the car feels more like driving my Tahoe than it does a low slung race car. It feels like the stronger winds at high speed affect where it goes. Sometimes it'll just randomly blow around the highway, it's weird.
I'm glad to hear this isn't normal for a GS though. I wasn't sure if I was being paranoid, but I'm honestly glad to hear that I'm not and that the car can be improved.
Two questions for the group:
1) How does the steel frame in the GS vs the aluminum frame in the Z affect the handling? Could that be what I'm feeling, or is the difference pretty insignificant unless you're driving hard on a track?
2) Let's say everything looks as it should (ball joints are tight, tires and alignment are correct, etc) and the something is still clearly wrong. Where do I go to truly get to the bottom of it? Any Corvette specialists in or near southwest PA?
The Aluminum frame was mainly for weight benefits and aluminum has 97% of the rigidity of the steel frame, so that shouldn't be the source of the differences you are experiencing. If anything the GS should be a bit more rigid, I would think. Though the solid roof, may offset that if the top was removed.
As far as 2) I have no idea. I would definitely find a corvette specialist shop to look things over.
Hopefully, the alignment helps. The car definitely shouldn't feel like a Tahoe when there are extreme winds. I drove home a few weeks back with gusts of 35-40 and didn't feel must of anything, definitely didn't cause the car to feel unsafe.
You know the more I think about it your alignment could definitely be the problem if it it off considerably. When the dealership did a free wheel alignment for me a couple of years ago it didn't feel right when I got it back. After about a week the car got worse and did what you are experiencing. It was so bad I couldn't drive it safely and had it towed back to the dealer. When they checked it every parameter was badly off in the red. I don't know what they did originally, probably forgot to re tighten some jam nuts and they of course said they did it right. So they re did it and I then took it to a specialty shop to have it done again, this time it was set dead center of the specs and it does till this day drive perfect. Here's hoping your wheel alignment is the problem and no further action is needed.
03-18-2019, 01:35 PM
2013 GS Suspension Help
