allgonoshow2

Hi Folks,

I am looking into a purchase as a daily summer driver. Likely an 06-08 Z06 based on my budget.
I am aware of the valve quide issues and will ensure the work has been done or will do it if needed.

I am curious about general cost of operation.
Tires, brakes and steering and suspension components.
Tire are expensive, what would be the typical mileage for replacement for not too aggressive driving.
Same on the brakes, typical life expectancy.
Are there other common wear items I should be aware of.
Thanx in advance.

SonnyAK

Overall maintenance costs would be pretty similar to other similarly priced cars. As a daily I'd run a Bridgestone runflat since they give great rain/dry traction and you can expect at least 25k from a set if driven normally. Same for brake pads if taken care of. If it were my only car then I'd happily daily drive one in a heartbeat!! I don't know of any other typical wear items that are out of the norm since I've never had any unexpected items to arise from mine. You can expect to average 22mpg for typical city/highway use so it's tough to beat that from a really fun car!

allgonoshow2

Thanx, I doubt I would drive more than 10k per year so operating cost shouldn't be too bad then.

jimbob8915

What kind of yearly mileage are you thinking? I have had my 06 Z since 2012 an used it for a daily most of that time. I averaged 3500 miles a year but not because I was unwilling to drive it. My job is only 2 miles away LOL. I think they are excellent DD's. To be honest I have had no unplanned failures with my car in any way, it has been a perfect car to own. By unplanned I mean surprises that come up like faults or break downs. I have done work that was planned. I have done head work, swapped out stereo, clutch, axle back exhaust, cam, shocks, CAI ect. Driven normal it does not wear the clutch, tires, or breaks any faster than any other car.

allgonoshow2

That sounds reassuring.
I am thinking no more than 10k per year, I have a truck, Harley, wife's car [ G37 awd coupe] as well.
So major expense in maybe 2-3 year cycles. That's manageable.

dmuellenberg

I've owned my 2006 Z06 since new and have 141k miles on it. It is my daily driver during the summer and I average around 12-13k per summer. I ditched the run flats and get around 50k per set now. I replaced the OEM brake pads at 50k and still running the set I replaced them with, PosiQuiet Semi Metallic pads. Obviously I don't track the car and if you don't either then maintenance costs should be minimal.

SocalChvy

The C6 Z06 is a very comfortable but raw vehicle to own and drive every day. As far as the components go, they will last as long as you are able to control your foot.

I have the Michelin Pilot Sports on mine. Day and night from the run flat interms of ride noise. The brakes, gas and tires will go as you go. If we are talking about a simple highway pull here an there, you'd have nothing to worry about. Just know that this car can go from "Wow, this thing does pretty good on gas" to "whoa where did my fuel go?" when you put your foot down.

JMB

I daily drove my 2011 Z06 year round except for 3 or 4 snow days a year and racked up 54K miles in 3-1/2 years. Great car to daily drive, ditched the runflats and went with Michelin Pilot Super Sports, smoother & quieter on the highway and went with more of a dust-less type disc pad. Gas Mileage averaged in the low 20's, changed oil every 3K, tires lasted about 28K per set.

Innovate

Fix the heads, keep everything stock, and go. Rotors are $90 a piece from KNS Brakes and pads can be had cheaply from an auto parts store. Bleed clutch fluid every once in a while. Enjoy.

anth115

Just want to add that you can further improve your tire consumption by running a less aggressive alignment (less camber if you like but more importantly less toe). Also without cold weather concerns I'd much rather have a Michelin PSS/PS4S and a AAA/CAA card than a runflat tire of any brand. The Posiquiets mentioned above get good reviews for a lower dust/lower performance pad. Do get the heads fixed and bleed the clutch fluid monthly or so via the Ranger method. Lastly, the car has excessive oil cooling capacity on the street. If this is an issue you can run the oil cooler cover from Unbalanced Engineering, or some people even remove it altogether (not what I'd recommend).

The C6Z is extremely liveable considering its performance potential, but it's also worth really considering (and a question most people don't give enough thought), that if you won't be using it to its full potential, is it really worth having (versus a C6 base or Z51, etc.). I love the LS7 in particular, and I track my car to explore its full potential. But without doing so I would find it a bit harder to justify the added costs versus a nice LS3 car. Only you can answer this one.

Landru

Doing your own maintenance greatly reduced operating costs w/ C6 Z06.
There're a number of things which can & do crap out, almost always labor eclipses parts.

Whether RF or not it's wise to get Pfadt's 'Street Spec' alignment done when new skins are installed.
billswebspace.com/CorvetteAlignmentGuideRev20110912.pdf
Unless tracking aggressive camber results in quick premature wear on inside fronts no matter how easy it's driven.
Everything mentioned above counts, don't forget this alignment or helplessly watch as expensive front tires seem to melt away.

v8sten

Costs are not that expensive, especially if you do the maintenance yourself. oil changes are about $50, brake pads i get around $150, as far as tires go I run Nitto INVOS, cost isnt too bad and if I have a flat I have an air pump out of a newer Mustang (those dont come with a spare or run flats) in it, and I have AAA.As far as steering and suspension stuff, what exactly are you referring too? Get the car aligned immediately with a "Street alignment" that means taking the camber out of it so you get even tire wear. If you dont, expect 5k-10k miles out of a set of tires. Ive gone 30k+ with hard driving out of the $150 brake pads off of ebay/amazon. as far as fuel milage goes, that really depends on yout tuner, mine got 18 city / 30 highway, with only the heads fixed and ported @ 500rwhp. At 600rwhp I was getting 16 city / 25 highway. These cars are comfortable and work great as a DD. I sold my 07 C6Z and now have a 12 C6GS, I miss my C6Z a lot. Once a month do the "Ranger Method" to the clutch fluid. It will prolong the life of your clutch master cylinder. And take care of the heads asap. Have fun, you will be hooked. Oh and I personally like the T56 cars over a TR6060. The T56 shifts so much smoother.

JMB

Hmmmm, certainly not my experience

99Hawk262

I had a 2009 Z, and now my current 2007. I honestly noticed very little difference between the 6060 and T56; when cold, the 6060 was a little tough going in to 3rd, the T56 overall feels a tad notchier to me. Both were as smooth as I could ask for.

OP, great advice above. I don't DD my car, but if I lived in a climate that allowed year round driving I wouldn't think twice about it. As it is, I love my 2013 F150 as a daily, and I think I enjoy the Z more by not driving it every day. It comes out any time the weather is even partially decent though!

I do all my own maintenance and it's been simple and straightforward thus far. I replaced the brakes because I got such a good deal on a PowerStop Z26 kit, and at 37k miles the stockers still had well over half pad left. I did my own head swap as well, was much easier than I anticipated (changed all the fluids at that time). Swapped shocks out last weekend for DRM Bilsteins because my backs were making some odd noises going over bumps, and that too was very simple. I enjoy working on the car, and if you fix the known issues and stay on top of the basics, it'll serve you well.

03Zcrit

allgonoshow2

OP here Well thanx for all the info folks, doing a deal on a 2009 Black Z06 tomorrow, pending test drive and shop inspection. Has about 40k miles and is mint.

I don't think I will sleep tonight, very pumped.

Josh M

Good luck! Its definitely a fun car. I'd have no real qualms about daily driving it besides I could see the clutch getting a bit tiresome if you are sitting in traffic for an extended period.

allgonoshow2

OP here, this is the car I ended up with, 2009 about 40k miles.

I am retired and don't drive a lot, Still have a 2015 Sierra 6.2 and Harley, so the Z as a daily, may not be the correct description.
When I do drive it, it won't be in rush hour traffic thank fully.

lgzildjian

Having this done in August, but otherwise, I can't see this car not being the perfect daily driver for 3/4ths of the year! Running CONTI DW'S on ZR1 wheels and she rides amazing, even here in PA! I do have plans to get her on track and so sprung for GiroDisc two piece rotors for the fronts (slotted/vented) vs. the stock cross drilled, and will typically run Pagid pads for track use with SRF brake fluid so that will increase operating costs, but from a daily standpoint this will be a relatively inexpensive car to run (for what it is).

Sy1616

I couldn’t daily Z06. It’s stock but just too raw for everyday. Just my 2 cents