MPeters1961

Could the knowledge base give me some factors I should look for? The car is at a dealership so, other than CarFax, past history may not be readily available. This would be my first Z06. I'm selling my race car and wanting a great car I can drive on the street as well as the occasional play time at the track. Thank you in advance for any input.

Racingswh

What kind of track and what type of race car are you coming from? Drag, roll or road course?

I have a 2010. Works great on the road course. Some attention has been paid to address it's issues.

MPeters1961

Drag racing. Have a small tire heads-up car. Lots of work, lots of $ for limited use. Would like to play with the Z06 on road course and maybe a few passes at the strip. Don't want the Z to turn into a limited use car. Would like to hit some open roads with my buddy in his Porsche. What issues did you have to work through?

Landru

#1 'issue' most here would say is heads.
In fact heads are LS7's only alleged weakness I know of & I've owned one for 11 years.
Minimally have heads carefully checked on a newly acquired Z06, age doesn't matter as this effects all MY Z06 as well as Z28 w/ LS7.
Specifically be looking for loose valve stems in their guide. Should be NO movement of stems, a'tall.
Movement's a definite sign it's time for some serious proactive maintenance, ie, rebuild.

One or more of those valves break due to worn guides and it's game over. Fini.
Most, not all, of us have had our heads rebuilt w/ new guides, springs, and for some other upgrades.
Once valve train's made/proven reliable LS7 is a virtual performance monster while unbelievably docile, a genuine pleasure to drive.
Inexpensive under normal operation too, I get 28 MPG cruising.

Chassis are plenty tight for casual driving, little stiff for some yet easily suitable for a track day or 2.

Find a target Z you'd like, along w/ Carfax get a GMVIS also.
Between the 2 a fairly good picture of the car's life & reliability can be seen.
An informed decision re buying or not can be made, then.

MPeters1961

Thank you! I was aware of the head issue but, taking that possibility into consideration, it didn't dissuade me from wanting a C6 Z06. Just out of curiosity, does anyone have a rough estimate on the percentage of LS7's that were afflicted with the loose guides?

MTPZ06

Welcome to the forum! Address the heads, pick up a set of DRM Bilsteins (custom valved Bilstein shocks for the C6Z) which are a great upgrade over the stock shocks that cause the rear to be a bit twitchy or jittery in cornering...and then enjoy the car!

Racingswh

Drag racing. Very cool. Something I am terrible at. Takes a lot of skill to be good and I have a tremendous amount of respect for those that are good at it!!

You won't have the same issues I did. For your purposes it will work great. Other's have mentioned the heads. If you add the Bilsteins they will help keep it settled. They are fantastic cars and for playing on some twisty back roads they are a blast. They look great too!!

C6Z06Silverbullet

MPeters1961

Guys, thank you very much! Sounds like they are sorted out very well. As stated, they are special and require attention as all performance cars do. Some work and love required but, the return on investment is well worth it. When I do acquire one, if it is not the one in the thread title, I will be quite the regular on this forum as the experience here is very substantial.

449er

That is the million dollar question, how many? If you read enough posts on this forum, you would come away believing that EVERY LS7 is gonna blow up. The reality is that a small percentage ...< 10% have had a catastrophic failure but in saying this I would recommend getting the stock heads checked just for some piece of mind. It also seems that the mid year cars are more prone to the head issue...GM supposedly fixed the issue in mid 2011

C6Z06Silverbullet

Racingswh

Out of the 10 or so I know of used on the track in my circles all but one have blown up. Some of them multiple times. Used in the fashion the OP is intending I would err on the side of caution and get the potential issue addressed. Unless of course you enjoy that special kind of fun you have when dealing with windowed blocks and engine parts scattered about in random fashion? Then you're good leaving it alone.

Landru

Excellent, you're informed. Forewarned is forearmed.
The issue must be mentioned every time I read a potential buyer asking like questions.
Surprising how many haven't heard or worse yet heard Internet gobbledegook.
While writing of it gets repetitive it's important, nonetheless.

Not that I'd ever heard, only GM knows (maybe ) due to LS7 warranty claims '06 thru '13.
Salient point is: when/if one blows motor's completely cooked, no halfway about it
Usually due to valve failure, the ones best known.
Now, for those w/ deep pockets, perhaps master wrenches performing the beaucoup labor reuired, maybe no big deal.
OTOH LS7 replacement cost is enough to make this grown man cry, PITA aggravation alone enough to leave hemorrhoids.
Glad you're on top of this, C6 Z06 can be a wonderful ownership experience to the informed Corvette enthusiast.

Ideally locate a LS7 that has not had heads done, use that to negotiate a best price.
Then get heads addressed w/ who you choose w/ what you want immediately, you'll be golden & know what you got.
G/L

Gearpuller

I purchased my 2010 Z06 3LZ in Cyber Grey in Oct. 14 with 21,500 miles on it knowing full well of the guide issue. Drove it the first 500 miles I owned it and each time I cranked
it up wondering if it would be the last time for that engine. I pulled the heads and found (at 22,000 miles) 7 intakes and 3 exhaust guides worn.

Went ahead and modded the engine to 575 rwhp. Did the mechanical work myself and 21st Century in Addison TX did the tune.
Now I have no worries when driving it. Just turn 62,100 miles on it.

I installed DRM Bilsteins on it and love them, so much better than the stock ones (but not for drag racing). You made need to go to coil overs to help with wheel hop. Lots of info on here about that too.
Also installed a MSG Flat stick shifter, nothing really wrong with the stock one but I like the tightness better.

Also something to think about is the newer the year model the better the updates are, has in starting 2010 you have launch control if you want to drag race it.

MPeters1961

Thank you GP. I pulled the trigger and bought the car. I love it! I'm convinced I'll address the head issue for peace of mind very soon.

TXGS507

Pics or it didn't happen.... Welcome to the forum...

MPeters1961

Thank you! I do need to post photos. It's Blade Silver w/ 2JZ and no mods. Love it but, will dig into the "head fix" soon. Want to drive it for a little while before a tesr down.

Spacewalker

AHP is where you want to send the heads. Get the moldstar90 guides if budget allows. google: ahp heads ls7