I may buy a Z06...Viper owner
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
I may buy a Z06...Viper owner
Hello everyone!
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
#2
Race Director
Hello.
if you're buying a manual Z06 make sure it has the auxiliary radiator installed if pre 17.
you shouldn't have any issues.
the Z06 is much more civilized than the viper but you already know that. Good luck.
if you're buying a manual Z06 make sure it has the auxiliary radiator installed if pre 17.
you shouldn't have any issues.
the Z06 is much more civilized than the viper but you already know that. Good luck.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#3
Safety Car
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HessViper (09-16-2018),
SoCalFinest (08-31-2018)
#4
Burning Brakes
Hi and welcome!
If your not going to be a hardcore racer, then I wouldn't worry about it. I have an A8 with long tubes and cai and have zero issues. Even when it's over 200*, it still rips, lol. Good luck...
If your not going to be a hardcore racer, then I wouldn't worry about it. I have an A8 with long tubes and cai and have zero issues. Even when it's over 200*, it still rips, lol. Good luck...
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#5
Advanced
Hey Brian, like others have said regarding overheating the general consensus is manuals especially ‘17+ don’t have any issues and even autos have to have extreme conditions (both driving and weather) to POTENTIALLY have an issue. Are you looking to get a manual or automatic?
As far as a coupe or convertible, obviously it comes down to personal preference. However, all the coupes now have a removable roof that is easily taken off (only 16 lbs I believe) and made to store in the trunk. Additionally, the convertible is 4k more when in my opinion you get the looks of a coupe and benefits of a convertible, with the coupe. I will say though that convertibles use to be significantly heavier than coupes. Although, I forget exactly how much more the convertible weighs, it’s not much I want to say around 25 or 35 more pounds (don’t quote me on that lol).
Good luck and hope you join the Corvette family.
-Jason
As far as a coupe or convertible, obviously it comes down to personal preference. However, all the coupes now have a removable roof that is easily taken off (only 16 lbs I believe) and made to store in the trunk. Additionally, the convertible is 4k more when in my opinion you get the looks of a coupe and benefits of a convertible, with the coupe. I will say though that convertibles use to be significantly heavier than coupes. Although, I forget exactly how much more the convertible weighs, it’s not much I want to say around 25 or 35 more pounds (don’t quote me on that lol).
Good luck and hope you join the Corvette family.
-Jason
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#6
Race Director
I've got a 16 A8, but have the DeWitt's cooling kit to handle the over heating. If you are mainly going to drive on the hwy, and not track a lot you should be ok. If you do track it you can adjust your driving style and get through the sessions you want to. Unless you are a track nut and worried about lap times it won't make that much difference to you.
Enjoy your new Z06 and welcome to our forum.
Enjoy your new Z06 and welcome to our forum.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#8
Hello everyone!
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
Vipers only came in manual right? The last manual viper i drove, i think it was a 96 GTS. It was terrible lol. I'm sure they got better as the years went on.
The manual in the C7Z is A LOT better though. Almost porsche like. Can't say the same about the auto though lol. But drive both and make your comparison.
Last edited by Z0HS1CK; 08-31-2018 at 07:56 PM.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#9
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Welcome to CorvetteForum, Brian. I hope you pull the trigger and pick up a Z06.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#10
Racer
Overheating issue is known to be typically associated only with automatics, and although there may be a few cases, not generally manuals. Furthermore (and as far as I know), overheating issue is associated only with cars that are being heavily loaded in prolonged track sessions, not driving on the street. The aux radiator solution can be easily retrofit to earlier model years for a relatively modest cost if this proves to be a concern.
16 Z Manual at the ring.. what overheating?
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#11
Race Director
It will be boring, to the point of lifeless, compared to your Viper. I had an '18 A8 that didn't have any issues but my father in law has a '16 A8 Z07 that blew its rear end after a mild hpde, a complete replacement. I bought a Challenger hellcat and couldn't be happier but if I went back to GM I would get a ZL1 1LE with the 10 speed auto or stick.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#12
I have a 19 Z06 Manual rag top and love it, plenty of excitement and pure joy. Easy to drive and looks great. Mr Donuts may have had a few too many...........................
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#13
Instructor
Thread Starter
Way to make a person feel welcome, I appreciate all of the thoughtful responses
I will continue to read the forum and will ask further questions as I get closer to making a purchase.
Thank you all
I will continue to read the forum and will ask further questions as I get closer to making a purchase.
Thank you all
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Mikec7z (09-01-2018)
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#15
I think the corvettes handle better than vipers for the majority of driving.... both how they handle bumps, and also how they will pull lateral G around a curve. I think your wife will be much happier riding in the corvette.
I have an automatic, and i love it, my previous sports cars were all manual, but I wanted to switch things up, and I am glad i did. The auto trans does very well once one starts driving aggressively.
As far as overheating goes, we are about to solve that in a much simpler way than what has been done in the past, and ironically i pulled my knowledge from the viper and its oil cooler (corvettes dont really have one, it is an oil to coolant heat exchanger), not like the air to oil heat exchanger on your viper.
If you buy the automatic, then she can drive, which might come in handy on long trips. (but, she might also be capable of driving the manual, and if she can drive the viper, she will be more than able to drive the corvette's manual transmission with rev matching... it is magical)
Test drive both manual and auto if you can, and the auto, just know, there is way more too it than a salesman will be able to show you.
I have an automatic, and i love it, my previous sports cars were all manual, but I wanted to switch things up, and I am glad i did. The auto trans does very well once one starts driving aggressively.
As far as overheating goes, we are about to solve that in a much simpler way than what has been done in the past, and ironically i pulled my knowledge from the viper and its oil cooler (corvettes dont really have one, it is an oil to coolant heat exchanger), not like the air to oil heat exchanger on your viper.
If you buy the automatic, then she can drive, which might come in handy on long trips. (but, she might also be capable of driving the manual, and if she can drive the viper, she will be more than able to drive the corvette's manual transmission with rev matching... it is magical)
Test drive both manual and auto if you can, and the auto, just know, there is way more too it than a salesman will be able to show you.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#16
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#18
I have a 2015 A8 that I track occasionally (running faster than almost all other cars except the well driven newer model GT3s on slicks). My 15 A8 should be one of the worst for overheating--the 17 A8s got some upgrades to supercharger to help a bit. 17 M7s come standard with an extra cooler and upgraded supercharger (the extra cooler can also be added to the 15/16s M7s).
I track my 15 A8 the same way I drive my 6 year old to Kindergarten, commute to work in traffic and take my wife to dinner: Cup 2s, stock brakes, and DSC controller (soft for street, firm for track). Never a heat issue on street, even when it was 110 the other day in traffic with AC blasting.
in my opinion, the z06 is the ultimate all around car, with minimal need to change up in between street and track.
A big question for the chance of overheating on track is where you live. I live in Texas, where we are frequently over 100 in the summer. BC tracking in high heat is miserable for me (and the car) I only track in spring and fall events. While I have never overheated on track, i definitely see elevated temps.
in sum: great all around car (comfortable for steeet) and very track capable (just dont expect to run long sessions on very hot days with the A8).
I track my 15 A8 the same way I drive my 6 year old to Kindergarten, commute to work in traffic and take my wife to dinner: Cup 2s, stock brakes, and DSC controller (soft for street, firm for track). Never a heat issue on street, even when it was 110 the other day in traffic with AC blasting.
in my opinion, the z06 is the ultimate all around car, with minimal need to change up in between street and track.
A big question for the chance of overheating on track is where you live. I live in Texas, where we are frequently over 100 in the summer. BC tracking in high heat is miserable for me (and the car) I only track in spring and fall events. While I have never overheated on track, i definitely see elevated temps.
in sum: great all around car (comfortable for steeet) and very track capable (just dont expect to run long sessions on very hot days with the A8).
Last edited by JBond214; 09-01-2018 at 08:59 AM.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)
#20
Race Director
Hello everyone!
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
I drove a Z06 that belongs to a friend of mine, and since Viper is discontinued, I am thinking about keeping the viper but buying another sports car to put the miles on. I enjoyed the corvette more than I thought I would.
My main concerns are overheating. I may take the car to the track occasionally, but most of my driving will be on the street. I am getting older, so just want to have a nice reliable fast car that rides well and my wife may also enjoy riding in. I am considering both a convertible or a coupe.
I have not made up my mind yet, I just wanted to say hello!
-Brian
I owned a few Gen V's and a 17 ZO6/ZO7. I agree if youre gonna track the Z, the manual is the better option...cooling mods cant hurt either. How good/hard of a driver you are matters as well. Otherwise, I wouldn't be that concerned. Only reason I preferred the Viper on track (other than ACR) is because N/A. The blown factor on the Z makes it more fun on the street however. For the Z, Id def go 17 or newer and ZO7. Good luck.
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HessViper (09-16-2018)