Finally!
Safety Car
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 3,531
Likes: 718
From: panama city beach florida USA
St. Jude Donor '09
i would go with what the owners manual says plus you have to get broken in to the car
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2024
Posts: 3,978
Likes: 1,289
From: Plano, Texas
2025 C8 Z06/7/E-Ray of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
That's a nice color, and looks like you snatched up a rapid blue for the final year. Nice homes back there as well.
Agreed with @one more on keeping a close eye on your manual and taking it easy for the initial steps.
Agreed with @one more on keeping a close eye on your manual and taking it easy for the initial steps.
Thread Starter
Advanced
Joined: Jul 2021
Posts: 89
Likes: 57
That's a nice color, and looks like you snatched up a rapid blue for the final year. Nice homes back there as well.
Agreed with @one more on keeping a close eye on your manual and taking it easy for the initial steps.
Agreed with @one more on keeping a close eye on your manual and taking it easy for the initial steps.
yeah I looked didn’t see anything about putting it in track mode or using paddles
Safety Car
Joined: Feb 2024
Posts: 3,978
Likes: 1,289
From: Plano, Texas
2025 C8 Z06/7/E-Ray of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
I personally put it into track mode and started using the paddles right from the get-go and I still do the same thing every single time even right now. I would rather you be safe than sorry, and that's why I didn't recommend you drive the way I did initially because most would probably not agree with it anyway. It's not totally to the book and politically accurate. Long story short, be cautious and sensitive to the car since I know it's your baby.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2025
Posts: 800
Likes: 604
From: Bucks County, PA
On my ERay, the computer set redline to a lower value, and wouldn’t let you over rev the engine prior to 500 miles. I even have a video of the display resetting itself after hitting 500 miles. Does the Z06 not do the same?
Tech Contributor
Joined: Mar 1999
Posts: 10,445
Likes: 4,403
From: Northern VA
"Ask Tadge" Producer
For the OP: drive it in any mode you want and go ahead and use the paddles. Just keep an eye on that visual redline as a reminder when to shift. Your car will be fine.
Burning Brakes
Joined: May 2025
Posts: 800
Likes: 604
From: Bucks County, PA
No. The temporary lowered redline in the C8s and any other GM product (including the ERay) is visual only, to discourage you from revving past that mark. You can still do it, and you could have with the ERay if you'd put it in manual. The only thing that stops the engine from revving past a certain point is the actual rev limiter and that's hard set for each different type of engine. It's 100-200RPM above the actual redline.
For the OP: drive it in any mode you want and go ahead and use the paddles. Just keep an eye on that visual redline as a reminder when to shift. Your car will be fine.
For the OP: drive it in any mode you want and go ahead and use the paddles. Just keep an eye on that visual redline as a reminder when to shift. Your car will be fine.
, which isn’t a bad thing.
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Instructor
Joined: Dec 2024
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You're fine using the paddles. They just don't want you to go over 4Kish in RPM's and don't want you to downshift that push revs past 4K. Also they don't want you to labor the engine in to high of gear for the speed.
Pro
Joined: Jan 2013
Posts: 657
Likes: 443
Thought I read should avoid track mode for 500 miles for chassis breaking period too? Manual mode ok as long as don't go above 4k or so. Definitely avoid cruise control though. And wouldn't launch it until 1500 miles to be safe.
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Joined: Jul 2021
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