Just finished watching a ZR1 tear up Road Atlanta...shouldn't have done that
04-24-2018, 04:39 AM
#1
Burning Brakes
Thread Starter
Just finished watching a ZR1 tear up Road Atlanta...shouldn't have done that
Matt Farah got some time in a GS and a ZR1 at Road Atlanta at some GM press event. The GS was M7 and was exactly what I thought it would be. The ZR1 was an auto and blew me away. He really had that car hustling. Lots of supercharger noise. Seemed very poised the entire time. It's obviously a very, very fast Corvette. Video is 15 minutes long, and probably 12 of that is driving. Hard driving. In an auto. Not overheating. No limp mode. No drama. Matt mentions the previous problems and resolution at 3:50.
I'll be the first to admit, I haven't pushed my car hard yet. Plan on tracking it this summer, and since my name isn't Raikonen or Andretti I won't be the fastest guy out there, but I keep wondering how I'm going to feel if it overheats on me. I don't want to restart the whole debate about only "some" autos overheating and maybe it won't happen to me, but there's enough anecdotal evidence to suggest it could and if it does I'm afraid I'm going to be pissed at GM and disappointed in a car that I really love driving because after watching that video it's pretty obvious they figured out how to keep that car cool when it's being driven in anger. I don't care much about the various class actions that are out there because of this, because the lawyers will make money and the owners will get a pat on the back, but if I were a lawyer looking to make my case I'd hustle a Z06 out to Road Atlanta, film it to see if it overheats, and play the two videos side by side if it does.
It's 1:30 in the morning and I'm rambling. Man I hope my car doesn't overheat at the track. Really going to be disappointed if it does.
Mike
I'll be the first to admit, I haven't pushed my car hard yet. Plan on tracking it this summer, and since my name isn't Raikonen or Andretti I won't be the fastest guy out there, but I keep wondering how I'm going to feel if it overheats on me. I don't want to restart the whole debate about only "some" autos overheating and maybe it won't happen to me, but there's enough anecdotal evidence to suggest it could and if it does I'm afraid I'm going to be pissed at GM and disappointed in a car that I really love driving because after watching that video it's pretty obvious they figured out how to keep that car cool when it's being driven in anger. I don't care much about the various class actions that are out there because of this, because the lawyers will make money and the owners will get a pat on the back, but if I were a lawyer looking to make my case I'd hustle a Z06 out to Road Atlanta, film it to see if it overheats, and play the two videos side by side if it does.
It's 1:30 in the morning and I'm rambling. Man I hope my car doesn't overheat at the track. Really going to be disappointed if it does.
Mike
Last edited by mcoomer; 04-24-2018 at 04:45 AM.
04-24-2018, 06:02 AM
#2
Melting Slicks
That car was flying. However the auto transmission looked abysmal. Lazy downshifts, bogging at the rev limiter and some unpredictability. Matt didn't criticize it much but one could see it was bothering him.
04-24-2018, 08:52 AM
#3
Instructor
The best fix for the auto troubles is a manual! 
To be fair though you're going to have to be a near pro level to drive a manual ZR1 anywhere near it's limit on track. The auto will allow you to focus more...until it makes some odd shifting decisions.
To be fair though you're going to have to be a near pro level to drive a manual ZR1 anywhere near it's limit on track. The auto will allow you to focus more...until it makes some odd shifting decisions.
Last edited by likeaboss; 04-24-2018 at 08:54 AM.
04-24-2018, 09:29 AM
#4
Melting Slicks
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He is also really not hustling that car around the track, even though it may look like he is from the video. My C7Z with 200TW 18" Rivals would have been pulling away from him at all points in his video, granted he could have closed the gap on the back straight except he lifts super early. Most of his laps appear to be around 1:40, maybe dipping into the high 30s. My 71 LS3 with 315 Rivals ran the same kind of laps times.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
04-24-2018, 01:26 PM
#5
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^^^ Manual > Auto.
Stop worrying about it and go drive it.
If it does overheat there are options. Or trade to a ZR
Good luck 👍
Stop worrying about it and go drive it.
If it does overheat there are options. Or trade to a ZR
Good luck 👍
04-24-2018, 01:29 PM
#6
Le Mans Master
You know what would be cool? ZR1 A8 vs M7 head to head, 3 laps. I think in the Camaro the M7 was actually faster, but I haven't seen a good A8/M7 comparison yet for "our" cars.
If you want to hear why the A8 is so good, jump to about 7:10 and listen to the next two shifts. The first is a little lazy because he's early, the second is perfect. Both are way fast.
Also, it didn't "bog" ever in any sense. He hits the rev limiter because he's in M.
If you want to hear why the A8 is so good, jump to about 7:10 and listen to the next two shifts. The first is a little lazy because he's early, the second is perfect. Both are way fast.
Also, it didn't "bog" ever in any sense. He hits the rev limiter because he's in M.
Last edited by davepl; 04-24-2018 at 04:21 PM.
04-24-2018, 01:39 PM
#7
Le Mans Master
^^ Great video
I think the limiting factor for the tranny was Matt's distracted driving, not the tranny itself. The car is 'faster than he can think' and he was missing shift points etc. I suspect if he'd put it in Track mode and let it alone it would have been better.
I think the limiting factor for the tranny was Matt's distracted driving, not the tranny itself. The car is 'faster than he can think' and he was missing shift points etc. I suspect if he'd put it in Track mode and let it alone it would have been better.
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CorvettoBrando (04-25-2018)
04-24-2018, 01:52 PM
#8
Melting Slicks
Matt Farah got some time in a GS and a ZR1 at Road Atlanta at some GM press event. The GS was M7 and was exactly what I thought it would be. The ZR1 was an auto and blew me away. He really had that car hustling. Lots of supercharger noise. Seemed very poised the entire time. It's obviously a very, very fast Corvette. Video is 15 minutes long, and probably 12 of that is driving. Hard driving. In an auto. Not overheating. No limp mode. No drama. Matt mentions the previous problems and resolution at 3:50.
https://youtu.be/H0oZlLKi1R0
I'll be the first to admit, I haven't pushed my car hard yet. Plan on tracking it this summer, and since my name isn't Raikonen or Andretti I won't be the fastest guy out there, but I keep wondering how I'm going to feel if it overheats on me. I don't want to restart the whole debate about only "some" autos overheating and maybe it won't happen to me, but there's enough anecdotal evidence to suggest it could and if it does I'm afraid I'm going to be pissed at GM and disappointed in a car that I really love driving because after watching that video it's pretty obvious they figured out how to keep that car cool when it's being driven in anger. I don't care much about the various class actions that are out there because of this, because the lawyers will make money and the owners will get a pat on the back, but if I were a lawyer looking to make my case I'd hustle a Z06 out to Road Atlanta, film it to see if it overheats, and play the two videos side by side if it does.
It's 1:30 in the morning and I'm rambling. Man I hope my car doesn't overheat at the track. Really going to be disappointed if it does.
Mike
https://youtu.be/H0oZlLKi1R0
I'll be the first to admit, I haven't pushed my car hard yet. Plan on tracking it this summer, and since my name isn't Raikonen or Andretti I won't be the fastest guy out there, but I keep wondering how I'm going to feel if it overheats on me. I don't want to restart the whole debate about only "some" autos overheating and maybe it won't happen to me, but there's enough anecdotal evidence to suggest it could and if it does I'm afraid I'm going to be pissed at GM and disappointed in a car that I really love driving because after watching that video it's pretty obvious they figured out how to keep that car cool when it's being driven in anger. I don't care much about the various class actions that are out there because of this, because the lawyers will make money and the owners will get a pat on the back, but if I were a lawyer looking to make my case I'd hustle a Z06 out to Road Atlanta, film it to see if it overheats, and play the two videos side by side if it does.
It's 1:30 in the morning and I'm rambling. Man I hope my car doesn't overheat at the track. Really going to be disappointed if it does.
Mike
And drive the heck out of it. Enjoy it! Why wait til summer go this next weekend?
04-25-2018, 10:13 AM
#10
For comparison go watch the VIR video of Jim Mero with the auto being left in auto. Matt's problem was trying to manually shift the trans. If you like to manually shift get a manual trans. I do believe the auto will be faster but for me it's less enjoyable.
04-25-2018, 11:09 AM
#11
Drifting
Honestly, I can't see the ZR1 being that much more of a handful on a road course than our Z06's are...
04-25-2018, 03:02 PM
#12
Pro
To make matters worse, General Motors has zero interest in improving the experience of manually shifting the automatic gearbox, which they all but said out loud by repeatedly answering my criticisms of these systems with “Just let it shift on its own, it’s better than you are,” and missing a) the entire point of driving sports cars for any reason besides racing, and b) the entire thing that makes Porsche’s PDK and other dual-clutch gearboxes better than their lazy auto – the engagement with the user.
I would be super frustrated with a car with such an awesome powerplant only to be "neutered" by a slow reactive auto trans when I try to shift it manually. A "lowly" BMW 3 series gets an insanely robust ZF transmission that is pretty much DCT level of responsive in manual mode, there should be no excuse as to why GM can't get their automatic box right IMO.
In any event I have no dog in this fight as I would get my ZR in a manual even if GM somehow puts a BMW M-DCT or Porsche PDK level auto trans into the ZR
04-26-2018, 06:04 PM
#13
Race Director
^^^^
So in Matt's world, clicking a paddle adds to the driving "experience". Give me a break. Want a driving "experience"? Great, it's called the M7, and comes complete with an involving 3rd pedal and an involving MANUAL shifter. Automatics are called automatics because....wait for it....they shift automatically. They're designed to do that (even better than an automotive journalist). Whining that the automatic doesn't work as well as a "manual" is a joke.
So in Matt's world, clicking a paddle adds to the driving "experience". Give me a break. Want a driving "experience"? Great, it's called the M7, and comes complete with an involving 3rd pedal and an involving MANUAL shifter. Automatics are called automatics because....wait for it....they shift automatically. They're designed to do that (even better than an automotive journalist). Whining that the automatic doesn't work as well as a "manual" is a joke.
Last edited by jimmyb; 04-26-2018 at 06:08 PM.
04-26-2018, 06:08 PM
#14
Race Director
He is also really not hustling that car around the track, even though it may look like he is from the video. My C7Z with 200TW 18" Rivals would have been pulling away from him at all points in his video, granted he could have closed the gap on the back straight except he lifts super early. Most of his laps appear to be around 1:40, maybe dipping into the high 30s. My 71 LS3 with 315 Rivals ran the same kind of laps times.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
04-27-2018, 07:34 AM
#15
The one thing that comes to mind is that right now you are top of 3rd in a number of places on track in the Z06. I expect the ZR1 is going to require an upshift to 4th far more often given how it accelerates. Trying to manage when to make that upshift and whether you downshift again to 3rd is going to be interesting. The run from T2 through and over T3 to T4 at Summit Main come to mind.
I guess we'll see.
04-28-2018, 11:49 PM
#16
Drifting
He is also really not hustling that car around the track, even though it may look like he is from the video. My C7Z with 200TW 18" Rivals would have been pulling away from him at all points in his video, granted he could have closed the gap on the back straight except he lifts super early. Most of his laps appear to be around 1:40, maybe dipping into the high 30s. My 71 LS3 with 315 Rivals ran the same kind of laps times.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
Regarding the OP's original concern - you should have purchased a manual if you want to track it really hard. All the autos are susceptible to overheating if driven in auto by a good driver.
Based on Andy Pilgrim this issues has been resolved with the ZR1, but i agree only time will tell.
Taken from --> Link: Andy Pilgrim C7 ZR1 Review
I was grabbing water in the pit lane when I remembered the reports made by some Z06 buyers who said they were disappointed with overheating issues at track days. Well, considering the day’s heat, I asked the engineers if I could possibly do a long run in the ZR1, just to see how things would go. Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter gave me the green light and pointed me to a ZR1 with an automatic transmission.
......
I decided to run a fast race pace for 20-25 minutes, do a cool down lap, and come in. I felt that was about right in terms of what a track-day group would usually do. I did not have new tires for this run. The run laps ended up being between 1:30.4 and 1:31.7. These are very respectable, consistent, and quick lap times for a street car at Road Atlanta considering the hot conditions. Lap time drop-off is usually due to tires gaining air pressure and surface temperature. Any extra lateral tire slip later in my run was controlled easily by slowing my steering inputs and throttle application, and the ZR1 never got nervous or twitchy. I saw no warning lights and engine temps remained in the normal range throughout the run.
......
I decided to run a fast race pace for 20-25 minutes, do a cool down lap, and come in. I felt that was about right in terms of what a track-day group would usually do. I did not have new tires for this run. The run laps ended up being between 1:30.4 and 1:31.7. These are very respectable, consistent, and quick lap times for a street car at Road Atlanta considering the hot conditions. Lap time drop-off is usually due to tires gaining air pressure and surface temperature. Any extra lateral tire slip later in my run was controlled easily by slowing my steering inputs and throttle application, and the ZR1 never got nervous or twitchy. I saw no warning lights and engine temps remained in the normal range throughout the run.
