If youve ever corner balanced a car, you know how drastically it affects performance. Springs. We will contact you as soon as this product is available. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. You can dial in exactly how the vehicles weight is distributed, improving everything from launches to cornering to drifting capabilities. Leaf springs may not be new technology, but theres no denying that they can still work very well. So really, the character that comes out of a suspension change really comes from the dampers, so that is where we spent most of our development time.. All rights reserved. Using the see-saw example, you can see that any deflection on one side of the leaf, like when you are in a turn and the cars body starts to roll and compresses the suspension, will have an adverse effect on the other side of the leaf. This is when we get back around to how the leaf acting like a sway bar can be a bad thing. To begin removing the shock, open the hood and use a box wrench to remove the nut that holds the top of the shock absorber in place. 10. The shock mount on the lower control arm consists of one long bolt and a nut that needs to be removed. When GM first used a transverse composite leaf in Corvettes that were introduced in 1981, they were able to replace a ten-leaf steel unit that weighed 41 pounds with a single composite leaf that only weighed a paltry 8 pounds. In the front of the car, its the same story. Leaf It Alone Why the Corvettes Transverse Leafs Work Just Fine. 13. But there are admittedly a few issues that can pop up when a C5/C6 is tracked really hard. Thats why with our Multi-Pro R2 we developed with Eibach, we leave the leaf in place and supplement in some spring rate with the coilovers. You can read our, Upgrading Your C5 or C6 Corvette to Coilovers. This is especially important on track when you may hit rumble strips or curbs during cornering. We will safeguard your e-mail and only send content you request. They made our life and yours much easier by supplying custom mounting hardware that bolts their coilovers directly to the stock mounting points. With a supplemental coilover system,the vehicles weight isnt just resting on the stock shock towers that werent really designed to carry that much load. However, tying the left and right wheels together with a leaf spring makes this a semi-independent suspension. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience. Read our Privacy Policy for more info. Next, you need to remove the transverse leaf spring. 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Now, you are pushing down on one side, which makes the inside of the first pivot point want to be forced upward, which in turn wants to force the outboard side on the second pivot point downward! Just look at the success that Corvettes have had in SCCA racing. So you get the same OEM durability, but they have the performance of our re-valving that we developed with Johnny OConnell., Getting Track Ready Stepping Up to Coilovers. All rights reserved. 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013, C5 C6 Corvette 1997-2013 Coil-Over Kit - Front & Rear - Single Adjust 550lbs. 20. But even good things can get better. If youre planning to spend the vast majority of your time on the street, then a stock style suspension will likely be enough for you, but if your Corvette will share a significant amount of time between the street and the track, the you might want to look into a set of coilovers so you can have the best of both worlds. Leaf springs may have been around for a while, but the Corvettes transverse leaf spring suspension is anything but out dated. At its most basic, the C5 and C6 Corvette suspension uses upper and lower A-arms suspended by transverse leaf springs made of fiberglass. With the leaf springs on the Corvette, you can fit a pretty large tire on the car and get a lot of grip out of it, and grip is what its all about. That extra range lowers your cars center of gravity to improve handling on the track and during those backroad adventures. I did a search but everything was for C4s. We were able to speak with Jeff Kettman, a GM Racing Parts Manager about the stock style T1 Suspension kit. Another advantage to coilovers is that there is a tremendous amount to be gained in terms of ride quality because with a truly independent suspension where you can control the spring rates on each corner, you are able to eliminate many of the negative effects of the leaf springs. I can unsubscribe anytime to withdraw my consent. An added benefit of using a transverse leaf is that C5s and C6s can fit some pretty huge meats on the rear.Just look how much room there is to spare on Y2K. 18. This is a shot of the front. Callaway tells us, Personally, we like the stock transverse leaf spring suspension. As with most other modifications done to your car, you need to first start with deciding exactly how the car will be used, and go from there. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. By converting to coilovers, you now have the ability to update spring rates quickly and easily. The GM Performance Parts T1 suspension has been used with great success by C5 and C6 race teams in SCCA racing, where the rules require the use of a stock style suspension. Why You Should Swap Your Corvettes Leaf Springs to Coilovers, Tuning Your Pro Touring Car's Shocks At The Track. The cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. Note: Due to the weight/dimensions of this item, additional freight charges will be applied at checkout. See what other customers are saying about Aldan American. Up top, the upper control arm is also held in place by a long bolt and a nut on either side while the shock is held in place by two bolts that go into the frame. And converting to coil-over suspension puts the cherry on top. Aldan American parts are some of the best suspension parts you can buy for your Chevrolet Corvette (C5, C6). data-bind='html:", 2019 TPS Motorsports, all rights reserved. 2. It does not store any personal data. Also, with a supplemental coilover system like the R2 that keeps the stock spring in place, the vehicles weight isnt just resting on the stock shock towers that werent really designed to carry that much load.. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. 12. It was purpose built to launch hard, hug corners and stop on a dimeall while being a grand touring machine that eats up freeway miles. GM performance actually designed a specific suspension kit for Corvettes racing in SCCA that includes replacement leaf springs with higher spring rates, as well as new sway bars, front control arms, and shocks that is referred to as the T1 Suspension. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. 2022 Power Automedia. Without getting super technical, leaf springs are variable rate. He continues, What we really look for is a change in the damping with these cars. To do this, remove the four boltstwo on the driver-side and two on the passenger-sidethat hold the leaf spring in place. You just remove the stock leaf springs and shocks, and the coilovers bolt in right in place of your stock shocks, and then you just adjust them to your desired ride height. With the mounting bracket installed on the coilovers, the top of the coilover bolts in place using the two factory bolts and bolt holes. Mower Decks - Do You Have the Correct Rod Ends? Aldan coilover kits are made in the U.S.A. and are designed to replace factory shocks and springs with fully adjustable coilovers. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. Clifton has been a car fanatic since his late teens, when he started the restoration of his '67 Camaro. Chevrolet has no doubt done a great job over the years keeping the Corvette in a price range attainable for many by making Vettes simple yet effective. We also worked with the production bushing suppliers to make the control arm bushings out of a harder/higher rate rubber. QA1 FAQs: How Much Shock Travel Do I Need? When one wheel hits a bump or the car is thrown hard into a corner, loads are transferred through the leaf spring from one side to the other. Privacy Statement - Cross talk happens whenever the car is in roll, meaning whenever it is in a turn and the body starts to roll over the wheels, compressing the suspension. GM utilized a transverse leaf spring in the front and rear, which allows for independent front and rear suspension while still keeping production costs at a minimum. But dont be disheartened just yet. And, although he has an appreciation for everything, from imports to exotics, his true passion will always be for GM musclecars. The leaf spring reduces the true independence of the suspension, although it is still technically geometrically independent. In the front of the car, using the transverse leafs eliminates the need for upper spring pockets, which keeps the hood line as low as possible, improving aerodynamics. 21. That means they are not one constant spring rate. Aldans C5/C6 coilover kit comes with everything youll need, including the four coilovers, mounting brackets and bolts, and even the preload adjustment spanner. These generations of GMs flagship offer a great platform thanks to their overall chassis andLS engines. Mid America Motorworks is another full service supplier of everything you need for your C5/C6s suspension. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. class="not-logged-in" Kettman tells us, When the T1 kit was first developed for the C5 Corvette back in the late 90s, the engineer that worked on it came from the Corvette production team and had a lot of knowledge about the production car development and access to the engineers there. ), the antisway bar endlink and the brake caliper. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. He considers himself a student of automotive science and technology, and particularly loves all things LSX. I would like to receive Aldan's Newsletter. You dont have to look far to see just how fast C5/C6 Corvettes can be with a stock-style leaf spring suspension. On the bottom, slide the long bolt through the coilover and lower control arm and tighten. As you may or may not know, Corvettes used a transverse leaf spring suspension all the way up through the C7 generation. Our team can help you find the right fit for your Corvette. The cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional". So with coilovers you can tune your suspension for great streetability and trackability., He goes on to say, The stock suspension is great, but all of the premiere race cars will make the move to a coilover for a reason, and that is to really make the suspension fully independent, and to gain the ability to fine tune the spring rates on all four corners with an almost infinite variety of springs and rates that are available for coilovers., The C5/C6 Corvettes actually lend themselves to coilover swaps pretty well. 15. So now that weve identified cross-talk as a Corvette suspension tuning problem, how do we get rid of it? This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. First, the fiberglass composite leaf springs offered a huge weight savings over both coil springs and steel leaf spring systems. If youre just cruising down the road, this is no big deal. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. Just an FWI, several of the coil overs use Bilstein shock bodies, There are about 4 different popular companies that do coilovers on the C5's. Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. Copyright 2022 QA1. Cookie Policy - GM chose to go with the transverse leaf spring design on the Corvette for several reasons. Steel vs Titanium Valve Spring Retainers, Which Do You Need? Now, hopefully you get the idea that the stock leafs arent terrible, and that they actually work very well, so were ready to talk about coilovers. OK, time to start unbolting stuff. Replace your old shocks with this top-of-the-line C5 C6 Corvette 1997-2013 Coil-Over Kit. 735 "MOD POINTS" will be added to your account when you purchase this item! We typically ship our coilovers precalibrated with a ride height that is typically about three quarters of an inch lower than stock, but at the end of the day the right height is totally up to the owners discretion. We are looking to add wheel rate without the driver being able to perceive any harshness on the road, and we do that with damping. Sonnen tells us, If a C5/C6 owner is looking at possibly doing a coilover swap from stock leaf springs, it is actually a very straightforward installation. Whether youre looking to build the street car of your dreams or want to hit the track and maximize performance with our MOD Series shocks, we can answer questions that pop up along the way. Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. Is the transverse composite leaf spring suspension found in the C5 and C6 Corvette really holding these cars back, or can it get the job done on the street and at the track? 4 UNIQUE USES OF QA1 INDUSTRIAL SHOCK ABSORBERS, QA1 Case Study: Coil-Over Shocks For Football Tackle Sleds, ATV, UTV And Off-Road Component Fabrication, Compare: F-100 Upgrades - Crown Vic Suspension vs QA1's Suspension System, How to Install a QA1 Mustang Tubular K-member, How to Install QA1 GM Pro Coil Shock Systems, How to Install C10 Front Suspension Systems, Rebuilding A QA1 Circle Track Twin Tube Shock, Rebuilding A QA1 Circle Track Monotube Shock, Calculating Spring Rate for QA1 Stock Mount Coil-Over Systems, How to Determine Your Valving on QA1 Shocks, Why Coil-Overs Shouldnt Make Your Car Ride Rough, Muscle Car Suspension Upgrades What to Update Now, and What Can Wait (GM). 3. The Traction Trio Your Corvettes springs, sway bars, and shocks make all the difference in its handling ability. Slide the coilover into place where the stock shock absorber was and tighten down the nut atop the coilover. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance". Chevy finally moved away from this design in 2020, gracing the C8 platform with coil-overs from the factory. C5 and C6 Corvettes offer ride height adjustment from the factory, but the range is limited to about 1 overall. Z06s actually have a slightly higher spring rate than base model Corvettes, meant to work better on the track. Advertising - But if youre looking to dial in the performance of your C5 or C6 Corvette, spring rate plays a critical role in the way your car behaves. In the rear, there simply isnt room for a traditional coil spring independent suspension, and using a transverse leaf spring helps the late model Corvettes keep all of the rear cargo area theyve become well known for; meaning you get to put luggage where a spring mount might otherwise be. Coilovers can take a lot of the headaches out of this process. Speedway Motors Customer Appreciation Week Saves You Money, Lingenfelter Performance Hosts 21st Annual Blue Suede Cruise, SEMA 2021: Woolf Aircraft Has Everything For Custom Plumbing, SEMA 2021: Hamburgers Superchargers Stage II Kit For LT-1 Camaros, SEMA 2021: Turbosmarts Straight-Gate50 Is Redefining Wastegates. The C5 and C6 Corvettes are an amazing value whether you got one new off the showroom floor or you picked one up secondhand. Allows you to replace factory shocks & mono springs with ride-height adjustable coil-overs! With the coilover in place, measure from the base of the collet to the base of the threads. Its a tedious process, often offering less-than-ideal results using the ride height adjustment bolts. Youll be able to go up and down roughly half an inch from stock, depending on how the car is set up and what trim level you have. You can see the black rectangular leaf spring bolts to the top side of the lower control arms on Y2K. So you could stiffen it up for the track, and soften it up for the street. Carlisle Truck Nationals Are Almost Here. 2022 Power Automedia. Before getting started, make sure to record a measurement of the cars ride height from the ground to the top of the wheelwell. Carbon Fiber Tubing & Advanced Composites, How Adjustable Shock Absorbers Play a Critical Role in Prototyping, Rod End Selection: Load Ratings Are Not the Ideal Way to Pick the Best Rod End, When to Consider Self-Lubricating, Greaseable or Metal to Metal Rod Ends. Chat: 8AM-5PM PST, M-F The term cross talk is really a generalized term that refers to one fact: the transverse leaf spring on a Corvettes suspension has characteristics that are similar to an anti-roll bar effect (only promoting roll potentially, in lieu of fighting it) on top of a progressive spring rate. Plus, you always know exactly what the spring rate is. Why Mowers with Shock Absorbers Provide A Smoother Cut. As an additional benefit, the composite materials used in the Corvettes leaf springs offer more durability than steel leafs, which have a tendency to sag over time and lose their spring rate. Next, unbolt the antisway bar endlinks and the upper control arm, which will allow the lower control arm to droop down enough to remove the shock when the time comes. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary". However, C5 and C6 Corvettes pose a challenge in their stock configurations. Dont take our word for it though. Here, well take a look at late model Vette suspension upgrades from both sides retaining the leaf springs, or switching to a coilover setup to help you decide for yourself. Aldan Shocks are Fully Rebuildable & Serviceable. By installing this coil-over kit, greatly improve your Corvette's handling and improve your everyday ride quality. Expert Help is Available Monday-Friday 8AM - 5PM CST, Receiving Hours Monday-Friday 7AM - 3:30PM CST, This website uses a variety of cookies, which you consent to if you continue to use this site. Without a coil spring running up to the frame, the corvette could be designed around a lower ride height. Lower ride height means a lower center of gravity and better handling. If they didnt, its hard to believe that GM would still use them on the Chevy flagship. 5. We actually had our own molds made for the springs, but they use the same materials and production processes as the OEM springs, so we get all the quality control that goes into the production parts. Transverse leafs also allow for a lower right height compared to coil springs that have to sit up high in a spring pocket on the frame. Make sure youve got one hand supporting the leaf when you get to the last couple of bolts, otherwise gravity will get the best of it. Cross-talk is just an inherent problem with the design of the transverse leaf springs. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics". With our coilovers, we do change the spring rates, but we only do it in small increments; like say 60 to 150 pounds per inch per axle, depending on whether you have a base model or a Z06, since the Z06s already have slightly higher spring rates.