I would like to decrease wheel hop in my 02 ZO6 without negatively affecting handling or noise. In my F-Body it was a combination of an adjustable panhard rod, LCA's and poly bushings that made it go away. I bumped into a C5 owner over the weekend who said he heard that the Hal adjustable shocks were the way to go. Any experience with this on this board? If you went with the Hal's and it worked what settings did you use - front vs. rear.
Les
__________________ [sold] 02 QS Z06 383 c.i.
441 RWHP 445 RWTQ, FLP Long Tubes & GHL Quads, 42# Injectors, LS1 Edit Tuning, Vararam w/T1 C. F. Bridge, Vinci 170 Stat, Ripper Shifter, Lowered and Tinted
There are a lot of things that you can do with the throttle of a Z06, inducing wheel hop is one of them. I'd suggest that you learn to adjust your driving technique to eliminate hop, rather than pursuing solutions that entail mods to the suspension.
The wheels will hop when your aggressive use of the throttle causes them to spin FREELY. That usually occurs on strong shifts 1st-2d and 2d-3d, although I've experienced it on the 3-4th shift also a few times. It can also occur if you overpower the tires in a roll-on in 1st or 2d and sometimes 3d when the streets are cold.
Solving the problem is pretty simple. Ease up a little on the throttle. At the drag strip, experiment with rear tires pressure. Sometimes the track prep is poor and the surface simply won't hold strong shifts or launches above a certain rpm. Got to feel what the track surface wants that day.
THe Z06 is a very powerful car. The F1SC tires offer terrific traction. But driver technique is what induces wheel hop and does so in very limited circumstances. That's actually good news because the fix is easy; don't overpower the tires and make them spin freely.
I agree 100% with Ranger. The only time I have ever had bad wheelhop was dumping the clutch aggressively on the street on asphalt. On the stock radials. Learning the limits of the tires and clutch seems to go a long way in eliminating wheelhop.
When actually trying to drive the car and launch the car properly, I have had no wheelhop problems. Also softening the rear spring rate by lowering the car in the back seems to help some by allowing the car to plant the tires.
Les, I noticed you're from Atlanta. Call Gran Turismo for info. They are one of the best suspension shops in Atlanta. Located in Chamblee/Doraville area, inside the perimeter, off Shallowford Road near Buford Hwy.
Thanks - I will call Gran Turismo and see what they have to say. I also heard about a shop called Norris (or something like that) in this area.
For those who recommend launching easier - that is fine for the street (where I don't have wheel hop) but you will lose valuable time in the 1/4 "backing off" just because of wheel hop - which is fixable. I have run high 10's in my "old" F-Body which made 525 RWHP with zero wheel hop. It isn't about power, it is about how you put it to the ground. Independent rear suspension cars like these are a lot more prone to it - I could put a 6 banger in a C5 and make it wheel hop on launch - I will let you know what the shops have to say, but my guess is that the Hals are the way to go.
Les
Quote:
Originally posted by Manatee Les, I noticed you're from Atlanta. Call Gran Turismo for info. They are one of the best suspension shops in Atlanta. Located in Chamblee/Doraville area, inside the perimeter, off Shallowford Road near Buford Hwy.
Originally posted by ZO6/Les ....For those who recommend launching easier - that is fine for the street (where I don't have wheel hop) but you will lose valuable time in the 1/4 "backing off" just because of wheel hop - which is fixable....It isn't about power, it is about how you put it to the ground. Independent rear suspension cars like these are a lot more prone to it - I could put a 6 banger in a C5 and make it wheel hop on launch - I will let you know what the shops have to say, but my guess is that the Hals are the way to go.
No doubt the suspension can be moded to eliminate any chance of wheel hop. But doing so will change the balance of the car for purposes other than straightline performance. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but is one anyone considering the change should understand.
In perhaps 100 drag runs on my 01 Z06 I've experienced wheel hop less than 10 times. Five of those run were on a horrible track. In every case, I caused the hop by overpowering available traction, too much throttle too fast. Simple as that. And on that horrible track, another Z06 driver was cutting high 1.8s and low 1.9s on stock tires. I asked him how he was doing that. He said "I'm feeding the throttle to the tires very deliberately."
Once I really learned to launch the car, wheel hop quit being a problem and my 60' times averaged low 1.9s on stock tires with a slew in the low-mid 1.8s. On the drag radials I never get wheel hop and the 60' have dropped about a tenth. I've still got some room for improvement on the DR.
PowerShifter is more consistent than I am in launch and no doubt has better averages; but he too has learned to avoid wheel hop. In fact it's probably fair to say that the low-ET Z06 drivers have learned to launch and shift without inducing wheel hop, except rarely and have done so without moding the suspension.
I know I won't convince you, Z06/Les, but I'm hoping some of the other owners will consider working on their techniques before going the mod route.
Not trying to start a flame here and I do appreciate your input. A couple of things I want to clarify. First I am not trying to eliminate any possibility of wheel hop, but I do want to reduce it if practical. Whatever I do (especially if done with adjustable shocks) will only be done if it does not change the cars handling characteristics in the twisties - which is where these cars run best. I can tell you for a fact that every thing I did to reduce wheel hop in my F-Body IMPROVED the cars handling in the twisties - but it has a very different suspension from the ZO6. I have only drag raced this car once, and since I have a full on 1000+ HP drag car I didn't buy the ZO6 for straight line performance - quite the opposite. On my one outing I did manage several 2.0 60' times (on a well prepped track) so I am sure that with practice on the throttle and slipping the clutch a bit I could manage a .1 or so 60' improvement which equals a .15 improvement in 1/4 mile E.T. If I can get the wheel hop eliminated not only on launch but the 1-2 and 2-3 shift I believe I can run very low 12's. Since I will only drag race this car a few times a year the reality is that I will never get good enough to get the desired E.T.'s with the current setup. I will keep you posted.
Les
Quote:
Originally posted by Ranger
No doubt the suspension can be moded to eliminate any chance of wheel hop. But doing so will change the balance of the car for purposes other than straightline performance. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but is one anyone considering the change should understand.
In perhaps 100 drag runs on my 01 Z06 I've experienced wheel hop less than 10 times. Five of those run were on a horrible track. In every case, I caused the hop by overpowering available traction, too much throttle too fast. Simple as that. And on that horrible track, another Z06 driver was cutting high 1.8s and low 1.9s on stock tires. I asked him how he was doing that. He said "I feeding the tires the throttle very deliberately.
Once I really learned to launch the car, wheel hop quit being a problem and my 60' times averaged low 1.9s on stock tires with a slew in the low-mid 1.8s. On the drag radials I never get wheel hop and the 60' have dropped about a tenth. I've still got some room for improvement on the DR.
PowerShifter is more consistent than I am in launch and no doubt has better averages; but he too has learned to avoid wheel hop. In fact it's probably fair to say that the low-ET Z06 drivers have learned to launch and shift without inducing wheel hop, except rarely and have do so without moding the suspension.
I know I won't convince you, Z06/Les, but I'm hoping some of the other owners will consider working on their techniques before going the mod route.
And Z06/Les. No flames intended at all. Understand better now your objective. Might want to consider having John at Complete Custom Wheel ( www.ccwheel.com ) do you up a turn-key pair of BFG 315.35.17 DR on 12" wheels. Wheel hop will no longer be an issue and your suspension will retain its OEM balance. Then when you satisfy the racing urge with the Z06 you can sell the DR on the Forum. Mounted BFG DRs sell fast....Just a thought.
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Z06/Les - Before you try changing anything , try doing a good burn out at the track. You'll be amazed at the difference. I never believed in doing a burn out in a car with radial tires , but on the Z06 it really works. Ever since I started doing a burn out , not only does the car launch a lot harder , but I have not had any wheel hop. It either hooks hard or spins the tires smoothly. On a good track you should be able to cut a sub 1.8 sixty foot time. I've cut several 1.77's with only the mods in my sig. Stock tires , stock suspension. However , you have to do a GOOD burn out and try setting your rear tires at 26 psi.
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