Z06 question

[bigmike32172]

Besides the motor, what else is hand assembled on the C6 Z06?

[Juan Gonzalez]

The car is hand assembled.

[bigmike32172]

That's what I thought, but not according to this idiot Viper Alley - Dodge Viper Forum - View Single Post - ZR1 pics
Someone give me some firepower to back up my statement, or is he correct that the motor is the only thing that is hand assembled.

[Rauchy]

The Z06 and the base Corvette run simultaneously down the same assembly line and during the personal owner's tour I did not see any robots assembling the cars which havevery few parts in common. There is no distinction between the hand assembly of either car since they follow the exact same path and pass through the same work stations.

The final assembly process is done by hand if you don't count the tools which control torque.

I did not see the actual painting process, but I assume it is done with painting robots, a common procedure to achieve a consistent quality. All painted parts are very carefully examined and matched for color and surface quality, and if a part is damaged its replacement must match, something easier said than done.

[george]

Are all the LS7 engines balanced and blue printed or just the Z06 Pilot vehicles?

[No Doubt]

All engines are balanced and "blueprinted" to a degree. When one uses the expression "balanced and blueprinted" in a performance engine building sense, they are referring to the fact the process is more carefully controlled and the tolerances called for in the original design (the blueprint) are more closely adhered to. When rebuilding an engine the tolerances are checked to insure they are in accordance with the original "blueprint" and if not are corrected so they are.

But yes, the LS7 is spun "balanced" at the factory and each rotating assembly part is weighed and kept within a given tolerance for that part. Again, as are all new engines.

[Juan Gonzalez]

The "Ultimate Factories" featured Ferrari, Corvette, and BMW factories. In the Corvette feature, It did show you what Rauchy just said. They show you how they fabricate/assemble the chasis, how the assemble the engine, and how they assemble the engine and rear end to the chasis. All the panels and fenders are painted by robots indiviually. Once in the Corvette assembly line, the Z06 joins the other Corvettes. Here the panels are hand installed, the chasis (including motor and rearend/transmission) is integrated by hand into the rest of the body and so on. Definately hand assembly. Some operations at lower level assemblies are performed with NC (Numerical Controlled) machines controlled by computer. For example, some holes in the chasis are made with NC drills, and some welding also with robots. I was surprised how much welding was done by hand. I am sure some operation to fabricate the block and heads are done also by NC machines. In the cases that NC are used, it is due to the tight tolerance required. NC are far more accurate than humans.

[barelyfit]

Yup, Rauchy is correct. I did the tour in November when I picked up my Z. The only robot I saw was in an off line station that, if I remember right, was gluing the threshold in the doorwell. There may have been a couple others like that on off-line assembly stations that I didn't see, but I walked the entire primary assembly line and there was no robot assembly. Even where the body was lowered on the chassis, there were 4 guys aligning and checking as they lowered the body down. Great tour btw, if you ever get a chance. The standard tour does not take you through the whole factory like the buyers/museum tour does.