2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51 Suspension Walkaround

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2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51 Suspension Walkaround

The 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51 possesses amazing coordination and generates high limits. We look underneath to see where it comes from.

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duck87

I know that transverse leafs don't carry much aftermarket support, and aren't really completely independent (getting away with no antirollbar) making some aspects of adjustments for track use tricky, but I was wondering if there is any binding to take into consideration at both ends of suspension travel? I assume the leafs travel up and down in an arc, is there something in the linkage to compensate for this?

mptlptr

Great stuff, Dan. Thanks. One thing that should be noted are the rods (for lack of better terminology) on either side of the car connecting the front and rear subframes to the frame of the car for stiffening purposes. The C6 did not have these. Also, the rear toe link is of a different design than the C6 and no longer appears to have a greasable rubber boot. The boots on my C6 Z06 split and spewed grease all over the rear suspension when subjected to intense heat from the brakes at a track day at Laguna Seca. I should've wrapped them with heat reflective tape.

steel_3d

Duck, the spring height adjuster is rubberized, and it simply slides on top of the control arm in a small range. The rubber on mine is quite worn down after 115k miles. Free lowering You could consider this additional friction in the system, but not binding. I'm not a fan of friction in suspension systems, as I believe they add to small bump harshness, but there's already plenty of friction in there (bushings and more).

Personally, I don't see the difference between the side to side crosstalk of the leaf springs and an antiroll bar for tuning purposes, or for any purpose. Anti-roll bars already couple the left and right wheels just as much, and more - that is their function.

I'm yet to hear convincing negatives on this suspension layout. And given how Vettes handle on track versus their rivals, empirically they don't seem to be giving anything up either.

Dan and Josh, I think these articles about the c7 made me a fan of you site. Much higher caliber analysis than the rags! Thanks!

duck87

@steel_3d: Thanks for the comments, I was thinking the spring height adjuster might have some compliance in it It is absolutely true that antirollbars introduce crosstalk (that's what they're there for), but in an actual race application they're typica

jederino

Enjoyed this walk-around. Thank you!

jtbugtech

I just want to thank all the GM Engineering employees that worked on this awesome piece of automotive monster...This is America at it's finest!!

standuptofight

It looks like the knuckles are no longer the same from front to rear anymore. Due to the toe link mounting. Previous years (C5 & C6 could change front left to rear right and vice-versa)

nickmaris

These articles represent the best of automotive journalism. Knowledgable beautifully supported by photographs and very well written.

Would that more topics were covered in this way.

With thanks and congratulations to those involved

Nick Maris

makofoto

There ARE aftermarket stiffer Leaf Springs for the Vette ... not sure why the article thought you could only get them from GM?

makofoto

... as used on our SCCA Solo National Championship winning ASP C5 Z06: http://images47.fotki.com/v1401/photos/4/43793/7118902/IMG_4097xSML-vi.jpg

darnoldil

Loved the article; it was very well written, and a great intro on both the C7 and it many legacy features from the C5 that broke the mold and introduced nearly all of the current platform concepts. Although the author is firmly aware of these things, people new to the modern Corvette may not know however that more than 98% of what was covered was actually debuted in the C5, and are actually little more than refinements. The author hit the nail on the head that the big deal is the computerized Limited Slip Differential (eLSD) and super improved quality cockpit refinements.

For those that are new/have limited experience with the modern Corvette platform, you may find it interesting that many of the parts, although the part numbers have changed, are quite interchangeable between the C5/6/and 7 marques. Again, the C7 is the most refined and ready capable version, but it's still built on the C5 platform theme, and thus it really isn't as "new" as many may think. All that says is just how forward thinking and future proof the C5 platform really was when it came out..

In fact, if you Photoshopped the color of the chassis you would be hard pressed to tell any difference between the C5/6//and C7 because they're virtually the same chassis; and that's a good thing. The move from the steel hydroformed rails to aluminum ones (much of the rest of the C5/6 were aluminum as well) was done to lower weight due to increases the other refinements and increased engine displacement.

Since steel IS stronger/stiffer than aluminum, GM used thicker center tunnel plates in the C6/C7. However, upon deeper scrutiny the GM Marketing guys/gals were exposed about saying the C6 was stiffer, when that actually wasn't the case if you swapped the stiffer center tunnel plate out for a C5 thinner version (yes they bolt right in place between the two, lol). So GM put in the extra rib stiffeners on the C7 to get the all aluminum chassis back towards what the C5 would be if you put on the C6's thicker tunnel plate (which again, bolts right on).

However, this article superbly highlights the Corvette in its most refined form, no matter how much it is based upon its grandfather the C5, and this should be GREATLY celebrated! In fact, the C7 and the C5 are my all time favorite sports cars and Corvette marques.
Thank you for such an outstanding article; and for introducing more people to our sports car.