2016 Z06 Suspension Problem

[CDR Wayne]

After tracking my Z06 at the NCM track for a couple of days, Corvette at NCM - a Z51 vs Z06, I drove 600 miles home. Right around 100 miles before arriving and with no bumps or abnormal road conditions noted, the car started rocking sideways when hitting undulations in the road (bumps or humps in the road that lifted the car up causing it to settle heavily on the suspension). It was first noticeable as my head began swinging from side to side rather than just fore and aft when the car lifted and settled. It was not only noticeable but very uncomfortable. The front of the car would inscribe a figure 8 as the car seemed to settle more heavily in the left rear, be pushed toward the right front, left front, and right rear. Over normal bumps (where only or 2 wheels hit the bump) the car is normal and not upset at all. My local GM mechanic who has been 'pit crew' on my C7's for three years now noticed it right away.



He changed the rear magnetic shocks with no change - problem still there. When it happens, the car bounces around from corner to corner of the frame and it is annoying plus it upsets the car a lot. It is much less noticeable in Sport with the magnetic shocks stiffened and barely discernible in Track mode. Careful inspection underneath shows no apparent problems, leaks, or noises.

The problem started with a normal Z06 alignment (less than 24 hours old) and continued with a racing alignment as per the specs in the owners manual. I am beginning to suspect the fiberglass leaf spring although it appears normal. Any ideas? I want to track the car again...

CDR Wayne

 

[dnobull]

C7 suspension problems

After tracking my Z06 at the NCM track for a couple of days, Corvette at NCM - a Z51 vs Z06, I drove 600 miles home. Right around 100 miles before arriving and with no bumps or abnormal road conditions noted, the car started rocking sideways when hitting undulations in the road (bumps or humps in the road that lifted the car up causing it to settle heavily on the suspension). It was first noticeable as my head began swinging from side to side rather than just fore and aft when the car lifted and settled. It was not only noticeable but very uncomfortable. The front of the car would inscribe a figure 8 as the car seemed to settle more heavily in the left rear, be pushed toward the right front, left front, and right rear. Over normal bumps (where only or 2 wheels hit the bump) the car is normal and not upset at all. My local GM mechanic who has been 'pit crew' on my C7's for three years now noticed it right away.

View attachment 23770

He changed the rear magnetic shocks with no change - problem still there. When it happens, the car bounces around from corner to corner of the frame and it is annoying plus it upsets the car a lot. It is much less noticeable in Sport with the magnetic shocks stiffened and barely discernible in Track mode. Careful inspection underneath shows no apparent problems, leaks, or noises.

The problem started with a normal Z06 alignment (less than 24 hours old) and continued with a racing alignment as per the specs in the owners manual. I am beginning to suspect the fiberglass leaf spring although it appears normal. Any ideas? I want to track the car again...

CDR Wayne

We had similar symptoms just before the nut that holds the Ball joint came off dropping the rear end of the car on the ground with the rear drivers side tire turning sharply out of line. Check the Nuts that hold the ball joints together on the rear of the car. The Rear wheel was damaged, The Tire had to be replaced, The outer quarter panel damaged into the paint & the inner wheel well was damaged. Glad I have Hagerty Insurance. Not happy with GM's reluctance to accept any responsibility.

The bad news is that even though Chevrolet knows that this problem exists on 43 Corvettes and we have a GM extended warranty they will not cover our car because it is out of their stated VIN number range and date.

See the link:

2015 Chevrolet Corvette Recalled To Fix Rear Suspension Problem | Edmunds

 

[CDR Wayne]

Special alignment procedures for C7 Z06's

We had similar symptoms just before the nut that holds the Ball joint came off dropping the rear end of the car on the ground with the rear drivers side tire turning sharply out of line. Check the Nuts that hold the ball joints together on the rear of the car. The Rear wheel was damaged, The Tire had to be replaced, The outer quarter panel damaged into the paint & the inner wheel well was damaged. Glad I have Hagerty Insurance. Not happy with GM's reluctance to accept any responsibility.

The bad news is that even though Chevrolet knows that this problem exists on 43 Corvettes and we have a GM extended warranty they will not cover our car because it is out of their stated VIN number range and date.

See the link:

2015 Chevrolet Corvette Recalled To Fix Rear Suspension Problem | Edmunds

Sorry to hear you had problems too. I finally got mine fixed and the cause was something unique to C7 Z06's. Evidently this is the only model Corvette where you adjust castor. Normally, an alignment just affects camber and toe-in. here is what castor is all about:

What happened to my car was that I had it realigned to the track settings. After tracking it, I could not get a GM dealer to align it since it was a Saturday so had the best alignment shop in Bowling Green put it back to road settings. It is impossible to do without a special tool from Chevy. Very few dealers have it. Dealers can get it on loan if needed for a one-time fix. My local Caddie dealer bought one just to work on my car. When the castor is off from one side to the other, the car wallows like a drunken pig. Very uncomfortable. I had to find out myself from a factory rep about this special procedure. Dealers didn't know about it. Once again, you can't adjust the castor on a Corvette unless it is a C7 Z06. But unless you have gone to a track setting where castor is changed, a normal alignment may work.

It is very likely that Grand Sports are affected as well since they have the same wheels and suspension.

If I can find the place to post it, I'll also tell Z06 owners about the special procedure and tool needed to bleed the intercooler on a Z06. If you try to bleed the system without it, it will have bubbles and you will probably overheat on the track.... There is also a visual check of intercooler fluid condition not found in the owners manual or known by almost anybody. Once again, I got this info from a factory rep at Bloomington Gold. wayne5700@gmail.com.