Newbie with some questions

[hs1333a]

Just picked up a 98 silver coupe yesterday and after playing around with it I have some questions. If I'm going 20-30mph and I floor it the tires just love to spin, now if this is normal because of the power what would you recommend for tires that would grip better. My last vette was an 84 so having this much power is new to me...Any Advice

Thanks
Kevin

 

[U.P. John]

Turn on your Active Handling/Traction Control...

 

[silver98]

Hi and welcome! You have a ton of power under your foot. I will assume that your 98 is stock so the following applies:
Your TCS is active unless you get a DIC message and an idiot (Dash Cluster Icon) light, so that's not the cause of the wheel spin.

Dry roads?

How's the tread on your tires?

Did you get a TCS engaged light when the wheels spun? If not and the TSC was previously engaged, you may have a problem with the TSC.

Enjoy.

 

[XLR8]

Welcome to the CAC Kevin.

I don't know about the tires, but I do know that all those barely harnessed horses love to giddyup when you throw her into launch mode.

Jane Ann

 

[Patrick]

Hi, Kevin, and welcome to the

Congrats on your new acquisition! I'm assuming if you just got it, you came to it previously owned. If it didn't come the owners manual, you can download one as a PDF file in THIS THREAD.

UP John is correct- the most common reason for what you're experiencing is that the traction control has been turned off. The button for this is on the center console, and you can switch it on, off, or put the car into "Competition Mode." (Your owners manual will explain Competition Mode. Happy Reading! )

Post some pics in Remo's Silver Corvette thread when you get a chance!


-Patrick

 

[Remo]

Just picked up a 98 silver coupe yesterday and after playing around with it I have some questions. If I'm going 20-30mph and I floor it the tires just love to spin, now if this is normal because of the power what would you recommend for tires that would grip better. My last vette was an 84 so having this much power is new to me...Any Advice

Thanks
Kevin

Kevin,

Here's an idea. Stop flooring it. Try giving it just enough gas to maximize forward accelleration without breaking the tires loose.

Remo:cool

 

[Pac-man]

If you are breaking loose at 20-30mph, you are probably running crappy run-flat tires that are mostly worn out. Let me know if my guess is correct. Another possible cause is many of the performance tires available, especially Bridgestone Potenza, are terrible in the cold weather. With the proper tires, there is no way you can break that car loose at 20-30mph. You have an obvious traction problem. I'm running non-runflat Goodyears in Z06 sizes and its tough to break it loose. You are probably not gripping in the corners as well as you should be either so be careful. I crashed into a stone wall taking a tight corner on Pirelli Asymetrico's that where half worn in cold weather. And one last time, Run-flats are terrible in cold weather, would never trust them. Like driving on rocks.

 

[Oldgeezer]

Welcome Kevin. Great forum here.

 

[hs1333a]

Hi Guys,
Thanks for all the great responses, My traction control is working because
I see it come up on the screen as it is being engaged. Since I just bought the
car I had to have some fun before storing it, so the weather is very cold and
although no snow yet(that changes tonight about 18inches) the roads are
very dirty with sand so the tires are probably not being used in the best environment. Oh well the car is away now and I have to wait until spring so
I can do some more testing and playing.

Thanks
Kevin

 

[billyz06-2003]

hi kevin

welcome to cac,

 

[mjsmm]

Besides the cold, there's one other thing you can check when you get your car back out in the spring. Make sure you're running the correct tire pressure. I believe the correct tire pressure for a '98 is either 32 or 34 psi. Many people put in too much air, either because they don't know what it's supposed to be, or they try to get better mileage by running higher pressure. Usually, at the expense of a harsher ride and less grip.

 

[Evolution1980]

Hey Kevin!
Welcome to the