Noise

[Gorgon]

My C5 makes the same noise, though only when launching from a dead stop in first gear. The ZF in the 95 has some crazy gear wine in it. Small price to pay for the performance in my eyes.

And what's the point of a class action suit? All we really need to do is make lawyers more money.:eyerole But I'm with Rob, get an automatic or sell it and get something else. My guess is that if you are that upset with the noise of the transmission you didn't buy the car for the performance

Hell Rob, if I was going to be in Carlisle I'd let you drive the car. But keep in mind, it doesn't take much time behind the wheel for you to really want one of these things. The C5 is so nice. Though I'd love to have a ZR1. So many Vettes, so little money.

Leon

 

[bluecoupe]

I didn't fart when my my wife (then girlfriend) was in the room before we got married. Now, I hate to admit it, I do. Anyone eles have that problem? Contact Mrs. Bluecoupe about a class action suite against the parents of their husbands for not disclosing this noise before the wedding.

Buy a Lexus and leave our Corvettes alone.

 

[bluecoupe]

Oh. Sorry. Please don't sue me. :cry

 

[Rob]

So many Vettes, so little money.

Leon

:L That's usually my saying! One or two more ZR-1s, a '96 Grand Sport, a new Z06, a '69 big block, a '90 Challenge Corvette, the list goes on and on and on.

 

[Rob]

I didn't fart when my my wife (then girlfriend) was in the room before we got married. Now, I hate to admit it, I do. Anyone eles have that problem? Contact Mrs. Bluecoupe about a class action suite against the parents of their husbands for not disclosing this noise before the wedding.

Buy a Lexus and leave our Corvettes alone.

I'm not even going to touch this one.

 

[Blade]

Rob: Thanks for the information on the C5 noise. I really don't think it is any big deal for the majority of us. This whole thing has been blown way out of proportion.


Bluecoupe: Interested in a class action suit against the pork-n-beans manufactures?

 

[bowtiebandit]

I'll throw my 2 cents in..I've been working on these cars for 15 years at a dealer, just as C4c5 has, If I thought the noise was an issue I would have never bought one of my own. Rob..if your ever in the Baltimore-Washington corridor give me a shout, you can take mine for a spin and hear it first hand.

 

[atmmac]

I cant believe that people would make such a big deal over a small NORMAL ratlling noise at idle with the clutch out WHO CARES! The 6spd transmission is amazing why let these things bother you if their normal!

 

[rwd]

In some cars, the noise at idle is very noticeable and verges on objectionable, even to me. I had a 4+3 like that, but my Z06 is quiet. The amount of variation is such that anybody who hasn't heard a loud one will incorrectly dismiss complaints of those owners who have one.

Actually, many daily drivers do spend extended periods of time sitting in traffic and at lights with the car idling, and not everybody listens to music in the cars. Probably the largest variation, however, is that of prior ownership experience. Like a number of other vette quirks, first-time owners are the ones who notice them the most.

Thanks for the detailed post, Rob.

 

[bluecoupe]

NC 50... After we win the lawsuit all pork-n-beans cans will come with mandatory user installable catalytic converters. (Ouch!) :eek

 

[Rob]

I'll throw my 2 cents in..I've been working on these cars for 15 years at a dealer, just as C4c5 has, If I thought the noise was an issue I would have never bought one of my own. Rob..if your ever in the Baltimore-Washington corridor give me a shout, you can take mine for a spin and hear it first hand.

Bowtie,

I just might take you up on the offer! Thanks!

 

[Rob]

Some very interesting points have been made here, however, I would like to clarify a couple things:

There is a difference between sitting at idle at a stop light with the clutch disengaged, and the sitting at idle in neutral with the clutch engaged. When the clutch is disengaged, there really isn't much if any "noise" so I've been told.

 

[cavettefan]

Rob, please don't be telling readers to move into an automatic if they are not satisfied with ZF manual transmission noise - if they are complainers, they will find something else to complain about.

It would be better if they went directly to a Lexus, didn't pass Go, and didn't collect $200.

 

[Rob]

Rob, please don't be telling readers to move into an automatic if they are not satisfied with ZF manual transmission noise - if they are complainers, they will find something else to complain about.

It would be better if they went directly to a Lexus, didn't pass Go, and didn't collect $200.

Well, yes and no.

When you complain about a problem with your Corvette, the nature of that complaint can either be valid or invalid. Obviously, when it comes to something that is relative like "noise", then the validity of that complaint can be much more questionable. Let's look at an example:

Let's say that for the 2004 Corvette convertible, there is a high pitched whistle heard in the upper rear corner of the passenger side window. Do you complain about such a noise, or do you just brush it off as a characteristic of the car?

Now let's say, we have a customer that owns a 2004 convertible and they feel that the clicking sound when pressing the turn signal down, sounds cheap?

Now, put yourself in the shoes of a Corvette Quality Control Engineer responsible for addressing "squeeks and rattles". Which scenario would you pay more attention to, or assign a higher priority to?

Chances are, it would be the high pitched whistle located in the upper rear corner of the passenger side window. Why? Because if enough customer complaints for this situation come in, it could be indicative that there is a potential production problem.

It's this type of "complaining" or feedback which can actually be benefical to Corvette Engineering because it can lead them to build and engineer a better Corvette over time.

If we were to encourage owners not to complain and to just sell their Corvettes as soon as they find something objectionably wrong, then Corvette Engineering wouldn't be getting the level of feedback they need to help improve the breed.

I've probably gone into far too much detail here, but as you can see, it's the nature of the complaint that can be in question and feedback both positive and negative (complaints) can be beneficial.

 

[cavettefan]

Rob, you make valid points. However, the original post was (if memory serves) an attempt to complain about something that would have been picked up in a test drive. Granted that the dealer did not want to let them test drive a 50th A.E. model; they could have test driven a non-A.E. model. They did not. Now, there appears to be some sort of desire to get out of a decision on the basis that there was not full and complete disclosure of transmission noise???? And they are soliciting participants for a class action lawsuit???? Chronic complainers will never be satisfied - to use your analogy, they will complain about the sound of the turn signal and say that it should sound more "exclusive".... That was where I was going with my original post.

Personally, what I like most about the C5 is that it is a great sports car platform - either as is, or to make modifications to enhance. I have chosen to make modifications to enhance and have a car that I am much more happy with because it is set up just like I want it. In the process, I have developed an acute awareness of what all GM/Chevrolet have done to make the C5 the best that it could be. (I am particularly amazed at the level of sophistication of diagnostic technology that is in place to be able to accurately diagnose when things fail - MBZ, BMW could learn from what GM has done with the OBDII diagnostic capability....)

However, the Corvette is not a Lexus. There are certain items that would never appear in a Lexus that are part of the package with a Corvette (manual transmission noise for starters). It is incumbent upon prospective buyers to check out the car they are considering purchasing before signing on the dotted line. Why do you think that dealers have stock on hand????

 

[ddtman]

Your wrong corvettefan, the original post was simply a question of whether this was a normal noise as I had been told it was. I was not the one who made any threats about a class action lawsuite. I am very happy with my vehicle and the question was ansered deveral times and I am satisfied that it is normal. As many have mentioned the car spends very little time in neutral with the enfgine idling.:crazy

 

[Gorgon]

Chances are, it would be the high pitched whistle located in the upper rear corner of the passenger side window. Why? Because if enough customer complaints for this situation come in, it could be indicative that there is a potential production problem.

It's this type of "complaining" or feedback which can actually be benefical to Corvette Engineering because it can lead them to build and engineer a better Corvette over time.

If we were to encourage owners not to complain and to just sell their Corvettes as soon as they find something objectionably wrong, then Corvette Engineering wouldn't be getting the level of feedback they need to help improve the breed.

I've probably gone into far too much detail here, but as you can see, it's the nature of the complaint that can be in question and feedback both positive and negative (complaints) can be beneficial.

This complaining can have negative affects on the design as well. While we're talking about transmissions, let's discuss the ZF. The original ZF that was introduced in 89 was a loud beast. This was also inherent to the design of a strong transmission. Customers complained of the gear whine in the ZF. This was addressed in later trasmissions.

As I understand it, the synchros were changed in a way that reduced the gear whine. The side effect was that fluid was not distributed throughout the transmission as well as previous designs. This lead to premature wear on transmission parts. The later ZF transmissions are more likely to fail than the original units. I would rather have a more robust, if somewhat noisier design than one that is more likely to fail because the design was changed to address customer compaints.

Leon

 

[cavettefan]

ddtman, you are correct that you were not soliciting participation in a class action lawsuit - it was cheri. I guess that I was so amazed that anyone would solicit participation in a class action lawsuit on this forum that I managed to mix you with cheri. Please accept my apologies.

 

[johnl]

Your cars just ain't broke-in just yet.
That transmission noise is one that my 145,000 mi 97 C5 does not make.
There are a couple of other creaks and snaps though. (Not unlike my 47 year old knees)...
:cool