Z51 /Mag ride

[vett boy]

Whats the big difference ?

 

[JBsC5]

I own a c6 z51 coupe and I find the ride quite good for the street and its supposedly the most racecar like in feel.

I believe the F55 Mag ride is a technological wonder in that the shocks have metal fililments in the shock fluid. I believe electricity is sent into the fluid to change the direction the metal filiment face...which deflect the shocks in such a way to alter the shock deflection.

the tires with this new F55 suspension maintain greater contact with the road with different surfaces.

Both great choices and remember the new ZR1 has an evolution of the F55 Mag suspension. GM put it on the ZR1 because of its great merits from both a ride and performance perspective.

I can't say if the C6 coupe or convertibles version of the F55 is as performance oriented as the version of the ZR1 though...

Really are both great choices.

Like I said, I chose the Z51 option and I am very pleased with this more traditional setup. IMO the extremely impressive torsional rigidity of the entire C6 platform gives GM the ability to offer the Z51 with quite soft springing.

I do plan in the future to replace my runflat tires with non runflats for both the improved performance and improved ride characteristics. (and less expensive costs)

The Z51 option also includes higher performance tires, various oil coolers, different transmission gearing for the manual transmission and slotted rotors. Each of these various yet small improvements help me chose the z51..

Bottom line they are both great choices. if you want the sportiest C6 Coupe then by a small margin the C6 Z51 is the choice to go with. Want basically the same performance (very slightly less I suppose) with a slightly more compliant ride...then go for the F55..



Hope this helps

JB

 

[vett boy]

Thank ya JB .My recently purchased C6 vert came with mag ride .

 

[c4c5specialist]

HI there,
Mag ride will react faster in keeping the chassis stable.
With conventional suspensions, your only as good as the calibration you pick for the shocks as far as damping goes.
That being said, F55 is the next generation of suspension systems.
It will constantly react to keep the wheel stable and the platform handling well.
For all out driving at speed, it will stay with Z51 on all but the most aggressive maneuvers.
IMO, computer generated suspensions are the wave of the future and unless you drive one, descriptions will never do it justice.
Allthebest, c4c5

 

[JBsC5]

Congratulations on the Corvette convertible especially with the world class F55 suspension.

I'm sure you know that the ultra expensive Ferraris use the same Delco system with individual minor differences for their specific car as the Corvette F55...

Ferraris don't spare any money when it comes to performance and they chose the same delco system as your corvette F55..

The ZR1 uses the F55 concept as well for the reason that in the real world and on the race track....KEEPING THE TIRES IN CONTACT WITH THE ROAD IS THE KEY TO TRUE PERFORMANCE.

The F55 system is amazing technology and as C4C5 specialist knows about ins and out of the systems and drives all the various corvettes....he stated...its the wave of future..

the best of the best have it! (Corvette ZR1)

 

[gmjunkie]

the best of the best have it! (Corvette ZR1)

My Z.R. One has it,He has Active Handling too!!

 

[JBsC5]

He's awesome! Gotta love em! Got that low center of gravity too for quick turning capability

 

[vett boy]

He's awesome! Gotta love em! Got that low center of gravity too for quick turning capability

Ya ,junk and I chased him for half an hour one eve. (fast on corners )

 

[vett boy]

HI there,
Mag ride will react faster in keeping the chassis stable.
With conventional suspensions, your only as good as the calibration you pick for the shocks as far as damping goes.
That being said, F55 is the next generation of suspension systems.
It will constantly react to keep the wheel stable and the platform handling well.
For all out driving at speed, it will stay with Z51 on all but the most aggressive maneuvers.
IMO, computer generated suspensions are the wave of the future and unless you drive one, descriptions will never do it justice.
Allthebest, c4c5

Good ,so as an old fart who keeps things semi melow i'll never know the difference.

Thank ya for your time.

 

[Hib Halverson]

Those interested in F55 "Magnetic Selective Ride Control", "Magnaride" or "MR" should see:
Corvette Action Center Knowledgebase :: 2003: Technical Article: Magnetic Ride - Star Wars Meets the 50th Car
The article covers the C5 version of the system, but the interation used on C6 is quite similar.

 

[Tuna]

Good ,so as an old fart who keeps things semi melow i'll never know the difference.

Thank ya for your time.

I think you will notice the difference especially on rough sections of highway when you switch between Tour and Sport. However, if you never work the car hard and always leave it in Tour, you'll never notice the difference. In that case, the base suspension might be desired rather than the more expensive MagRide system.

Both my Vettes are MagRide while my CTS-V is clearly "Z51" - the new CTS-V is MagRide and I'm ready to upgrade. Now if I just had the money!
:L