I am bored so I figured I would do a few little write ups on some of the different cars I have had the pleasure of driving on the street and track.

The Car
An American icon, the Corvette has always been at the top of my list for coolest cars to own. Luckily I was able to take one around on the road and the 2.1 mile Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch road course in Pahrump, NV. The only downside (in my opinion) was that this particular Corvette was equipped with an automatic transmission. Aside from the transmission, this Corvette had everything that I would want in a daily driven sports car. It was equipped with navigation, leather, the Z51 handling/brake package, and a mild cat-back exhaust. With the addition of the Corsa cat-back exhaust I am not sure how much more (if any) power the 6.0L LS2 V8 was making over the stock rated 400hp and 400 ft. lbs. of torque but it sure felt nice!

Driving on the Street
I must say that the interior of the C6 Corvette (2005-Present) is much improved over the C5 Corvette (1997-2004). The seats were comfortable, the ride was nice and the power was there when you wanted it! Not to mention the impressive 25mpg on the highway! When you put your foot in it, this car feels VERY fast, in fact it feels more like 400 horsepower to the wheels. The navigation system was fairly easy to use as well and the BOSE stereo system was more than adequate.

My only gripe, the traction control never really turns off. I tried all three modes of the traction control system (On, Off, and Competition Mode) and none of them come close to fully turning the system off. This is probably a good thing in most people's cases, but for me personally I hate it. I guess you could say I am a control freak as I don't like when cars take control of a situation on their own.

Driving on the Track
Finally, my favorite part, the track test! This was my first time on a race track in a fully automatic transmission vehicle and I must admit I was a little worried not being in control of when/where to shift (there's that control freak thing again). I was also skeptical about how fun it would be with the traction control always at least partially on.

I went out with the traction control in "Competition Mode" and it was like the car all of a sudden knew it was at a race track. The automatic transmission never once shifted on me mid-corner, or any other time I woulnd't have shifted anyway. I must say I was VERY impressed.

Power deliver was excellent and it didn't seem like there was any part of the RPM range where you didn't have tons of power at your beckoning call. It pulled hard out of turns and the traction was very impressive too. This is one of the most balanced out of the factory cars I have ever driven and it was amazingly comfortable and predictable to drive at the limit. The Z51 brakes were rock solid the entire day as well.

I do have a few gripes about the car on the track though, the first of which being the seats. I was constantly bracing myself with my knees on the center console and door in turns as the stock seats didn't do very well in the lateral holding department. The only other thing I noticed was the transmission temperature warning light coming on near the end of the 30 minute sessions. This may be only a problem for the automatic transmission equipped Corvettes however.

Final Impressions
The C6 Corvette is a FAST car. It's out of the box on-track performance and brute power make it one of my favorites in the trackable daily driver catagory! The sexy lines of the exterior and much needed upgraded interior leave nothing to be desired. I would be terrified to see what a true track prepped C6 Corvette performs like!

Cliff's Notes:

The Good:
- Power
- On-Track Performance
- Looks
- Highway Fuel Mileage

The Bad:
- Lateral support of seats
- Automatic trans heats up a bit too much on track
- Traction control never fully turns off

 

In the auto C6 I dont think it can be in gear to shut off fully. You also need to hold down the button for at least 10 seconds. That shuts down both active handling and traction control.

The Settings:

Default – All On.
Idiot proof: the computer assumes you're an idiot and acts accordingly.

1 Push – TC Off.
The computer still assumes you're an idiot; but, now it lets you demonstrate that fact in a straight line.

2 Pushes – Competition Mode.
TC off and AH reduced. The computer assumes that you think you know what you're doing and only steps in after you prove that you don't.

Hold for 5 seconds – All Off!
The computer now knows you're an idiot; but, since you've proven you can read either the owners manual, or an internet forum, and you've demonstrated the patience and persistence required to hold a button down for 5 seconds, it reluctantly allows you to attempt to drive the car all by yourself.

To fully enjoy an auto C6 a tuner can eleiminate torque management and firm up shifts and shift speed through the computer. Makes it an entirely different car