Joined
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30 Posts
I read Elegant's "WRP SPD" thread with great interest and so thought I'd contribute the story of what led me to my build.
ANCIENT HISTORY
Received my BSME in 1980, signed up for grad school, got a summer job, and proceeded to buy a 1972 Corvette LT1. Had a lot of fun with the car and got used to having a regular income so grad school plans were shelved and full time employment ensued.
![Land vehicle Vehicle Car Motor vehicle Automotive design]()
Marriage and home ownership soon followed. And the Corvette ultimately was sold - to pay for a washer and dryer
Wife loves to hear this story to this day.
Work, work, work and finally in the early 1990s I began a search for a more serious Corvette with an eye out for a C2. After lots of looking I ended up with a original driver quality 1967 L71 427/435 convertible. Basic car with manual steering, manual brakes, and 4:11 rear axle ratio. FUN car. We joined NCRS and attended Bloomington Gold even though our car was a driver and no where near a Top Flight car. The Bloomington event was great in that they offered classes on how to do certain things which I embraced. I ended up taking classes on Rebuilding Your Muncie 4 Speed and Rebuilding Your Front Suspension. Of course I followed suite by performing these procedures on my car. The front end rebuild really did improve the drivability of the car. And while it was a great fun to own and drive I eventually grew tired of it. It seemed like I spent two weeks fixing something and then one week driving before some other repair came up. So I ended up selling the car as I could not envision ever going through (or paying for) a complete restoration.
![Land vehicle Vehicle Car Convertible Classic car]()
RECENT HISTORY
Began the search again in 2011 looking for a "late model" car that I could get in a drive and which hopefully came with a warranty so some other fool could lay on his back working on the darn thing. Actually found our car on eBay as one of several new Corvette Z06s being offered by Rick Hendrick Durham Auto Mall. Car was significantly discounted and we were able to negotiate a decent trade from long distance. So my wife and I took a long weekend and made the drive from Ohio to North Carolina. Car was a 2LZ level interior with the "Z07 Ultimate Performance Package". We fell hard for the car and, after a brief test drive, signed the papers and drove it home. And we got 24 mpg on the drive! I ended up getting Ohio vanity tags that read "ULT Z06" not to brag about my car but rather in an attempt to make a clever play on words from Chevrolet's "Ultimate Performance Package" option descriptor.
![Land vehicle Vehicle Motor vehicle Car Sports car]()
We REALLY loved this car and said we'd never sell it. I will admit that I could probably be accused of being something of a "waxer" as I never tracked the car nor beat the snot out of it but we did very much enjoy some spirited street driving. And I fell in love with the ceramic brakes. They worked extremely well, looked like a million bucks (waxer comment I guess), and NEVER developed the ugly brake dust on the wheels. I appreciated the latter as I've spent too darn many hours on my knees scrubbing dirt out of all the crevices on wheels. I should also say that I normally prefer a fairly firm ride so I had no problems with the ride quality. Then again, I never really drove a standard Z06 so I don't have much of a frame of reference.
Well you know what they say about never saying never. I watched the Stingray launch with distant interest in the interior upgrades but had zero interest in changing. Then I believe it was the March Car & Driver article where the C7 Z06 really caught my eye - 650 hp!, 650 kb-ft!, removable top!, improved Nav!, improved interior!, 7 speed rev-match trans!, and so on and so on. The more info I gathered the more interested I became. Finally I told the wife - we can't sit on the sidelines any more. So we put our 2011 up and sale in early July and within 2 weeks it was gone.
THE NOW
So with the old car gone we called up Bud's Chevrolet here in Ohio. They are a pretty sizable Corvette dealer and have a full time Corvette service tech. And they serviced my 2011 so I had some confidence in them. Nice small town dealer. Anyways I asked about getting on the list to buys 2015 Z06. They asked for a $2,000 deposit to confirm my interest and told me that I would be #16 in line. They figured I could get a car "late spring or early summer". I was happy with this as I normally kept my 2011 in winter storage until late-March anyways.
From here I got back onto the forums to try to learn as much as I could about C7s in general and the C7 Z06 in particular. The forums ended up being a wealth of good information, though I will admit to being too old to care for some of the youthful hyperbole found on some forums. Given the timing of the expected release of the ordering guide I told my wife we should try to attend the NCM 20th anniversary event in the hopes of being able to see the car in person, hopefully to sit in the GT and Competition seats, and importantly to talk to GM engineers. I was really interested in how the C7 Z07 would compare to my C6 Z07. This event ended up being a lot of fun though it was intensely hot for a couple of days. While there I ended up meeting elegant though I didn't realize it at the time. It seemed like he asked more questions than I did so I benefited greatly just in listening. Confirmed the suspected identity later long distance.
Well the information on Z07 was confusing but generally along the lines of "it will be very stiff and not really suitable for the street unless you have smooth roads". The confusion part was that Harlan Charles told me thought the package was very streetable while others thought it would be too stiff. The one thing this investigation taught me was the perception of ride stiffness is something that varies from individual to individual. Still we agonized and agonized about this one option and came home unsure. We kicked the car a million times and ended up saying we'd go WITH Z07 based on our past experience.
Before you knew it the first order consensus opened up and importantly the constraints for the first consensus became known. At this point I got a call from my dealer asking if I wanted to put my order in! He told me that 13 of the 15 people in front of me with deposits wanted either Autos or Convertibles. He went on to say that they could order (3) 7 speed coupes and that I could have one of these slots if the option constraints lined up.
The car I wanted included the following specs:
Shark Gray with Adrenaline Red
3LZ level interior
Z07 fun package
CFV visible carbon fiber aero
C2Z visible carbon fiber roof
FAY carbon fiber instrument panel
J6E yellow calipers
DTW carbon flash stinger (throwback to my 67)
Q6J Spectra Gray wheels
TTV carbon flash painted outside mirrors
This is where I got extremely lucky for the second time as my dealer told me that he had an allocation for ONE Z07 out of the three cars and that my configuration was "orderable".
So my order went in to the system at status 2000 on September 22 and then advanced to status 3000 on September 23. To date I have not received a Target Production Week though that seems to be common to everyone at this point. We are hoping for a December delivery. When the car does show up our plans are to transfer and fly the old "ULT Z06" tags!
![Land vehicle Vehicle Car Automotive design Sports car]()
PLANNED MODIFICATIONS
Not many at this point.
I did end up buying into the visible carbon fiber rear diffuser from "WeaponX".
I also need to come up with something to prevent the front end from getting pelted with stone chips. I've had the X-Pel product on one car before but our 2011 had the Speed Lingerie removable nose mask. Would love to hear of recommendations along these lines.
I also might bite on some add'l visible carbon fiber interior trim pieces if they match the FAY stuff.
And the Caravaggio steering wheel sounds interested. Draw-backs to me would be cost for one and my hesitation to deal with pulling and replacing the steering wheel due to the air bags. If there was an easy way to accomplish this swap I'd be a lot more interested. Maybe a conversion swap at a Corvette event?
ANCIENT HISTORY
Received my BSME in 1980, signed up for grad school, got a summer job, and proceeded to buy a 1972 Corvette LT1. Had a lot of fun with the car and got used to having a regular income so grad school plans were shelved and full time employment ensued.
Marriage and home ownership soon followed. And the Corvette ultimately was sold - to pay for a washer and dryer
Wife loves to hear this story to this day.Work, work, work and finally in the early 1990s I began a search for a more serious Corvette with an eye out for a C2. After lots of looking I ended up with a original driver quality 1967 L71 427/435 convertible. Basic car with manual steering, manual brakes, and 4:11 rear axle ratio. FUN car. We joined NCRS and attended Bloomington Gold even though our car was a driver and no where near a Top Flight car. The Bloomington event was great in that they offered classes on how to do certain things which I embraced. I ended up taking classes on Rebuilding Your Muncie 4 Speed and Rebuilding Your Front Suspension. Of course I followed suite by performing these procedures on my car. The front end rebuild really did improve the drivability of the car. And while it was a great fun to own and drive I eventually grew tired of it. It seemed like I spent two weeks fixing something and then one week driving before some other repair came up. So I ended up selling the car as I could not envision ever going through (or paying for) a complete restoration.
RECENT HISTORY
Began the search again in 2011 looking for a "late model" car that I could get in a drive and which hopefully came with a warranty so some other fool could lay on his back working on the darn thing. Actually found our car on eBay as one of several new Corvette Z06s being offered by Rick Hendrick Durham Auto Mall. Car was significantly discounted and we were able to negotiate a decent trade from long distance. So my wife and I took a long weekend and made the drive from Ohio to North Carolina. Car was a 2LZ level interior with the "Z07 Ultimate Performance Package". We fell hard for the car and, after a brief test drive, signed the papers and drove it home. And we got 24 mpg on the drive! I ended up getting Ohio vanity tags that read "ULT Z06" not to brag about my car but rather in an attempt to make a clever play on words from Chevrolet's "Ultimate Performance Package" option descriptor.
We REALLY loved this car and said we'd never sell it. I will admit that I could probably be accused of being something of a "waxer" as I never tracked the car nor beat the snot out of it but we did very much enjoy some spirited street driving. And I fell in love with the ceramic brakes. They worked extremely well, looked like a million bucks (waxer comment I guess), and NEVER developed the ugly brake dust on the wheels. I appreciated the latter as I've spent too darn many hours on my knees scrubbing dirt out of all the crevices on wheels. I should also say that I normally prefer a fairly firm ride so I had no problems with the ride quality. Then again, I never really drove a standard Z06 so I don't have much of a frame of reference.
Well you know what they say about never saying never. I watched the Stingray launch with distant interest in the interior upgrades but had zero interest in changing. Then I believe it was the March Car & Driver article where the C7 Z06 really caught my eye - 650 hp!, 650 kb-ft!, removable top!, improved Nav!, improved interior!, 7 speed rev-match trans!, and so on and so on. The more info I gathered the more interested I became. Finally I told the wife - we can't sit on the sidelines any more. So we put our 2011 up and sale in early July and within 2 weeks it was gone.
THE NOW
So with the old car gone we called up Bud's Chevrolet here in Ohio. They are a pretty sizable Corvette dealer and have a full time Corvette service tech. And they serviced my 2011 so I had some confidence in them. Nice small town dealer. Anyways I asked about getting on the list to buys 2015 Z06. They asked for a $2,000 deposit to confirm my interest and told me that I would be #16 in line. They figured I could get a car "late spring or early summer". I was happy with this as I normally kept my 2011 in winter storage until late-March anyways.
From here I got back onto the forums to try to learn as much as I could about C7s in general and the C7 Z06 in particular. The forums ended up being a wealth of good information, though I will admit to being too old to care for some of the youthful hyperbole found on some forums. Given the timing of the expected release of the ordering guide I told my wife we should try to attend the NCM 20th anniversary event in the hopes of being able to see the car in person, hopefully to sit in the GT and Competition seats, and importantly to talk to GM engineers. I was really interested in how the C7 Z07 would compare to my C6 Z07. This event ended up being a lot of fun though it was intensely hot for a couple of days. While there I ended up meeting elegant though I didn't realize it at the time. It seemed like he asked more questions than I did so I benefited greatly just in listening. Confirmed the suspected identity later long distance.
Well the information on Z07 was confusing but generally along the lines of "it will be very stiff and not really suitable for the street unless you have smooth roads". The confusion part was that Harlan Charles told me thought the package was very streetable while others thought it would be too stiff. The one thing this investigation taught me was the perception of ride stiffness is something that varies from individual to individual. Still we agonized and agonized about this one option and came home unsure. We kicked the car a million times and ended up saying we'd go WITH Z07 based on our past experience.
Before you knew it the first order consensus opened up and importantly the constraints for the first consensus became known. At this point I got a call from my dealer asking if I wanted to put my order in! He told me that 13 of the 15 people in front of me with deposits wanted either Autos or Convertibles. He went on to say that they could order (3) 7 speed coupes and that I could have one of these slots if the option constraints lined up.
The car I wanted included the following specs:
Shark Gray with Adrenaline Red
3LZ level interior
Z07 fun package
CFV visible carbon fiber aero
C2Z visible carbon fiber roof
FAY carbon fiber instrument panel
J6E yellow calipers
DTW carbon flash stinger (throwback to my 67)
Q6J Spectra Gray wheels
TTV carbon flash painted outside mirrors
This is where I got extremely lucky for the second time as my dealer told me that he had an allocation for ONE Z07 out of the three cars and that my configuration was "orderable".
So my order went in to the system at status 2000 on September 22 and then advanced to status 3000 on September 23. To date I have not received a Target Production Week though that seems to be common to everyone at this point. We are hoping for a December delivery. When the car does show up our plans are to transfer and fly the old "ULT Z06" tags!
PLANNED MODIFICATIONS
Not many at this point.
I did end up buying into the visible carbon fiber rear diffuser from "WeaponX".
I also need to come up with something to prevent the front end from getting pelted with stone chips. I've had the X-Pel product on one car before but our 2011 had the Speed Lingerie removable nose mask. Would love to hear of recommendations along these lines.
I also might bite on some add'l visible carbon fiber interior trim pieces if they match the FAY stuff.
And the Caravaggio steering wheel sounds interested. Draw-backs to me would be cost for one and my hesitation to deal with pulling and replacing the steering wheel due to the air bags. If there was an easy way to accomplish this swap I'd be a lot more interested. Maybe a conversion swap at a Corvette event?
