Planet LSX Corvette Z06 Update
Posted at 5:59 PM / January 4, 2011
The PlanetLSX.com project C6 Z06 has been a blast, ever since installing the Magna Charger TVS2300 supercharger on it back in May 2010. It survived the rigors and traffic jams of Hot Rod Power Tour, going the full 3,000 mile Long Haul in June. So far, the system has been excellent, and OEM reliable. With nearly 650 crank HP on tap, in a 3250 lb car, most drivers would be satisfied with this current combination. Here at Planet LSX, we always want a little more.
Our goal was to produce over 600 hp at the rear wheels, without sacrificing any street manners or drivability issues. Our previous settings had us at 558 rwhp and 521 ft-lbs, with no other modifications done to the car but the Maggie blower pushing 6.5 psi boost. The car still had stock exhaust, even the stock spark plugs. The car was begging for some simple mods to bump it up even further.
First up, we installed a set of American Racing 1-7/8 long-tube headers, along with some high flow catalytics. This was a little more of a pesky install, compared with the typical base C6 header install. You have to remove two of the dry-sump oiling system hoses from the oil pan, as well as the positive starter wire. Then with a little jigsaw contortionist puzzle solving skills, you can snake the passenger side header in place from underneath. The driver's side went in no problem. So, go ahead and schedule yourself an oil-change the same time you do the header swap, as 10 quarts of Mobil-1 isn't cheap. The ARH headers came with their own X-pipe, which matched up perfectly with the factory axle-back exhaust and mufflers. We went ahead and installed a set of NGK TR6 spark plugs, gapped at 0.040, to move the plug heat range down a notch.
Our friends over at Late Model Racecraft put the car on their Dynojet for a re-tuning of the computer. With just the header swap alone, the Z06 put down 581 rwhp and 548 ft-lbs. That is a net gain of 23 rwhp and 27 ft-lbs, across the entire RPM range. There was no loss or decrease anywhere in the HP or TQ curves. Not bad! We were expecting it to maybe dip in the lower rpm range, but it didn't. It also didn't lose any blower boost pressure either, remaining about the same at lower rpm but picking up a tiny bit more in the upper-midrange rpm.
The Magna Charger was still sporting the factory 3.6 inch pulley, and we just so happened to have a 3.4 inch pulley in our possession. The urge was too strong to pass up, so we found ourselves doing a blower pulley swap while the car was still strapped to the dyno. We didn't even need to change the blower belt, making this a really simple swap. The smaller pulley rewarded us with another 1.5 psi boost, 616 rwhp and 581 ft-lbs. That is a net increase of 35 rwhp and 33 ft-lbs.
Here is a video of the 616 rwhp dyno pull:
Late Model Racecraft Dynojet Z06
Well, we now have a mountain plateau of torque, with that 7.0L LS7 producing over 500 ft-lbs at the tire from 2,000 rpm and higher. The throttle response is amazing, and our Z06 can roast the tires at any roll under 50 mph. If you've read all the rave reviews about the big-brother Corvette ZR1 by now, then take those reviews and add another 75 rwhp and you might grasp the concept here with this Z06.
Something tells us that we'll be kicked out of a dragstrip soon...
