Engineers gave the 2023 Corvette Z06 suspension springs so tight that they were unseating themselves when unloaded.
By now, most everyone knows just about everything there is to know about the C8 Corvette Z06 and its high-revving powerplant. But not much attention has been paid to the 2023 Corvette Z06 suspension setup, which is totally unique from the base Stingray. More than that, the suspension setup on the new Z06 features some truly impressive engineering and touts some pretty interesting factoids that the average gearhead (or owner) will be delighted to learn, as Corvette chief engineer Josh Holder was happy to share at the recent National Corvette Museum Bash, according to GM Authority.
Aside from making room for larger wheels and tires, the team also stiffened up the 2023 Corvette Z06 suspension to the extreme, adding springs with a 35 percent higher ride frequency than the base Stingray. While that would immediately make one think that this sort of change would give the C8 Z06 the ride quality of a horse and buggy, but Holder pointed out that this isn’t the case at all. In fact, the new Z reportedly rides like a dream.
“I’ve had a few people ask me if it’s really hard to ride and the answer is no,” Holder said. “It’s still every bit a grand touring machine. It’s still capable for long trips. The nature of the mid-engine architecture, the stiffness of the body structure, the position of the occupants right over the center of gravity, helps an architecture extract the most out of high ride rates, high performance, without punishing the occupants.”
There was one problem, in particular, that stemmed from using spring rates this high – they actually became unseated when the suspension was unloaded during testing. To fix that issue, GM engineers added helper springs, a common feature that simply “helps” keep the springs seated when they’re doing their thing underneath the newest Corvette Z06.
For a car that’s touted as the ultimate track-focused Corvette, it’s obviously important to have both impeccable handling and at least reasonably good ride quality, particularly as most owners will drive them on the street and not the track. We’ll find out how these unique tweaks perform on both soon enough, thankfully.
Photos: Michael Palmer for Corvette Forum
Keyword: 2023 Corvette Z06 Suspension Features Super Stiff Springs and a Cushy Ride