[AJerman]

Oh Boy, A Z51!!!

[scalbert]

Originally Posted by cstavaru

Doesn't the Corvette have leaf springs ? Even in my emerging country the only vehicles with leaf springs are horse carriages

And did you try to gently press on the back panel of a Corvette ? Its just a thin film of plastic.

Also, pushrod engine...come on, what century are we living in ?

Not in the traditional sense. They are transverse composite single leaf springs and offer significant advantages such as lower unsprung weight, lower CG, less wear, ect.

As for the push-rod statement, the OHC engine was first built in 1912; hardly revolutionary. If you can make a pushrod engine work, why not. It normally weighs less and has a smaller footprint.

[cstavaru]

Originally Posted by scalbert

Not in the traditional sense. They are transverse composite single leaf springs and offer significant advantages such as lower unsprung weight, lower CG, less wear, ect.

Its just for the lower price.

[scalbert]

Originally Posted by cstavaru

Its just for the lower price.

Not even close. Once again, these are transverse composite leaf springs. Not your typical longitudinal steel leaf springs. The packaging and design complexity increase development costs. But more importantly, the material expense is noticeably greater. Coils springs are wound steel and commonplace. The composite material and manufacturing costs are two to three times greater with these types of leaf springs.

If it were cost related, more basic cars would rely on them.

[lvwirelessguy]

With GM you don't need employee pricing to get 10k off. Anyone can get this, its called supply and demand. They won't turndown a chance to move any car off their lot right now

[vAnt826]

I don't think anyone in the Corvette market really cares about how their turn signal stalks look or what shape their air vents are.

To be honest, not everyone can drive a Corvette. It's reserved for those special people who can look past the fancy things on the car and appreciate the feeling it gives when you are beating the crap out of the Gallardo who tried to race you.

Test driving a base LS3 Corvette was a fun experience for me. I can't imagine what doom a Z06 will bring on me!

[I335]

Originally Posted by kevinbahnz

never driven a vette and probably will never. If I have to pay for it, i'll try to get the most out of my money. not just a performance car that goes fast in summer. but if I had the money to buy 2 cars I still wouldnt buy a corvette or any american car, unless it was a classic car.

You miss a lot living with blinders on...

[I335]

Originally Posted by cstavaru

Doesn't the Corvette have leaf springs ? Even in my emerging country the only vehicles with leaf springs are horse carriages

And did you try to gently press on the back panel of a Corvette ? Its just a thin film of plastic.

Also, pushrod engine...come on, what century are we living in ?

I think the rear suspension is a single leaf spring going across the back side-to-side, but why do you care how the performance is accomplished? It out-handles most cars with much more sophisticated suspension while maintaining a ride quality that is very respectable. AND, it's a lot less expensive to produce and replace. Now THAT is successful engineering...

And that pushrod engine puts out great power and sounds fantastic. I can't imagine there are any vette owners out there saying "those darn pushrods are really bothering me..." as they're blowing off nearly everyone's doors with wonderful music coming from the quad pipes.

Anyhow, don't judge before you give one a try. It's pretty amazing how well refined all that "older technology" is these days...

[scalbert]

Originally Posted by I335

out-handles most cars with much more sophisticated suspension while maintaining a ride quality that is very respectable. AND, it's a lot less expensive to produce and replace. Now THAT is successful engineering...

The transverse leaf spring is more complicated to desiogn and implement and costs more. That should bode even more well for the Corvette since the suspension costs more yet the car still retails for much less.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvett...nt_suspensions

[I335]

Originally Posted by scalbert

The transverse leaf spring is more complicated to desiogn and implement and costs more. That should bode even more well for the Corvette since the suspension costs more yet the car still retails for much less.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvett...nt_suspensions

I stand corrected - thanks. Even more impressive...