I raced a convertible 99 corvettes today from a stoplight.

When I pulled up to the light I heard the pashinger say bla bla bla I think that’s a Lightning!

This is when I thought ‘it’s going to happen’. Light turns green and off I go, rear view mirror nothing ‘great he’ll pass soon enough’, right mirror nothing, ‘what the *******?’, ah blind spot. I’m now confused doing 80 mph and another stop light.

He never passed me at all? Hey these corvettes are much faster than this, I thought?

BAM, there he is next to me almost missed the light. Ever seen Eyes wide shut, well this was mouth wide open!!

Corvette: what the ******* have you done to that truck!

Lightning: nothing, it’s stock! ‘I lied a little’

Corvette: I just got this and I don’t now how to drive it.

Lightning: Want to go again?

Corvette: It’s new and I shouldn’t have done what I just did!

Lightning: O…………………K………………..?

I wonder if this was a true kill?

Dallas at about 50 –60 degrees.

 

Nice kill...heck yeah, that counts!!

The new LS1 Vette is a bona-fide low-13 second ride with a good driver. It was a 6-speed and the guy didn't know how to drive it, then it does not shock me that you whipped him to 80mph. That's about an 1/8 mile run (my truck runs 84+mph through the 1/8 mile trap).

Frankly, if you launch the L correctly even on stock tires, I have found it will be very hard for someone with a little more power (new LS1 Vette, new LS1 F-body) to beat you to the 1/8 mile. Many of those cars are 6-speeds. It takes some technique and clutch slipping (which most of us wouldn't want to do, just to win a race) to get them to come out hard from a stop.

My L will beat my Cobra (off the bottle) in the 1/8th mile, and my Cobra isn't stock. It also runs low-13s on motor on real radial tires.

On the street, the L is a beast to race against b/c you can get good launches (unless you powerbrake it) and it is geared really well for the 1/8th mile (to 80-85mph where it shifts into 3rd).

Race that thing in a full 1/4 mile with a driver with any skill and he'll pass you at ~1000' or so. How many times do you race 1000'+ on the street...? Not very often.

Advantage...Lightning.

Good job!!

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Wes Tarbox
90 LX 5.0 (10.69 @ 134.7)
96 Cobra (12.63 @ 114.5)
97 SHO
99 Lightning (13.20 @ 103.3)
http://members.aol.com/Wa2fsT/index.html

 

to the top

 

I did a '99 C5 to 80mph, when the shift to 3rd allowed him to catch up, and walk to 2 lengths by 110mph. The race started with us taking an immediate 1/2 length lead, and I was pretty shocked, and stoked, that I toasted him in the 1/8th. I like to refer to the look on his face as the same look on the paleontologists face when he saw a live dinosaur for the first time in Jurassic Park. Remember that look? HEHEHEHE!

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99.5 White Lightning.
#3299, Built 8/5;
Snuglid, Bedrug, PSP filter, window tint (limo back, 70% sides).




[This message has been edited by Steve Bopp (edited 03-14-2000).]

 

If you read Motor Trend, the C5 is a 13.1 to a 13.2 second quarter, ahh, that's what the magazine says. At my local track I have seen C5's run low 14's, high 13's and I saw one convertible (the night I took my new L out for the first time), run a 13.36, I know he had an exhaust, but don't know what else. Here is Phoenix, the stock L's run a flat 14 second quarter, give or take half a tenth. With the chip and filter, they average a 13.5. I was recently speaking with a local engine builder (who specializes exclusively in Corvettes) and I was discussing the times I run in my C4 Vette and we got on the topic of the C5 times. He said, "if you can get a C5 to run here in Phoenix at a 13.5, that is the best you're gonna do". So, based on the L and C5 times, I think it is very attainable to outperform the LS1 Corvette.

As a side note, what I have found to be particularly interesting is that when I drive my LT1 Vette it feels incredibly faster than my L. The power on the L is unbelievably smooth and deceiving.

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00 Red L, adopted 2/29/00. 14.356 w/250 miles on odometer.
98 Red Dodge V10 4X4 quad cab.
96 Yellow Corvette LT1.
99 Arctic Cat ZR440 sno pro.
98 Polaris Super Sport 488.
97 Seadoo HX.
96 Polaris SLX w/PSI triple pipes.
97 Banshee completely tricked.
96 Polaris Scrambler.
87 Polaris Indy 600 SKS w/SLP 707 full mod.
RC CARS: Associated; RC10B3's, RC10T3, TC3. Lossi; XXCR Kinwald, XX4. Yokomo; MR4TC

peteb3@home.com

 

Hello all..

I have run a few C-5 vettes here in Miami.. You can run door to door for awhile..You do get to watch them shift into second.. but once they throw third.. it's all over..

And how much difference does a good driver make ? I would say good launch and shifts are worth 3-5 tenthts in the 1/4..



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Got Boost ?
1999 SVT Lightning

 

Exactly! The difference b/w a good driver and a bad driver can easily be .3-.5 in a car that has the potential to run low-13s.

And typically, the faster the car, the more skilled the driver needs to be to get every last .1 of ET out of it.

.3-.5 in the 1/4 at 105mph/154' per second (just for the sake of argument) is 45-75'. In my opinion, that's a big difference. 3-5 car lengths easily.



------------------
Wes Tarbox
90 LX 5.0 (10.69 @ 134.7)
96 Cobra (12.63 @ 114.5)
97 SHO
99 Lightning (13.20 @ 103.3)
http://members.aol.com/Wa2fsT/index.html

 

Peter B,
Your observation:
_______________________________________
As a side note, what I have found to be particularly interesting is that when I drive my LT1 Vette it feels incredibly faster than my L. The power on the L is unbelievably smooth and deceiving.
_______________________________________

The corvette being closer to the ground also has something to do with this illusion. Riding high in the truck decreases the sensation of speed.



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99.5 White Lightning.
#3299, Built 8/5;
Snuglid, Bedrug, PSP filter, window tint (limo back, 70% sides).