[kttxz06]

Originally Posted by BlaqWhole

Yea I was about to say if he is at 1000 HP then he isn't on the stock engine at all. That's the thing with these builds. There will always be problems and issues and shit breaking. Which is why I am refraining from doing a serious build. I've had engines blow up on me back in my 4.6 liter Mustang days and they were cheap but costs add up. These days stuff is way more expensive. Plus I don't have the time, energy, or desire to do my own work anymore. Which means time waiting for parts waiting for installs etc. Just to get the car back and something else go wrong and by the time everything is ironed out there is a stock factory car with more HP. So screw it.

I'm with ya man. One of these days I'll just buy a Bentley and quit all this modding stuff.
It's going to be a few weeks b4 the dealer even looks at my car, then there is no telling what they will find. Hopefully it's just tuning issues and they can knock that out in a day or two. If it's the trans, we are looking at another month so. Not cool. But, I'm done on the Zl1 tho. I've about done all I want to do to it. Our last hit got 1199 on the dyno and it spun. I prob have 1250 in it, but I'm not gonna get it back on the dyno and try for another hit. It is what it is right now. I just want it running again.

[NW-99SS]

Originally Posted by kttxz06

It feels lighter on it's feet for sure. It's not a bad handling car actually. So far, I've been impressed. Never thought I'd say that, but it rides great and handles pretty damn good. It's not as heavy as the Camaro that's for sure and you can feel it. It's still pretty gutless tho. haha. Plus, it's my 1st ever manual so I'm having fun with it.

They are very close in weight. Your ZL1 does have a bunch of mods, so not sure if heavier or lighter than stock.

Stock vs Stock they are ~100lbs difference.

[kttxz06]

Originally Posted by NW-99SS

They are very close in weight. Your ZL1 does have a bunch of mods, so not sure if heavier or lighter than stock.

Stock vs Stock they are ~100lbs difference.

Well, if it's just 100 lbs, you can def tell. But, you are prob right, I've prob added 100 lbs to the Zl1 as well. Who knows. But it is quite noticeable. Don't really care, was just stating what I'm feeling.

[BlaqWhole]

Originally Posted by NW-99SS

They are very close in weight. Your ZL1 does have a bunch of mods, so not sure if heavier or lighter than stock.

Stock vs Stock they are ~100lbs difference.

He is full interior with a bunch of extras on his car. So I'd bet he is heavier than when it was stock.

I think we can applaud GM for giving the ZL1 all the options it comes with while keeping the weight just slightly over the previous Gen and having it perform as well as it does. It definitely proves how well balanced this car is. They really sacrificed nothing but gave the buyer everything they could want.

[TrackClub]

I think ZL1 is the best sports car value currently on the market. Period. As far as the MT review...well...Randy said it best: "this car makes me a better driver". Amen. Buy one, learn how to drive it and you'll spank exotics at a road course. For a fraction of their price. There is no other value offer like this on the market today. SS 1LE is another one, with less performance but also a lower price.

Boss is very nice indeed. I know some folks who track theirs. One is yet to pass me even with slicks on. Enough said.

BTW i drove my friend's GT350 up and down mountain roads in Arizona recently. For a few hrs. The car doesn't even compare to SS 1LE balance wise. Sure it handles fine, but just not in the same league. If also feels heavy and doesn't communicate its limits anywhere close to what my 1LE does. But it is a pretty nice car overall. Just not for the price.

To anyone that ponders getting one (and tons of them on the lots - even 17s still): the motor doesn't like cold temps. It also eats oil so check its level often. The fuel range is very low as the motor is very thirsty yet the fuel tank is smallish.
The torque is non existent under 5000rpm or so. That's fine on a road course, but it sucks in daily driving as it takes quite a while to get above it. The motor does sound nice at all RPMs, however don't try to pull any Civics at stop lights - or you may be greatly disappointed.
Also, clutch engagement is truly awful and is hard to get used to. The seats are ok but not as supportive as in a Camaro. The shifter is very nice. Overall the car felt more crude and rough around the edges including its drive modes and lack of high tech. But the ride was just fine and the car felt nice as a dd. But all this super motor/exhaust sound just didn't match the low end torque. Or lack of it.

Would i get one? Not as long as i can get SS 1LE for much less.

[kttxz06]

Originally Posted by TrackClub

I think ZL1 is the best sports car value currently on the market. Period. As far as the MT review...well...Randy said it best: "this car makes me a better driver". Amen. Buy one, learn how to drive it and you'll spank exotics at a road course. For a fraction of their price. There is no other value offer like this on the market today. SS 1LE is another one, with less performance but also a lower price.

Boss is very nice indeed. I know some folks who track theirs. One is yet to pass me even with slicks on. Enough said.

BTW i drove my friend's GT350 up and down mountain roads in Arizona recently. For a few hrs. The car doesn't even compare to SS 1LE balance wise. Sure it handles fine, but just not in the same league. If also feels heavy and doesn't communicate its limits anywhere close to what my 1LE does. But it is a pretty nice car overall. Just not for the price.

To anyone that ponders getting one (and tons of them on the lots - even 17s still): the motor doesn't like cold temps. It also eats oil so check its level often. The fuel range is very low as the motor is very thirsty yet the fuel tank is smallish.
The torque is non existent under 5000rpm or so. That's fine on a road course, but it sucks in daily driving as it takes quite a while to get above it. The motor does sound nice at all RPMs, however don't try to pull any Civics at stop lights - or you may be greatly disappointed.
Also, clutch engagement is truly awful and is hard to get used to. The seats are ok but not as supportive as in a Camaro. The shifter is very nice. Overall the car felt more crude and rough around the edges including its drive modes and lack of high tech. But the ride was just fine and the car felt nice as a dd. But all this super motor/exhaust sound just didn't match the low end torque. Or lack of it.

Would i get one? Not as long as i can get SS 1LE for much less.

That's weird that you get that feeling from the GT350 because honestly, I think it handles..........on the streets..........better than my Zl1 and I have full suspension work done. Every BMR piece you can buy is on my car. I think for me..........its weight transfer. I won't lie, the 350 in the 3 days I've now owned it.........I find myself driving it more and more and more. It's a fun, little, under powered Muscle car.

[BlaqWhole]

It seems that reports on these cars vary wildly from one reviewer to the next. I take it that there is a wide range of variance between GT350s for some reason. Where some perform fine and others not soo good. This is the first I'm hearing that it handles better on the streets than a ZL1. And especially a modded ZL1. If the non-R handles that well then I'm not sure how the R could lose on the track in the H2H. So I'm wondering if those CF wheels just make it feel like it handles better when it actually doesn't.

[BlaqWhole]

Originally Posted by TrackClub

I think ZL1 is the best sports car value currently on the market. Period. As far as the MT review...well...Randy said it best: "this car makes me a better driver". Amen. Buy one, learn how to drive it and you'll spank exotics at a road course. For a fraction of their price. There is no other value offer like this on the market today. SS 1LE is another one, with less performance but also a lower price.

Boss is very nice indeed. I know some folks who track theirs. One is yet to pass me even with slicks on. Enough said.

BTW i drove my friend's GT350 up and down mountain roads in Arizona recently. For a few hrs. The car doesn't even compare to SS 1LE balance wise. Sure it handles fine, but just not in the same league. If also feels heavy and doesn't communicate its limits anywhere close to what my 1LE does. But it is a pretty nice car overall. Just not for the price.

To anyone that ponders getting one (and tons of them on the lots - even 17s still): the motor doesn't like cold temps. It also eats oil so check its level often. The fuel range is very low as the motor is very thirsty yet the fuel tank is smallish.
The torque is non existent under 5000rpm or so. That's fine on a road course, but it sucks in daily driving as it takes quite a while to get above it. The motor does sound nice at all RPMs, however don't try to pull any Civics at stop lights - or you may be greatly disappointed.
Also, clutch engagement is truly awful and is hard to get used to. The seats are ok but not as supportive as in a Camaro. The shifter is very nice. Overall the car felt more crude and rough around the edges including its drive modes and lack of high tech. But the ride was just fine and the car felt nice as a dd. But all this super motor/exhaust sound just didn't match the low end torque. Or lack of it.

Would i get one? Not as long as i can get SS 1LE for much less.

I hated how gutless my GT felt at lower RPMs. Even at higher RPMs it needed extensive mods before it finally had some guts.

[whiteboyblues2001]

Originally Posted by BlaqWhole

It seems that reports on these cars vary wildly from one reviewer to the next. I take it that there is a wide range of variance between GT350s for some reason. Where some perform fine and others not soo good. This is the first I'm hearing that it handles better on the streets than a ZL1. And especially a modded ZL1. If the non-R handles that well then I'm not sure how the R could lose on the track in the H2H. So I'm wondering if those CF wheels just make it feel like it handles better when it actually doesn't.

The carbon fiber wheels make a huge differnece in handling. Significanly reducing not just unsprung mass but rotating unsprung mass will be very noticeable.

But even if you are comparing the non-R to something, it depends on what you are coming from. The MotorTrend H2H was with the ZL1, which as significantly more weight up front. If you compare to an SS 1LE, that effect is less pronounced.

There is a reason that road course folks prefer N/A engines, and it has MUCH to do with the weight on the front end, and how that effects the handling of the car.

So, to me, if you really love handling and are considering the GT350, it would be "R" or nothing. Otherwise I would just get the SS 1LE. Other than an exotic engine with great sounds, the 1LE will feel better and be just about as fast, if not faster depending on the track, not to mention cheaper and without all the issues.

[NW-99SS]

Originally Posted by kttxz06

Well, if it's just 100 lbs, you can def tell. But, you are prob right, I've prob added 100 lbs to the Zl1 as well. Who knows. But it is quite noticeable. Don't really care, was just stating what I'm feeling.

It wasn't a shot, just clarifying the stock difference. The BMR parts are likely heavier as you said.

Handling feel is clearly subjective - some love the 350, some the 1LEs (SS or ZL1)...nothing wrong with either choice.

[TrackClub]

Just some more comments from my armchair:

The heaviest ZL1 (A10) weighs 179lb more than an SS 1LE. The manual is about 130lb heavier. That's not really all that much considering its power advantage. Both cars have the same F vs R weight distribution tho. But the ZL1 has a slightly wider F wheel track. Hence all comments about ZL1 carrying 200lb on its nose are without merit.
It actually beats SS 1LE figure 8 time and matches times posted by some mid engine cars. Chock it up to its MRC suspension (matched to G3 tires). Simply said, it is one of the best handling cars out there and all objective tests prove it including lap times at various track venues.

Going back to GT350 feel vs a modded ZL1: perhaps the former feels better because of suspension mods on the ZL1? Just spending money won't automatically make things better. Money is not engineering and i know many who spent money and regretted it. Yours truly included. Having said that we are free to spend our money however we feel.

Apart from less rotating mass, GT350R is overall lighter than its lesser GT350 version (no rear seat etc) and has trick DSSV suspension and much better tires. Hence better handling results and faster lap times on a race track. That's a no brainer. It also carries a very lofty price, which makes it uncompetitive vs a ZL1 in all respects.
But for those that like a Shelby logo and have fat wallets it is clearly a very capable car, albeit not as versatile and not as fast as the ZL1.

Lastly, as much as weight matters, how the car feels, has much to do with its suspension. When GTR first came out it was an absolute terror at road courses albeit it weighed some 1000lb more than top Porsches.
Finally, anyone that can feel 100lb (having a large dog as a passenger) as a substantial difference affecting handling - and especially during street driving - should call F1 immediately

On a serious note: if somebody just wants *street* power a Stang GT with a Roush blower and full Ford warranty can't be beat with 660HP (if my memory serves me right). If somebody wants a *dual* purpose car capable of embarrassing exotics on road courses, then the ZL1 is impossible to beat today. This is not just my opinion, but those expressed by pro drivers and real life tests. Look em up

[FastCarFanBoy]

350R does not use spool valve shocks, they are magneride with more aggressive damping.

[newmoon]

Originally Posted by kttxz06

That's weird that you get that feeling from the GT350 because honestly, I think it handles..........on the streets..........better than my Zl1 and I have full suspension work done. Every BMR piece you can buy is on my car. I think for me..........its weight transfer. I won't lie, the 350 in the 3 days I've now owned it.........I find myself driving it more and more and more. It's a fun, little, under powered Muscle car.

Great to hear that you are enjoying your GT350, post some pictures of it.

[TrackClub]

Originally Posted by FastCarFanBoy

350R does not use spool valve shocks, they are magneride with more aggressive damping.

Right you are! Thx for pointing it out.