2002 Chevrolet Corvette Z06: How I Roll

Forget the engine, the weight, the heritage/history/racing record, the price, or the style. The IP is the best part of the Corvette. It has all the information you want in one clear easy-to-scan pod. Simply brilliant.

AHMEN, Niebuhr!
How many decades did man actually drive before electroinc nannies took over the art? Driving has become a 3D video game with all the electronic nannieswe have come to rely on. Yes, some of them are good, and help ease the process, but they also make drivers LAZY! That's why it's so damn frustrating to drive on the streets now. Nobody really knows what they're doing. Some think it will actually be "cool" to have a car that drives for you. Personally, I refer to that as the train. Its good to know that someone out there drive with his eyes on the road, his mind on what is going on around him and a sense of how to control his environment.

We should outlaw the automatic transmission! That's where the whole damn problem started.

I do like how those 'gages' are clear, easy to read and informative.

I keep mine on oil temp all the time too. I know when I can start to push the car and then when I should let off a little bit. Knowing the pressure of each tire is also great!

"We should outlaw the automatic transmission! That's where the whole damn problem started."

What a deep an interesting posting....how long did it take you to come up with that one? What a moron. What fascinating and exciting vehicle to you drive and what have you owned in the past? Since you made such an ignorant statement I would love to know just what your experience in cars is. Do you even have a license or do you just have a bus pass?

@itbeatswalkin : Yes, man drove around for years accident free in very underpowered cars, right? Seriously, when you drive a car that runs low to mid 12's in the quarter mile, the electronic nannies are very, very important. Even moreso when the weather conditions change and the pavement gets wet.

I drive my CTS-V around with the auto transmission (gasp!!!) in sport mode, the suspension in sport mode and the Active Handling in Competitive mode (it allows plenty of wheelspin). This way the car gives me maximum leeway to play around while saving my a$$ when I take it too far. It's the best of both worlds really.

@Kurt Niebuhr: To turn off the Active Handling in the C5, you have to hold the button down for 6 seconds, correct?

@ everyone condemning the "electronic nannies" on modern cars, I don't recall which car magazine it was, but they put an honest to god racecar driver in a ZR1 Corvette and had him drive laps with the Active Handling in different settings. The driver thought he was fastest with it completely off, but in reality, his fastest lap was in Competition Mode. So obviously those handling engineers know what they're doing. This guy was a pro, and was faster with the nannies.

I'm a complete novice, I prefer the nannies help keep the shiny-side facing up! Thanks! ;-)

I don't think the system is crude. But you might try competitive driving mode. Zero traction control and dialed back yaw control.

I also think the interruptions to the throttle are required for what was about to happen, with traction control on: you were about to blow the tires off. Hence, try competitive driving mode.

On my CTS-V, as I pointed out in a prior post, I was able to bring it up to the cornering limit at around 65mph and rotate a bit before the system intervened at all, and that was in full up mode. Again, you're probably just in a low gear and trying to power slide the car...no traction control system is going to allow that.

I have little experience with the system at low speed, admittedly, because my platform doesn't response well to low speed hooliganism (or as I call it, the F-body driving style. It would rather I get traction, accelerate, and enter a corner, not blow the tires off at 20mph around a corner in 1st gear.

I've never heard of "Competitive Mode" on the '02-'04 Z06 being crude as stated above. Let's hear from the people that track their Z06 (ie. Stingray and Church).

the new PTM in the ZR1 (and the nannies in the new Z06) do indeed improve lap times, which I find a bit scary, but it's still more rewarding to drive fast without electronic interference, even if your 'fast' is slower than the computer's 'fast'

Agree about the IP...it just looks great.

"I do like how those 'gages' are clear, easy to read and informative."

I really like how the speedo is calibrated...it leaves most of the dial for speeds one will actully be going, instead of over half of the range taken by 80+ markings.

This is still one of the best, if not the best, gauge clusters.

Still surprised no IL staffer hasn't mentioned the night presentation. Each individual gauge is aimed slightly toward the driver so, at night, they appear to float above the cluster surface. The LED backlighting also lends a certain crispness.

Turning off Active Handling is just a quick press of the button. To engage the Competitive Mode requires you to press and hold the button for 5-6 seconds.

I agree, and so does Josh Jacquot, that the PTM in the new ZR1 is nothing short of astonishing. It lets you use all the power the tires can possibly handle. Plus, it makes a great race-cartastic flutter when it activates the limiter.

"While our Z06's system does give you a little leeway, when it does intervene, it abruptly chops the throttle and then leaves you without any throttle input for a few seconds, even after the ship has been righted - not the best when you'd rather just go home and change your shorts. Simply put, it's crude and I can do a better job of controlling the car in situations that I get myself into then it can."

Must be a MY 2002 thing.

@ lmbvette

When driving on public roads (not on the track) you're not driving for lap times, so keeping the shiny side up should not be an issue. If it is, you only add to my argument that today's "drivers" are gaining a false sense of security by relying on the safety nannies as oppposed to driving like reasonable people. Even in moments of impulsive driving, the operator needs to know when/how to save his own bacon.

As far as your personal CTS-V, I applaud your choice of vehicles, but personally I would have never purchased it with an automatic. When it comes time to resell, it may be a plus, but for daily entertainment/enjoyment, it reduces the driver invlovement by factors of 10. IT is still an awesome car though.

@ bodyblue

For Sh*ts & G*ggles here is my personaly list of past rides:
1981 Buick Skylark(auto yeah I'm a child of the 80's, so what)
1987 Toyota MR2 (5 speed)
1989 Saab 900S (5 speed)
1993 Mazda MX3 GS (1.8 liter V6 w/5 speed)
1994 Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme (auto)
1999 Saab 9-3S (5 speed)
2007 Camry SE V-6 (Auto w/18 inch TRD wheels)
2007 Saturn Aura XR (Auto)
Still haven't pulled the trigger on my Corvette purchase yet, but in do time. Oh yeah, I haven't had a bus pass in a LONG, long time.

I like my Saturn, just hate the fact that I had to part with my Saab when I bought it. Great cruiser and solid backroad performer none the less. My two most recent rides obviously have the most electronic nannies affixed to them, and they are significantly more powerful than the cars that came before them. The MR2 was a handful in the rain, but I learned how to drive it properly and never scarred it in any way. I did have one entertaining cloverleaf spinout in it, but I learned a valuable lesson and drove it appropriately thereafter. The Saabs and the Mazda were also quite entertaining on my favorite back roads.

Automatics have their place. I understand that, hey I drive one currently. But they make drivers passive and unattentive. Important things like following distances, maintaining consistent vehicle speeds, lane discipline, yielding, and merging are taken for granted because the whole process is controlled by the machinery instead of the pilot.

"Automatics have their place. I understand that, hey I drive one currently. But they make drivers passive and unattentive. Important things like following distances, maintaining consistent vehicle speeds, lane discipline, yielding, and merging are taken for granted because the whole process is controlled by the machinery instead of the pilot. "

Good lord do you really believe that drivel? I have never seen anybody so wrong about something on here as the above statement.

"But they make drivers passive and unattentive. Important things like following distances, maintaining consistent vehicle speeds, lane discipline, yielding, and merging are taken for granted because the whole process is controlled by the machinery instead of the pilot. "

I think that those factors depend more on the driver and less on the gearbox. If I hop in a car with an AT I'm still going to drive it the same way I would an MT. The only difference is I will have less fun and control over the vehicle's behavior, but it wouldn't affect my lane discipline, yielding, etc.

Sorry about the 2 day delay, real life was taking place.

@ bimmerjay
"The only difference is I will have less fun and control over the vehicle's behavior,"

Well, this is a large part of what I'm talking about. When driving is less fun, it becomes more mundane, more of a chore than an activity. Your connection to the machine and the road is reduced to just getting there with as little inconvenience as possible. Make it easy in other words, and little reward comes from the easy things in life. Add to this, your reduced perception of control over the vehicles behavior (which I also believe most aren't even aware of because they drive automatics everyday, or have no idea of how to drive a stick) and you begin to introduce the other behaviors I discussed such as lane discipline, yielding, and sensitivity to small things that mean a lot when driving.

You drive a manual on a regular basis (as did I until last summer) and your occassional foray into the world of automatics may actually be a relaxing change from shifting your own. I can respect that. It is my contention, that by simplifying the activity, you introduce complacency to driving. This is why (again my theory) people believe they can take on other distractions while they drive (reading the papers in traffic, applying make up, shaving, texting or facebooking when behind the wheel to name just a few of the hundreds of stupid things folks do behind the wheel). These distractions are nearly impossible when you have to concentrate on shifting your own gears and navigating the vehicle. Don't agree? Ok.

@ bodyblue
Your opinion means nothing really. Why bother with you.

"While our Z06's system does give you a little leeway, when it does intervene, it abruptly chops the throttle and then leaves you without any throttle input for a few seconds, even after the ship has been righted "

I disagree with that, for the most part. The system usually gives you a lot of leeway, allowing the rear to step out in oversteer for a second or two even with everything turned on. If you act like a complete idiot and stay in the gas hard after that second or two, it will intervene in a noticeable fashion, cutting throttle until the rear tires regain traction completely. Yes, if you're a skilled driver and you're used to correcting throttle oversteer with your own steering inputs and your right foot, it can be slightly annoying. However, this is true for ANY traction control system. In fact, I would say the '02 Z06's system is one of the least intrusive systems out there, even by today's standards. Compare it the '03 Infiniti G35 6MT coupe I used to own: if the car detected ANY wheel spin from the rears, or the rear stepped out even an inch, the computer would practically cut the throttle to idle instantly!! It was really annoying to me. Worse still, there was no competitive mode like the Z06 has, and even when you turned it "off" it wasn't really all the way off. I think most stability control systems are this way today. The Corvette's (and CTS-V's) systems are the exception.

The Competitive Driving mode on the '02 Z06 is phenomenal, and what you described Kurt doesn't fit the bill at all in this mode. First off, there is no traction control in this mode, only stability control. You practically have to have the car completely sideways, like 90 degrees to where you want to be, before the system will cut throttle to the point you described. In almost every other situation, the system makes subtle corrections to keep the car from spinning, and in many cases you wouldn't even notice it doing its thing, except for when it pops up on the display that it kicked in.

The only time Competitive Driving mode may slow you down and be in the way is when: 1) you're on a race track, and 2) you're a very good driver who can safely exploit 10/10ths of the Z06's performance.

"Simply put, it's crude and I can do a better job of controlling the car in situations that I get myself into then it can. "

I've never heard of anyone describing the C5 Z06's AH system "crude" before. Quite the opposite. Name a car with a better system from 2002. Even today, there may only be a handful of systems that are better, and not by much (I'm talking for RWD cars - AWD based systems don't count - different animal).

As for the street, I can't see any reason to run without Competitive Driving mode on. If nothing else, it's a nice safety net without being in the way. If Competitive Driving mode is "in your way" on this car on the street, there is no way you are driving anywhere near legal speeds. Track is another story, but again, you had better be an excellent driver.