2004 Corvette Z06 Just your run-o-the-mill badass Z06 roadster. The C5 Corvette was literally built differently than all GM products leading up to 1997. 0.29 drag in the wind tunnel. DIC which could read diagnostic codes and display them for the driver without a computer. Constructing the frame rails with a process called Hydroforming. Replacing 14 parts used in the structural integrity of the C4 helping reducing the C5′s weight by 68 pounds. Hydroforming also alleviated the tall frame rails for the C5 making it less of a chore to enter and exit then the C4. You had to carefully step over the frame so you wouldn’t scrape the interior carpet with your shoes or worse stiletto heals. I thought it was unique and missed it in the C5. Third-generation LS1 V8 was overhauled to an all-aluminum block, utilizing ignition coils replacing the distributor of all previous small-block engines and new cylinder firing order. Rated at 345 bhp and 350 lbs. ft. With 28 mpg highway mileage it avoided the gas guzzler tax. Another trend set by Corvette was Run Flats Tires became standard equipment in 1997. The most important of all refinements was the transmission being moved to the rear of the car right between the wheels aptly named trans-axle. Of course the significance of this was Corvette now had a more even distribution weight to the tune of 51% in front 48% in back. This may not seem like a big deal now but in 1997 as a gearhead or an American auto enthusiast you knew what they meant for …
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