LS1Vince

Why is the Rear window shorter on the C5 Z06 then the base? was this to save weight? or maybe just to differentiate between the two, i'd think the extra vent on the side woulda been enough. Personally, i like the hatch better than the trunk. Did they make the Z06 with the hatch or was it only with the trunk and the shorter Rear glass? Again, i apologize for being a complete idiot, but i cant find any info on it anywhere for some reason, and its been bugging the **** out of me.


BASE


Z06

(But judging from the responses its not that dumb of a question lol)

9WhiteCamaro9

Never really thought about it.

babbage1109

iTrader: (11)

Yes. Coupe vs hatchback. Notice how the trunks are different

metalmilitia606

iTrader: (8)

I think this is what the vette people call an FRC or something. Fixed roof coupe it's basically just like a vert, but the top doesn't go down. I don't know if that's what it is, but I think it's a pretty good guess.

LS1Vince

Could you get a Z06 in the hatch? or just the coupe?

babbage1109

iTrader: (11)

I believe that's all you could get for a true z06

LS1Vince

Thats kind of disappointing lol i really like how the Hatch looks on these, without it, the car looks REALLY long. :/ but thanks for clearing that up lol

babbage1109

iTrader: (11)

I mean no matter what I'd be happy with either in my garage...lol

LS1Vince

bahahaha yeah same...

94T/A5.7LT1

iTrader: (1)

My guess they did it to save weight. Glass isn't light and the window on the base is much bigger then the FRC.

bj350hp

iTrader: (4)

The Z06 model replaced the FRC model as the highest performance C5 Corvette. Instead of a heavier double-overhead cam engine like the ZR-1 of the C4 generation, the Z06 used an LS6, a 385 bhp (287 kW) derivative of the standard LS1 engine. Using the much more rigid fixed roof design allowed the Z06 unprecedented handling thanks to upgraded brakes and much less body flex.

"from wikipedia"

WS6sleeper

iTrader: (1)

The body was originally a vert!!!

94T/A5.7LT1

iTrader: (1)

Okay wasn't for weight saving, but I'm sure it helped of it did save some weight. I still like the zo6/FRC version the best.

FBodyPerformer

iTrader: (19)

Like mentioned, the Z06 derived from the '99-'00 FRC (which stood for fixed roof coupe) it had a slightly more powerful LS1 in it (I believe it was a different cam?). It was a model of the Vette you could get for the more serious performance people, the same as Camaros came in hardtops and t-topes. Then in '01 they renamed the FRC to the Z06 and did the 385 LS6 ('02 started the 405hp LS6)

MeenZ28

iTrader: (5)

I always heard they made the FRCs the Z06 to get more interest in the style. Before the Z06 no-one wanted the FRC look....

Danny2tek

iTrader: (1)

damn I embarrassed to say that I never really noticed

carlos64030

iTrader: (5)

The hard top Vette's original purpose was to be a cheaper base model.

SlowFRC

iTrader: (2)

FRC vettes didn't have any more power than regular coupes. The FRC was basically the stripped down most race oriented version on the C5 before the Z came out. The fixed roof adds stiffness, all FRCs came with the Z51 package, and FRCs were the lightest model you could get (power passengers seat, etc..)

But yeah, as someone said the FRC did not sell well. I think the reason they decided to go with the style for z06s was GM had a deal for a certain number of units with the roof manufacturer (or some other essential part of the FRC style) so when it didn't sell well in 99/00 they had all of these roofs left over hence they used it for the Z. I'm not 100% sure on this but I've read it before.

LS1Vince

haha yeah same. i started noticing a few weeks ago when someone posted some pics of their 02 Z06 they just picked up. and i was like hmmm that looks odd (being that the back window was so short and the trunk was an actualy trunk) so then i started looking into it, and BAM! it hit me that ALL C5 Z06's were like this lol

carlos64030

iTrader: (5)

I'm guessing those that just discovered this are either really young or were never into Corvettes. I mean seriously... we're talking about 12 years since the hard top was introduced, and a 6 year design run on America's premier sports car.