pb1995

what's the deal with the new c6 brakes? the rotors and calipers are the same size, but the rotors weigh 2 pounds more! Has anyone picked up a zo6 rotor, not very light. They claim better heat dissipation, but for more unsprung weight. I wonder what these engineers are thinking?

LT4Firehawk

Brake rotors are always a tradeoff. For better ride/handling you want the least unsprung weight possible. However, for better track (roadcourse) performance you need low fade and repeatable stops. This requires more heat sink capability in the rotor. GM figured out that the C5 brakes while very good, were a little short on heat sink ability so they increased the mass of the rotors for the C6.

Steve in Seattle

yep, the C6 rotors (if they're interchangeable; I havn't seen anyone confirm the offsets/centerline are the same though) will be better "track use" rotors, while auto-cross, drag strip, and daily driving would be better served with the lighter C5 rotors.

Talk to any road racer and you'll get the same analysis: you can never have too much braking.

pb1995

yeah I understand that, but what market is gm going for? I figure a street car would be more concerned with ride quality. Oh well, when someone gets some measured I would like to know if the offset is the same, or I will buy some so I can adjust my C5 brackets for the C6 stuff.

LT4Firehawk

An additional 2lbs a corner of unsprung weight is not going to make a noticeable difference in ride. Plus, since they did this change as part of a new model, they could revalve the shocks and tune the suspension to overcome it. From the reviews of C5 owners who have had a chance to drive the C6, it rides and handles even better than the C5.

pb1995

Sounds good, I guess. If I had the money I would be buying a Z51 anyway and get all of the good stuff.