First Drive in My ZR-1 - With my Impressions

[Erik]

Only 4 months after buying my ZR-1, I finally got to take it for a real drive. Yes, I did a couple of short hauls with it when it first arrived, but they were pretty well just laps around the block. Today, I finally got to actually get it on the road and put about 70 miles on her. Really beautiful fall day for this part of the world.

A few observations:

- Orange on Grey markings just don?t work - who thought that was a good idea
- I?m about 20-30 lbs bigger then I should be for seats. They are still pretty comfortable but I could fit them better.
- Yes, there is a bit of a low rent quality to the interior. A bit cheaper then it should have been for the price of the car. I spent a lot of times with Porsche?s of this era, and even the 944 was better inside
- I can feel during this drive why ZFDoc builds his beam plates.
- Golden Killebrews No flex system was installed during the interim. I don?t know how much it accounts for it, but this thing does not squeak or rattle AT ALL. Tight as a drum
- Steering feel is not a high point. Very smooth and direct, but not overly imbued with feel. Especially right around the center. Turn it just off center, and it responds incredibly directly. On center, you can feel the mass of all that rubber.
- Clutch and shifter feel good. No dual mass flywheel, so things are a bit coarse and rattley. Might try to dig up the original flywheel. The transmission itself is delightfully mechanical feeling. So nice to not have cables and crap interfering with the shifting.
- My tires need to be balanced. Above about 115 kmh/70 mph, she starts vibrating. Not much of an issue, as it turns out my tires are 10 years old anyway, so I?ll be replacing them in the spring.
- All of 6?4 of me fits surprisingly well. I?ll still probably undo the straps under the seat to drop my butt a bit lower, but the C4 is far and away the best Corvette for a tall guy.
- Looks like I have a calliper sticking a bit. After a longer driver, you can catch a bit of a hot linings smell. Can?t imagine it being clutch, since it?s not being slipped anywhere near enough to do that. Doesn?t do it no matter how hot when sitting still. And yes, I can feel a bit of an odd tug to the right on the road. Might just need a bit of driving to free it up.
- Had my first warning light come on during my first drive. The low tire pressure light was glowing bright for about 15 minutes on the drive, and then fixed itself and shut off.
- Pop up headlights are still cool.
- Does appear that the adjustable suspension is working as it should. I was surprised that the ride, except on very sharp impacts, was smoother then I?d expect
- The gearing on this beast is stupidly tall. First gear feels like it?s climbing a mountain. I did the vast majority of my driving in 3rd gear. Something around 3.9 would likely wake things up nicely.
- The LT5 is a gem of an engine. I get that the ZR-1 is slower then my daily driver Mustang, but damn if it doesn?t feel faster. Just keeps growing and growing as the revs increase.


So, as far my list of repairs/improvements is the front calliper, figuring out the clutch thing (more of an annoyance then an issue), and tires.

Route 66 to California next year? Might happen!

[Erik]

And I finally got my plate in place!

And check out that groovy fuel pressure regulator!

[Erik]

See that groovy new hardware holding my plenum in place? Might as well make them pretty.

[ghlkal]

Congratulations! Yeah, it ain't 1990 anymore, is it? But still, it's a cool ride



Enjoy it.

[Vette73]

If you need a place to do balancing go to west side auto in jersey city...They are at 236 west side ave jersey city..

I was there today with my 91...They fixed a very slight bend I had on the inside of my rim and road forced all 4 tires..Ask for Tony..

[Erik]

Originally Posted by Vette73

If you need a place to do balancing go to west side auto in jersey city...They are at 236 west side ave jersey city..

I was there today with my 91...They fixed a very slight bend I had on the inside of my rim and road forced all 4 tires..Ask for Tony..

Thanks very much. Always good to know who does decent work.

[Erik]

Another day, another warning light! Today it was low tire pressure. That was on fir a while, then went off. They all looked good, so I kept going. I?ll break my tire pressure gauge out tomorrow and give it check.

More impressions:

- She?s a cold blooded girl. We got up to 5 degrees Celsius today, which I think works out to about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. 41 actually, says the Google. She started right up, after the customary Bowling Green crank, but she didn?t seem happy. She liked 50 much more. Tires, suspension bushings, etc were cranky and rough. Might not end up my first choice as a driver for a Canadian winter.

- the transmission does make some interesting noises below 2000 rpm. Although the clutch isn?t old, when replaced it got a standard flywheel. I?m thinking about finding a dual mass, with a super smooth clutch. I have no great intentions for a lot more power, just a bit more smoothness would be nice.

- it?s a real kick how mechanical the transmission is. Unlike the Mustang, or any modern performance car that has had all the analog feel smoothed out of it to the point that the controls feel like something for a PS4, it never fails to remind you that it?s a mechanical thing. Awesome.

- I can see myself investing into chassis strengthening in the future. The thing that ages it the most is the flexible chassis.

- Gotta pull the seat cushion up and undo those straps. Wouldn?t mind being down an inch or two.

- I do wonder what can be done to spruce up the interior quality. Most of it doesn?t bug me, but that weird metallicaly grey plastic just shouts Cavalier to me. Other then that, I?m good with the interior.

- it will be fun to drive it come spring with new, properly balanced tires.

- Dammit, I need a Corsa exhaust!

[Ccmano]

It's official... another addict is hooked! Always amazes me how unique these cars are.
Enjoy
H

[Erik]

Originally Posted by Ccmano

It's official... another addict is hooked! Always amazes me how unique these cars are.
Enjoy
H

Addict? How you figure? What gave it away?

[longhorns05]

Originally Posted by Erik

- I do wonder what can be done to spruce up the interior quality. Most of it doesn?t bug me, but that weird metallicaly grey plastic just shouts Cavalier to me. Other then that, I?m good with the interior.

You could always swap the grey buttons out. The buttons on 92s and 93s are black with orange markings. I saw a thread where -=Jeff=- went a little further on his 90. He changed to the 94-95 style black buttons with white markings. He also changed the cluster and shift knob to the newer style with white markings to match.