Not to hi-jack this thread or take any credit away from the Speed tech crew, but Steve is not making excuses for the vette's performance, only stating the facts. I agree that this is a "run what ya brung" event. What we "brung" was a car that was completely dialed in from a suspension stand point, but was lacking on the interior. There were huge issues on the interior ergonomics that made it difficult for anyone to sit in the car. Unfortunately the interior was the one area of the car that we did not build, and it has caused the most problems. The interior is being completely re-done currently to correct this issue. We were able to pick up an additional 4" of length and lower the seat by 1.5" as well as adding in the much needed bolstering, all by building complete new seats. Due to time constraints, we could not get this completed before the event. We tried to put a bandage on the situation by installing a Cobra racing seat from another car which did give the much needed bolstering and slightly better seating position, but it still had an awkward driving position. The other big issue was with the floor mounted pedals designed for our customer's size 11 shoe. Mary told me that her much smaller foot was barely reaching the pedal pads with her toes. Its pretty hard to make a car perform when you can't reach the pedals, or sit correctly in it.

When I drove the car on the autocross after Mary was finished, I dropped almost 2 full seconds off of her time. Steve, is it possible for you to post the actual time with me driving the car now that the article is out?

I am not making excuses either, but I think it was pretty obvious to anyone there that Mary was not pushing the corvette anywhere near its limits. The majority of that was due to the ergonomics and fitment in the car.

Again, not to take anything away from the Speed Tech camaro as it definitely did perform great in all 3 areas! :thumbsup:

It's nice to see you guys are human like the rest of us. I agree that the drivers comfort level has everything to do with how fast you ultimately go. That's a huge part of being fast, making the car feel comfortable in your hands and getting the balance right. The ergonomics we're largely engineered by GM in the Camaro and custom in the Vette. Just another of the million little things that make the difference between a good and great car especially is such a custom build. I"m still impressed that you guys flog on that masterpiece. I'd be scared to death to drive it 9/10ths. I'm sure Mary will take her 2nd chance to drive it.

I don't have that time... just the official times. Joe or Nick might have them.. not sure.

And none of this takes anything away from how well the Speed Tech Camaro did in the event.

I'm sure next year everyone will keep in mind that car needs to fit our test driver. lol

good job boys:hail:

Just picked up the article at lunch time. We are working close with speed-tech on the Trans- Am inspired 68 Camaro- Just picked up all the goodies- subframe and total suspension package- front and rear

and after the article we are stoked to get some real world tests with an aluminum LS6 and T-56- instead of the "boat anchor... That sounds totally WICKED in person! - that's the problem with magazines- that 396 with 3" exhaust is sweet- no substition :D -Chris