I have been waiting for this one for some time. Finally, tonight, on my way to a friends house, I see the distinctive taillights of a 5th generation Corvette. Upon closer inspection I confirm that it is indeed the vaunted Z06, all 405 glorious horses, in sculpted black as night fiberglass.
As I pass him by, I give him an indication that I am indeed eager to find out how that titanium exhaust sounds under full acceleration. I accelerate past him to allow him to get past the slower traffic in his lane, and when I get over we see two beautiful lanes of traffic free strips of asphalt before us. And what is this? A light coming up!
Unfortunately (or for me, thankfully), the light turns green before we encounter it, so we roll through. I shift down to first and see that he is ready. My heart is pounding, the adrenaline is rushing through my veins. After all this time, I finally get to see how the turbo holds up to GM's finest piece of machinery to date. At approximately 5000 rpms I slam the accelerator just as he depresses his gas pedal. The wrath and fury that is unleashed on that lonely stretch of tarmac must have been a sight to behold. 7000 rpms comes quickly, and I grasp for second gear. I am elated to not have lost any ground to the menacing Vette. And now, much to my satisfaction, I am pulling on this 5.7 liters of nastiness! I snatch third, right on a puddle of water, and get some nasty torque steer (sorry Vette guy - I stole a good foot from his lane, damn FWD). Just like that, the race is over. 30-70, SHO gains a car length, maybe 1 1/2. I was elated!
Now for the good part. The Z06 is getting on the bypass (10+ miles of 4 beautiful lanes undulating and curving to downtown). I am right behind, expecting him to get on the highway and let me pull even before we contest each other again. But he is not having it.
As soon as he clears the light and is on the on-ramp, he is gone! I quickly go to high-boost and follow. 60, 70, 80, 90, he is not getting out of it. 100, 110, 120 have to slow for a left sweeper coming up. Clear that and he is back on it. Fly through a right hander to the longest and straightest part of the thoroughfare. With both engines breathing as hard as they can, a straight line high speed contest is under way. 120, 130, I am starting to gain. 140 gaining more ground, and faster now. 150, is the Z06 still in it? He has to be, but for all it's might, the LS6 can not overcome the higher than atmospheric pressure that the turbo is providing the SHO. As the speeds climb, it becomes more apparent who the victor is in this duel. @ 160 I am passing him a decent clip, and stack a number of lengths on for good measure. But traffic is ahead, and hauling 3300 lbs of Taurus down from 160 is no easy task. I brake plenty early to sane speeds, and after we clear traffic, we play some mroe cat and mouse through some of the tighter turns.
It was a complete blast. Thank you Z06 driver, for indulging my wishes. The turbo SHO can rest now. Her hunger has been satisfied.
As I pass him by, I give him an indication that I am indeed eager to find out how that titanium exhaust sounds under full acceleration. I accelerate past him to allow him to get past the slower traffic in his lane, and when I get over we see two beautiful lanes of traffic free strips of asphalt before us. And what is this? A light coming up!
Unfortunately (or for me, thankfully), the light turns green before we encounter it, so we roll through. I shift down to first and see that he is ready. My heart is pounding, the adrenaline is rushing through my veins. After all this time, I finally get to see how the turbo holds up to GM's finest piece of machinery to date. At approximately 5000 rpms I slam the accelerator just as he depresses his gas pedal. The wrath and fury that is unleashed on that lonely stretch of tarmac must have been a sight to behold. 7000 rpms comes quickly, and I grasp for second gear. I am elated to not have lost any ground to the menacing Vette. And now, much to my satisfaction, I am pulling on this 5.7 liters of nastiness! I snatch third, right on a puddle of water, and get some nasty torque steer (sorry Vette guy - I stole a good foot from his lane, damn FWD). Just like that, the race is over. 30-70, SHO gains a car length, maybe 1 1/2. I was elated!
Now for the good part. The Z06 is getting on the bypass (10+ miles of 4 beautiful lanes undulating and curving to downtown). I am right behind, expecting him to get on the highway and let me pull even before we contest each other again. But he is not having it.
As soon as he clears the light and is on the on-ramp, he is gone! I quickly go to high-boost and follow. 60, 70, 80, 90, he is not getting out of it. 100, 110, 120 have to slow for a left sweeper coming up. Clear that and he is back on it. Fly through a right hander to the longest and straightest part of the thoroughfare. With both engines breathing as hard as they can, a straight line high speed contest is under way. 120, 130, I am starting to gain. 140 gaining more ground, and faster now. 150, is the Z06 still in it? He has to be, but for all it's might, the LS6 can not overcome the higher than atmospheric pressure that the turbo is providing the SHO. As the speeds climb, it becomes more apparent who the victor is in this duel. @ 160 I am passing him a decent clip, and stack a number of lengths on for good measure. But traffic is ahead, and hauling 3300 lbs of Taurus down from 160 is no easy task. I brake plenty early to sane speeds, and after we clear traffic, we play some mroe cat and mouse through some of the tighter turns.
It was a complete blast. Thank you Z06 driver, for indulging my wishes. The turbo SHO can rest now. Her hunger has been satisfied.
