The sun is out, the weather is nice, and it’s finally time to get our C8 Corvette to the track and get some seat time. Previously we introduced Project Track Addict to you and outlined our plan to take a completely stock C8 straight off the showroom floor and find out how much we can improve lap times through a series of upgrades that we’ve divided into three phases. To keep things consistent throughout our testing, we will be relying on the expertise of a professional driving instructor. Additionally, we will have seat-of-the-pants feedback from the car’s owner as he gets used to the Corvette’s increasing capabilities. In this first test session, we get our baseline lap times with the C8 in stock form before installing a set of Forgeline wheels wrapped in Continental tires. Let’s dive in and see what Track Addict is capable of.

 

Setting The Baseline

For the duration of the testing, Project Track Addict will see all its track duty at Willow Springs International Raceway on the course known as Big Willow. This race track features nine turns with notable elevation and camber changes. Big Willow’s layout is built for speed, but the use of turns combined with its elevation changes create a unique challenge for drivers. According to Willow Springs’ description, a capable car or motorcycle can reach 160 mph on the front straight of Big Willow. This track’s design offers plenty of opportunity to show how great the C8 Corvette is in stock form, and how much better it can be with the proper modifications.

Handling the driving duties for our tests is Allen Ward. He is our ringer, so to speak, as he is a professional driving coach with GMG Racing and has years of experience under his belt racing motorcycles and cars. Most recently, Ward spends much of his time behind the wheel of Porsche’s latest and greatest offerings. His technical feedback on the performance of Track Addict will give great insight into how well the C8 performs and how it responds to the upgrades we install. We will also hear from the car’s owner, James Lawrence, as he gains seat time in Track Addict and gives us his feedback. Lawrence is no stranger to piloting high-performance cars. Although the majority of his experience has been on the drag strip behind the wheel of race cars capable of eighth-mile times in the four-second range and quicker, Lawrence also has some experience driving cars on road courses during track days.

 Driving the 2022 Corvette C8 at Willow Springs, especially on Big Willow, was an experience that left an impression. — James Lawrence

For the initial session, Ward took Track Addict in stock form onto Big Willow to get acquainted with the mid-engine Corvette and to see how far it could be pushed on the stock Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer tires that are part of the Z51 performance package that Track Addict rolled out of the factory with. The Pilot Sport 4S tires have a 300 treadwear rating and are sized 245/35/ZR19 in the front and 305/30/ZR20 in the rear.

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The factory 19- and 20-inch wheels with Michelin rubber serve the C8 well as a factory package. Changing wheels and tires can be an easy way to drop weight while increasing handling, and that's what we aim to do.

Ward’s initial impressions behind the wheel of the C8 were positive. “I really liked the car out of the box and the stock brakes bit and performed well,” Ward said. “Our biggest hangup was fighting the traction control of the car. Leading us to ultimately ditch the nannies altogether.” With the traction control off Ward reported back to us that the rear of the car was sliding around considerably more. “We found the Race 1 setting to be the sweet spot for the driving aids, which provided just enough support without completely neutering our lap times,” Ward commented. The quickest lap time of the session in stock form came on the last lap with Track Addict turning in a 1:38.73.

 

Following the baseline testing, Lawrence jumped in the driver’s seat to get acquainted with the mid-engine C8. After the session, Lawrence had this to say about Track Addict. “As someone with 10 to 15 track days under my belt, I’ve gotten a good feel for various cars on the circuit, but the C8 brought a whole new level of performance. Its mid-engine layout truly shines on the track, offering an exceptional balance that is immediately noticeable in high-speed corners and tight turns alike.”

Dropping Weight With Forgeline

Now that we have our baseline data we can get to the fun part and perform phase one of this project. Wheels and tires are arguably the quickest, easiest, and best bang for the buck when it comes to improving lap times on a road track or autocross course. Not to mention, aftermarket wheels can improve the look and stance of almost any car. So we reached out to the experts at Forgeline Wheels to get their recommendation on a wheel package that would help shed some unsprung weight, handle the stresses of track use, and improve Track Addict’s lap times. Aside from the performance advantage, it goes without saying that Forgeline also produces some of the best-looking wheels on the market.

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The Foreline SS1-R wheels look amazing and are built to perform at the highest levels in racing. The Frosted Charcoal finish looks fantastic and contrasts well with the C8's gloss red exterior.

Forgeline has long been an industry leader with over 25 years of experience building custom lightweight forged road racing wheels. They have cemented themselves among motorsports’ elite by earning their place on some of the world’s fastest race cars, the latest of which is the factory-engineered 2024 Chevrolet C8 Corvette Z06 GT3.R. It was a no-brainer to work with Forgeline and outfit Project Track Addict with wheels specifically designed and engineered for road racing at the highest levels.

In our conversations with Forgeline owners Steve and David Schardt, the brothers pointed us toward one of the company’s flagship motorsports wheels, the SS1-R. Taking what they learned from the development of the SS1R-GT wheel that was engineered specifically for ultra-competitive IMSA and WEC GT3 racing, the Forgeline one-piece forged monoblock SS1R 5-lug wheel is their lightest, strongest, and stiffest racing wheel made to date.

Using lighter components is always beneficial in racing, and making a wheel lighter comes with challenges. In road racing, the wheels endure tremendous amounts of stress in different ways. David Schardt explained it this way, “The load a wheel is put under during racing conditions with race tires is completely different than the street and the SAE J2530 test criteria. The SAE J2530 standard uses a coefficient of friction of 0.7g. Last year during the One Lap of America 14 cars were able to pull over 1g in the skid pad test, all on street tires. Race tires pull over 1.7g. Add aero for increased downforce and it just keeps rising.”

Forgeline breaks its wheels down into four categories: Street, Street Performance, Track Performance, and Competition. Each category has been tested with street tires, performance tires, and race tires. Based on the tires you plan to use and the application, Forgeline can recommend a wheel that has been designed and tested to handle the loads and stresses that it will see on your car. Because we are using a dedicated set of wheels and performance tires for track use only, Steve’s and David’s recommendation to use the SS1-R makes complete sense.

This wheel is from the Forgeline Motorsports series and has a load rating of 2,100 pounds when used with street tires. With the 200-treadwear performance tires we are running, the wheel’s load rating is 1,300 pounds. So, we’ll have no worries when running our C8 hard on the track with the SS1-R wheels. Forgeline offers a wide variety of finish options. We chose Frozen Charcoal for our track wheels to contrast with Track Addict’s red exterior. To help with tire size choices, we went with 19-inch diameter wheels that are 10 inches wide in the front and 12 inches wide out back.

Getting A Grip With Continental Tires

Speaking of tires, we again consulted with the Schardt brothers as they have decades of experience in road racing with a great deal of knowledge when it comes to various types of racing rubber that wraps their wheels. Because Track Addict is still a street car and not a stripped-down race car we wanted to use a performance tire that is DOT-legal for street use. During the conversation with Steve and David, we all agreed that a 200-treadwear tire made the most sense, given that it would provide increased performance on the track. It is a very common treadwear rating among amateur track day enthusiasts, and it fits the rules of many autocross events, should we ever decide to try our hand at that type of event.

Given our criteria for tire choices, Steve and David immediately recommended the ExtremeContact Force tire from Continental. This tire checked all the boxes for exactly what we wanted. The ExtremeContact Force is Continental’s entry in the Extreme Performance Summer category of DOT-approved tires. Its semi-slick design is ideal for endurance racing and track days alike. The ExtremeContact Force qualifies for competitions limited to a 200-treadwear rating and is used by both amateur enthusiasts and professionals. Steve and David both spoke highly of the tire for its consistent lap times, predictability on track, and exceptional tread life. We mounted up 265/35ZR19s for the front and 325/30ZR19s for the rear.

With our new Forgeline SS1-R wheels and Continental ExtremeContact Force tires bolted onto Track Addict, it was time to head back out onto Big Willow and see how much of an improvement would be gained. Unsurprisingly, the effects of the wheel and tire combination were immediately apparent. “Returning to Big Willow after switching to the 19-inch Forgeline wheels and Continental tires marked a significant change in the car’s on-track performance,” Lawrence said. “This combination not only enhanced the C8’s aesthetic appeal but also picked up a new level of grip and agility that was immediately noticeable to me, even though I’m not a very experienced driver.”

And The Results Are In

During the test session with the race-focused wheels and tires, on-track traffic and a hotter track surface made a number of the laps slower than expected. However, once the track cleared a bit Ward was able to put the hammer down and push Track Addict hard around the Big Willow course. The quickest lap of the session was 1:34.63, marking an improvement of a tick more than four full seconds. Four seconds is quite a large improvement with a simple wheel and tire change. Ward commented that we could see an even larger improvement when the track surface wasn’t as hot. Additionally, the increased grip revealed some interesting things that would need to be addressed. “The stock suspension, even on its most stiff setting, was a little soft after we installed the race wheels and tires,” Ward said. “But the biggest benefit to the wheels and tires was the extra confidence they brought, allowing me to really push the car. Unfortunately, with the heat of the day and quite a bit of traffic out on the course, our overall average was a little slower than it could have been.”

Lawrence took his turn behind the wheel and saw similar improvements in his lap times as well as increased confidence in how aggressively he could drive the C8. “I’ve run Forgeline wheels for a long time – they are known for their strength and lightweight characteristics, attributes that are crucial for high-performance track use,” Lawrence said. “This setup allowed for more aggressive cornering and an improvement in stability at high speeds. The wider and stickier Continental tires provided a substantial increase in lateral grip, enabling higher cornering speeds and more confidence-inspiring handling. The enhanced grip combined with the reduced wheel weight made the C8 more nimble and responsive, offering an even more engaging and rewarding track experience.”

As usual, the Forgeline wheels are stunning — aesthetically beautiful works of art that double as wheels. — James Lawrence

After Action Report

Wrapping up our test session, there were several takeaways as well as excitement for the coming upgrades on Project Track Addict. First, the C8 Corvette, out of the box, is arguably one of the best track day cars a person can buy, dollar-for-dollar. Second, the Forgeline SS1-R wheels and Continental ExtremeContact Force tires were excellent choices that showed immediate improvements in lap times, and they look great on the C8. Lastly, Ward’s feedback on the stock suspension means that our upcoming coilover upgrade will help considerably. But before we do that, our next test will be with an Alcon big brake kit that we sourced with the help of the Corvette experts at Lingenfelter Performance Engineering.

This first testing of Track Addict was definitely a success, and we look forward to seeing how far we can go with the C8 Corvette. The Forgeline wheels and Continental tires performed exceptionally well and enhanced Track Addict’s aesthetics. In fact, Lawrence liked the Forgeline wheels so much that he purchased a set of wheels for street use only and mounted the factory tires on them. He had this to say about the street wheels, “There was an improvement in ride quality, but it wasn’t as apparent as it was on the track. This was likely due to not pushing that C8 as hard.” With Track Addict wearing stylish new shoes that reduced our lap times, we look forward to keeping things moving in the right direction. Stay tuned for our next update when we install the Alcon C8 Corvette big brake package that includes new rotors, calipers, and Hawk high-performance pads.