The 2002 Corvette

The Overview

The second Z06 got the engine the first had promised. A new camshaft lifted the valves 0.7 mm further, the valves themselves became hollow-stemmed (sodium-filled exhausts), a low-restriction mass-airflow sensor and air cleaner fed the intake, the two small pup catalytic converters under the manifolds were removed for 16 percent less back-pressure, and the LS6 went from 385 to 405 hp at 6,000 rpm and from 385 to 400 lb-ft at 4,800, matching the ZR-1’s LT5 of 1993–95 in a car 400 pounds lighter. To carry it, the clutch got 7 percent more clamp load, a flange plate thickened from 5 to 6 mm and damper springs in premium alloy wire; the FE4 suspension got revised rear shock valving (firmer on the track, less harsh on the road) and cast-aluminum front stabilizer links; the forged wheels became cast-spun for the same look at lower cost; front brake pads became a more fade-resistant compound; and the Head-Up Display became standard. Chevrolet quoted 3.9 seconds to 60 mph and 12.4 at 116 in the quarter against 4.0 and 12.6 at 114 the year before, and Mike Neal, the ride-and-handling engineer, called the 2002 half a second a lap quicker. Electron Blue replaced Speedway White on the Z06’s five-color chart, the price rose $2,650 to $50,150, and sales rose by 2,524 to 8,297, 23 percent of all Corvettes built.

The coupe and convertible changed little. The in-dash CD radio became standard, with the cassette deck a $100 credit available only alongside the 12-disc changer; the automatic’s transmission-cooler case went from stainless steel to cast aluminum; the Z06’s cast-aluminum stabilizer links went into the Z51 package; and convertibles with the HUD got the Z06’s thinner 4.8-mm windshield, 2.65 pounds lighter than the 5.4-mm glass. Electron Blue Metallic replaced Navy Blue, Dark Bowling Green was dropped, and the magnesium wheels were withdrawn after 114 sets, leaving the polished forged wheels (QF5, $1,200) on 22,597 cars. The LS1 stayed at 350 hp. Prices rose during the year, from $41,005 to $41,450 for the coupe and from $47,530 to $47,975 for the convertible, and the option packages went to $1,700/$1,800 (1SB) and $2,700/$2,600 (1SC); 22,100 of the 27,470 coupes and convertibles had 1SC with the HUD and telescoping column.

The Corvette’s 50th birthday began early. The convertible that paced the 86th Indianapolis 500 on May 26, 2002, driven by actor Jim Caviezel with Joie Chitwood III on the caution laps, wore the Anniversary Red paint and shale interior of the 2003 50th Anniversary Edition with pace-car graphics, the Corvette’s fifth Indy pacing after 1978, 1986, 1995 and 1998; Chevrolet built no replica, offering the decals as a $465 licensed kit instead, and three anniversary prototypes were built during the year. Corvette Racing won GTS at Sebring with Ron Fellows, Johnny O’Connell and Oliver Gavin, took Le Mans in class for the second year running over 335 laps, and won the inaugural Cadillac Grand Prix in Washington and the Road America 500 on the way to the ALMS title. Production reached 35,767, 14,760 coupes, 12,710 convertibles and 8,297 Z06s, the most of any C5 year. Today the 405-hp Z06 is the C5 to own, $23,000 to $39,000 at auction in 2026 for good cars and $50,000 for a 430-mile one, while the 350-hp coupes and convertibles trade from $10,000 for high-mileage cars to $22,500 for the cleanest.

The 2002 Corvette Story

The 2002 model year showed no signs of slowing down for the C5 Chevy Corvette. While the Z06 had been an unquestionable success in its freshman year, the engineering team behind the flagship Corvette had no intention of allowing last year’s successes to be the measure of the new model year. Likewise, all variants of the Corvette were still being subjected to the same scrutiny and refinements that had already allowed the fifth-generation Corvette to become one of the best Chevrolet's of all time.

The Z06 had become the primary focal point for most of the engineering advances made to the Corvette in 2002. Perhaps because the coupe and convertible had already been refined during the first several years of its production run, the evolution of the C5 line as a whole now seemed to be centered around advances being made around the Z06 – and it was a decision that GM was certain would pay off.

That's not to say that the coupe and convertible were not to receive any improvements for the 2002 model year. Minor changes were introduced which included the introduction of an in-dash AM/FM/CD player which was now standard on both coupes and convertibles except in those instances when the car was sold with the optional 12-disc CD changer. In such instances, the factory installed stereo head unit would continue to include the AM/FM/cassette unit.

For those Corvettes equipped with an automatic transmission, they would receive a lighter-weight transmission cooler case that was now manufactured out of cast aluminum instead of stainless steel. Lastly, the cast-aluminum stabilizer links added to the Z06 in 2001 were now included with the optional Z51 Performance Handling package.

To help with weight-savings, all 2002 Corvette Convertibles equipped with a Heads Up Display (HUD) received a slightly thinner, 4.8mm thick windshield (as compared to the 5.4 mm that had been standard on all Corvettes prior to 2002). This thinner windshield would provide a weight savings of 2.65 lbs per car.

While some consideration was given as to whether or not the thinner windshield could withstand the additional wind/drive forces it was subjected to, it was ultimately approved that it should be included as a standard option on all Z06s that year as well. All base model coupes and convertibles not equipped with a HUD were still issued the standard 5.4 mm windshield.

For 2002, the Z06's 5.7-liter LS6 engine would receive an additional 20 horsepower, bringing the output of the small-block Chevy V-8 up to a robust 405 brake-horsepower. Additionally, torque was also increased by another 15 lb-ft, and was now rated at 400 lb-ft at 4,800rpm. These performance improvements occurred as the result of a new cam profile that allowed the engine’s intake and exhaust valves to open 0.7 mm further than before.

By giving the engine the ability to breathe more freely, and by introducing some lower restriction components including hollow-stem valves, a low-restriction air cleaner, and a low-restriction mass-airflow sensor, the LS6 engine now matched the rated output of the highest-powered LT5 engine found in the C4 's ZR-1 Corvette. Better still, given its power-to weight ratio, the Z06 was actually faster than the ZR-1.

The increased horsepower and torque of the improved LS6 equipped Z06 was significant enough that it allowed GM to make some pretty impressive claims about its newest Corvette. While the aforementioned ZR-1 Corvette, in its best years, was capable of 0-60 times in 4.5 seconds, Chevrolet claimed that the Z06 Corvette could now produce 0-60 times of just 3.9 seconds. Likewise, while the ZR-1 maintained an average quarter mile time of 12.8 seconds at 111 mph, the newer Z06 could run the quarter mile in 12.4 seconds at 116 mph.

Of course, producing the level of power that the new LS6 equipped Z06 was now capable of would require modifications to other areas of the car. To withstand the additional engine torque, the Z06 received a redesigned clutch. The modifications to the existing clutch included the use of premium alloy wire during fabrication of the damper springs and the design of the damper springs were actually changed to increase the clutch wind-up rate. Lastly, the clutch disc’s flange plate was made 20 percent thicker. In all, these improvements would provide drivers improved overall performance and added durability to the clutch.

Did you know? Corvette's Golden Anniversary celebration actually began in April 2002 with word that the pace car slated to run at the Indianapolis 500 was actually a preview model of the 2003 Corvette convertible.

Film star Jim Caviezel (The Count of Monte Cristo, later The Passion of the Christ) would pilot the C5 pace car for the 86th running of the famous Memorial Day weekend race, and the overall reaction to the Corvette was positive.

Pleased by the fan reactions, GM announced that the Corvette pace car was virtually identical to a 50th Anniversary Edition package, though the pace car featured far more graphics than the production variant of the car would.

The Z06's FE4 suspension also received several minor improvements for the 2002 model year. Among these was the introduction of revised rear-shock damper valving which provided improved handling on the track and produced less rigid handling during normal driving conditions. Lighter-weight cast-aluminum stabilizer links (which replaced the previously used rolled rod steel links) were introduced as a weight saving measure.

When combined with the newly designed cast-spun wheels (which replaced the previous forged aluminum wheel set), a weight reduction of nearly two pounds was achieved. While such a small difference in the overall weight might not be considered noteworthy by some, a two pound weight reduction is significant when developing any vehicle whose primary purpose is out-running previously established performance records.

The smaller two of the Z06's four catalytic converters were also removed to provide a 16 percent reduction in back pressure as well as providing additional weight savings. In addition to the performance and handling upgrades that the Z06 Corvette received, new higher-performance brake pads were introduced up front for improved brake lining durability and increased resistance to high performance brake fade.

Cosmetically, virtually nothing changed on the Z06 coupe. Chevrolet did decide to make the (formerly-optional) Heads-Up-Display standard on all 2002 Z06 Corvettes. This, combined with the many mechanical and suspension-related improvements, resulted in a significant price increase of $2,650 for the 2002 Z06.

Still, even with a price tag that was just a few dollars away from $50,000, sales remained strong. Sales also remained strong for both the coupe and convertible Corvettes. For 2002, the prices increased to $41,450 for a coupe, $47,975 for a convertible, and $50,150 for a Z06 (the launch figures were $445 lower; prices rose during the year).

While the luster of the Z06's performance numbers attracted automotive enthusiasts into Chevrolet showrooms, an equally impressive racing season helped to further catapult the Corvette's reputation of being a world class sports car.

The 2002 C5-R driven by Ron Fellows, Johnny O'Connell, and Oliver Gavin earned Corvette a GTS class victory at the 2002 running of the 12 Hours of Sebring. Later that season, Corvette would dominate its class in the 24 Hours of Le Mans for its second straight year, completing 335 laps around the legendary race circuit.

Fellows and O'Connell would achieve further victory that season when they placed first in class at the inaugural running of the Cadillac Grand Prix (located in Washington D.C.), and also placing first in class (and fifth overall) at the Road America 500 in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

Beyond being a serious contender on the race track, the 2002 Corvette was once again bestowed with the honor of being the official pace car at the 2002 running of the Indianapolis 500. On May 26, 2002, the Chevy Corvette led the open-wheel race cars around all of the inaugural laps of the Indy 500, representing Corvette's fifth appearance at the historic racing event.

Interestingly, this running of the 500 would be dominated by Chevrolet – fourteen out of the fifteen cars to finish at the 500 were powered by Chevrolet engines – including the top three racing contenders. Interestingly, GM decided against building a production version of the 2002 pace car. The primary reason for this was that the 2003 model year would represent the fiftieth anniversary of the Corvette, and GM wanted to celebrate the landmark event with a special 50th anniversary model.

Additionally, the 2002 Corvette Pace Car actually featured a paint and interior color scheme that was nearly identical to the planned special edition Corvette color scheme. To that end, three prototypes of the fiftieth anniversary Corvette were built during the 2002 model year, allowing designers and GM management the opportunity to refine their design well in advance of the arrival of 2003 Corvette.