CT4-V Blackwing...kind of slow

[WONT TAP]

Where do I start with go-faster stuff, tune?

Yes, tuning provides the biggest gains on these cars, since the turbochargers are controlled by the ECM.

Remote Tune for E99/E01 Global B Vehicles - Tapout Tuning

Active Military, Veterans, First Responders and Jiu-Jitsu practitioners can also receive a discount, click HERE

www.tapouttuning.com

 

[raptor5244]

This is funny - I test drove a 4BW 6sp on Saturday morning and thought the power level was perfect and it felt so much lighter and sharper than my new 5BW 6sp. Since driving the 4BW, I have been wondering if I made a mistake going with the 5 over the 4. To me, for a street car, something that has a 1/4 mile trap speed in the 115-120mph range is just about perfect to have fun without being completely stupid. The 5BW, which apparently traps 125ish, feels completely stupid, which I both hate and love at the same time! I'm not collecting pink slips on a Friday night - I just want to have cars that are engaging and fun to drive.

It reminds me of my old sportbike days when the literbikes went compeletly crazy with power (150+hp at the wheel) about 20 years ago and you simply could not use even half the throttle most of the time, especially during canyon strafing runs, and it made them decidedly less fun than something with 100-120hp.

OP - I am not trying to be a smart a$$ but maybe you should buy one of the super fast EVs? Those are next level speed if thats what you care about.

FWIW, I traded a 2021 Camaro ZL1 for the 4BW. I have owned C7 Grand Sport M7 and Camaro SS 1LE prior to the ZL1. For me, the ZL1 was over the limit to be able to enjoy on the street. The performance limits are so high you really have to push the car to go-to-jail levels get any sense of speed. I would expect the 5BW to be the same with the exception that it is a much more well-rounded usable sedan.

I don't find the 4BW to be slow at all, in fact unless you are doing highway pulls at 80mph - 150mph you won't notice much difference. On the street, the fastest 0-60mph I could put down in my ZL1 was 3.9 sec. The 4BW does it in 4.0 sec. IMO, the 4BW is in the sweet spot for performance on the street and most importantly is more fun to drive than the more powerful Camaro ZL1.

 

[raptor5244]

Ummm, what Camaro ss is smoking a ct4 v blackwing?

None that I am aware of and I owned both a Camaro SS 1LE and ZL1. The 4BW feels like a 4 door version of the SS 1LE. Nice blend of practicality, styling and performance.

 

[raptor5244]

I do understand where the OP is coming from that’s why I bought the 5BW 6spd and that’s not fast enough but Tapout is helping with that.

For me once you’ve had 600+RWHP in a 3,200lb car everything else feels a little sluggish. Again like it’s been said first world problems.

Yes, the key really is the weight. The Miata I owned with 181hp/151tq felt much quicker than you would think since it only weighed 2,300lbs and the top went down to engage you more in the environment.

 

[raptor5244]

Anybody else feel like these cars are kind of slow? On youtube it gets smoked by everything comparable to it (Camaro SS, BMW M-cars and even the M340i). When I give it gas on the streets it feels heavy and I can't really feel the power. I feel like there needs to be some sort of factory revision to the tune if anybody is going to give a shit about these cars. Thanks for reading.

Not at all. What did you drive before? It sounds like you are looking for something a bit more raw and visceral. These are Cadillac sports sedans that target a balance of performance, comfort and practicality.

That said, if you have money to burn you can tune these cars for big power.

 

[Erving Rodriguez]

Slow? Not mine. I could see that an all wheel drive BMW M340 would be slightly faster due to the all wheel drive. But our cars out handle the BMW and have much better steering. Also, our maintenance is much less expensive and ours is more reliable. To me, it's not just about acceleration.

 

[Steelwing]

This is funny - I test drove a 4BW 6sp on Saturday morning and thought the power level was perfect and it felt so much lighter and sharper than my new 5BW 6sp. Since driving the 4BW, I have been wondering if I made a mistake going with the 5 over the 4. To me, for a street car, something that has a 1/4 mile trap speed in the 115-120mph range is just about perfect to have fun without being completely stupid. The 5BW, which apparently traps 125ish, feels completely stupid, which I both hate and love at the same time! I'm not collecting pink slips on a Friday night - I just want to have cars that are engaging and fun to drive.

It reminds me of my old sportbike days when the literbikes went compeletly crazy with power (150+hp at the wheel) about 20 years ago and you simply could not use even half the throttle most of the time, especially during canyon strafing runs, and it made them decidedly less fun than something with 100-120hp.

OP - I am not trying to be a smart a$$ but maybe you should buy one of the super fast EVs? Those are next level speed if thats what you care about.

This is why I own a 4BW but driving a 5BW when I go to spring mountain

 

[668LT4]

I bought a 4 Blackwing while waiting for my 5. I have 0 interest in ever going back to a 4. I get the slightly more nimble part. I don't get the "a 5 is too much for the street but the 4 is perfect". I have no trouble on the street with my 5, and I never feel I am only using a small portion of the car.

 

[raptor5244]

I bought a 4 Blackwing while waiting for my 5. I have 0 interest in ever going back to a 4. I get the slightly more nimble part. I don't get the "a 5 is too much for the street but the 4 is perfect". I have no trouble on the street with my 5, and I never feel I am only using a small portion of the car.

I see you are in Colorado? What is the altitude? ~7,000 feet? Rule of thumb is about 3% power loss per 1000 feet. Even with the supercharger on the LT4, which depending on a bunch of other factors, you are probably still down over 100-140 horsepower, probably ~500 hp to the wheels after you factor total altitude and powertrain losses.

For comparison, I am in Florida at 10ft above sea level. The 4BW in Florida is making almost the same horsepower as a 5BW in Colorado and it is about 300lbs lighter. If the math is correct, then you really need the LT4 to move that car around at altitude.

 

[668LT4]

I see you are in Colorado? What is the altitude? ~7,000 feet? Rule of thumb is about 3% power loss per 1000 feet. Even with the supercharger on the LT4, which depending on a bunch of other factors, you are probably still down over 100-140 horsepower, probably ~500 hp to the wheels after you factor total altitude and powertrain losses.

For comparison, I am in Florida at 10ft above sea level. The 4BW in Florida is making almost the same horsepower as a 5BW in Colorado and it is about 300lbs lighter. If the math is correct, then you really need the LT4 to move that car around at altitude.

Sounds good to me I live at 5400'.

I guess if I move to Florida, I better sell the 5 to get a 4. I could probably get locked up driving a 5 in Florida but apparently I won't in a 4.

 

[Champale]

Good point. I also live pretty close to sea level but maybe I'm just a wimp compared to others. My 5BW has been spinning the tires in 3rd at 90mph this week with temps in the 50s and 60s.

As I am getting more used to the car and fiddling with the PTM settings, I am enjoying it more and more. But it's a wild animal that has to be respected.

 

[raptor5244]

Sounds good to me I live at 5400'.

I guess if I move to Florida, I better sell the 5 to get a 4. I could probably get locked up driving a 5 in Florida but apparently I won't in a 4.

You can get locked up driving a Chevy Spark.

Kidding aside, it just depends on how you like to drive the cars. Some like to loaf them around knowing they have loads of power on tap and just enjoy the exhaust note and rowing the gears, etc. If you like to push your cars though and drive them in a more spirited fashion then of course the performance levels of both the 4BW and 5BW can get you into trouble on the street. These GM performance cars beg you to take them to the track so you can truly experience what they are capable of.

In general, the performance levels of modern day sport cars have really gotten out of hand. I still think the most fun car to drive on the street is a Mazda Miata. 2,300 lbs, top down and you can rip through the gears without risking your license. 55mph in a Miata feels like 80mph. Like driving a luxurious go-kart. When I get bored of my 4BW I may pick up another one. It is just hard to live with as an only car.

 

[raptor5244]

Good point. I also live pretty close to sea level but maybe I'm just a wimp compared to others. My 5BW has been spinning the tires in 3rd at 90mph this week with temps in the 50s and 60s.

As I am getting more used to the car and fiddling with the PTM settings, I am enjoying it more and more. But it's a wild animal that has to be respected.

Very true, make sure you get those tires warmed up before putting your foot in it. I would also leave all the nannies enabled since as you have experienced you can lose traction pretty quick.

 

[BKC1]

To be more specific, on the stock tune on the ATS-V I can feel the car build boost for about a second and a half and then limit torque very rapidly. I'm sure the CT4-V BW is the same.

 

[SynisterAZ]

Speed is relative. I fly a plane that routinely cruises in excess of 90% the speed of sound. At low weights, it accelerates down a runway and climbs like a scaled ape. But the only metric by which you know you are going "fast" is the time it takes to get somewhere. And since its not really something you go yanking and banking like a fighter jet, its all a fairly benign experience.

For that reason, my 4BW is far less "benign" especially when you turn it loose on a remote stretch of twisty road.

 

[Champale]

I appreciate the insight. I am very familiar with high-ish hp front engine RWD manual cars (having owned two Boss 302s and currently a GT350R) and am usually semi-reasonable with the throttle in cooler weather. But I do like to enjoy the power here and there, too! The 5BW is not my only daily driver so I don't have to take it out in the freezing and/or wet. I have an AWD supercharged SUV for those times (used to have Trackhawk until last month and now a Jaguar F Pace SVR).

 

[raptor5244]

I appreciate the insight. I am very familiar with high-ish hp front engine RWD manual cars (having owned two Boss 302s and currently a GT350R) and am usually semi-reasonable with the throttle in cooler weather. But I do like to enjoy the power here and there, too! The 5BW is not my only daily driver so I don't have to take it out in the freezing and/or wet. I have an AWD supercharged SUV for those times (used to have Trackhawk until last month and now a Jaguar F Pace SVR).

How do like the torque of the LT4 vs. the GT350 flat plane crank? I love the way the GT350R revs and sounds but the shove in the seat from the LT4 is pretty sweet.

 

[raptor5244]

To be more specific, on the stock tune on the ATS-V I can feel the car build boost for about a second and a half and then limit torque very rapidly. I'm sure the CT4-V BW is the same.

What rpm are you at when you feel it nose over? I noticed that around 4000rpm when I first got my 4BW but once I ran a couple tanks of 93 octane through it (dealer put 87 octane in ) I don't feel it pulling timing anymore, it feels linear during pulls all the way to redline.

That said, GM does a bunch of torque management in their tunes to protect the drivetrain.

 

[Champale]

How do like the torque of the LT4 vs. the GT350 flat plane crank? I love the way the GT350R revs and sounds but the shove in the seat from the LT4 is pretty sweet.

The Voodoo engine is the most engaging engine I have ever tried, to include lots of BMW M cars, 911s, Vipers, Hellcats, various muscle cars, Ford GT (the TT V6 one), AMG GTR, etc etc etc. The car itself (2020 GT350R) is such a blast at any speed - cruising along in traffic, going crazy on a back road, driving it cross country, everything.

The LT4 is great but nowhere near as special feeling. Doesn't require as much thought about what gear to be in since it has so much power at every rpm. I want to liven my 5BW up with a slightly louder exhaust (Borla, please for the love of God, let's get this going!) and a tighter shifter like the MGW in my 350R.

 

[dinkman]

The Voodoo engine is the most engaging engine I have ever tried, to include lots of BMW M cars, 911s, Vipers, Hellcats, various muscle cars, Ford GT (the TT V6 one), AMG GTR, etc etc etc. The car itself (2020 GT350R) is such a blast at any speed - cruising along in traffic, going crazy on a back road, driving it cross country, everything.

The LT4 is great but nowhere near as special feeling. Doesn't require as much thought about what gear to be in since it has so much power at every rpm. I want to liven my 5BW up with a slightly louder exhaust (Borla, please for the love of God, let's get this going!) and a tighter shifter like the MGW in my 350R.

ah i miss my gt350