Andy Hsiao’s C5 Z06 GridLife TrackMod Time Attack Car

A C5 Corvette offers great performance and reliability, all at a reasonable entry cost. They continue to grow in popularity for track, and race builds across the country. NASA has a Spec Corvette class, SCCA has them competing in T2, and GridLife Touring Cup has quite a few competing at the front of the grid. But Andy Hsiao wanted to prepare one for GridLife TrackBattle in the TrackMod class. Social media, believe it or not, helped introduce Andy to GridLife and what it had to offer. Although he has been a car and track enthusiast for many years, GridLife was starting to grow and grabbed his attention.

"I stumbled onto Gridlife on YouTube, of all places, a few years before showing up to my first event. I came across a few YouTubers who had been attending these events, and it really piqued my interest. The cars looked wild, the competition looked fast, and everyone looked like they were having a blast. I attended my first Gridlife event at Mid Ohio back in 2021 as an HPDE participant to test the waters, and I got hooked. The paddock vibes pulled me in, and the competition has kept me around."

Like many kids who grew up with an Xbox and a Playstation, video games inspired Andy to enter the real world of cars and motorsports. "My parents tell me they used to have me read license plates and vehicle models to learn how to read and speak. There's something about being around cars that just energizes me. I'm not sure where this comes from, but I've definitely always felt this way. But I got into time attack after racking up hundreds of hours in Forza, Gran Turismo, Race07, and GTR Evolution. There's something about the challenge of building a car and getting the most out of it that keeps me coming back year after year."

Andy grew up a big Nissan guy and drove/tracked multiple 240SXs. He struggled to keep both 240s running reliably and felt it might be time to try a different platform, but he was still deciding what that should be.

"I didn't set out to build a C5 Corvette when I bought this car. My buddy had reached out to try to bait me into buying his C5 Z06 so he could fund his 4-wheeler project. I fought off a few of his advances, but he was persistent that I check out the car. I eventually gave in and decided to check it out. The things that sold me on the car at the time were the Corsa exhaust system, the gloriously massive trunk, the concept of having a full interior street car I could take to HPDE events, and the amazing homie price. I picked the car up on 12/31/2020."

Andy did a few HPDEs in the Corvette and was sold. "I quickly recognized the potential of this chassis," he said. I parted out the two 240SXs I had at the time and reinvested the money into the Corvette. Those 240s still have a special place in my heart, but my only regret is that I hadn't done this sooner."

Andy has continued developing his Z06. Here are a few highlights of his build.

Drivetrain:
Factory LS6 bottom end
CNC ported heads
Tick SNS Stage 3 Cam
BTR .660 valve springs
BTR hardened pushrods
GM High-Speed Lifters
Kooks 2" Longtubes
Corsa Sport mufflers
Dailey 4-stage dry sump - Gspeed spec
Quartermaster OptimumRR 7.25" clutch kit
C6Z TR6060/C6Z Differential
MGW SSK

Suspension/Wheels/Tires:
Viking Crusader 2 ways - Afterdark Speed spec
Gspeed spherical
Wisefab rear suspension
Apex 19x12.5 SM10 with 305/30r19 Goodyear Supercar 3R

Body:
Trackspec C5 GT2 Widebody Fenders
Trackspec Bolt-in Half Cage
Zebulon 74" Swan Neck Wing
Homebrew Splitter
Custom lean-forward radiator with ducting

Andy points to tires and brakes when it comes to a specific mod or two that has made the most significant difference on his car. "It's hard to choose just one since a fast car is a car that is greater than the sum of its parts, but if I had to choose, it'd be the tires and brakes."

Andy currently is running Goodyear SuperCar 3R’s in GridLife TrackMod. "Tire size and compound amount to seconds on a race track. I believe the tires you choose to put on your car have a strong influence on how you place at a competitive event. The best driver can only do so much with poor tire selection. I'd easily trade power for larger, stickier rubber." Tires also increase a car's braking capacity more than most think.

"I only recently began to understand the role brakes can have on the car. When I started this season, I experienced some painful chassis setup issues that caused a concerning amount of understeer everywhere. Unfortunately, I wouldn't figure out the root cause of this until after my first Gridlife event of the year at Carolina Motorsport Park. While competing at this event, I struggled to figure out how to wrangle in the massive amounts of understeer. I figured out that I could time my brake inputs to load the front up with as much weight transfer as I could manage to then pivot the back end around. I used the brakes to control the pitch of the car, and it worked amazingly. I placed on the podium at that event and I can confidently say that my brakes were the thing that got me there." Andy is currently utilizing our XR2 compound pads on his Stoptech ST40 calipers on the front and rear of his car.

Moving forward Andy has a goal of investing more in the driver mod as well. As racers, we are all guilty of falling into the trap of investing in the car and not spending enough time investing in the driver sometimes. "I want to be a better driver. I've invested a lot of time, money, and effort in putting this Corvette together to do the things I want a car to do. The next step is to squeeze this chassis for every last drop of performance. I don't believe I need 700 whp+ to win a time attack builder's class: I just need to set the car up well and be a hell of a driver behind the wheel."

So far this season, he has run South Festival and Circuit Legends in GridLife Track Mod. Just a few weeks ago, he finished 5th at Lime Rock! He has two more GridLife events at Chicagoland and Pitt Race to finish the season!

Andy loves the paddock vibes that GridLife offers, making it easy for him to choose where he wants to compete. "It's serious when it needs to be and chill the rest of the time. People travel from all across the country to compete at these events, and they're focused on putting in everything they have to get the best lap time. Despite all that, they don't let that competitiveness stand in the way of having a good time. I love that I'm able to make friends out of my competitors and support them while also competing against them."

The GridLife schedule for 2025 has yet to be released, but he tells us he wants to run Midwest Festival, Mid-Ohio, and Lime Rock again if he can! "The things that bring me back to motorsports each weekend are the people and the challenge of becoming a better builder/driver. I love that it's centered around our shared interest and that nothing else really matters. It brings people with all sorts of backgrounds and walks of life together. I have friends that I would have never met had it not been for this interest in motorsports."

We wish Andy the best of luck to finish out the season! His determination and dedication to his car and his craft will reward him with a win at some point soon! We look forward to watching and supporting him.

Andy Hsiao’s C5 Z06 GridLife TrackMod Time Attack Car

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