The Lingenfelter Twin Turbo C5 Corvette
This particular Corvette compromises none of its factory engineered driveability and your significant other would enjoy driving and hearing it as much as any other 'stock' Vette. If you are like most Vette enthusiasts, you'd say, "I don't think that's really possible." Well, it is possible. Lingenfelter Performance Engineering in Decatur, Indiana one of the top Corvette tuners in the free world has reached into his magic bag and pulled out a truly awesome LS1 engine package. The LPE Twin Turbo C5 Corvette.
Consider this: LPE's famous 383 cubic inch, 450 horsepower LS1 powers a C5 Corvette down the quarter mile in 12.1 seconds at 120 mph. The LPE Twin Turbo 500 does this same quarter mile in 11.8 seconds at 127 mph and reaches a top end speed of 197 mph.
The LPE Twin Turbo 500 started easily, idled docilely, drove in heavy traffic and in town with the A/C on and possessed all the good manners of a completely stock C5. The only noticeable difference was the Corsa Pace Car exhaust and it was very civilized, until pushed. When you get the C5 rolling just a bit in first gear and then nailed it without using the clutch. With 500 horsepower and 500 ft.lbs. of torque, this engine package produces the slickest, smoothest and by far the quickest acceleration you can imagine in a streetable Corvette.
Taking it through the gears and up to 170+ three different times and there is an extreme sensation of the faster you go, the faster you get there. But, what would you expect of a package with a rating of 196 mph top speed. It won't run out of power, you'll run out of road instead, long before the LPE Twin Turbo hits its power peak.
The LPE Twin Turbo is an extremely refined design. In contrast, a Buick Grand National 1984 to 1987 with one turbo put out 15+ pounds of boost. When the BGN turbo kicked in, it did so after a noticeable .5 sec lag and with neck snapping sudden acceleration. With the LPE Twin Turbo, the power comes on smoothly. Their five pounds of boost on two turbos is an ideal compliment to the stock power and torque of the LS1. Under hard acceleration, you cannot sense even the slightest turbo lag, and the application of the turbo's additional power is steady and smooth until the car feels like a rocket.
It is said the stock LS1 engine components are more than adequate for the twin turbo's low boost levels, which do not cause any detonation problems at the stock LS1 compression ratio of 10.1:1. John Lingenfelter has said that "This my favorite Corvette of all the ones I've ever built. At normal speeds, it acts exactly like a stock Corvette. It's very civilized."
If you're in the market for some serious butt kickin' high performance from your C5, take a close look the LPE Twin Turbo 500.
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