[swanson]

[kprocivic]

Damn.

[swanson]

[yousefnjr]

Damn son

[c1pher]

I am happy with my lowly 460hp Stingray lol.

[R3dliner]

Damn. The domestics are doing what the germans are lacking these days except for Porsche. Stepping it up big time.

[mkoesel]

Ah, so the LT5 sticks with pushrods. It seems that if a DOHC engine is indeed coming - and from the looks of things, one is - it will debut in the mid-engine C8. Not unexpected, but there has been a lot of speculation and uncertainty about this point.

As for the ZR1 itself - its largely an amped up Z06 as the article says. Not too surprising, and no doubt a complete beast. But I'd wait for the C8 Z06 at this point.

[TSM330i]

Will be interesting to see how this will compare to the 911 GT2RS. Lightning Lap 2019 can't come soon enough!

[yousefnjr]

Originally Posted by TSM330i

Will be interesting to see how this will compare to the 911 GT2RS. Lightning Lap 2019 can't come soon enough!

No doubt it’ll be close, would love to see a pushrod V8 moder take that win for USA — at nearly 1/3 the price no less!

[Mingwan]

normally not a fan of the over the top styling, but I like it. the car looks brutal. not a fan of the gold steering wheel trim and the rims. I still think the rims on the Z28 are some of the best GM has ever made.

New ZR1 vs GT2 RS will be a battle of the titans.

[ShocknAwe]

Sooo. Fixed the cooling then?

[KenB925]

Originally Posted by mkoesel

Ah, so the LT5 sticks with pushrods. It seems that if a DOHC engine is indeed coming - and from the looks of things, one is - it will debut in the mid-engine C8.

Makes sense, it would be very difficult to package the large DOHC heads under the hood of the current Corvette, much easier in a mid engine car where the height of the engine is less of an issue, and they can design the new car around the new engine.

Chevy has taken the gloves off and they are slappin' bitches!

The Domestics are the only ones building cars that a just fun, stupid fun. An argument could be made for Porsche, and I love Porsche, but they take themselves a little too serious. Dodge is making a car that can wheelie for christ sakes

[KenB925]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Sooo. Fixed the cooling then?

they fixed that a year ago

[RedGT3]

Originally Posted by KenB925

they fixed that a year ago

Not if you drive an auto.

[mkoesel]

Originally Posted by KenB925

Makes sense, it would be very difficult to package the large DOHC heads under the hood of the current Corvette, much easier in a mid engine car where the height of the engine is less of an issue, and they can design the new car around the new engine.

Good point. Although, that’s what they did with the original LT5; the C4 wasn’t designed with that engine in mind. They put their heads together (hah, no pun intended!) and pulled it off. But yeah, I agree it makes more sense in the new car. Plus, it’s just the better marketing play to launch it there.

[Red Bread]

So I had my digital copy this morning and now it's gone. Did C&D get lawyered by Chevy for releasing this early?

[hellrotm]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Sooo. Fixed the cooling then?

Read the article... spoiler alert additional cooling.

[shiv.nandak]

My Z06 triggers the traction control at 70 mph, i can't image how insane this ZR1 will be at an extra 100 HP. It should be illegal to turn off the stability control on these cars while on the street. They really do snap randomly on WOT and rough roads.

[supra93]

It’s official. After spy shots, speculation, and leaks, the 2019 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 formally breaks cover here in Dubai, home of the fast, rich, and fabulous.

Yes, this latest iteration shares much of the bones of the Z06 but adds more power, refinement, a giant optional rear wing, and a pledge that this really fast car is for everyone. Even though the new ZR1 has a top speed of more than 210 mph, the Z06 and Camaro ZL1 1LE still corner the market on crazy.

General Motors chose Dubai for the global premiere of the last celebration of the C7 generation Corvette and the return of the ZR1 crown that was applied to the third-generation Corvette in 1979, C4 in 1990, and C6 in 2009. “We don’t do a ZR1 every generation,” said chief engineer Tadge Juechter. “It’s not an automatic.”

The private unveiling was held a few days before the Dubai auto show. Corvette continues to grow in popularity in the fast-growing Middle East, making Dubai a good choice for the global debut, said Tom Peters, director of exterior design for GM performance vehicles.

The car goes on sale this spring, and GM expects to make 2,000-3,000 of them at the plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, but production will not be limited.

Pricing has not been announced but could easily exceed $130,000. The 2009 ZR1 started at $105,000; a carbon fiber package alone added $15,000. The 2018 base Stingray coupe starts at $56,490 and the Z06 starts at $80,490. Juechter said the ZR1 won’t be double the price of the Stingray.

Many of the suspected details were confirmed. The new coupe continues with GM’s 6.2-liter pushrod small block V-8, but the automaker calls this updated version of the supercharged engine the LT5. It’s confusing because the expectation is LT5 would refer to a switch to a DOHC V-8. The ZR1 sticks with Corvette’s traditional overhead valve, two valves per cylinder.

And just when you thought that engine couldn’t squeeze out any more power, GM tells us it’s rated at 755 horsepower and 715 lb-ft of torque. “After driving this around for a while the Z06 feels really sluggish,” said Juechter. It’s a nice exclamation point in the dying embers of C7 before C8 goes mid-engine and DOHC.

“I’ve never driven a Corvette like this before, and nobody else has either, because there’s never been one like this before,” said Mark Reuss, executive vice president, Global Product Development, Purchasing and Supply Chain. “Its unprecedented performance puts all other global supercars on notice that the ZR1 is back.”

A major difference: This is not the supercharger of the 2009 ZR1 or the 2015 Z06. The Eaton supercharger is 2.9 inches taller with a more efficient intercooled system that Chevy says has 52 percent more displacement than the Z06’s LT4 supercharger. Cooling has always been a Corvette bugaboo. The heavier supercharger changed the weight distribution so Chevy made the front wheels a half-inch wider for more cornering stiffness.

Another big difference: GM’s first dual fuel-injection system. It has primary direct injection and supplemental port injection. A cool by-product: It is said to shoot flames from the exhaust.

The Corvette keeps the seven-speed manual, but buyers can also choose an automatic for the first time in a ZR1 with GM’s eight-speed with paddle-shift. There was speculation the model could receive GM’s new 10-speed co-developed with Ford, but Juechter said that unit doesn’t fit the Corvette architecture and was never designed to. Instead, they updated the eight-speed to shift faster.

The ZR1 has the carbon ceramic brakes of the Z06—not the stellar non-ceramic Brembo brakes in the Camaro ZL1 1LE that are among the best on the planet, as we discovered in Motor Trend’s Best Driver’s Car testing.

The look of the most powerful Corvette to date reveals the efforts Chevy has gone to for greater performance. The strip of carbon fiber down the middle of the hood is the cover for the bulging engine that Peters did not want to be any taller so the driver can still sit low in the seat and see over the hood. It was a craftsmanship challenge to match the weave of the many pieces of carbon fiber that had to come together.

The front clip is all new and the new front fascia has four new radiators which means 13 heat exchangers in total. “The front end has almost no fascia; it is almost all openings,” Juechter said.

And the crankshaft has been strengthened. These changes, and the larger supercharger, add about 60 pounds of weight to the car. Curb weight is 3,560 pounds for a car with the most carbon fiber to date.

The latest king is designed to perform better on the track with the option to forego the regular low wing for a crazy high wing that produces an estimated 950 pounds of downforce for the track. The adjustable high wing is part of the ZTK Performance package and is attached right to the chassis. It can be adjusted about five degrees but it’s not an automatic adjustment; it requires changing the bolts. Even the low wing generates up to 70 percent more downforce than the Z06’s base aero package, and it’s much easier to get at your gear in the back.

This is the first Vette to get a front underwing to assist with downforce. Historically GM would use front splitters to push the nose down, but balancing the big wing would result in a front that too easily scrapes the ground. Borrowing some race tech, incorporating underwing creates low pressure to keep the car down, said Peters.

The ZTK package includes a front splitter with carbon-fiber end caps, Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 summer-only tires, and tuning of the chassis and Magnetic Ride Control for better cornering grip—another area where Corvette needed improvement.

And if you like orange, the Sebring Orange Design package is, you guessed it, Sebring Orange with matching brake calipers, rocker and splitter accent stripes, seatbelts, stitching, and bronze aluminum interior trim. There was a strong customer pull for orange, Juechter said. “We’ll see if they show up with their money.”

The ZR1 has leather-trimmed seats with a suede-like microfiber and an option to make them heated and cooled. Or you can opt for a sport seats and a carbon-fiber rimmed steering wheel.

Based on all the spy shots out there, the new coupe with a removable hardtop will be quickly followed by a convertible ZR1 with a soft top.

We doubt it’s a top priority, but the estimated fuel economy is 15/22 mpg in city/highway driving with the manual and 13/23 mpg with the automatic.

GM has been getting ready for the 2019 ZR1 as well as the mid-engine Corvette in the works. Production of the 2018 model at the plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, stopped for three months to retool for future products.

The 2019 Corvette ZR1 will be on display later this month at the Los Angeles auto show.

http://www.motortrend.com/cars/chevr...t-look-review/

[See5]

Looks like Car and Driver had their article out before the specs were finalized. Only gains 60 pounds over the Z06 while adding 105hp/65tq.

Shouldn't have a problem breaking 7 min on the Ring. Only question is if it will catch up to the Preformante and GT2RS. Should have a good shot.

[swanson]

The C&D article was probably finalized several months ago. Glad to see it didnt gain as much as they said in the article. I dont think it will have a close time to the porsche or lambo, but then again, I dont believe any numbers coming from porsche or any italians.

[RM7]

Originally Posted by swanson

The C&D article was probably finalized several months ago. Glad to see it didnt gain as much as they said in the article. I dont think it will have a close time to the porsche or lambo, but then again, I dont believe any numbers coming from porsche or any italians.

Yeah, that'll be interesting. According to the article, it's not mean to be the fastest track car. With the power and downforce, it'll likely be a little faster than the Z06, but maybe not as much as some would think.