Corvette ZR-1 unveiled

Really? The NA Viper is making about the same horsepower as this thing...

The 600hp 2008 Viper is only just good enough to edge out the current Z06 on the drag strip.

And this ZR-1 isn't just a Z06 with an extra 120+ hp bolted on.
 
Agreed, IMO the Viper, even the new 600HP version, is in serious trouble. May the horsepower war continue!
 
The viper has more of a muscle car like mentality, brutal, powerful, unrefined. The corvette is becoming an all rounder, more of everything mixed with a very specific formula.
 
That Corvette is definitely a GTR killer.
 
Finally, 100hp/liter. Now the pointless people on supercars.net who make pointless comparisons to the Honda S2000 can stfu.

yeah, with the help of a S/C..... S2000 is N/A.

and lol at the yanks' comment, its like their little wet dream has finally come true :lol: having said that, it does look great, and i bet it goes like stink.

Super car slayer of note ths one... it will kick 7 kinds of shit from most so called "supercars"
 
Last edited:
Not a fan. Don't like the way it looks and it doesn't excite me either. Ok great so it goes fast whoop de doo. I will have a 911 GT3 please and pocket the change.
 
^In Sweden this vette will be less expensive than a GT3...
 
Just out of interest, how much is thing going to be? Is $100,000 in the right ball park? Unfortunately that will mean about ?100,000 by the time they swap the headlights over and bring it here.
 
it is also funny how it will rape every Ferrari on the market today, and how it has the Enzo's brakes...IN THE REAR HAHAHA.

Let's see how this fares against F430 Scuderia. It has less power and I bet it's STILL faster than this on track.

I like the ZR-1 on a general level but it's not nowhere the same level as sophisticated and evolutioned as current Ferraris.
 
Just out of interest, how much is thing going to be? Is $100,000 in the right ball park? Unfortunately that will mean about ?100,000 by the time they swap the headlights over and bring it here.

English specification headlights, $500. British VAT, import duties and associated government charges, $99,500.:lol::lol::lol:
 
You know, I love Vettes (hell I started this thread). This is so much my ape-raping dream car... But so is the Ferrari F430. I'm not the type of enthusiast to say my personal favorite is God's chariot and everything else is crap. Not to get all Forrest Gump but it's like a box of assorted chocolates -- I know my favorites are caramel and there are going to be some I don't like that I don't like and spit out, but I'll try 'em all and they all have goodness, I can like Caramel AND cookie center at the same time can't I?

You can have multiple mistresses. I only hope if I'm rich enough to own one, I'm rich enough to own them both.

Regarding the exposed carbon fiber: The hood is CF but thankfully painted (only the top; the inside is still bare). I guess the roof is exposed because the pillars and glass are black already.

Personally, I'd opt for the non-chrome gunmetal gray wheels, and I'd be hoping someone comes up with a replacement insert for the clear window on the hood (too gaudy for me, no matter how cool looking under the hood is -- why not just have the whole hood clear?). The grey car with grey wheels and painted gray hood insert = teh mmmmmmmmmm......

I just can't get over those 15.5" front brakes. Look at how for in they have to move the pots! Hell the rotors are bigger than the wheels on a Honda.

Regarding the "Jake" skull on the airbox:

badboyvettes.com said:
141_img.jpg

So we meet the Corvette engineers and designers at the GM Design Center and they say, "Follow us - We have something to show you". We're led way down to the basement of the building, traveling through a maze of endless tunnels.

Cool beyond belief although we are really seeing ... nothing.

Then, we abruptly turn a corner and under harsh industrial-grade fluorescent lights - there it is: A glossy, glossy dark grey carbon-fibered, clear hooded, split-coved, bad bad assed ZR1. "Wow! ", we finally manage to say, but it begged the question: "Why us?"

They reply, "We wanted you to see this." ... And with that they open its huge hood, articulated with carbon fiber bracing underneath. We then gaze upon the menacing supercharged 650+ HP LS9 behemoth and something else catches our eye.

- Can we be seeing this?

Embossed on the top of the air intake snorkel ... deep down and almost out of sight ... is an evil looking "Jake" staring up at us, more sinister than ever. The reality of the situation sinks in - the ZR1 is branded with the Corvette Racing skull mascot.

We react with a yelp. We then look up and see them, arms folded, looking at us with confident grins on their big GM faces. We are instructed to say absolutely nothing - until now.

Let's see how this fares against F430 Scuderia. It has less power and I bet it's STILL faster than this on track.

I like the ZR-1 on a general level but it's not nowhere the same level as sophisticated and evolutioned as current Ferraris.

The Z06 was 0.5 seconds faster around the Top Gear track than the normal F430. I think you may want to reconsider. I'm anticipating this thing may crack the top 5 and best the Enzo.

Eventually "sophisticated" and "evolutioned" can become words you don't care about, like talking to an audiophile about his $4,000 turntable $8,000 McIntosh amp and yammering on about "warmth" and "openness". It may matter to the check-pants trust-fund types, but day-um who gives a shit at this point.

I love Ferraris; I drove an F430 and it mutated my DNA; I especially love the racing variants of the street Ferraris. It's all good. And let's let the numbers start rolling back from Nurburg, and the Top Gear track (same for the GT-R) and enjoy the show.

Oh shit, I hope they squeeze the ZR-1 into Gran Turismo... I hope that's the one detail you didn't miss, GM.
 
Last edited:
holy crap, its brakes are bigger than my wheels on my car!

i cant wait to see this thing.... what a fucking monster!
 
Spoiler: Functional
Splitter: Functional
Vents: Functional
Wheels: Designed to accommodate custom rubber & brakes, Functional
See-Through Hood: Nonfunctional

So, 4/5 of visual changes are functional. Form follows function - it's not "trying" to look fast, it IS fast.

if the wheels can be spec'd without chrome, and they offer a standard non-see thru hood then i think this will look better, more mature.

the see thru hood is really quite bad actually, only just noticed it and i dont like it at all. we shouldnt need to see whats beneith the hood to be scared of whats there....that should be taken care of every time the driver blips the throttle.

its not like the engines got a pair of sculpted rocker covers like lambos and fezza's have to drool over. this thing looks like its got a piece of transformers inspired plastic.

i hate most chrome wheels with a passion as well, granted good designs can pull off wearing chrome but more often than not, stock chromies look naff. give us some standard alloys or even gun metal ones
 
Fuck yeah this car is an animal, engine output isn't anything too special considering its a supercharged car, but if u see it take the sweeper before the corkscrew on laguna seca, you will know this thing handles. To take that pinned to the floor is amazing.
 
Damn, If this thing weighs what they said it would (3000 lbs), it should be faster then the Enzo. The first mass produced hyper car ever, will slay anything withen $300,000 of it.

It's actually "quite" heavier than the Z06.

Also i am 100% sure it will work on the road even worse than Z06 & of course it will be "American built car", which is almost never a good start...

This car has the same suspension, essentially, as the 599 GTB. Double wishbones front and rear. The Magnetic Selective Ride Control. It is more aggressive on the track AND more comfortable on everyday roads.

Alot of people thought wrong when we thought that GM wanted to make this an all-out hardcore, lean mean Z06-eating machine. :p

so, this is the ?ber Corvette that saves chevy fanbois from the Godzilla? I wonder how harsh ride this one will have, even the Z06 owners admit that the ride was harsh before they got used to it..:p

The ZR1 actually has a better ride. It has the same Magnetic Selective Ride Control that you would find on the Ferrari 599GTB.

Aha, here you should be wrong. They worked the kinks out of the magnetic shocks (in the Z06 development they couldn't make them tough enough for track duty, that has been solved). And note the fancy new leather interior as one of the only two options.

Hmm, I don't think the C6 Z06s can even be had with the magnetic suspension....? But yes, you are right in that they did manage to make the magnetic suspension work for the ZR1. I know the base C6s can be had with the magnetic suspension.

Also, I believe there is no "leafspring" anymore on the ZR1?

According to Motortrend, it will be 200 pounds heavier than the z06.

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/112_0802_2009_chevrolet_corvette_zr1_first_look

Yup.


Thats just a guess. Considering they used more carbon fiber, I'd be surprised to find it much heavier, if not lighter.

It's actually "quite" heavier than a Z06. The supercharger alone reportedly adds 100 pounds. The stronger transmission, axle shafts, and the magnetic suspension control system probably are major weight adders as well.

2009-corvette-zr1-specifications-1.jpg


2009-corvette-zr1-specifications-2.jpg


2009-corvette-zr1-specifications-3.jpg



One of the press releases states, "Curb weight of approximately 3,350 pounds".

It is a bit heavier, but considering all the new technology in the ZR1, 3,350 lbs is amazing.

Someone's afraid of some serious competition! :p


Cool car, Fugly as hell. Should be hella fast.... LEAFSPRINGS FTW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Take that you haters!

I'm not sure if this even has any leafsprings anymore......

From what I can get from the press release the ZR1 was designed to be more road/daily driver friendly then the Z06 so everyone saying that the ZR1 will have a harsher ride might be in for a surprise.

Exactly. The ZR1 is actually more comfortable than the Z06. A lot of people thought wrong.

i hope they send it 'round the top gear test track. it might not fair so well but it doesn't matter. It look b-e-a-u-tiful and it'll make an epic sound. as much as i love GM i must admit that they've been screwing up a lot and the vette is one of the few good things they have going.

Indeed, but it will be a while since this car won't be out until fall of 2008. Maybe the end of season 11.....we MIGHT see it on Top Gear.....

Really? The NA Viper is making about the same horsepower as this thing...

Well.....considering the fact that the viper has more than 2 liters of displacement....it damn well should.

The viper has more of a muscle car like mentality, brutal, powerful, unrefined. The corvette is becoming an all rounder, more of everything mixed with a very specific formula.


:cry:
GM: Emission Law May Hamper Muscle Cars

DETROIT (AP) ? When General Motors Corp. pulls the cover off a new supercharged version of the Corvette at the Detroit auto show next month, it will unveil a performance car designed to rival or better even the fastest, most expensive exotic cars from Europe. But the Corvette's chief engineer says the 2009 Corvette ZR1 may be the last in a long tradition of Detroit performance cars, endangered by stronger federal fuel economy regulations and limits on carbon dioxide emissions.


That Corvette is definitely a GTR killer.

There is no question about that.

Just out of interest, how much is thing going to be? Is $100,000 in the right ball park? Unfortunately that will mean about ?100,000 by the time they swap the headlights over and bring it here.

At least $100,000. 2000 units are slated for yearly production....so depending on market forces...it could go very high.

holy crap, its brakes are bigger than my wheels on my car!

Ditto. :)
 
Top