The New Corvette ZR1 Is a Disappointment

General Motors has adopted a slightly odd strategy with the new C8 Corvette. The C8 “Stingray” has been a wild success for GM, with the targa hardtop and convertible versions continuing to sell well, even after the initial 2020 launch hype has long died down. The C8 was in about the same price range as the C7 but faster, more customizable, and finally mid-engined. Drive it out of the showroom, and you have a fantastic car, but it was also clearly a great platform for GM and others to push it further through tuning.Then things have become odd. Along with the hotter, incredible Z06, GM also introduced the E-Ray; a hybridized version of the C8 with similar power and performance to the Z06 at a similar price. The main difference visually is that the E-Ray just looks like a slightly different trim of a standard C8, whereas the Z06 is covered in skirts and carbon winglets and ends with a giant curvy spoiler.Both cars are excellent top-of-the-range Corvettes, but they are both too high up the performance ladder and too indistinct from one another. The Z06 really should not be as fast and expensive as it is — it is where the ZR1 should be — and the E-Ray is not a luxurious cruising car, which should have been the differentiator. Perhaps a more luxurious interior and price tag is uninteresting to the Corvette buyer, but in that case, GM should have done the E-Ray properly and released it as the flagship car for Cadillac; a brand with great design language but no energy. A four-wheel drive, hybrid sports car could’ve changed that around.2025 Corvette C8 ZR1. Courtesy of CorvetteAnd so we come to the new ZR1; an incredibly impressive car that, once again, is a confusing product. To start with the numbers, it has 1,064 horsepower, runs the quarter mile in under 10 seconds, and can hit 215 miles per hour. Those are million-dollar-plus hypercar performance figures, not a factory Corvette. The only way you could have gotten this previously is to bring a Z06 to a tuning firm, who would strap a few turbos to it and remap the engine to accommodate it.2025 Corvette C8 ZR1. Courtesy of Corvette2025 Corvette C8 ZR1. Courtesy of CorvetteIt seems Corvette didn’t like that competition, as ZR1 is basically a Hennessey Z06, done in-house. It’s the first turbocharged Corvette, and save for the hood vent, a flatter rear spoiler, and a few wheel options, it looks identical to a Z06 and is mechanically very similar underneath. GM has renamed the engine the LT7 rather than the Z06’s LT6, but it is the same engine, just upgraded to handle the new power increase — new pistons and connecting rods, a larger combustion chamber, and new head castings. The gearbox has been upgraded further too to account for the increased torque, but it should drive relatively similarly.2025 Corvette C8 ZR1 Interior. Courtesy of CorvetteThe front lip and massive rear wing come as part of the optional ZTK performance pack — which makes it look significantly worse — but even though this is a track package, GM has told journalists that the stiffened suspension will not make it unusable on the road and will be a relatively minor tweak. Perhaps the worst addition is the split rear window on the coupe; a corny reference to the legendary 1962 Corvette but done in an overly busy, unattractive way.2025 Corvette C8 ZR1 ZTK Pack. Courtesy of CorvetteSplit rear window on the 2025 Corvette C8 ZR1 ZTK Pack. Courtesy of CorvetteUnlike previous generations of the ZR1, the new version releasing next year will not be a limited production run. However, GM also will not disclose the pricing, and it is possible this was an effort to avoid souring the coverage.Some Corvette fans are upset about the turbocharging, and the price is likely to be an uncomfortable point, too. The Z06 starts at $115,000, so I suspect the ZR1 will start comfortably above $150,000, though it won’t break the $200,000 barrier. The other unpleasant big number is the weight; only with the optional carbon fiber wheels will the real-world weight be under 4,000 pounds.The long and short of it is that this is going to be a great car, but it does just feel like a tuned Z06, and that real special sauce has been saved for a more limited, expensive version, namely the long-rumored “Zora.” When that car comes, expect a more subtle, refined look and a four-wheel-drive powertrain that takes the hybrid system of the E-Ray and pairs it with the flat-plane crank engine from the Z06.2025 Corvette C8 ZR1. Courtesy of Corvette

The New Corvette ZR1 Is a Disappointment

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