Ford may have kicked Ferrari's posterior at Le Mans with the GT40 back in the day, but it seems that the new GT got knocked out by a Corvette. You see, Chevy let Ford enjoy its Virginia International Raceway record-setting glory for a week, but now the Golden Bowtie has announced that the 2019 ZR1 has set a new production car record at VIR.
To be more precise, a 19MY ZR1 fitted with the optional eight-speed auto and just-as-optional ZTK performance package went round VIR in 2:37.25, shattering the 2.38.6 chronograph number of the GT.
And, as we zoom in on the story, things get even more interesting. That's because the said stopwatch performance was set earlier last month, with the one manhandling the 755 Chevy being dynamics engineer Jim Mero (The Blue Oval's now-fallen record had been set by racing driver Billy Johnson).
And while the goodies included in the ZTK pack, such as the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber, the magnetic ride control, the huge front splitter and the adjustable carbon rear wing) are impressive, here's something that will amaze you - the Chevy crew managed to lap VIR in 2:39.77 using a manual tranny 'Vette.
And with Jim Mero being no stranger to blitzing the Nurburgring, we're expecting the predicted Green Hell production car lap record to take place once the infamous German track opens its gates for the 2018 season.
So, while the Viper ACR has been put to sleep, the seventh-generation Corvette ZR1 seems to play the role of a bargain trophy grabber with grace.
Sure, the Ford GT might seem more of a purpose-built machine than the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, but the latter offers a V8 (the Ford Performance halo car has a 647 twin-turbo V6, remember?) and more chronograph glory for a quarter of the money. And you can check out its (apparent) tail-savvy behavior below.
In his quest to bring you the most impressive automotive creations, Andrei relies on learning as a superpower. There's quite a bit of room in the garage that is this aficionado's heart, so factory-condition classics and widebody contraptions with turbos poking through the hood can peacefully coexist. Full profile
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