Photo: Baldauf / Real Automotive on YouTube / edited
Mere weeks ago, the largest automaker of the so-called Big Three in Detroit shipped a number of Corvette ZR1 prototypes to the Old Continent for testing at the Nurburgring. Equipped with Michelin rubber, said midship supercars feature different rear wings, namely a Z06-style wing (specific to the Z07 Performance Package) and a slightly larger one.
The folks at Real Automotive decided to render the prototype with the larger wing into the real thing, albeit some details are far off the automaker’s design. Be that as it may, this is our best look yet at the 2025 model without any kind of camouflage.
Why is there a vent in the frunk? In typical fashion, General Motors took inspiration from the Prancing Horse of Maranello for it. Remember the 488 Pista from the 2018 Geneva Motor Show? The limited-run supercar introduced the S-Duct system to road-going applications, an aerodynamic solution that improves downforce with little in the way of unwanted drag.
A front-mounted intake channels air through said S-Duct out of the vent in the hood, thus creating more downforce over the front axle. This apparently simple aerodynamic solution increases downforce over the 488 GTB by a whopping 18 percent with a drag penalty of 2 percent. Pretty impressive, huh?
Together with the humongous wing out back, which is most likely bundled with the ZTK Track Performance Package, the ZR1 shapes up to be a downforce monster. This downforce is essential on a circuit, and chances are the C8-generation ZR1 will blitz the Nurburgring faster than every Corvette before it.
Photo: SH Proshots
Back in 2017, a C7-gen Z06 with the Z07 package and manual transmission rather than the torque-converter automatic lapped the Green Hell in 7:13.90 with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber and Christian Gebhardt in the driver’s seat. There’s no time available for the 2019 model year ZR1, which – for the time being – is the most powerful series-production Corvette of all time. How powerful?
Gifted with the only LT small block to feature both direct and port fuel injection, the C7-gen ZR1 produces a simply ludicrous 755 horsepower. In regard to downforce, GM quotes 950 pounds (almost 431 kilograms) with the ZTK track package.
As opposed to the eight-speed automatic and seven-speed manual of its predecessor, the all-new ZR1 is a DCT-only affair. The rear-mounted transaxle is joined by a high-revving V8 with a flat-plane crankshaft, a twin-turbo engine based on the LT6 of the Z06. Referred to as LT7, the newcomer is widely believed to belt out more than 800 ponies.
These numbers and the on-track performance of the ZR1 don’t come cheap, though. The coupe used to carry a suggested retail price of $119,995 back in November 2017, which is pretty close to what GM charges for a brand-new Z06. More specifically, the 1LZ in coupe spec kicks off at $112,700 in the US.
In other words, don’t be surprised by the window sticker of the 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 reading $130,000 or thereabout. Following the ZR1, the C8 will climax with the Zora sometime in 2025 for the 2026 model year at the earliest. By combining the ZR1’s twin-turbo V8 and the E-Ray’s hybrid setup, the Zora is believed to develop 1,000 horsepower.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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