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C8 Corvette Dips Into the 10-Second Range on the Quarter-Mile With Stock Tires

The mid-engine Corvette with the LT2 small-block V8 wasn’t developed to be a strip-slaying machine, but it actually is. Take, for instance, this non-Z51 model with stock all-season tires and only one modification.
10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park 13 photos
Photo: ImportRace on YouTube
10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park10sec C8 Corvette Stingray Coupe @ Bradenton Motorsports Park
After driving 200 miles (322 km) to the drag-racing venue, the owner lit up the rears for a total of seven passes. The best quarter-mile time and trap speed were 10.904 seconds at 124.55 miles per hour (200.4 kilometers per hour), which is very impressive for a base Corvette with aftermarket exhaust headers.

American Racing Headers, to be more precise, which are offered in two flavors. The 1-7/8-inch by 3-inch setup retails at $1,975 while 2 by 3 inches will set you back $2,075 including shipping. Made entirely of 304 stainless steel, these headers feature laser-cut flanges for a warp-free seal and TIG-welted inlets. The bolt-on upgrade unlocks as many as 37 more horsepower and 37 more pound-feet (50 Nm) of torque across the engine’s mid-range.

The owner didn’t even touch the Michelins of his car, which measure 305/30 by 20 inches out back. The French tire manufacturer worked closely with Chevrolet for these run-flats, which are capable of reaching up to 1 G of lateral acceleration on the skidpad. Inspired by the Pilot Sport 4S summer tire, the Pilot Sport All Season 4 ZP is arguably the best all-season tire in production today based on the Corvette’s performance.

C8 customers who opted for the Z51 Performance Package are treated to summer-only rubber, which is a little better for straight-line shenanigans on a prepped surface. However, drag radials are your best choice at the strip because they offer the most grip and least wheel spin.

The Z51 Performance Package also includes heavy-duty cooling for track use, Brembo brakes, better suspension, the dual-mode exhaust system, a specific front splitter and spoiler that improve downforce, an electronic limited-slip differential, and more aggressive gearing for the rear axle. All told, the Golden Bowtie is asking $5,995 for these upgrades for the 2021 model year, which is $995 more than what Chevrolet used to ask in 2020.

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About the author: Mircea Panait
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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.
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