Things are clearly heating up in the aftermarket realm when it comes to demonstrating the world’s highest power rating for the notoriously difficult to enhance (due to an OEM lockup of the ECU) C8 generation of “America’s sports car.” After the vlogger sector dropped the 1,022-wheel horsepower bomb just a few weeks ago, it’s time for the professional tuners to fight back.
And what better way to demonstrate their take better than trumping Emelia Hartford’s (now) world-renowned twin-turbo 2020 C8 Corvette with a new rating going above her dyno figure of 1,022-hp and 942 lb-ft (1,277 Nm)?
That’s exactly what happened when FuelTech’s traditionally red example of the 2020 model year also “became the most powerful one of its kind by unleashing 1,075 whp from its twin turbocharged combination.”
It seems the race for both more horsepower and social media attention is shifting into high gear, as the shop also gives the nod to Emelia’s efforts and also hints that more companies and teams are building their own outrageous takes on the mid-engine Chevy.
The good folks over at FuelTech are no strangers to social media attention as they’ve been previously documenting their year-long record-setting dyno performance while diligently working on the C8 development vehicle. As far as technicalities are concerned, the company is not only using a twin-turbocharged combination just like Hartford but also has its own workaround for the notoriously tricky factory ECU.
Naturally, FuelTech deploys its own “award-winning” FT600 engine management system, and it gets integrated into the LT2 V8 architecture via a bespoke jumper harness. Then it’s up for the PowerFT ECU to direct the case for the additional fuel supply and other engine functions, paving the way for tuning specialists and enthusiasts alike to try out their own turbo or supercharger combos.
Interestingly, that alone wasn’t enough to claim the record from Emelia, as the FuelTech Corvette previously reached "just" 750 whp on the Mainline Hub Dyno and roughly 600 whp at the gearshifts, albeit using just four PSI of boost. The secret for the recent performance lies in adding a new Dodson clutch assembly, which enabled “the company’s founder and lead innovator,” Anderson Dick, to crank the boost all the way up to 21 PSI.
The result is obvious. At least for now, they’re owners of the highest-powered C8 Corvette, with a net result of 1,075 whp and 888 lb-ft (1,204 Nm) of torque “at the hubs.” The game is on, indeed!
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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