Revealed last month, the ZR1X is a Corvette on steroids, merging the twin-turbo 5.5-litre V8 engine from the ZR1 with the front electric motor from the E-Ray to produce more than 900kW and 1200Nm, well and truly outpacing even some of Europe’s fastest supercars.
The build-up prior to its unveiling centred on its unprecedented performance, however Chevrolet doesn’t want to rest on its laurels, and has hinted there could be more to come from the C8 Corvette.
“The backbone we’ve built into the C8 is proving to be super capable. The things we’ve learned from creating the various models so far and the opportunities we have in the future with this chassis are incredible,” Corvette chief engineer Tony Roma told Top Gear.
“The ZR1X is not the end of the story, it’s just the latest chapter. The team that works on it has a very ‘what can we do, and how can we do it?’ attitude. They see possibilities and not challenges.”
Chevrolet hasn’t released a top speed figure for the ZR1X, though its circa-100kW power advantage over the 375km/h ZR1 suggests it could go even faster. According to Roma, that’s something Chevrolet wants to make official, even if most owners will never get close.
“Speed is only relevant these days for bragging rights. For a car to have a certain amount of provenance, we have to offer a version of that car that’s capable of doing those silly numbers. The ZR1’s top speed attempt was not in expectation that our customers would ever repeat it, or even get remotely close, because you can’t legally do that.
“We had to go through a lot of testing to set that speed: travel to Papenburg, hire the track for three days, get a bunch of mechanics over and so on. But the fact that the car has proven it can do it is precisely why people buy cars like this. Having the crazy lap times and ridiculous acceleration is part of what makes these cars what they are.
“So I think we are going to continue to make the car faster for those bragging rights, because our customers appreciate that. It’s the same with any performance car manufacturer – we push each other with Nürburgring lap times for that reason.”
Speaking of the Nürburgring, while the ZR1X was spied multiple times at the Nordschleife prior to its reveal, Chevrolet has yet to announce an official lap time for the supercar.
The Ford Mustang GTD is currently the fastest US-produced car around the 20.8km circuit, and Roma says Chevrolet would love to take that honour away from the Blue Oval.
“We’ve done some testing, and all I can say is… stay tuned. We want to be the fastest American car – that’s an accolade we’d love to have. Again, it comes down to theory. None of our customers will go and run a sub-seven-minute lap time, but they want to know if they could.”
However, in a separate interview with CarBuzz, the executive detailed the difficulties of setting a record time – as well as revealing behind-the-curtain information not publicly talked about.
“It’s more difficult than it’s ever been to set a record at the ‘Ring. They charge you a lot of money to talk about it, and they want to have certified timing and scoring,” he told CarBuzz.
“You have to rent the track, get the safety marshals, pay the licensing fee, pay the filming fee. And if your day rains, oh well. We are not based in Stuttgart, so we can’t just go back next week. That’s why you haven’t seen us set a lap record attempt.
“You can see the effort Ford had to put into the GTD. And they had to go back twice to get decent weather…
“All I can say is, stay tuned. We did go and drive around the Green Hell, and we’re pretty proud of how the car did. And so, we’re going to release more details when the time’s right. Very soon, very soon.”
Chevrolet teased its Nürburgring run on social media a fortnight ago, with internet sleuths – such as these on Reddit – working out the fast laps were set in late June.
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