The yellow Corvette makes me cringe, I'm not sure if it's Nick Hogan insisting that yellow as a colour is a 'pussy magnet' or just that yellow in general looks good on very few cars.

The others look fine, but the yellow Corvette? Somehow very cheap.

Blue looks best by far...of those above, that is. Black still reigns supreme.

Oh yeah, and that's the best 5000-hp roadtrip EVER.

Oooh, that's the first ECE Market ZR1 (amber rear side markers and amber rear turn signals) that I've seen! I can't wait to see it on Top Gear!

Dubs?
Bleechh!

[by SlantSixMan at 02:51 AM

unless a vette has is a c3 with greenwood body kit it is a rag.]

Dude, you still smokin' that spliff? Not sure what you're saying there...

@HIDGolf:

Yeah, I'm looking forward to watching Clarkson repeat for the umpteenth time that Americans are dumb and that the US is an abomination, too.

@SlantSixMan:

After eating mayonnaise-based french fries and curry wurst, are you sure it was the vette's brakes that were smokin'?

And my spring break begins with a cargasm. Who wants to let me touch a ZR1?

@smokeydog001: yup. you should see it when the hyundai guys get together at the ring pomme frites and curry canine.

Haaaaaaa thats looks like its in Canada, could it be? I just hope they weren't in Montreal because I don't know how those vettes would have survived our ginormous potholes!!

SlantSixMan R I P

That yellow is tits. Same as the LeMans cars. Red a close second. Blue sucks.

Trying to see which goes faster?

The red is looking more like '86 Camaro every day....

@442Rocket: That's probably not Canada, in one of the shots there's a man in short sleeves with his hose in his hand

href="#c4931462">sliderule:.@442Rocket: Somewheres in Kentucky apparently

I'm going to be the one that rains on this parade. The ZR-1 is another pointless Corvette. All of that development money that could have been spent on newer products to try and get the General back into form. So instead of newer world class everyman cars, we get a limited edition male enhancement vehicle that does nothing to further GM's reputation. Does it have a lot of horsepower? yes. Will it handle well? yes. Can any of this technology be used for other vehicles? maybe. Will GM make money with this car? that's debatable.

The fact is that this $100,000 Corvette will have all the questionable build quality of the current Vette, with a price tag that makes it out of reach for the targeted buyer. I mean, would you buy this car, or one of those lovely European models like a Porsche 911, Audi R8, Benz SL, or BMW 6 Series? Or even Nissan's GT-R? I'm not so sure.

@UDMan:

There's on in every crowd lol. I would buy the 'Vette.

Looks like they stopped at Wendy's. They probably ordered off the 99 cent menu too.

The gaping maw of the 2008 Montreal pothole will eat every last vette. But for some reason I still see people driving their convertible Bentleys and Boxters mid winter.

I suppose if it's covered in crusty snow they won't have to fiddle with the camera angles to hide the hood window.

I just changed the channel on the radio while reading this and Little red Corvette by Prince was on. Talk about bizarre.

Anyway, "ZR1 In Its Natural Habitat"? What, the drive-thru car park?

No, seriously, I want to like the Corvette, I really do. Supposedly the previous model had imprecise, agricultural-feeling controls and a cheap interior, but if they've addressed those problems, then it deserves to do well.

Where is the spy pics of the new El Camino version?

@Dr. Schm: Bowling Green, KY to be exact. That is where the Corvette plant is located.

My goodness that looks like a party.

I must hangout in the wrong parking lots =(

Hi!...I have a camera...please pop the hood...I want to take a photo of the protection skit on the door step as well

They said ok?

@SSX: it's true I was there last summer visiting the factory when my cousin did the factory pickup of his 07 3LT Vette

what a site

I have a funny feeling these pics were doctored.

@UDMan: There will be a market for this car, in spite of the fancy-pants, refined and uber-cultured vehicles you mention. That's because a lot of us who like the ZR1 aren't refined: we drink cheap beer; we scratch and fart in public and we generally prefer burgers over sushi. Yet somehow, we've gotten a big chunk of the American Dream. And a refined 'Vette just wouldn't interest us much.

As long as Chevy keeps production low - maybe 2,000 per year or so, they will be able to sell them all.

God Bless American and give me one more year of wheat over $10 a bushel, please!

these pics are real. if you look in the backgroud of several, including the 12th one with the red zr1 parked, you can see the national corvette museum's grey facade and the yellow skydome in the background. that wendy's is right on the highway, not more than a mile or two from the bowling green factory.

God. Vettes look like they're driven by molesters.

Damn, it looks like the Tiburon's ugly sister from the front

I can hear Clarkson now, saying . . . wait, no I can't. There'll be nothing but engine roar and tire smoke, the high-pitched whine of a supercharger and a few snippets of him power-sliding from the 3 percent of the time he doesn't completely overcook a turn and ham-fist into the grass.

@xenti: Thank you for finally saying what we were all thinking. Molesters and dentists.

I always expect to see a sticker on the back of a Corvette that says "My other car is a grey Ford Econoline panel van with bubble-dome side windows,"

Maybe it's just the fact that every Corvette driver seems to have a 80's porn-star molestache.

clarckson would only like a c3 with a l48 350 with a auto trans and a greenwood body kit.

@Pope Dearthair the Awesometh: good one.

@gadgetfanatic: Probably because they're just screencaps of a youtube video, in which the one part of the video that isn't a slideshow has music too loud to hear the exhaust notes of eight supercharged V8's pulling away.

lucky kid

@goatrope:
You have really good point and argument there which I can dismantle rather completely with two words: Dodge Viper.

Because compared to the Corvette the Viper is a sledge hammer, it's an atomic bomb with wheels, it's a barrel full of crude oil. That's how much finesse it has.

That's my problem with the Corvette, if I had 100k to spend and I wanted an American car, I'd want a proper American car. In my eyes everything after the C2's isn't all that impressive. The Corvette tries to straddle the fence with one foot on the big American engine with a boat load of torque side and the other on this pseudo-luxury image side with satnav, traction control and what have you.

On that count the Corvette just doesn't do it for me at all; it isn't luxurious because from what I remember it's got a very nice engine note, cheap plastic, crap leather, etc, etc. I'm not going to say it can't preform, because it does, but honestly all I can imagine driving a current generation Corvette is some bloke with a bald spot, a gut and a wife he doesn't love. That's it. It's so... so mid-life crisis.

The Viper? Bollocks first into a volcano. With it's hair on fire.

It's crap inside, well I've only ever driven a first gen one but it didn't have a single creature comfort in there - they probably put seats in there under protest after a long argument with management - and it's bloody American to the core of it. Low slung V10 truck engine, big fat tyres and no traction control.

So from the point of view of crude and batshit insane appeal, the 'Haha! PENIS!' mentality, and hirsute masculinity? The Viper has the Corvette by the truck-nuts.

@Tocsin:

On that count the Corvette just doesn't do it for me at all; it isn't luxurious because from what I remember it's got a very nice engine note, cheap plastic, crap leather, etc, etc. I'm not going to say it can't preform, because it does, but honestly all I can imagine driving a current generation Corvette is some bloke with a bald spot, a gut and a wife he doesn't love. That's it. It's so... so mid-life crisis.

That sounds EXACTLY like Viper owners to me also.

Bah, the Corvette is sort of boring to me. More powerful engine, a few niknaks on the body to make it look more "exotic", and bbs looking rims. Sure, its the most powerful Corvette ever, but that hardly makes it more appealing I find. Still remains tacky and vanilla. And what about those colours? Couldn't get much more boring that that, although the blue is the better of those three colours. I'd rather drive an M5, but then again with a name like BMWer, I'm sure you're not surprised.

@Tocsin:
When the ZR1 comes out, the Viper will be dead, or on death watch anyway.

There are enough of here in the US who don't give a rat's ass about sophistication - otherwise we would buy an R8 or similar vehicle. But with the Ford GT gone, and the Viper on the way out, there is room for 2,000 or so ZR1s a year. The ZR1 will be the new sledgehammer.

Oh how I wonder how I can get a job where I can drive a ZR-1 (or equivalent) around with 4 of my co-workers in their own cars no less, for free and get paid for it!

You know the hoonage that took place on the way to that restaurant.

@ifonlyihadthemoney: When I used to cook, Ferrari club of North America had a big, weekend long meeting at the Hotel where I worked. I still smoked cigarrettes then, and the smoking "area" was a bench down in the parking garage. I didn't really think about it, but when I went down there to take a break, I just about shit myself looking at a sea of gorgeous machines. Then the owners started showing up and firing them up for a morning drive. The sound, the smell, it was amazing. And the owners mostly looked like regular folks who passionately loved their cars. I even saw one guy with cut off jean shorts climbing into a 360 Modena. It is still the coolest parking garage experience of my life.

The ZR1 ain't all that bad. I'd be hard pressed to buy it instead of an R8, but would take it over a pair of $50k Mustangs any day.

What did the original ZR1 look like?

@Tocsin: Someone's defensive because they see the Viper about to get even more properly PWNED than what the Z06 did to it. GOODNIGHT, dodge.

Alright, this has gone way to far. You know, I dont go into any of your wussy forums about Porsches or BMW's or whatever you people think is "sophisticated" and start talking BS about your favorite car. So you know what, don't do it to mine. Number 1, you can all stop acting like you have experience with how a Corvette handles, because I know that 80 percent of you dont have a clue; and for those of you who do yet still bitch, stop trying to blame a car for your crappy driving skills. Your all like the sports wannabees. You sit there and talk about sports (cars, in your case) and give your own opinion on matters and yap like your some expert, but none of you losers ever made it passed the highschool level. A car is only as good as it's driver. And until you boneheads learn that and a few other things, the closest you'll get to ever driving any of your european dream machines will be typing posts about them on a website like this. So if you don't like the vette, back off, cause I don't like your car either.
Oh, and does anybody really value Jeremy Clarkson's opinion on cars, I think I'd rather consult a wet dish towel.

@Tony87: Testify brother-TESTIFY!

Some people just hate anything American, or anything that represents America, no matter how good it is. They are quite simply, bigoted. It's their loss as they don't even give themselves the chance to enjoy so many things, which is fine with me. It keeps the total wankers out of our Vettes.

I honestly don't know where the need for luxury came from in a sports car?

This isn't a GT car by any means, it's uncomfortable to ride in for long periods of time, a lot harsher, if it's anything like the Z06, the clutch is even stiffer.

My question is this, when a car like the Porsche GT3 gets a completely stripped down version with a tiny bit more HP for the track - it's a purist's car.

When a car like a 'vette lacks the ridiculously long list of options like a Porsche from the start - it becomes a hick-mobile of sorts?

I'm more of an import enthusiast because I feel that American car makers still can't make a proper mid range sports car, but this is in another league.

Is a factory made 700HP a small feat? Hell no! This is a rock solid engine on a very drivable car. Even the Z06 in it's naturally aspired form could stand toe to toe with a Porsche Turbo, make the Ferrari Marenello obsolete from day 1 and go against the mighty Ford GT as if it was an every day Ford.

Imagine what this beast can do! Here's the truth, I'd buy an Audi R8 over this until the day this thing spanks the living shit out of it and I'll think twice. Oh what, does HP not matter anymore?

@AllenK: Since when was a SPORTS car about LEATHER seats (psuade ftw), and a FANCY interior? Some of the most infamous performance cars didn't give two shits about the interior.

It's about going like hell, not coping a feel of the dash.

Interesting, the red one in the Corvette reserved space facing the building is a Euro-spec version. Notice the amber rear side marker lights and the slice of amber at the bottom of the outer taillights.

The most interesting thing about the Corvette is its polarizing effect. You can argue until you're blue in the face on handling-versus-horsepower, horsepower-versus-interior, price-tag-versus performance, and metrosexual-versus-porn 'stache and never really prove anything. No matter your outlook on cars, there will be something about the Corvette that will prove or disprove your theory. I've spent a lot of time in Corvettes, and they are fast, large, relatively unrefined, flashy, capable of tremendous performance, capable of parking your sorry ass in a ditch, inexpensive for the performance, expensive for the perceived quality, good on MPG if your out of the throttle, shockingly bad on MPG if you're in it, obnoxious, embarrassing, and bad ass. If there's a way to combine those elements into a number, you might find out who's really "right" on the Corvette debate. Until then, it's just diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks, masquerading as some kind of quantitative evaluation. The Corvette is probably the most polarizing car on the market. Or perhaps the Prius.

"diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks"

well put...