The 2019 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1—Chevy’s latest contender in the battle for performance supremacy—is finally here after months of teases and leaks. From the most recent leak, we already had a pretty good idea what this car would be: basically a Z06 with a huge wing and 750 horsepower thanks to a larger throttle body, bigger supercharger, better cooling, and more potent fuel injection system. This uprated version of the “plastic fantastic” is so awesome that IT. SPITS. FIRE.
Chevrolet is calling this the most powerful and fastest Corvette of all time. With a top speed quoted at “over 210 mph,” they’re not wrong. This wild car has a supercharger so tall that it sticks up through the hood in an old-school shaker-style carbon fiber scoop that we absolutely love. That larger displacement supercharger should in theory take care of the Z06's overheating issues, as it won’t have to spin as quickly to produce the same forced induction pressure.
[UPDATE] Here are a few things we’ve learned about the new ZR1 since the launch this morning:
- The Corvette ZR1's engine has officially been named “LT5,” which hearkens back to the C4 ZR1's aluminum block DOHC Lotus-designed Mercruiser-built V8. The new LT5 is a supercharged 6.2-liter that produces 755 horsepower and 715 lb-ft of torque.
- The LT5 engine makes these huge power and torque figures with a 52-percent larger displacement supercharger than the one found on the Z06's LT4. To deal with all of that extra forced induction, Chevy had to develop a “dual-fuel-injection system,” which primarily uses direct injection, but supplements it with extra port injectors.
- Knowing that the Z06 had some somewhat public issues with heat soak, the ZR1 team wanted to work to prevent that as much as possible. As a result, they’ve added another four radiators to the car, bringing the total number of heat exchangers to 13.
- The ZR1 will be available with two different aerodynamics kits, including the “High Wing” package (called ZTK Performance Pack), which produces an estimated 950 pounds of downforce at speed. If you get a ZR1 without the big wing, you probably don’t deserve a ZR1. The ZTK package, GM says, helps the ZR1 produce about 60 percent more downforce than the Z06's already massive Z07 performance package made.
- The ZTK Performance Package also includes a deep front aero splitter, Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, and ZTK-specific chassis tuning.
- The Sebring Orange Design Package, shown in the lead photo, features orange brake calipers, oragne rocker and splitter accent stripes, orange seat belts, and orange interior stitching to match the Sebring Orange exterior paint. Interior trim will also be crafted in “bronze aluminum,” whatever that means. Neat.
- ZR1 sales will begin in spring of 2018, so get your order in now if you want one.
You can find out more from Chevrolet’s press release here. And without further adieu, here are the photos of Chevrolet’s answer to the equally nutty Porsche GT2 RS: