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Comments
Ducati Minor
I saw the news on Motive, then Autoblog. Ceramic brakes, tightened suspension, and a supercharged 6.2 L V-8. That is a nice package. With all the Nissan GT-R talk, I wonder how this 'Vette will surpass it. Better yet, how will it measure against the 430 Scuderia, '08 Viper, and 997 GT2?
I am disappointed Chevy went with the ZR-1 name, but that's minor compared to everything else. The best 'Vette since the Callaway C12.
Mena
Wow!!! Can't wait to see the stats.
MGBYG
A Corvette fan of C4s and later, the ZR1 name is pretty positive...the best darned motor made by boat engine folks, yet!
But...the blue eyeshadow? The UGLY JCWhitless glued-on-trinkets are horrible. The C6 was visually-challenged to begin with...but c'mon...somebody in a gray and dreary room, deep in the Warren Tech Center, some pencil-pusher said "Ferraris and Lamborghinis have them glass covers on their engines and to be cool like them we need one too..."
Reilly
Mena-- the stats are above. I think it looks like a beast, but I still think the Z06 is over my head. I hope they sell a driving school program with this car.
davido
So, for a 35k premium over the Z06, you get another 115-145bhp and a body kit that looks like something somebody ordered online and glued to the car. In a hurry.
Oh, and you get the same shapeless plastic interior.
I happened to be in a Maserati dealer today drinking in the lines of the new GT. Will it run with this or any Vette? Absolutely not! It's merely fast. But, does it look like it costs 100K? Yes it does, every penny, inside and out. And no one is going to ask whether or not someone who owns one bought the car the way it looks or got the add on parts later at KMart.
davido
And lest we forget, you get a plastic cover on the hood through which you can see? Another plastic cover!
Clearly purity of form wasn't an issue in the styling of this car. At least the base C6, cheap looking headlights and all has fine proportions, purity of line and simple, even somewhat elegant detailing. All it's ever needed is a better interior, say one equal in appearance and materials with the new Malibu.
This on the other hand should be a statement car and as far as performance goes, it's certainly that. But is this really GM's high performance styling statement? For the premium over the cost of the Z06 the interior needs to be at least as good as the one in the XLR. Instead it's on the level of a Solstice GXP.
The exterior needs to do as much for the looks of the car as the Saleen exteriors do for the Mustang. They keep the basic Mustang look and (IMO) improve on it without making it seem like some parts were glued on at the last minute.
Aaron
I bet it'll be an absolute track monster. That said, track monsters don't need chintzy body kits. Is the top of the "charge cooler" really interesting enough to warrant a window? It's a flat slab of aluminum!
The Stig
Love the numbers, question the look with the tacky add-ons.
And Davido - amen about the Maserati. Regular people will look at the ZR1 and think "Oh, what a nice Corvette". Those same people look at cars like the Maser and Aston's and KNOW they're something special.
Phil Floraday
I'd just like to point out that the REAR brakes on this car as the same you'd find on the front of an Enzo.
BruceinCary
As fast as the disgraced Canadian spinter Ben Johnson and as ugly.
No doubt nothing faster in the world, Konig-egg, Lambo Revolting, got 'em all beat. But I have a feeling the style police are going to be handing out a hefty ticket here!
Bruce
Jeb
Blimey, look at those front rotors. I also love the new front fender vents...all flared out and bisected. I don't know what the complaints about the looks are, I think it looks fine (the hood window, OK, I get that, but the rest of it is great). And if I recall correctly, one of the biggest beefs about the OLD ZR1 was that it looked exactly like the rest of the C4s, except for the taillights and steamroller tires.
Phil Floraday
I've seen this car in person and it looks much better, and more menacing in the flesh.
Mena
"Mena– the stats are above. I think it looks like a beast, but I still think the Z06 is over my head. I hope they sell a driving school program with this car."
Sorry. I meant performance stats. 1/4 mile, 0-60, skidpad.
Vince
Still no match for the latest Lingenfelter creation, 1,300RWHP with Twin Turbos comes at a cheaper price then i'd imagine this car would be.
Talk about a race of over-steer madness if the two were pitted together
Winding Road » Archive » Take a Closer Look at the Corvette
[...] the excitement and surprise of the General Motors (slightly early) reveal of the Corvette ZR1 yesterday, we thought we’d take a moment to reflect a bit on the most important part of the car, [...]
Andrew
I wonder how many owners will opt to pull that hood off and replace with a non-window one from a Z06, presuming said hood fits over the intercooler/supercharger assembly. If that doesn't fit, I imagine some people will be taking the hood to a body shop to weld in a panel and repaint.
Phil Floraday
The hood needs the window to clear the blower. It's also made of carbon fiber, so welding won't do much good. But I agree, the window looks much better on a mid-engine car like the R8 or something Italian. It seems out of place on a 'Vette.
andrew
i'm guessing that the hood does not need the window to clear the blower - it has the huge center hump running the length of the hood for that. if you notice in pic 15 of the gallery, the window is flush with the hump. if one can afford a ZR-1 and doesn't like the window, one can also afford to spend the $3-5k it might cost to replace the hood.
andrew
that said, i think this car looks pretty sharp, hood window notwithstanding. i love the two tone color scheme (black hood, different color body - a vestige from my jap tuner car days, MKII MR2s and NSXs being cases in point). the front lip adds a certain meanness.
but i can't tell from the pics - is there a rear diffuser?
fotojoh
Beauty is indeed in the eye of the beholder. I like the hood window (not wild about the intercooler cover). I'll reserve judgement on the quality of the interior till I can see it in person, but at first blush, it does not look inferior to me. What Brakes! Cool front fender vents! Would like to see a more aggressive front grill (ala Audi R8), but I'm certain a great deal of the appearance is impacted by high-speed stability issues. Thank heavens for a serious American exotic.
Bruce Armstrong
Maserati? You guyz are kidding, right? You sound like the guyz who buy MV's for 25K and find they can't keep up with well ridden 11K Japanese sport bikes.....Corvette has the chops, has track cred' to prove it and you're still lusting after a Maserati because 'citizens' walking by on the sidewalk can't tell the difference between your 100K ZR1 and a standard 50K 'vette? It's a good thing the Maserati only has an anto trans! Bruce
Kal
Andrew,
No one will be welding anything onto that hood. Its carbon fiber, as are the front feners and a large portion of the cars canopy. That said, I agree that the polycarbonate window is ugly as sin.
Jonathan Fung
It has a very nice profile view.
But that window in the hood is just terrible. I remember thinking that it would be cool when we saw the first spy shots of it, but now, seeing it on the actual car, it looks extremely awkward and out of place.
Mena
"It’s a good thing the Maserati only has an anto trans! Bruce"
The Quattroporte has an auto trans option but the Coupes and Spyders don't have autos at all.
Blog auto moto » Blog Archive » Corvette ZR1
[...] In sfarsit cea mai puternica masina Corvette si-a facut aparitia. Este vorba despre modelul ZR1. Puterea vine de la motorul V8 numit LS9 are o cilindree de 6.200 cmc, dezvolta 620 cai putere si un cuplu de 820 Nm. 12► Via : Windingroad.com [...]
detroit9000
The peek-a-boo window is the stuff legends are made of. This car has character.
Show me a Ferrari that was properly sorted out interior-wise. They all have their nagging faults. This car promises to deliver so much on the performance side that people would be foolish to discount a plastic hood bubble, which isn't even worth discounting, because you're going to be able to see the engine shake.
Lotta Ferraris, F-40 comes to mind, had chinsy plastic peek-a-boo, jc witney body kit looks that people grew to love! Porsche hangs a mechanical gismo wherever they can. Pop-up spoiler. At least this car has a real chin spoiler. And it's low and sleek!
Terry
MGBYG stated "[t]he C6 was visually-challenged to begin with..." Huh?
I guess so visually-challenged that it seams to have provided Pininfarina's inspiration for the Ferrari 599 GTB... Indeed, take a look at the two side by side, keeping in mind that the C6 came first... Now I'm not saying the Vette is more beutiful than the 599, but in my mind it is the most beutiful Vette since the C1, hands down...
I, however, do agree that they should have passed on the window in the center of the hood since it merely shows the plastic cover of the LS9. Other than that, I like the way the ZR1 looks.
DAVIDO stated "Oh, and you get the same shapeless plastic interior." Well, not if you order the uplevel interior package in which most everthing is leather wrapped. Although that option may seem expensive, even with the option the ZR1 will cost less than half of anything else it competes with (except maybe the GT-R).
Jaymez
I wonder how much to buy the motor. I'd build something around the motor. I'm thinking a ZR1 powered Bel Air or Canyon would be fun.
I'm a GM fan, but, not a Corvette fan. Since '73, the Corvette has had bland, boring, styling. This is an exception. It has Fast and Furious styling with the help of JC Whitney.
If I were to buy something like this, I'd want it to look like the base Vette so it'd be as much of a sleeper as a Vette could be. The wing, the chin spoiler, fender vents, hood window, and exposed carbon fiber roof all scream ricer to me. I've seen all that crap on a Civic.
A $100,000 car has to look like a $100,000 car and perform like one, too. This one may perform like one, but, it doesn't look the part.
Thanks, General, but, no thanks. A CTS-V would be much better.
Anonymous
all your bs about add ons and looks. drive one, own one, (if you can afford it. then come back and tell me you aren't impressed. corvette has always been the best bang for the buck. does your cts-v win races? if you don't own one drive your civic to work and shut up
Winding Road » Archive » Question of the Day: What Would You
[...] finally took the wraps off the Corvette ZR1, ending near-endless speculation to not only its performance credentials, but also its name. For [...]
Question of the Day: What Would You Have Named the ‘09 Corve
[...] finally took the wraps off the Corvette ZR1, ending near-endless speculation to not only its performance credentials, but also its name. For [...]
jr
Wow so many dummies who most likely never even saw a Corvette much less owned or drove one
That glass top pops off the hood, the innercooler then gets more cooling.
Hey its for us racers and only a 4 banger lover who has never gone over 70 MPH would not put 2 and 2 together, why you think there is a seal around the top of innercooler ?
Also the remarks of the inside being all plastic,
BS - comes with triple stitched leather and that includes the dash, steering wheel, console and seats.
This car is hot, I suppose those of you used to shoe boxes or riceballs cannot see WHY things are done but if you did you'd know they are for downforce down to the recess in the roof.
Mena
"I guess so visually-challenged that it seams to have provided Pininfarina’s inspiration for the Ferrari 599 GTB"
Have you ever seen a 599 and a C6 Vette up close and personal? Neither one looks even remotely like the other. I guess you're the kind of person that thinks a paper clip and an elephant look the same too.
Richard Prokopchuk
I think it's time Chevy brought back the name "Sting Ray".
Ducati Minor
Yeah, I don't see the Ferrari/Chevy analogy. The C6 did seem to borrow Viper and 550 Maranello styling cues, however. I see nothing from the Fiorino that resembles a C6 other than they have four wheels.
project-elite.net » Blog Archive » 2009 Chevrolet Corvette Z
[...] Full story and pictures can be found by clicking here! [...]
Question of the Day: What Would You Put an LS9 Into? - Windi
[...] will be quite some time before any of the new 2009 Corvette ZR1s make their way to customers, but we’re already looking forward to some possible aftermarket [...]
Winding Road » Archive » Question of the Day: What Would You
[...] will be quite some time before any of the new 2009 Corvette ZR1s make their way to customers, but we’re already looking forward to some possible aftermarket [...]
NABI ALLAH
hi ... i am, is iran ...((("ID: DJ_NBI")))...
Steve
So hot. So so hot. I'm beyond tickled that they built it. Can't wait to read some road tests of this one.
Now... am I the only one that seems to remember rumors of sub 3000 lb weight from this car? What happened to that?
Winding Road » Archive » Rumors of a Mid-Engine Corvette Sti
[...] folks think the ZR1 Corvette isn’t the most exotic Corvette that General Motors will ever produce. The folks at Edmunds [...]
Rumors of a Mid-Engine Corvette Still Floating Around - Wind
[...] folks think the ZR1 Corvette isn’t the most exotic Corvette that General Motors will ever produce. The folks at Edmunds [...]
rolbol
A monster of a car at a relatively attractive price but...just a souped up C6. I think GM is making a mistake with the 3 different levels of Corvette and should make just one Corvette Super Car along with other entry level sport coupes.
I really am more interested in the C7 and hope that will come along not later than 2012.
reese
this is for all of you out there who have anything bad to say about the new ZR1 corvette if you know cars like you claim you do corvette has always been in a class of its own but since you all have limited thinking and closed minds that only tells me that your not the car person or as educated on cas at all so if you match dollar for dollar I will take a corvette over any viper,enzo,maserati,ferrari,lambo. but due to all still being babies just go suck your thums and tell your mom to change your diapers and please grow up just give the vette its props but oh I forgot your worried and crying to momie about getting your butt spanked buy a true american car got to go see you all next time
Winding Road » Archive » Here’s the GT-R Accessories Santa D
[...] fans of Nissan’s GT-R have been able to buy these cool GT-R themed carbon fiber and leather trinkets for a few weeks now. The kit ranges from key chains to briefcases and hits all [...]
Winding Road » Archive » Let WINDING ROAD Answer Your Questi
[...] General Motors Design HQ and have a poke around two of the hottest new products on the planet, the Corvette ZR-1 and Hummer’s still unseen HX [...]
john
that corvette is american muscle. no other car can say that but the viper. american companies are building awesome sports cars. i'm proud to be american.
musa aljizani
i heat an american cars , but this ZR1 will change my mind !
now i love 2 cars : GT-R & ZR1
Steve Lopez
Put this monster against its competition and lets talk later.
The host of TOP GEAR said the current Z06 was not something he would drive on a daily basis. Give him this one and let him try it one more time.
For the money it just doesn't get better than this!
The interior has to go more upscale on all models. Too cheap looking. GM can do this and so can the suppiers.
Beautiful car.
Steve Lopez
Put this monster against its competition and lets talk later.
The host of TOP GEAR said the current Z06 was not something he would drive on a daily basis. Give him this one and let him try it one more time.
For the money it just doesn't get better than this!
The interior has to go more upscale on all models. Too cheap looking. GM can do this and so can the suppliers.
Beautiful car.
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