Will the C8 Corvette Z06 Be Significantly Slower Around a Track Than the C7 ZR1?

A video analysis sure makes the C8 Corvette Z06 look disappointingly slow, but is that really the case?

For years now, we’ve been eagerly anticipating the arrival of the C8 Corvette Z06, anticipation that has only grown exponentially following that car’s reveal a few months ago. We have sky-high expectations for the new Z06, given its incredible powerplant, technology, and promise, not to mention the hype that we’ve been spoon-fed recently. But Corvette Forum member UnhandledException recently posted some video evidence that seems to indicate that perhaps the C8 Corvette Z06 won’t be nearly as fast around a track as some have expected.

“Three different cases to analyze – C7 ZR1. Official VIR lap time. You can see that WOT run beginning at 140 mph and ending at 160 mph takes precisely 4.20 seconds (begins 1.17:30 ends at 1.21:50 – these are times off of PDR lap time). C8 Z06. Indy PDR video. It takes nearly 9 seconds to do the same. I bet it’s 2x slow, maybe a tiny bit worse than 2x slow. 992 GT3 Autobahn run. It takes 5 seconds to go from 225 km/h to 258 km/h (which is same as 140-160 mph). Something is seriously wrong here. This will be a problem in a lot of high speed tracks like COTA, VIR, Nurburgring.”

“Could this be why the car is delayed? Transmission redesign/gearing changes? The ZR1 weighs 3,670 lbs and makes 750 hp. Z06 weighs the same and is down 80 hp. 80 hp does not explain the 5 second gap between two cars. Something else is at play here. GT3 has only 502 hp. Its down 170 hp. Yes it weighs 3,250 lbs, but Z06 still has a substantial horsepower advantage. Yes, the Z06 isn’t a roll racer, but neither is the GT3. GT3 is its direct competitor. At the very least it should match GT3.”

The OP isn’t alone in worrying about the Z06’s performance here, particularly given what’s shown on the Performance Data Recorder. “Yeah the PDR shows he’s at WOT,” said 555ctsv. “I gotta say that’s freaking lame above 130 mph in 5th gear…you’ve got three gears to go, why is 5th so long? I’m believe the LT6 does not have cylinder deactivation, could having 3 or 4 overdrive gears help them hit mpg/emissions targets?”

Others aren’t so sure that we can take the results of this video as concrete evidence that it’ll be disappointing in the performance department, however. “You guys are missing a key piece here, he manually shifted into 5th gear and then hit WOT, it didn’t downshift to its lowest gear and then take off. You can’t base acceleration metrics on this video alone,” said FlyinGato. “Considering top of 4th ends at 145 he was in 5th at 125 there was not an all out run,” added WalterSobchak. “This car traps faster than GT3 and will be faster in a straight line when actually being driven.”

Of course, we’re personally taking the results of this video with a huge grain of salt until we actually get our hands on a production version to test, but it has stirred up quite the frenzy in this particular thread. Thus, we’re curious to hear what you think – will the C8 Corvette Z06 turn out to be far slower on the track than its competitors and the C7 ZR1, or will it ultimately prove to be the world beater we all want and expect? Head over here and chime in with your thoughts!

Photos: Chevrolet