2020 Corvette Z51 Tire Performance Test: Track Time Tuesday

Pro racer Randy Pobst takes the C8 Corvette Z51 to Willow Springs to test out tire performance. 

Obviously, tires are an important component to a car’s performance. Different tires effect a car’s performance in a number of ways. While you can do your research on paper, nothing compares to actually putting the rubber to the road. Especially when the car in question is the 2020 Corvette Stingray Z51; and the road is Willow Springs.

Motor Trend and Tire Rack enlisted racer Randy Pobst to test the C8 Corvette Z51 with different tires. In the video, Pobst gets surprising results when he ditches the OEM high-performance tires for lower tier kicks.

It’s Gotta Be The Shoes!

First, Pobst gives us a brief overview of the 2020 Stingray. It never gets old; the C8 looks as purposeful as ever. Pobst loves its sharp, angular, aggressive design, noting that “it looks like a $200,000 supercar.”

The Z51 performance package is the logical choice for the track; especially the Magnetic Ride Control shocks. “They are reading the road surface–almost like an active suspension–constantly adapting to the mode you have chosen,” he says.

And the LT2 V8 delivers, and looks delectable. “It looks like a Christmas ham coming out of the oven,” Pobst says. True.

But for this track test, it is all about the tires. First he takes a lap on high-performance Michelin Pilot Sport 4S; the Corvette’s OEM Z51 tires.