GM posted this video of the Corvette ZR1 doing a lap of the Nurburgring. It's a cockpit video with a stat overlay, showing the car hitting close to 180 mph on the final straightaway. Put on your headphones and crank up the volume, because the engine and road sounds come through clearly. You can almost feel the car hitting the apexes. Final lap time: 7:26.4.
http://news.cnet.com/crave/?hhTest=1&keyword=video
In the world of supercars, the Corvette is a bargain, and Chevrolet just made it even better with the ZR1. The new Corvette uses a supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 putting out an astounding 620 horsepower and 595 ft-lbs or torque. Carbon fiber body parts keep the overall weight low. A heads-up display projects speed, RPMs, and other data onto the windshield. http://reviews.cnet.com/4326-11443_7-6603109.html
Why spend a million+ for an Enzo when you can get this American-made ferrari killer for a mere $100K?
They started with turbochargers for efficiency's sake, but switched to supercharging when Eaton unveiled its latest four-lobe Roots-type blower. This new unit boasts thermal efficiency of nearly 76 percent (up from some 60 in the best three-lobe blowers) -- near turbo efficiency with no lag. To preserve forward visibility, the intercooler sends air from the top of the blower out sideways through separate cooling blocks for each bank. There was talk of allowing the blower to stick out through a shaker hood, but water intrusion issues drove the clear polycarbonate window dome. The engine is based on a modified LS3 6.2-liter block (the LS7's cylinder walls are too thin to withstand boost) and is expected to produce 100 horsepower/liter. Because tweaks are still being made to the cooling system, final testing won't happen for months. (SAE procedures require a 0-to-60 test be run in a car with instruments measuring intake air temperatures at 60 mph so that air can be supplied at precisely the same temperature during the dyno test.)
Because blowers add weight, extensive lightening efforts were concentrated in front. The fenders, hood inner and outer panels, roof panel, and C-pillar roof bar are carbon fiber, the tooling for which caps production at 2000 per year. The fibers are visible on the roof and hood inner, and to prevent ultraviolet light from degrading them a special additive costing over $60,000/gallon (!) is added at three-percent concentration in the thin clear-coat layer ($2000/gallon). In all, the new car is expected to weigh about 200 pounds more than a Z06 and to nudge the weight bias forward slightly to 52/48 front/rear. Major developments in the chassis department include Brembo calipers grabbing gigantic carbon-ceramic rotors designed for Ferrari's Enzo and FXX. (At an expected price of near $100,000, the ZR1 will be the least expensive car with standard CCM brakes.) We're assured the brakes work perfectly well when cold, and they don't squeal. Delphi reengineered its magneto-rheological shocks to withstand the extreme temperatures encountered in track duty, allowing the ZR1 to ride like a base coupe and outhandle the Z51 and Z06.
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