Eleven months. That’s about how long we’ve been waiting to hear the first drive impressions of the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, otherwise known as “The Big Nasty.” Select members of the media were recently given some seat time in the 650 horsepower Z06 at Road Atlanta in Georgia, and that included Motor Trend’s Carlos Lago.
The draw of the Corvette has always been its affordability in relation to the amount of performance on offer. The Z06, which starts at $76,595, takes that bit of truth to new heights. It posted a 22.5 second lap around MT’s figure-eight course, which is only .3 of a second slower than the $845,000 Porsche 918 Spyder. On the skidpad, the Z06 achieved the highest ever average lateral G recorded by MT at 1.16G.
MT’s Velocity Yellow, Z07-equipped Z06 also proved fast in a straight line, not just in the corners. The 650 horsepower supercharged LT4 engine and seven-speed manual transmission helped propel the car from 0-60 mph in 3.2 seconds, a figure which dwindles to 2.8 if the car is equipped with the optional eight-speed automatic. It mastered the quarter-mile in 11.3 seconds at 126.2 mph, a faster time but slower trap speed than the C6 ZR1 posted in MT’s hands.
We think Lago’s time in the Z06 is best summed up by his account of what it feels like to pilot the car around the skid pad: “With my right knee and elbow against the tunnel, my left against the door, it felt like driving a Tilt-A-Whirl.” That sounds like fun, albeit a bit uncomfortable. Don’t miss the video below for Lago’s full driving impressions, and to hear the throaty LT4 engine finally clear its throat after months of waiting.
Comments
Official: mind is officially blown!!!! This is truly a remarkable piece of American engineering!
If you ask me, I’d say America’s forte when it comes to producing vehicles is performance, SUVs and trucks! Skip the mainstream vehicles and focus only on making these types of vehicles! I’d be a proud enthusiast of American cars then!!!
super. GM could make the AWD version of the Corvette. and GM should build JEEP SRT KILLER
The launch of AWD Z06 would stop the earth from spinning.
This Z06 while RWD already is better (if not even) with another AWD car that’s pretty good, the nissan gay-tr, we could only imagine how the Vette would do with AWD. It’d be a Hypercar killer.
Maybe GM should try AWD before going mid-engine, or maybe do both.
this old guy in this video did not take the maximum out of the car. ran pretty smoothly even on the basis of video
@ opc
You might be right, the driver, Randy Pobst, (the “old guy” I think you’re referring to) had some comments about the seats:
(Although our test cars had the optional bucket seats, they weren’t enough. “The seat is actually really supportive for a street seat,” Pobst said. “But this is not doing street things out there. I need belts or something to hold me in place.”)
That old guy must be a real idiot if he drove the Stingray without a seatbelt on! Even I use my belts all the time since seatbelts were obligatory over 40 years ago. I survived a crash in a 1967 Chevy Camaro R/S thanks to the seat belt.
Did you watch the video?…he is wearing the factory seat belts.,I beleive the reference to better belts is a 5 point harness setup.
The track liability factor alone would require seatbelt usage…plus most press drivers are all too aware the upside of seat belts.
I don’t get the hype for an AWD Z06, now maybe if they do a mid engine hybrid corvette AWD could be used on it but RWD is the way to go on the track for me..
@ Travis
I think the appeal (hype) behind people wanting an AWD Vette is that it’d be easier to put big power to the ground, as RWD and wide tires reach their limits, AWD can take you further. But then again a lot of fast race cars, like Formula 1, are RWD and GM has been doing really good lately at building fast RWD cars (1LE, Z/28, Z06). Personally I don’t care what GM does next (AWD, Mid-engine or both) as long as it’s well done and it’s better than all the competition.
Mid engine with EV powered front wheels of coarse!