The eighth-generation Chevy Corvette C8 lineup continues to expand, with the “base model” C8 Stingray and track-ready C8 Z06 set to be joined by the upcoming Chevy Corvette C8 ZR1. Now, GM Authority has learned from sources familiar with the matter that team Corvette is actively developing the Corvette C8 ZR1.
For those readers who may be unaware, the Corvette C8 ZR1 is slated to arrive as the “next level” of go-faster machinery under the eighth-generation Vette umbrella, slotting in above the Z06 as an ultra-high performer for both the road and the track. The engine, drivetrain, chassis, and exterior styling are all expected to reflect this designation, differentiating the Corvette C8 ZR1 from the rest of the C8 lineup.
Per GM Authority sources, the Corvette team is now running the Corvette C8 ZR1 in an integrated prototype form, conducting vehicle tests both within GM’s facilities, as well as out in the real world.
One of the most important updates will be for the engine, with the Corvette C8 ZR1 utilizing a twin-turbocharged variant of the 5.5L V8 LT6 engine currently equipped by the Corvette C8 Z06. Known as the LT7, this boosted powerplant is expected to feature a DOHC configuration and 32 valves, with output around the 800-horsepower mark and a substantial boost in torque to around 850 pound-feet. The twin-turbo 5.5L V8 LT7 will also feature a lower redline and flatter power curve as compared to the naturally aspirated 5.5L V8 LT6 gasoline engine in the C8 Z06.
Further upgrades will likely include a more capable tune for the Magnetic Ride Control suspension, wider wheels and tires, larger brakes, and a more aggressive body design, all of which will add up to one very capable performance machine. Also expect high-tech bits like active aerodynamics, plus further light-weighting efforts as compared to the rest of the C8 Corvette lineup.
As for a release, expect the Corvette C8 ZR1 to drop for the 2024 model year.
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Comments
This one is going to be real. They have made pattens on the active aero that we have yet to see. This car is going to be very interesting.
The Corvettes often start at the top and then begin selling from the bottom up. You make a better car from the top down.
This car has started from the top down for a long time now. The top being professional racing. The concepts and technologies developed on the C8.R have been passed down. The LT6 motor they used to win last year is now in the the Z06.
But it’s not electric? Must make Mary crazy?
Mary Barra is a gear head too…
Mary Barra SUCKS , She will finish running GM in the ground soon !
Always amusing to see supposed men be threatened by anything a female does.
FYI- Sucking is not always a bad thing. 🤪
Interesting looking at these old post. Times sure have changed. I see back then I was giving up on ever getting my ZO6 just like everyone else. My dealer did end up getting 3 allocations for them. I was fortunate to get mine at MSRP just like they said and so are the other people.
The car is worth the wait, and living in MI i haven’t even been able to drive it yet, but it sure is sharp looking.
idk what people are always complaining about.
They wanted a better Corvette, and we got a mid engine C8 Vette for $60k.
They wanted a better Camaro, and we got the 6th gen that’s breaking all sorts of records at the Nurburgring.
All this was made possible under Mary Barra’s watch. I think she’s doing a great job.
You have a true point….I just miss Pontiac..
When is the Z06 road test embargoed lifted? Anyone know?
Piss off
Someone in your family forgot to present your Father’s day present and phone call from last week Dick and you are still upset about it?
“drop for the 2024 model year” LMAO
Love to purchase a 70th anniversary model for my husbands 80th birthday, dealer tells me, it might be impossible, what’s going on?
Well, what’s worst is her husband currently is 46.
I’m the Inventory Manager at a small to midsize Chevy/Cadillac store in NY. We stock 108 Used Vehicles including two 2022 Corvettes.
Between Chevy and Cadillac, I’d say we have 50-60 New Vehicles on the lot with 160 or so in-system/in-transit.
We have one 2023 Corvette Convertible 3LT in-stock. It is not the 70th Anniv. Edition but it does have factory 70th Anniv. notation on the interior plaque and small window behind/between the seats.
We take factory orders all of the time but many options are on constraint and difficult to procure.
Try a “Corvette dealer”, not the local Chey store.
Contact kerbeck Corvette New Jersey and they will take care of you they are the countries largest Corvette dealer!!
There is no Kerbeck Dealer any longer…..
He means Ciocca.
Green is still not a color at GM.
I hope the ZR1 will be AWD, american vehicles fall short with with that. For example, the Healcat is a fast car but struggles with putting the power down. If it was a AWD it would be unbeatable. Keeping fingers crossed!
If, Mark Ruess is correct the electric Corvette will be out next year. That model should have the benefit of AWD due to the electric motors. Same goes for the ZORA or ZR1. One or the other will have some type of electric setup.
Too bad it doesn’t come in manual transmission. I’ll wait for the c9 and keep my fingers crossed or just get an older one when I’m ready.
Glad you opted for fingers crossed instead of holding your breath. Don’t expect to see another high performance manual Corvette. I could be wrong of course, but I really doubt it. The computer shifts far more accurately than you do and that improves both performance and reliability. I was skeptical of this new trend until I drove the auto GT-R a few years back. And I enjoyed a C8 for the weekend earlier this year (had one on the lot that the boss let me borrow for my birthday). I know it’s not the same, but paddle shifting retains a lot of the fun. It simply will not be “the same” again.
I don’t think a manual transmission is in the cards for the Corvette. The bean counters have spoken.
Never happen..Paddle forever
No manual..8 Paddle forever
They haven’t produced the ZO6, if you see the ZR-1 on showroom floors by 2025 it will be a miracle
I wouldn’t worry Vette man. This information above is a rehash from years ago. i guess it is a slow corvette news day.
As per an interview with Corvette Chief Engineer, Tadge Juechter in CORVETTE Magazine, when GM sent out the spec for the C8 transaxle to transmission manufactures, none responded with a manual offering, A/T only. So it would seem like with other high end sports car makers, manuals are a thing of the past. I may be mistaken but I think Ferrari, Lambo and even Porsche no longer have a model with a manual.
are they at least offering paddle shifter capability? in a sports car, denying a manual trans is asking me to look elsewhere…
All Corvette auto trans have been paddle shifters since the 2005 C6.
As I replied to another comment above, I felt the same way until I drove the GT-R a few years ago. I also enjoyed a weekend in a C8 this past February. Paddle shifting isn’t “the same” but it retains a lot of the fun, and you can’t shift nearly as well as the auto can, no matter how good you are, and that improves both performance and reliability. With as much power as they’re packing into these anymore you shouldn’t expect to see another manual in this category.
And it makes good business sense. If I were the product manager I would much rather have non-customers complaining that there isn’t a manual than paid customers complaining about the results of the manual (burning up the clutch, can’t get to the stated acceleration figure, put it in a ditch or into a wall on the first day off the lot…). It was a conscious choice, guaranteed. They knew some would look elsewhere. That’s okay. Every business needs to understand the fundamental principle that it’s okay to lose some customers. The more specific your target market is the more you exclude, but the more satisfied that target market is. You’re just not the target market, and that’s okay!
I don’t know but I’ll throw my two cents in for what it’s worth I own a 2008 Corvette Zo6 That I custom ordered that year it had everything in it or on it that you could get from the factory custom paint everything on the interior exterior everything that you could get manual transmission everything after 143,000 miles and some of it racing as well drag racing included finally lost the transmission because of GM using nylon to hold the bearings together inside the transmission they finally let go and I chewed up the bearings inside the gears a lot second and fourth gear the input shaft the car was still running but it’s just hard to shift the clutch is still good by the way still the factory clutch still good even after all these miles of racing and everything else in between surprisingly And that LS 7 Engine was modified a little bit so it’s putting out a little bit more than just stock horsepower I have managed to win every race I entered with that car surprisingly even the last one when I beat the mustang the new mustangs even blowing my transmission up to do it but I did win the race says a lot for these Corvettes the punishment they’ll take and keep on going yeah the manual transmissions are good even after all these miles but I think it last a whole lot longer if GM used Metal to hold the bearings together inside the transmission the car was still be going today my opinion only manual transmissions would be a good theft deterrent also not too many people know how to drive them that’s for sure but for drag racing automatics are a lot easier do use paddle shifting is a lot quicker going down the track then using the clutch and shifting paddle shifters are a lot quicker your faster times with them I see that and I know that that’s where they’re going but the more power you pour into these new automatics they also burn up those clutches that they have as well keep that in mind to three people that are hopping up these engines you can also burn those torque converters up as well or clutches whatever they’re using in there now but they are quicker to shift and smoother my opinion: ( Sorry for no punctuation are you Siri to do my typing hope the words came out right also. )
Material selection isn’t taken lightly by mechanical engineers. They have to factor many things, and “metal” isn’t simply/universally “better” than nylon (which is one of the most durable plastics and can handle a remarkable load). There is always a trade-off. I guarantee they went with nylon for a specific reason and if they had gone with “metal” you would have experienced a different problem, maybe much sooner, because nylon would have been a better choice. It’s much more complicated than it may seem, and always deliberate. (Cost savings on something like this is minimal, so it’s rare to see such a choice made for cost on something as expensive to purchase and to warranty as a vehicle. Cheap consumer goods are another matter.)
Porsche still has manual 911 and Boxster/Cayman models (but usually not at the lower trim levels).
Porsche has several models with manuals both mid and rear engine cars.
By all means, enjoy one!
The Porsche 718 Spider base transmission is a 6 speed manual and the 2021 911 has a manual transmission option. fyi…i own 2 vettes with manual transmissions- 1995 convertible C4 and 2017 Z06. Waiting for the C8 ZR1 wish it did come with a manual. But was told by a GM engineer that the C8 will never have a manual transmission and 2021 Watkins Glen IMSA race
Spend a minute or two considering the difference there, particularly in terms of power and acceleration. Two very different beasts. They don’t skip the manual on vehicles of this grade because they’re being mean or elitist or whatever. It’s a deliberate choice for good reason. It should tell you something that Porsche doesn’t put them on their top performers.
A ZR-1 C8 eh? Sounds like fun, sounds like a lot of cash, sounds like a really spectacular Corvette…and it sounds like a long ways off. Taking a while to bring the Z06 to dealers showrooms and if the ZR-1 is anything like the Z06, production time wise that is, we can all just sit back and wait for “bits and pieces to show up on the social media” over the next few years with “Ghost Pictures” and such now and then, maybe even a sneak peek at some camo C8 making noise at “The Ring” (by the way, anyone seen a track time posted for the Z06 at Nürburgring yet, just curious, they ran that track over and over, but never shared any or posted a track time, must not have been good enough to post, hummm?) which will of course get us Corvette lovers all excited…but we’ll just have to wait, and wait and wait for this bad boy to arrive ’cause it’s “Baby Bro” (Z06) hasn’t officially made it to the dealers and road test magazines…yet. I ain’t getting any younger and any richer so would someone at GM PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE bring the Z06 to market soon before you start to spread rumors about a ZR-1 C8….the suspense is just getting too much to handle! Summers here, so it’s time GM/Chevy, no time like the present!
Although it may take a few years to get a C8 ZR1, whenever I get one, I’ll still be very happy with it. In the meantime, I have other “fun” cars to drive like many of the rest of you.
At a certain point, there is so much weight transfer that front wheel drive does nothing. The front wheels come off the ground… Four years ago I saw modified doorslammer GTRs run in the high 7s and low 8s, doing 180 mph – with their front driveshafts disconnected (!) at Palm Beach International Raceway. So I don’t care if a C8 ZR1 won’t have front wheel drive.
So what makes this car interesting in the marketplace besides it’s price because there are plenty of cars that already do this
Steve, this is old news from a few years ago. Nothing new. As rumor goes the ZR1 or ZORA will be turbo charge or have a hybrid system driving the front wheels. 850 HP and 1000 HP respectively. Again, all rumors at this point.
Don’t think they’ve had enough time looking at their 911 yet
So happy somebody through something like this out there. For a minute there I thought our world famous You Tubers where going to have to get jobs.
Giving up on them ever making anything more than a Stingray. Waited to long to care anymore. Everybody just moved up one stop at my local dealership. I was number one.
I still get a chuckle out of the people that support a manual tranny in vehicles that exceed 600 to 1000 horsepower, or more!
Same with the higher torque levels these newer engines can make, amazing, truly amazing.
But…why would you want a manual trans (pick your speeds, 7, 8 10 what ever!) in your Z06 or ZR-1 C8 Corvette, you can’t out perform the current auto tranny with a manual shift, you are not that capable and in fact chances are you’ll do something stupid with a manual transmission Corvette sporting 800 to 1000 horsepower, so just give it up, it ain’t happening my friend, the complexity of a manual trans and the drop in overall performance (not to mention gas mileage!) would do nothing but embarrass you to all of your friends as you try to “man handle” that monster. tsk, tsk…clown!
In smaller engine lower horsepower and torque sports cars (think Mazda Miata M5 for instance) you can utilize all of the torque and horsepower engine to it’s fullest capabilities…it can be fun, but in a mega horsepower and torque monster (even with all wheel drive) you’ll do nothing but make a damn fool of yourselves trying to do something that isn’t going to end well. Just like EV’s…manual tranny vehicles have their limitations, besides GM has run various inquiries with a lot of Corvette owners over the years as new ‘Vette owners are going to auto trannies for multiple reasons, foremost being their reliability (when made correctly) and “tuneability” with various horsepower combinations, they are “Computer Age” perfect most of the time. I’ve driven older Corvette’s, from C-1’s, to C-7’s with a stick shift, and while they were “fun to play with” at times, my experiences have been less than spectacular with manual trannies when the “Christmas Tree” Lights went down and I was spinning my wheels while the dude next to me with an equivalent vehicle but with a “tuned” auto tranny literally blew my doors off and was consistent as hell, plus here in good old Sunny SoCal. where the traffic sucks the big one, my auto tranny late model ‘Vette is an easy ride, and yet if you want to utilize it like a manual tranny, you can come pretty close with upshifts and downshifts at the touch of a button (okay, it ain’t a real button, so sue me) or paddle shifter if you will and when in bumper to bumper traffic on Pacific Coast Highway waiting for the tow trucks to cart the highway carnage away, you’ll be thankful you’re driving an auto tranny ‘Vette plus those clutch and pressure plate replacements are damn expensive not to mention replacing all of the crap that goes along with a manual tranny…it’s fun until it isn’t fun anymore!
A manual trans is about driving the vehicle, not the vehicle driving you. it’s not about going fast at the drag strip… it’s about the drive, the sound of the motor, and the exhaust while driving. There are other transmissions to use if all you wanted to do was just go fast but on the road, the journey is the fun of getting there.
Sure. But that’s not the design intent of this vehicle. Plenty of other options. Mazda Miata is supposed to be fun to driv, for instance. Can’t confirm as I don’t fit in it. Subaru WRX, Mazda 3… 😉
Beta marshmallow
I’d still only buy one in manual and it comes down to one simple reason. I’m not competing for time and trying to shave milliseconds off every lap or car you race so slightly faster means nothing to me. A manual is just more fun and engaging to drive than an auto. Paddles are interesting but with no clutch pedal always makes me feel like I’m playing a racing game. I’d go older, slower and most importantly manual vet an miss out on that mid engine fun.
Hopefully Lexus still produces the LC-F or at least uses their twin turbo v8, and make a hybrid to compete with the c8 zr1 and zora
Still hoping for Lexus to release the LC-F or at least use their twin turbo v8, and a hybrid to compete with the c8 zr1 and zora
I’d like to see GM put some of that wonderful trans programming to use in their trucks. The way they are now it is a disaster with torque converters grenading left and right on the 6 speeds, the sloppy shifts on the 6, 8 and 10 speeds and it only took them 17 years to figure out that a 190 degree thermostat in the transmission was too hot. Even my Allison 6 speed shifts slow and slips under part throttle. If I floor it it shifts ok but that is abuse in GM’s eyes. I’ve taken it to numerous dealers and the mantra is “it’s normal”. If I get it tuned then I lose my warranty. UGH!
ZR1, Z06 who cares? More chance of snagging Big Foot than either of these two any time soon.
I don’t want one “soon”. That would be a big mistake. Let others do the “field testing” on a “clean sheet” engine. I can wait for a couple of years. Patience will pay off. I have other interesting cars to drive in the meantime.