2023 Corvette Z06 Crashes At Virginia International Raceway: Video
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The C8 Corvette Z06 was destined for the racetrack, with a long list of go-faster equipment and specs that make it an absolute weapon when it comes to hunting apexes. Thing is, driving flat out on a track can sometimes go wrong, and unfortunately that’s exactly what happens in the following video. The end result – one demolished C8 Corvette Z06.
The video is less than two minutes long, and includes footage from the crashed C8 Corvette Z06’s Performance Data Recorder (PDR), dash cam footage from another vehicle, and some trackside footage as well. The incident took place at Virginia International Raceway, or VIR, located in Alton, Virginia.
The video starts with the PDR footage, showing us the driver’s point of view as they charge towards the start / finish line at VIR. The conditions appear to be a little overcast, although the track surface looks more or less dry.
As the footage gets under way, we see the driver topping 100 mph before diving into a left-hand bend, riding the curb along the way. After stabbing the brakes on a downhill section before a right-hander that opens up towards the start / finish line, the driver gets on the throttle and the speeds once again start to climb. The driver misses the final apex, but puts their foot down as they aim towards the straight.
Unfortunately, the line puts the Corvette Z06 on the curbs at track out, dropping an outside rear wheel into the dirt. This, in combination with an upshift, causes the rear end of the sports car to slide, and before you know it, the only thing we see is the green retaining wall near pit entry.
The Corvette Z06 slides uncontrollably into the wall before spinning around in a terrifying series of 360s, finally coming to rest on the inside track line. Trackside footage shows the spin in progress, a plume of dust behind the sports car revealing the cause of the accident. Onboard footage from the car behind the C8 Corvette Z06 shows the same thing.
Luckily, the driver was unhurt, but the car was totaled. Notably, this is (or was) the same Z06 we talked about back in February, which blew its engine at 621 miles. Check out the entire crash video here:
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Risk verses reward , hopefully he had track insurance on it . It looks like a non Z07 equipped car so it lacked the aero package for the down force and the front end probably pushed , if you miss your apex by a foot you run out of pavement and your in big trouble without a lot of runoff @ corner exit .
I guess the driver ran out of talent? Part of life.
This car has had a short rough life. Hope he bought track insurance. It’s a shame to see this go to a salvage yard but someone will buy, rebuild and try to sell it for big bucks, right?
A Z06 doesn’t make you Mario Andretti.
Even though i do not like the mid engined C8; The insurance company was wrong about their findings. Without the [proper] bracing, even at 100mph; the owner should have reinstalled the framing it got from the assembly line! Also, The [TIRES] the driver chose were not for the event they handled. So, it was OWNER ERROR!
All you guys talking about lacking talent have probably never been on track. I don’t know this person but I am very familiar with VIR. It’s one of my favorites. However, if you race your car with a competitive spirit, you will have ACCIDENTS. Does anyone think Andretti never crashed? All top drivers make mistakes/miscalculations or just plain unknown circumstances. $hit happens. Yes it is possible he was driving beyond his skill. Likely so because it’s a beast of a car and not many people have experience in such a beast. But how do you get that skill? If you don’t push the envelope, you will never experience it.
Ah-ha!!!! So you were the driver!!
You can’t ride 5he curbs like that in a non race car. The electronics don’t like them and will not save you.
With this video it makes me wonder if his first engine really was defective?
A dumbass and his Z06 are soon parted…
He should have raced a Porsche.
He would have crashed it sooner as racing that car requires a higher driver skill set.
I wonder if he stayed at the Holiday Inn Express ?
If he just could have resisted hammering the gas once he (hopefully) realized he’d missed the apex by a bunch, that situation might have saved. Oh well. Should probably go back to the Spec Miata for a while to hone his skills.
*For the internet heroes, I track vir multiple times a year. Though I have not driven any corvette. It looked like smashing the curbs to cheat skills and get a faster line that proper trail braking could solve. Missed the apex, opened the wheel and “assuming” he thought the timing of grip return / risk mitigation and loss of where he thought the car was positioned track. Then end result. Maybe lifting off throttle and coasting through his mistake before the tire dropped off would have saved it. I dunno. Going off track and wrecking are a part of HPDE. I just got my car back from Quantum Speed last Sunday. I went off the esses and cracked my oil pan.