An array of uncamouflaged C8 Corvettes has been spotted testing at the Nürburgring, including two prototypes that appear to be examples of the upcoming Corvette Zora. Despite sporting misleading ZR1 and Z06 badging, the pair of high-performance test vehicles exhibit the unmistakable signatures of Zora prototypes. As for their purpose at the ‘Ring, GM is likely aiming to set a new lap record at the fearsome German racetrack.
One of the prototypes, painted in yellow, bears a ZR1 badge, while another in purple displays a Z06 emblem. Despite the badging, both clearly feature the enlarged front air intakes, aero components, and ZR1-style cues expected of the new Zora, suggesting intentional misdirection with the badging. More tellingly, however, each wears a yellow warning sticker on the rear window denoting the presence of a hybrid-electric system.
Photographs taken from nearby public roads reveal a sophisticated cooling setup on the purple prototype. The car’s front fascia houses both a vertical radiator and a horizontal radiator, the former of which is likely to cool the electric hybrid components, while the latter cools the twin-turbocharged internal combustion engine.
Speaking of the powertrain, the new Corvette Zora is slated to pair the twin-turbocharged 5.5L V8 LT7 from the ZR1 (rated at 1,064 horsepower) with the 160-horsepower electric motor from the Corvette E-Ray, boosting output to more than 1,200 horsepower, with a splash of AWD grip thrown in for good measure. Such figures would position the Zora as not only the fastest and most powerful production Corvette ever made, but also one of the fastest and most powerful street-legal road cars – full stop.
The Zora’s appearance at the Nürburgring coincides with a three-week testing window for GM engineers, suggesting that The General is arranging performance benchmarking and possibly a Nürburgring lap record attempt. With Ford previously laying claim to the fastest American production car around the circuit via the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD, GM now seems poised to throw their own hat into the ‘Ring.
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“With Ford previously laying claim to the fastest American production car around the circuit via the 2025 Ford Mustang GTD”.. bla bla
Its a great effort by Ford.. “BUT”…
. Well, with its power, It would struggle aganist a Z-06, if not outright lose. That said, it would get crashed by the ZR1.
Chevrolet has no equal really outside of Porsche.
The Ford’s not a track car. If we’re talking about non track cars, I’ll up you one and propose an F1. The whole equation is significantly more difficult once the car needs to be street legal, and you are shooting for a car that doesn’t cost a quarter million
The Z06 is not a track car either. These are all production cars
Need to correct my statement -the mustang GTD is a dedicated track car, not a road legal car. The Corvette is a road legal car, and is hampered by safety and NHTSA limitations.
The GTD is road legal.
Ford deserves credit for trying, but the GTD’s $500,000 price tag makes it an elite toy, far removed from the Corvette’s ethos of delivering world-class performance to the masses. The C8 Z06 is set to humble Ford’s “track pony,” proving that true performance doesn’t need an exclusive price tag to dominate.
Downward exhaust ? Awesome Car. My personal experience with all wheel drive AWD in a corner was the sports car would understeer, and my response was to try and slow down to get the understeer under control, then I tried something different, I throttled during the understeer and the car dug down and into the pavement, and no more understeer, My survival instinct had to be retrained to manage AWD powerful sports car. Will be curious of this car does the same. One thing for sure is these new cars , including my 2021 Standard no big deal C8 – exceed my skills. The car is far more capable than I am, and thankfully makes up for my mistakes, very humbling. Have fun everyone – and be happy!
While I’m elated that this particular C8 is finally making the trek to “The Ring” in Germany, I have cautious optimism that this car will put the “Track Pony” Mustang back on the trailer. While you can imagine this C8 shown here to be “The Big Dog” on the block with all of that amazing modern technology and horsepower going for it…somehow there always seems to be a point where you reach a peak and it’s tougher trying to exceed or get over that peak.
That said, I hope this car can once and for all lay to rest the notion that perhaps the C8 Corvette has met it’s match at “The Ring” and will probably turn in some great track times, but will fail to set the record lap times desired by the GM engineers. My personal feelings are “if” everything they plan comes together on that particular day and time with that particular car, weather and track conditions being perfect, we might just see some amazing track times from this car!
However, all it’ll take is just one negative thing to happen and “all bets are off”…it’ll be that close, bad track conditions at any one or more locations, damp weather conditions, a windy track day, or any one of a host of small but important negative conditions transpire, and the GM Gang will have a “reason for failure”, or something to blame for a less than perfect lap time. Just say’n…I know how this can happen, and I wish the GM drivers and engineer’s all the luck in the world as they prepare to go for a lap record and lay waste to that pesky Mustang’s amazing lap times. For the record (ahem) that particular record setting Mustang isn’t anywhere close to being the equal of the C8 Corvette in so many ways, it’s an all out track brawling monster designed for just one mission, and it ws successful…twice in fact in setting those amazing lap times! So GM, you’ve got your work cut out for you, lots of luck in successfully accomplishing your mission…and “May The Force Be With You”!
The Chevrolet C7 Z06 and ZR1 have delivered track performances that should temper any boasting from the Ford Mustang GTD about its Nürburgring dominance, as the C8 Z06 stands ready to challenge it head-on, especially with optimized conditions. The C7 ZR1, with its 755 hp supercharged V8, posted an unofficial 7:04.00 lap at the Ring during an industry pool test day, navigating traffic, yet nearly matched the GTD’s initial 6:57.685. At Virginia International Raceway (VIR), the ZR1’s 2:39.5 lap outran the Shelby GT500’s 2:43.7—a close GTD analog—by over 4 seconds. The C7 Z06, with 650 hp, recorded a 7:13.90 at the Ring and a 2:44.6 at VIR, surpassing the GT500’s 7:39.28 and 2:43.7, respectively. These times, achieved despite on-track obstacles for the ZR1, show Chevrolet’s prowess against Ford’s best Mustangs. With a dedicated Ring session, a proper test lap, and a hot shoe like Jordan Taylor behind the wheel—absent bad weather—any Chevrolet, including the C7 models, could shave significant time, potentially dipping well below the GTD’s marks.
The GTD’s 6:52.072 Nürburgring lap is impressive, but it must first prove itself against the C8 Z06, which clocked a 7:10.51 on the Ring’s 12.8-mile course, driven by Sport Auto’s Christian Gebhardt on a regular public day with traffic. Fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires and the Z07 package, the 670 hp C8 Z06 outpaced the C7 Z06 by roughly 3 seconds and beat cars like the Porsche 918 Spyder (7:30.00) and Mercedes-AMG GT R (7:10.92). Gebhardt noted the long fifth gear limited top speed, suggesting a sub-7-minute lap is feasible with optimized gearing. With a dedicated Ring run, a test lap to dial in the setup, and a driver like Jordan Taylor pushing the C8 Z06’s mid-engine dynamics to the limit—without adverse weather—the C8 Z06 could slash seconds off its time, closing the 13-second gap to the GTD’s 6:57.685 or even challenging its 6:52.072. Ford’s “track pony” may have set a fast lap, but the C8 Z06, backed by Chevrolet’s track legacy, is poised to humble it with the right conditions.
Great that the factory can do all this testing show of the performance, because 99% of these cars will end up in someone’s personal museum and hardly ever turn a wheel.
The price tag is unreasonable for a Mustang
My guess it does 6 minutes 17 seconds lap.