One of America’s most iconic sports cars was launched in a new avatar last year and now its performance-oriented siblings have been revealed. Yes, we are talking about the Chevrolet Corvette and its racier twins the Z06 and C7.R which made their public debut at the 2014 Detroit Motor Show.
Sinister looking and incredibly powerful, both machines are high performance versions of the ‘standard car’. We begin directly with the exciting bits- the Corvette Z06 is powered by a 6.2-litre supercharged V8 that produces roughly 625bhp and an earth-shattering 860Nm of torque. It can be had with a seven-speed manual or an eight-speed automatic gearbox.
The company says that the 1.7-litre supercharger and its intercooler sit directly on the cylinder block and work at speeds in excess of 15,000rpm. This kind of savage and rather brute power seems to have dictated a lot of the design. The 2014 Z06 sits low down on large wheels, flared fenders and air cooling system straight from the C7.R race car.
The C7.R is a race-going version of the Z06 and is powered by a much smaller 5.5-litre V8 whose specifications have not been revealed. While this may seem a lot lesser than the road-going version, we must remember that this is a race car, so it weighs significantly lesser than the Z06.
On the outside the Z06 and the C7.R share a common design in terms of the overall package. However, the Z06 is less aggressive looking and features far fewer aerodynamic as well as cooling aids. The side profile reveals that both cars are shod with Michelin Pilot Sport which sit like slivers of paint around 18-inch wheels.
While the interiors of the CR.7 have not been revealed, the Z06 gets interiors very similar to that of the standard car but in this car it can be had with flat bottomed steering wheel, sports seats, Napa leather and a choice of aluminium, carbon fibre and micro suede to trim the dash and other panels.
This new car can also be enjoyed without the roof as its race-ready aluminium frame has permitted the fitting of a removable roof panel. With the panel down, the 2015 Z06 is believed to be 20-per cent stiffer than the ZR1; with it on, it's 60 per cent stiffer. It also gets three aerodynamic packages most of which we believe exists in full on the C7.R race car.
While the Z06 will go on sale early next year (as it is currently still under development) for a yet-to-be announced price; the C7.R will make its debut at the United Sports Car Championship, at the end of this month, at the Rolex 24 in Daytona.
