Corvette ZR1 Is the Quickest RWD Car to 60 MPH We've Ever Tested
The 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is now the quickest rear-wheel-drive car we've ever tested, reaching 60 mph in just 2.2 seconds.
That is one-tenth quicker to 60 mph than the McLaren 750S, and two-tenths ahead of the Ferrari 296GTB.
The Corvette ZR1 continues to pull ahead as speeds rise, eclipsing 150 mph a full second ahead of the McLaren, which costs over $200K more as tested.
Welcome to Car and Driver's Testing Hub, where we zoom in on the test numbers. We've been pushing vehicles to their limits since 1956 to provide objective data to bolster our subjective impressions (you can see how we test here).
The 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 has one-upped the McLaren 750S while costing over $100,000 less. The 750S had become the quickest rear-wheel-drive car ever tested by Car and Driver last year, snatching the crown from the Ferrari 296GTB. But now the latest Corvette ZR1—propelled by a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter V-8 emitting a whopping 1064 horsepower—has completed the sprint to 60 mph even quicker, blasting to the mile-a-minute mark in just 2.2 seconds.
Michael Simari
|
Car and Driver
That puts the Corvette ZR1 one-tenth of a second ahead of the McLaren 750S, which itself beat the Ferrari by a single tenth. While the 296GTB utilizes a hybrid powertrain that pairs a turbocharged V-6 with an electric motor, the 750S keeps it simple with a twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8. The McLaren is an immensely potent car, the eight-cylinder engine producing 740 hp and 590 pound-feet of torque, but it pales in comparison to the Corvette ZR1's 1064-hp and 828-pound-foot output.
The Corvette's horsepower advantage helped the American supercar overcome its significantly higher curb weight, with the ZR1 tipping the scales at 3831 pounds. That is 299 pounds heavier than the Ferrari and a massive 625 pounds heavier than the McLaren. But power makes up for a lot of sins, and the ZR1 is still comfortably on top when it comes to power to weight, with each of the LT7's ponies ferrying 3.6 pounds of Corvette compared with both the McLaren and Ferrari at 4.3 pounds per horsepower. Another key factor was the Corvette's rubber, with the ZR1 riding on sticky Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R ZP tires with a 275-millimeter section width up front and an insane 345-mm section width at the rear. The McLaren, meanwhile, made do with Pirelli P Zero Trofeo tires measuring 245 mm wide and 305 mm wide at the front and rear, respectively.
While the Corvette was only one-tenth of a second ahead of the 750S at 60 mph, that gap expanded as speeds rose. The ZR1 hit 100 mph in just 4.5 seconds, three-tenths ahead of the McLaren, while 130 mph arrived in 7.1 seconds, giving it a 0.6-second lead. The Ferrari, for context, reached 100 mph in 4.7 seconds and 130 mph in 7.3 seconds, sneaking back ahead of the 750S by each of those marks.
Michael Simari
|
Car and Driver
The ZR1's numbers only get crazier. The Corvette dispatches the quarter-mile in 9.5 seconds, crossing the line at 149 mph. The McLaren, meanwhile, needed 9.8 seconds at 145 mph, and the Ferrari completed the run in 9.7 seconds at 150 mph. Speaking of 150 mph, the Corvette reached that speed in a mere 9.7 seconds, a full second ahead of the 750S, although the 296GTB matched the Corvette's time.
When the McLaren 750S beat out the Ferrari 296GTB for the title of quickest-accelerating RWD car tested by Car and Driver, there was a slight caveat. The McLaren only took the win in the sprint to 60 mph, losing out to its Italian rival in the dash to 100 mph, 150 mph, and over a quarter-mile.
But the Corvette ZR1 unequivocally is now the king, triumphing over the McLaren and Ferrari in just about every acceleration metric. And the American monster did so while costing significantly less, with the ZR1 carrying an as-tested price of $205,265, versus $538,399 for the Ferrari and $449,790 for the McLaren.
Caleb Miller
Associate News Editor
Caleb Miller began blogging about cars at 13 years old, and he realized his dream of writing for a car magazine after graduating from Carnegie Mellon University and joining the Car and Driver team. He loves quirky and obscure autos, aiming to one day own something bizarre like a Nissan S-Cargo, and is an avid motorsports fan.
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