Latest news with #ZR1X
Motor 1
5 hours ago
- Automotive
- Motor 1
The ZR1X Is the Fastest Corvette Ever. Chevy Tells Us How It Happened
Corvette engineers first uttered the phrase "King of the Hill" internally in the mid-1980s. Their majesty was a 1990 ZR1—that's a 32-valve, 375-horsepower V-8 designed by the GM-owned Lotus Division and built in Oklahoma by Mercury Marine. It first drew Ferrari comparisons to a sports car that had pissed away much of the '70s and '80s, mired in bureaucratic muck and rattletrap complacency. That ZR1, with its ZF six-speed manual, dashed to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds, and a 175-mph top speed. The King of the Hill name stuck. Thirty-five years hence, it describes a turbocharged 2025 ZR1 with nearly three times the horsepower, at 1,064. America's New Hypercar 'America's Hypercar:' The New Chevy Corvette ZR1X Aims to Take Down Ferrari Still not enough. Say hello to the 2026 ZR1X, or the 'NotZora.' However you address it, the all-wheel-drive, electrified ZR1X may spark the latest War of the Roses among loyal Corvette subjects. You know, the folks who grab pitchforks over engine layouts, pushrods, or pop-up headlights. The reductive take, sure to be favored by YouTubers, is that the ZR1X's 1,250 hybrid hp is better than 1,064. A sub-2-second acid trip to 60 mph is objectively faster than 2.2 seconds. Even the title Chevy bestowed on the ZR1X, "America's Hypercar," suggests the King ZR1 is demoted to mere supercar—the Marquis of Motown, perhaps. But Keith Badgley, the ZR1X's lead development engineer, explains why these cars can comfortably share a throne—without sticking a knife in each other's sales. "Yeah, we like using the term 'America's Hypercar' because that set the standard for what the ZR1X needed to be," Badgley says. The ZR1s, he says, feel fundamentally different on street or track. Photo by: Chevrolet "All-wheel-drive versus rear-drive gives you two very different feels with the balance of the car, and how we're supporting you as you go into corner entry," he says. "The (driven) front axle is so quick, you can get right back onto throttle. We think the ZR1X is going to give greater confidence to the driver." That does sound interesting and helpful, including for owners whose skills might frankly be overwhelmed by four-digit horsepower through rear wheels alone. But at the risk of looking a gift horsepower in the mouth, why now? Chevy will soon begin taking orders for the ZR1X. Why not let the ZR1 enjoy its public acclaim and range-topping status for at least a year before adding a direct competitor for the wealthiest Corvette buyers or collectors? Those prospects now have a decision to make, unless they settle it with one of each. Photo by: Chevrolet 'Yeah, we like using the term 'America's Hypercar' because that set the standard for what the ZR1X needed to be.' Badgley says these siblings' closely aligned births became nearly inevitable from the moment of conception. The C8 was famously designed from the start to support electrified all-wheel-drive versions, including room for 1.9 kilowatt hours of pouch batteries in its coffin-shaped central tunnel. A ZR1X 'was always part of that plan' that began nearly a decade ago, Badgley affirms. The E-Ray went first, and it provided a technical basis for the hypercar. "We saw the capability of the E-Ray and how we could take advantage of it," Badgeey says. "The design and structure of the ZR1s were always being designed to handle performance at the pinnacle." Photo by: Chevrolet Photo by: Chevrolet Recognizing the Corvette's high-voltage battery pack as a critical heart of performance, GM created an in-house team for its power electronics. "That was very rare," Badgley says. "We didn't do that with previous products, and we're not doing it with other products." As Chevrolet developed the Z06's LT6 V-8, the twin-turbocharged Gemini LT7 was also proceeding to serve the ZR1s. That included the 'maniturbo' that combines a turbocharger and exhaust manifold, unique engine castings, pistons, and titanium connecting rods with a jaw-dropping lightness I feel for myself in a garage at Circuit of the Americas during a thrilling ZR1 drive. Photo by: Chevrolet 'We saw the capability of the E-Ray and how we could take advantage of it. The design and structure of the ZR1s were always being designed to handle performance at the pinnacle.' Rather than parallel and separate development tracks, think of Corvette engineering teams as more like DNA strands, their genetic data informing and cross-pollinating the whole. For one, Chevrolet created a core development team exclusively for all-wheel drive. Using the E-Ray as a test bed, they applied those learnings to push every boundary of the ZR1X—enough to confidently take on seven-figure models like the Ferrari F80 and McLaren W1. "We intentionally kept that core of intelligence together," Badgley says. Photo by: Chevrolet The ZR1X, Badgley says, helped validate key metrics for a ZR1 that went to showrooms first. That includes a shared aero program for design efficiencies and commonalities in manufacturing; The models can share an assembly line in Kentucky, allowing Chevrolet to instantly adjust production based on customer orders. Credit the ZR1X for a shared, optional carbon-fiber wheel whose performance bandwidth was assured by a 'higher-load program' for the heavier AWD car. "Otherwise, we would have had to spend time validating the ZR1 loads and then validating again for the ZR1X," Badgley says. "So even though there's a ZR1 team and a ZR1X team, we're dealing with the same problems, helping each other to solve them and make these two great cars come together." The ZR1 upsized the Z06's brakes, but deceleration requirements for the more-powerful ZR1X demanded a clean-sheet solution. The largest brakes in GM history feature 10-piston front calipers, ridiculous 16.5-inch rotors front and rear, and new continuously woven carbon-fiber brake discs. During ZR1X development at the Nürburgring, engineers clocked a stunning 1.9 g's of deceleration at the Tiergarten corner, a wicked-technical right-hand sweeper near a lap's end that saw test drivers shed speed from 180 to 120 mph. Photo by: Chevrolet Badgley says the 'Vette's most-resilient brake discs in history survived 2,500 miles of brutal track testing—on four cars, more than 600 miles per car—without a brake change. The ZR1X will bequeath that standard "J59" brake package to the ZR1, which adopts it as an option for 2026. ZR1X trickle-down will even benefit the entire family. Every 2026 Corvette gets the new PTM Pro traction manager, designed with ZR1X in mind. For daring types, it offers easy screen access to turn off traction and stability control, while maintaining launch control functions. For the ZR1X, PTM Pro also keeps brake-based torque vectoring active, actively managing inside-front braking for maximum traction while exiting corners. The ZR1X is on schedule to arrive by Christmas, ideally wrapped in a Corvette-red bow for good boys and girls. Badgley says the teams are still tinkering, trying to unlock more speed. That includes a quarter-mile that the ZR1X dispatched in less than 9 seconds just a few weeks ago, on a prepped surface at US 131 Motorsports Park in Michigan. Corvette fans may argue about the line of succession. But in a straight line at least, the all-wheel-drive ZR1X will wear the undisputed Corvette crown. "We're actually looking to see how much below nine seconds we can get, so we're excited for that," he says. Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
UPI
5 hours ago
- Automotive
- UPI
Fastest-ever 2026 Corvette is a twin-turbo hybrid hypercar
A 2026 "blade-silver" Corvette ZR1X and "Sebring-orange" Corvette ZR1X convertible are among the fastest and costliest Corvettes ever built. Photo courtesy of Chevrolet June 17 (UPI) -- The 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X sets a new performance standard with a twin-turbo hybrid motor that delivers 1,250 HP and a top speed exceeding 230 mph. The all-wheel-drive sports car debuted on Tuesday and is the most expensive Corvette ever made with an anticipated retail price starting at $250,000. The twin-turbocharged motor produces 1,064 horsepower, and the electric AWD adds another 186 HP, with a regenerative energy system powering the about 4,000-pound hypercar, the Detroit Free Press reported. Its 5.5-liter LT7 V8 produces up to 828 pound-feet of torque that increases to 973 pound-feet when the AWD is running. An eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission delivers the power to all four wheels using Corvette's E-Ray hybrid technology. The mid-engine hypercar can go from 0-60 mph in less than 2 seconds and cover the quarter mile in less than 9 seconds with a top speed exceeding 150 mph. The AWD smooths out the power delivery for less wear and tear on the rear axle and better handling while turning. "You'll feel that coming out of every corner, the car clawing you out," ZR1X lead development engineer Keith Badgley told Motor1. Corvette's 2024 hybrid E-Ray created the platform for the ZRX1 with a 6.2-liter V8 engine with an electric motor, although the new Corvette has a slightly smaller motor that delivers more power. "We saw the capability of the E-Ray and how we could take advantage of it," Badgley told Motor1. "The design and structure of the ZR1s were always being designed to handle performance at the pinnacle." Chevrolet is building the ZR1X at its Bowling Green, Ky., plant, and a final selling price will be announced later this year. The 2025 ZR1 is Corvette's costliest current-production model with a $175,000 starting point that goes up with additional goodies added. The retail price is typically much lower than the actual selling price. Chevrolet dealer and NASCAR Hall of Fame team owner Rick Hendrick last year paid $3.7 million for a 2025 ZR1, the Detroit Free Press reported.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
The Corvette ZR1X's Quarter-Mile Sprint Is So Quick, Chevy Had to Reprogram Its Front Motor
When the Corvette team went about adding the front motor from the Corvette E-Ray to the ZR1 to create the ZR1X, it was no simple feat. First, they turned up the output to 186 horsepower and 145 pound-feet of torque, increases of 26 hp and 20 lb-ft. Then, they went through all the calibration to make it work seamlessly with the LT7 V-8. And that's where things got interesting. The twin-turbo 5.5-liter in the ZR1 makes 1064 horsepower, more than twice that of the 495-hp LT2 in the E-Ray. 'We knew we were going to have to push all the boundaries,' said lead development engineer Keith Badgley. 'Looking at the fact that we're taking this 5.5-liter turbo V-8 with all kinds of power, and then combining it with a separate drivetrain on the front, meant that this had to be the most sophisticated software that GM had developed. Especially to make it approachable and intuitive.' It's so powerful that it revealed a limitation in the standard programming of the electric front axle motor. On the drag strip, 'We saw that we were disconnecting the front axle at 150 miles an hour from the E-Ray, and that that was not enough for us to complete the run in the quarter mile,' said Badgely. 'So we expanded and raised that to a 160-mph disconnect to bring that performance all the way through.' That's with the standard ZR1 body, not the Carbon Fiber Aero kit that's best paired with the ZTK suspension package. Chevy didn't say how much slower that version would be in the quarter than the sub-9-second, greater than 150-mph time stated in the ZR1X's press release. But it's a non-zero difference, says Josh Holder, the Corvette's chief engineer. 'It's pretty incredible that these cars are going so fast at the end of the quarter mile that our aero was starting to influence the times.' As for the intuitive and approachable part, that too required a more-than-expected amount of adjustment. 'The journey of the software, we originally thought we would port over or learn from the E-Ray, and we did learn but immediately saw that the Gemini engine has so much power that even minor errors in our torque architecture were causing issues with traction and an intervention that was unnecessary,' said Badgley. That's not unexpected when you're starting from a baseline of 828 pound-feet of torque, with more than 800 of that available from 3000 rpm. What's wild, though, is the speeds at which the ZR1X was breaking the tires loose. 'We saw that at 160 miles per hour we were having so much power we were deflecting the rear wheels, causing these errors.' As stated, the Corvette engineers smoothed things out so that the ZR1X presumably won't trip the traction control at that speed. It's yet another example of the performance era we live in. Not only is there a Corvette with 1250 horsepower, it's strong enough to spin the tires at 160 — and modern software can tame those bad habits, and make such a wild beast Might Also Like You Need a Torque Wrench in Your Toolbox Tested: Best Car Interior Cleaners The Man Who Signs Every Car Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Motor 1
5 hours ago
- Automotive
- Motor 1
'Never Say Never:' An Electric Corvette Isn't Completely Off the Table
Chevrolet debuted its first electrified Corvette, the E-Ray, in 2023 with a 1.1-kilowatt-hour battery pack designed to give Chevy's ubiquitous eight-cylinder engine a bit of extra boost. Now there's a Corvette ZR1X, which uses a similar battery pack with 26 percent more energy, helping deliver a whopping 1,250 horsepower combined. So what's the next logical step? Many may point to a purely electric Corvette, in line with other battery-powered hypercars like the Rimac Nevera or Pininfarina Battista. But Chevy isn't so convinced—at least, not yet. An Electric Corvette Won't Happen Soon 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray Photo by: DW Burnett / Motor1 In a virtual press conference with Chevy executives and engineers ahead of the ZR1X's debut, Corvette Chief Engineer Josh Holder was asked whether or not an electric Corvette is on the horizon. His answer: 'Not soon. We're here today to show this performance hybrid, and what Corvette can do with the ultimate expression of technology, planned from the beginning with the eighth-generation Corvette.' But that's not to say Chevrolet is ruling out the idea of an electric Corvette entirely—or even more powerful variants down the line: 'I never say never. As engineers, we're always trying to improve performance. But this is certainly the pinnacle… the ZR1X really is a Corvette hypercar.' What Happened to the Name 'Zora?' Photo by: DW Burnett / Motor1 As we predicted last year, it was only a matter of time before Chevrolet unleashed an even more powerful version of the Corvette ZR1. We've seen electrified prototypes testing on the Nürburging for months prior to its debut. Unfortunately, it doesn't have the name that many enthusiasts had hoped: Zora. The internet was adamant that Chevrolet would use the name 'Zora' for its most powerful Corvette after famed Corvette engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov—also known as the father of the Corvette. But, a Chevy spokesperson noted that this model was always meant to be a ZR1 from the beginning: 'The ZR1X and ZR1 were developed together, and they were meant to be a true family. So… that is its name.' The New ZR1X The ZR1X Is the Fastest Corvette Ever. Chevy Tells Us How It Happened 'America's Hypercar:' The New Chevy Corvette ZR1X Aims to Take Down Ferrari Share this Story Facebook X LinkedIn Flipboard Reddit WhatsApp E-Mail Got a tip for us? Email: tips@ Join the conversation ( )
Hindustan Times
6 hours ago
- Automotive
- Hindustan Times
2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X: Key features, price, specifications and more about the ‘hypercar'
General Motors on Tuesday introduced the 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X 'hypercar,' touted as the most advanced Corvette ever. With 1,250 horsepower and electrified all-wheel drive, the latest addition to the Corvette lineup is the souped-up version of the E-Ray hybrid, which went on sale in 2023, CNBC reported. Powered by the LT7 twin-turbo V-8 engine, which can deliver 1,064 horsepower at 7,000 rpm as well as 828 lb-ft of torque at 6,000 rpm, the Corvette ZR1X has faster acceleration compared to the current Corvette ZR1 model, thanks to the 'electrification' technologies. One of its major highlights is that it can reach 0 to 60 mph in less than two seconds and has a top speed of 233 mph, the company states. Compared to other ZR1 models, the ZR1X includes an electric axle that makes the vehicle all-wheel drive. It provides an additional 186 horsepower and 145 foot-pounds of torque. Megan Dalley, Corvette marketing manager, has dubbed it the 'most advanced Corvette we've ever produced.' 'America's true hypercar has arrived. We are putting the world on notice with this car, showing what Corvette and America's true supercar is capable of,' Dalley said, per CNBC. It is considered a level above the 'supercar,' depending upon the vehicle's speed, acceleration and 0-60 mph times. Both of which are used above the 'sports car' category. Josh Holder, Corvette chief engineer, told CNBC the 2026 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X brings performance, electrification along with all-wheel drive to further enhance the 'unthinkable ZR1.' With the introduction of ZR1X, the Corvette lineup now includes five different models, which makes it the broadest since it first came out in 1953. The lineup ranges from the Corvette Stingray, which starts around $70,000, to ZR1 models, which go up to $200,000. According to Top Gear, the vehicle's motor sits on the front axle, while the 1.9 kWh battery and power electronics are placed in the transmission tunnel. The legendary cars are produced at General Motors' assembly plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky. General Motors said details regarding its price and availability will be shared closer to production. It will be available in convertible or coupe options. The coupe includes a rear split window, which pays homage to the well-known 1963 Corvette.
