AAh! ... the Corvette ... a beautiful car. It has always been my favorite sports car, and recently they've been taking it to new heights. The thinking at GM several months ago (or maybe more) went as follows: "If the Corvette ZO6 is that great, and it costs only $60,000, what would $100,000 give us? We now know the answer: the Corvette ZR1. It's still in the planning stage, but the talk is serious, and it is being designed to compete directly with the Ferrari, Porsch, and even the Lamborgini.
So what's new? What's different from the ZO6? For starters the turbocharger has been replaced by a supercharger (if you're not sure of the difference, see my book "The Isaac Newton School of Driving"). The ZR1 will have a thermal efficiency of 76 percent, which is nothing to scoff at, and the new engine is expected to produce 100 HP/liter for a total HP around 620, and the torgue will be about 600 pound-feet. The additions add weight, so to keep the weight as low as possible, the fenders, hood and roof panels are going to be made of carbon fiber. With this, the ZR1 will weight about 200 pounds more than the ZO6.
It won't be out until 2009, but I'm sure therre will be a lot of anticipation in the months before it appears.
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