The bigger brakes, wheels, and tires; the dry-sump lubrication system; the various cooling upgrades; and the big-bore exhaust all add weight to the car. Offsetting these increases required several exotic measures.
The most elaborate of these is an all-new frame with aluminum replacing the steel components in the base C6 and a magnesium front cradle replacing the aluminum one. Making the normally removable roof panel a permanent part of the car’s construction greatly improves structural efficiency. Together, these measures reduce the frame’s weight from 419 to 287 pounds.
In addition, the Z06’s front fenders are now molded with carbon fiber rather than fiberglass, cutting their weight from 9.2 to 2.8 pounds apiece. The balsa-core composite floorboard also uses carbon fiber, saving five more pounds.
Thanks to these changes, the Z06 will weigh a mere 3130 pounds, according to the engineers. That’s 12 pounds more than the claimed weight of the previous Z06 but about 40 pounds less than a base C6, and lighter than exotic, carbon-fiber megamobiles such as the Ferrari Enzo and Mercedes SLR McLaren.
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Combined with 500 horsepower, this modest weight endows the Z06 with a power-to-weight ratio similar to the Ford GT’s. Chevy is predicting a 0-to-60 sprint in less than four seconds, 100 mph arriving less than four seconds later, a quarter-mile well into the 11s, and a top speed above 190 mph. We don’t doubt these claims and look forward to confirming them when we drive the car this summer.
Chevrolet won’t talk about Z06 pricing for now, but the new car will certainly be dearer than the old one, which started at $52,985. With so many upgrades, some observers expect a price of $75,000 to $80,000, but we think Chevrolet is too smart to repeat the ZR-1 overpricing mistake. Our prediction: between 60 and 65 large.
This Z06 would be remarkable for its thorough engineering and comprehensive attention to detail, even if it weren’t the fastest production Corvette ever built.
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