New King! Z06

[UtahZR1]

Thought you guys would find this interesting. Take a look at the ZR1 times. The '90 was the best times. The 2002-2003 Z06 does 0 to 60 in 3.9 and the quarter mile in 12.4. Not bad for a push rod under 350 cubes.:( :( I love my Z...all $70,000 of it, but I just drove a Z06. OMG


Year Make/Model ( 0-60) (1/4 mile)

1979 Chevrolet Corvette 6.6 N/A
1982 Chevrolet Corvette 9.2 N/A
1984 Chevrolet Corvette 6.7 15.1
1985 Chevrolet Corvette 5.7 14.1
1986 Chevrolet Corvette 5.8 14.4
1986 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible 6.0 14.5
1988 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible 6.0 14.6
1988 Chevrolet Corvette Z51 6.0 14.6
1989 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 4.7 13.1
1990 Chevrolet Corvette 5.7 14.3
1990 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 4.4 12.8
1991 Chevrolet Corvette L98 5.3 13.9
1991 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster 5.6 14.1
1992 Chevrolet Corvette LT1 5.7 14.1
1992 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 5.6 13.9
1993 Chevrolet Corvette LT1 5.3 13.9
1993 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 5.2 13.6
1994 Chevrolet Corvette LT1(auto) 5.5 14.1
1995 Chevrolet Corvette LT1 5.2 13.7
1995 Chevrolet Corvette ZR-1 4.9 13.1
1996 Chevrolet Corvette Collectors' 4.9 13.3
1996 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport 4.7 13.3

[ZR1Mom]

Don't believe everything you read, the times posted by magazines are rarely true in real life.

Very few '90 ZR-1's do 12.8 1/4 miles are very few Z06's run 12.4.

ZR1Mom

[DavisZR1]

ZR1mom,

Thanks for bringing that to our attention. Of course we know that these figures just give you a rough idea of the times and the ability of the car. Just like the NADA book, or consumers guide. It's just facts and data that are accumulated to give the consumer the best possible comparisons to make a decision. Then the rest is up to the manufacturers product to live up to it.

I base my opinions on my knowledge through experience in the auto body business for over 35 yrs, and I also base my opinions on other professionals, such as Vette Doctors, most of the boys that race the quarter mile down at Englishtown Raceway Park, other folks I've met in autocross.

I think basically when you get the right driver doing the quarter mile the Z06 hands down, out of the box, blows the doors off of the ZR1, as much as I hate to say it. Lucky the ZR1 has the dual injectors for each cylinder, and four valves per cylinder. As far as ride, handling, comfort, control, flex, strength, styling, weight, balance, electrical components, computer, fit and finish and price, the ZR1 is a dinosaur. Naturally, owners of the ZR1, and people who have an interest in it for their own personal gain, will inflate it to any extent for capital gain, and so will Z06 owners, but the truth lies in the product itself and how well it keeps up with the future generation of buyers. I don't think there would be a good future for either, if everything in magazines were too far from the truth. I think they probably do a good job.

I think the Z06 will surpass the ZR1 because of the ability to get parts, it's styling and all the other attributes I mentioned above.

Well, that's my 2 cents. Sorry for the long winded post.

I haven't seen you around here lately and its nice to hear from you. Would like to hear from you more often. ;bt

[ZR1Mom]

Thanks DavisZR1, I don't post much here because I usually pretty busy with a 1,000 members I have on the ZR-1 Net. :-)


I agree numbers posted by magazines, etc are for reference only but as you pointed out the numbers are only valid if all cars are run under the exact same conditions and by the same driver. Which we know they are not. I don't totally agree that a Z06 will "blow" the doors off a ZR-1 as I have seen races where ZR-1's have beaten Z06's. It's always been very close between the 2 cars. However all in all given the same conditions same driver and stock cars I would have to give it to the Z06. GM has done a great job with this car and it will only get better. The ZR-1 is still King of the Hill in top speed but with the new Z06 due out in the C6 version in a couple of years I'm sure we'll see this title moved over.

The ZR-1 is getting along in years but has and will always have a place in history. There will never be another engine like the LT5. No other Corvette has gotten the media attention the ZR-1 has. For years it was the car to beat, what all other sports cars stride to. It's maybe time to pass on that legacy and I'm very happy to pass it onto another Corvette.

But always keep a close eye on your rearview mirror for you never know what might be behind you.
:D

[DavisZR1]

;bt Very well said.

[zr1]

hey daviszr1,how can you say the zo6 blows the doors off a zr1??.
in thirty five years in the business your pretty narrow minded,your comparing cars that are 11+ years apart in technology,it would be like being all happy that a zr1 can blow the door off a 1980 L82 (now thats blowing the doors off )please !!!!!!fractions of a second...if its worth the extra $30000-40000 out of pocket for, go nuts ,but come on man there both corvettes.
im not knocking the zo6,its a sweet car.
i have no gain in talking up or knocking either car,my zr1 cost me $26000 canadian dollars two years ago,and its not
for sale,or ever will be,but there is a spot in the garage right beside it for a zo6 someday.
i hope no offence is taken ,its just pretty funny reading some of these silly posts.
P.S. the zr1 held its own for over 11 years ,i doubt the z06 will be able to say the same!after all we are seeing Mercedes Benz's pushing 490+hp with more to come ....can you say CL65 AMG?????:cheers:

[DavisZR1]

Originally posted by zr1
hey daviszr1,how can you say the zo6 blows the doors off a zr1??.
in thirty five years in the business your pretty narrow minded,your comparing cars that are 11+ years apart in technology,it would be like being all happy that a zr1 can blow the door off a 1980 L82 (now thats blowing the doors off )please !!!!!!fractions of a second...if its worth the extra $30000-40000 out of pocket for, go nuts ,but come on man there both corvettes.
im not knocking the zo6,its a sweet car.
i have no gain in talking up or knocking either car,my zr1 cost me $26000 canadian dollars two years ago,and its not
for sale,or ever will be,but there is a spot in the garage right beside it for a zo6 someday.
i hope no offence is taken ,its just pretty funny reading some of these silly posts.
P.S. the zr1 held its own for over 11 years ,i doubt the z06 will be able to say the same!after all we are seeing Mercedes Benz's pushing 490+hp with more to come ....can you say CL65 AMG?????:cheers:

Sorry if I offended you. I didn't think anyone would be that sensitive. The definition of "blow the doors off", here on the east coast, doesn't mean beating someone by 3 or 4 seconds. It just means beating them... period. And its just an expression. Just like years ago they used to call a car a "sleeper". Does that mean its really slow?? No, it meant that it looked like a straight, ordinary street car.

I bought my ZR1 brand new, and I spent over $65,000. All the hype and marketing, and then along comes a Viper for about the same price, and blows the doors off of me. And, then along comes the Z06, 11 yrs later, which is selling for $10-$20,000 less. It's less than 350 cubes and a pushrod engine, hardly any flex to the body, very comfortable to get into, state of the art computers, can sit in traffic for three to four hours with the air conditioning on, use as a daily driver, AND it's in exotic car caliber. Now that may sound as if I'm knocking the ZR1, but if you really understand what I'm saying, learn how to comprehend what you're reading, then you'll see that I'm just giving facts towards an intelligent comparisons. Don't get me wrong, I love my ZR1, for many reasons, including the fact that it once held the title "KING", and that it is rare. But, I also love the fact that GM is dedicated to continuous improvement. Why didn't they build another ZR1? They found that they could do the same with new technology and a pushrod engine, and get the same, if not better, results. This is just a fact of life. Just like there are some 4 and 6 cylinder cars that can blow the doors off of some pony cars of yesteryear. To me that is an accomplishment and strides to move forward, and I'm proud of that. And, if you think that's being narrow minded then I think that you are missing something in the big picture.

As statistics show, the most wanted and collectible Corvette is the 1967 L88. The style, the ride, and the feeling that make it such a desirable and wanted Corvette. My personal opinion, and I know others that agree, is that the ZR1 will never be a '67 and neither will the Z06, but I think the Z06 will be more in demand then a ZR1. There is a very small market for the ZR1. It will take a lot longer to sell your ZR1 then it will to sell your Z06.

Again, I own a ZR1 but I don't put myself above. I think a lot of ZR1 owners get too defensive when you mention the Z06, and they don't want to admit defeat. Hey, if next year GM comes out with a six cylinder that blows the doors off the Z06, I'll be the first one to celebrate, because that's progress, not competition, or inflated egos, or greed by ZR1 owners trying to inflate the price.

So, I think if you read my post again, you'll see that I'm not putting the two against each other in the way you are thinking. Try to be more open-minded.

[HT99+63]

I can understand where both of you are coming from, and I understand the term "blow the doors off". I know Daviszr1 didn't mean it in a derogatory way. I think sometimes that ZR1 owners are a little too much, and have actually started an animosity between themselves and Z06 owners, instead of welcoming them aboard and making them a part of the "Z" group. I have seen this arrogance on many other forums. It is a shame. I think they are easily threatened. If it were up to me, there would be a forum for all "Z's" and special edition Corvettes. And, everyone should get along, knowing what each Vette is capable of, and not fighting against each other.:chevy: :usaribbon :wavey:

[ZR1Mom]

As in the jungle you get to be King for awhile and enjoy all the rights that go with it. But in time you grow old it's time to step aside and let the stronger take over.

The animosity you see I call pride. Both the ZR-1 owners and Z06 owners are very proud of their cars. There are those few that get a little carried away that ruin it for the rest of us.

Each Corvette has it's unique personality as does the '67 L88. It's that personality that attracts one buyer to a ZR-1 and another to a Z06 or to what ever year Corvette that has what that new owner is looking for.

As for me I rather be beaten by someone in the family (aka Corvette) then someone outside the family.

I look at some of the comments made here more as "family" arguments. We may not all agree but you know damn well if any of us were broken down on the side of the road we would be the first to stop to help no matter what the other was driving. ;bt

[brooklynvette]

Originally posted by ZR1Mom
As in the jungle you get to be King for awhile and enjoy all the rights that go with it. But in time you grow old it's time to step aside and let the stronger take over.

The animosity you see I call pride. Both the ZR-1 owners and Z06 owners are very proud of their cars. There are those few that get a little carried away that ruin it for the rest of us.

Each Corvette has it's unique personality as does the '67 L88. It's that personality that attracts one buyer to a ZR-1 and another to a Z06 or to what ever year Corvette that has what that new owner is looking for.

As for me I rather be beaten by someone in the family (aka Corvette) then someone outside the family.

I look at some of the comments made here more as "family" arguments. We may not all agree but you know damn well if any of us were broken down on the side of the road we would be the first to stop to help no matter what the other was driving. ;bt

Father, I think ZR1Mom has really choked up some emotion here.

ZR1Mom, I would like to see you around here more. I don't have a ZR1, but when they first came out, it really got my Vette fever going again. Then the Z06 came out and the styling blew me away. All Vettes are great!:clap: :bowdown: Let's stick together and let those foreigners bow down.

[ZR1Mom]

Amen! :nod:

[vincec5]

That's why I'm glad that they designed the C5, because most foreign jobs are small and hard to get into.:lol:

[Uk422]

Ime a vette man full stop and its good to see some good debate as in this thread,but one thing i pray is that :chevy: never ever put anything other than a good ole american V8 in the:bowdown: best car in the world.....amen:cool:

[DavisZR1]

I'll welcome you here also UK422. BTW, what do you pay for petro in the UK, and what octane do you use under your bonnet?
(how'd I do?):lol:

[z06joe]

Originally posted by Uk422
Ime a vette man full stop and its good to see some good debate as in this thread,but one thing i pray is that :chevy: never ever put anything other than a good ole american V8 in the:bowdown: best car in the world.....amen:cool:

I second that. That's the first time that Corvette went out of for an engine, but I heard that GM owned Merc Marine anyway.

Tell us a little about how the UK Corvette enthusiasts or just the general public feel about the Corvette. Post some pics. If you have any clubs or friends in the UK with Corvettes, tell them to join here. It would be great to communicate with you guys.:wave: ;bt

[Uk422]

That was good,that was one of the things i have got used to ,different names even spellings,it was a learning curve especially when i used to have a Rustang back in the 80s and i wanted to order body parts for the car(as you would with a Mustang),such things as "wings" boot lids &bonnets and gas is what we cook with:lol:

I didnt know GM owned Mecury Marine(some thing ive learnt),i know they owned Lotus,so really the "job" did stay inhouse,could of been different tho,i think i read somewhere that GM where loking to use Lotus,Cosworth or Porsche for design,it might of been in "Heart of the Beast".

In the "Classic Corvette Club UK" we have some thing like 700 members ,at a guess i would say we have 2-3x as many vettes in the UK and we have regional events and meets aswell as national events.
The once a year nationals attract around 3-400 cars over the weekend
American cars aswell as Vettes have quite a strong following,we have a mopar club ,mustang club etc and also have 2 monthly nationwide magazines devoted to American cars in the UK.

I think the general public on the whole like the Corvette,it looks great and ive heard kids go "wow!!,look a corvette" and you always get people ask questions about the cars so i think it is well received over here,the corvette certainly has respect.

We the owners adore our vettes wether we polish or drive them and i for one can never see myself away from the vette scene.

Ime lucky in my town there is 2x ZR1s ,1 Z06 around 4xC5s and 2or3 C3s :),,and i will let others know about this site.

Thanks for the welcome hope i havent bored you:cool:

[ZR1Mom]

Correction, GM did not own Mercury Marine, just hire them to assemble and test the LT5 engines.

Mom

[Uk422]

Hi there Mom, why did GM get mercury marine to build&test the LT5?,i did hear it was because Marine engine builders run closer tolerances,,is this true or have i heard wrong?.:chevy:

[ZR1Mom]

One of the main reasons was they needed a low volume manufacturing facility. They also needed someone highly
trained in aluminum casting.

GM even looked at John Deere about building the LT5. :-)

Mom

[fatherlarry]

Originally posted by Uk422
Hi there Mom, why did GM get mercury marine to build&test the LT5?,i did hear it was because Marine engine builders run closer tolerances,,is this true or have i heard wrong?.:chevy:

UK422, this may claify things a bit. Z06Joe, I think you might be confusing GM taking over Lotus Engineering.

Back in 1985 GM took over Lotus Engineering in Norfolk. The Corvette model range needed a flagship with unbeatable power. Why not get a company renowned for performance engine production to make it?

With the very resourceful figure of Tony Rudd the project was set under way using a V8 engine that Lotus had already developed but not placed in any vehicle.

The criteria of no modifications to the Corvette chassis coupled with 350 ci, 4.4" bore and other traditional stuff, and the need to produce 400bhp was a tall order. A compromise was made and 375bhp was settled on.

Much scratching of heads and the LT5 was spawned, a completely new engine with 16 valve heads. The project started early in 1985, first engine (Phase 1) start-up was on 1st May 1986. This testing showed many problems that were to lay ahead, namely, the single row (simplex) timing chains were not up to the job. The engine design had a tendency to release all its' oil if run over 4000rpm so a redesigned oiling system had to be devised.

Enter the Phase Two engine with revised oil systems and eventually twin (duplex) timing chains. By November 1987 a Phase Two engine achieved 200 hours on the test bed with a computerised load and part throttle program. There was now a lot of road testing to be carried out. We have heard rumours of ZR1s travelling in convoy at 150mph on the M11 very late at night. Well it's a job and someone has to do it, right?!

Now the engine made good progress and external cosmetic changes were made to take into account the need for better air flow. The Phase Three engines were very near to the final article, but much more internal refinement was required.

The Phase Four, Five and Six engines all had minor external changes and modifications and the engines which finally made it into the production cars were Phase Seven (in fact the 84 1989 ZR1's produced were production standard).

When the ZR1 was announced in 1989 and released to the press, the publicity was sensational, almost every one who drove the car raved about the performance. However for various reasons the car was held at pre-production stage until the 1990 model year. No 1989 models were sold to the public and I am sure some of them will turn up here and there . By the time GM sold Lotus to Buggatti in 1994, Lotus had worked on a more powerful 405 bhp version of the engine and these made it into the 93 model year.

Sadly the small, for GM, production of the cars came to an end in April 1995, but curiously the last ZR1 engine to be built at the Stillwater, Oklahoma Mercury Marine facility was made on 24th November 1993, all engines built for later years were stored for the relevant model years.

There is now a great shortage of LT5 engines and some parts are rarer than the proverbial hens teeth. However the fact remains that the ZR1 was and still is am amazing vehicle.

So ended the short but highly successful, albeit expensive LT5 story.

[Uk422]

Thanks Fatherlarry,i think you and mom have explained that very clearly.
This is the site of corvette club in the UK
www.corvetteclub.org.uk
this might tell you more about vettes in the UK.
Thanks:chevy: ;bt

[lt5vett]

Great debate and all posts have validity so here are my 2 cents. I have driven a 2003 Z06, great car and I own a 94 ZR1 which has had a top end porting etc job. The Z06 will go through the competitive autocross a bit quicker but the 1/4 mile is absolutely mine in the ZR1. RWHP on the zr1 is 393. I have owned a 03 convert and to tell the truth I like the styling on the C4 better, leg room and comfort are better for me in the ZR1. I am 6'6" and the center console is uncomfortable in the C5, with the ZR1 seats I think more comfortable. I wonder at times if newer translates into "better styling" in most peoples eyes. Correct me if I am wrong but I think the C4 has less wind drag than the C5/Z06. If the ZR1 could have the dual zone air, HUD and suspension of the Z06, in my opinion that would be heaven...

[ZR1Mom]

The C5 has a lower CD then the C4. One of the reasons why the tail end is shaped the way it is.