Chevrolet Says ‘Stay Tuned’ For Corvette ZR1 Nürburgring News
The Ford Mustang GTD is the American King of the ‘Ring … for now.
The 815 hp endurance racing inspired coupe has set a new lap record at the Nürburgring Nordschleife for American cars at 6:57.685.
That beat the Dodge Viper ACR’s time of 7:01.3 that was set in 2017 and, since it went out of production the same year, it won’t be heading back to Germany to reclaim its crown. But it sounds like another American contender will be doing that soon.
The upcoming 1,064 hp Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 has already set a top speed record for production cars from major American brands at 233 mph and it has been seen being tested on the Nürburgring.
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Of course, even the most mundane of cars are put through the ringer there these days. The twists, bumps and mixed surfaces offer a unique opportunity to get a full picture of a vehicle’s ride and handling qualities in one place.
Many leave without setting an official lap time for their automakers to publicly release, but it sounds like Chevrolet is about to do just that. When American Cars And Racing reached out to ask if it would have a response to the Mustang GTD’s record, a spokeswoman simply told us to “stay tuned.”
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While the ZR1 can hit 233 mph in its standard configuration it is also available with a ZTK Performance Package that adds an aggressive body kit that can generate up to 1,200 pounds of downforce at high speed. It gives the maximum velocity a haircut, but the tradeoff is better cornering ability.
The Mustang GTD’s top speed is just 202 mph, but it has a drag reduction system that can switch between low drag and high downforce configurations at the press of a button, something the Corvette ZR1 can not do.
It will be interesting to see if the brute force of 1,064 hp can overcome the finesse of the Mustang GTD’s active aerodynamics, but there’s no telling when that will happen. Chevrolet hasn’t hinted on when a time will be released, or if it has even set one already.
Depending on whether or not it beats the Mustang GTD’s time, Ford is already planning a return to the track. The weather didn’t cooperate on the August day it set the time and it thinks it can do better. But Chevrolet may be able to answer it again … with authority.
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Along with the Corvette ZR1, it’s been testing the next version of the Corvette at the Nürburgring and it may be even more of a monster. The hybrid vehicle is expected to be called the Zora and combine the ZR1’s mid-mounted twin-turbocharged V8 powertrain with the front electric motor from the Corvette E-Ray to create a hypercar-fighter with 1,200 hp or more.
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