2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 First Look: Supercar, Achieved

Chevy has transformed America's sports car into a world-class supercar with a 5.5-liter twin-turbo V-8 that makes an incredible 1

Transcript

00:00It's finally here, the 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1.

00:21Everyone knows this car was coming, everyone knows it has a twin-turbo V8, but how much

00:27power does it make? 800 horsepower? 900 horsepower? No! 1,064 horsepower.

00:38Surprise? Because my mind is blown.

00:41All that power comes from a twin-turbo 5.5-liter V8. This is not just a turbocharged Corvette

00:49Z06 engine, though. It's got new internals, a much lower compression ratio, and more oil

00:56capacity. It doesn't rev quite as high as a Z06, but the redline is still 8,000 RPM,

01:03and it makes 828 pound-feet of torque. To handle all that, the 8-speed dual-clutch transmission

01:11is going to strengthen. The ZR1 is all about the ultimate in performance, which means taking

01:16every advantage of aerodynamics. This wicker here creates a high-pressure area that adds

01:21to the front downforce, but it also creates a low-pressure zone that allows hot air to

01:27be extracted through the heat exchangers under the hood. Now, all that hot air blowing over

01:33the car is not great news for the engine, so they've done the analysis to figure out

01:38that this area and this area are the areas that get the coolest air. On top here, this

01:44feeds air directly into the engine air tanks, and this feeds cool air to the rear brakes.

01:51And you can't miss that wing, right? That's part of the ZTK Performance Package, and with

01:55it, this car will make more than 1,000 pounds of downforce at top speed. What's the top

02:01speed? We don't know yet. Without the aero package, we do know that Chevy's aiming for

02:07more than 215 mph. In standard configuration, the ZR1 is actually set up to ride softer

02:16than a standard Z06, but if you upgrade to that ZTK Performance Package, you get a car

02:21that's even more hardcore than a Z06 for the ultimate in track performance. The standard

02:28wheels are forged aluminum, but carbon fiber wheels are optional, and the ZTK Package also

02:34upgrades you from Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires to Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R track

02:41rubber. MR dampers and carbon ceramic brakes are standard across the line. Inside and out,

02:48this looks like your typical Corvette with more carbon fiber, bigger cooling ducts, and

02:53this pretty cool detail—a throwback to split-window Corvettes with extra cooling for that engine.

03:01We're seeing the ZR1 today, but it won't be in dealers for a year. Chevy's pulling the

03:06wrapper off now because they say to finish aerodynamic development and engine cooling

03:11development, they need to remove the camouflage from these cars. We also don't know pricing

03:16yet, but it's a Corvette, so you can count on it being the best value in performance.

03:22For more on this story and updates to come, stay tuned to Motor Trend.