We know by now that Chevrolet's performance pedigree in their road cars isn't something to mess with.
Last year the manufacturer sent their Camaro ZL1 1LE to the Nürburgring, and clocked a 7:16.04 lap time — quick enough to put a whole host of more fancied European exotica in their place.
Well, now the manufacturer's new giant-killer — the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 — is set to roll out into showrooms and onto race tracks all over the US. And it too is going to lay down a firm challenge to Ferrari, Lamborghini, and more.
Corvette Product Manager Harlan Charles has confirmed a selection of the ZR1's performance figures while holding an open discussion at last weekend's 12 Hours of Sebring event, and they're not to be coughed at.
The sprint from 0–60mph (0–96km/h) is achieved in a blistering 2.85 seconds, placing it firmly in Tesla and McLaren 720S territory. And it's hurtle down a drag-strip quarter mile in 10.6 seconds.
That might be less than the absurd Dodge Demon, but remember that the Demon can literally do nothing else other than drive straight and general motoring. Show it a corner and it will be undeniably lost.
The ZR1 on the other hand is no mere straight-line warrior. It's already a proven corner-gobbling beast, having reset the production car lap record at Virginia International Raceway — trumping former table topper the Ford GT.
All of these impressive stats can be traced back to the ZR1's 6.2-litre LT5 V8, which creates 563kW and 969Nm.
All of this adds up to one hell of a swansong for the C7-gen Corvette; a car that's helped Chevrolet move the game on for the nameplate. It'll also be the last front-engined Corvette platform, as it moves to a mid-mounted platform in the coming years.
It might be a bit long in the tooth, but the ZR1 shows that there's still some life in it yet.
Hey, with the Chevrolet Camaro and Silverado coming to New Zealand in right-hand drive, wonder what chance we have of sneaking in a right-hook Corvette or two...
