The latest, eighth-generation Chevrolet Corvette has completed an ambitious assault on the legendary Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit.
Chevrolet took three examples of the mid-engined Corvette to Germany: a Z06, the 1,064hp ZR1 and the astonishing new 1,250hp ZR1X.
Notably, those piloting the Corvettes were not professional racing drivers, but three Chevrolet engineers responsible for developing the sports car.
Demonstrating its incredible performance, the ZR1X became the fastest American-made car to lap the Nurburgring, posting a time of 6min 49.28sec around the 12.9-mile Nordschleife loop.
Taking top American honours
It means Chevrolet vehicle dynamics engineer Drew Cattell now holds the record for the fastest lap time by any non-professional racing driver at the circuit.
Just behind the ZR1X, the Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 posted a lap of 6min 50.76sec. Both of these times elevated the Corvette into the top 10 fastest production cars around the Nurburgring.
They also put the ZR1 and ZR1X ahead of the Ford Mustang GTD, giving Chevrolet the upper hand against its perennial American rival.
Even the Corvette Z06, with ‘only’ 670hp, completed the Nordschleife in 7mins 11.83sec – faster than a Porsche Carrera GT or BMW M4 CSL.
Making Corvette history
All three examples of the Corvette used were US-specification production models, albeit with modifications for improved safety. This included fitment of a roll cage, full containment race seat, six-point safety harness and fire extinguisher.
“No auto manufacturer has done a Nurburgring lap attempt like this before,” said GM president Mark Reuss.
“From development through production, and now at the Nurburgring Nordschleife, the Green Hell, we have clearly shown there is no limit to what our GM engineers and vehicles can accomplish. These are the best Corvettes in history, period.”
The Corvette still has some way to go to beat the outright Nurburgring lap record: a time of 6min 29.09sec set by the Mercedes-AMG One.
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