THE ILLUSTRATED CORVETTE
Designer Series No. 269
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
K. Scott Teeters has been a contributing
artist and writer with Vette magazine since
1976 when the magazine was titled Vette
Quarterly. Scott’s Corvette art can be seen
at http://www.illustratedcorvetteseries.com. His
muscle car and nostalgia drag racing art can
be found at http://www.precision-illustration.com.VETTE (ISSN #0199-7890) Vol. 43, No. 11. Copyright © 2019 by TEN: Publishing Media, LLC. All rights reserved. Published monthly by TEN: Publishing Media, LLC., 275 Madison Avenue, 14th Floor, New York, NY 10016. Periodicals Postage Paid at
New York, NY and at additional mailing offices. SUBSCRIPTIONS: U.S. and U.S. Possessions $29.95 for 12 issues. Canadian orders add $12.00 per year and international orders add $24.00 per year (for surface mail postage). Payment in advance,
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62 VETTE 19.11
is a variant of the LT4 in the Z06, but with
two big differences: first, the Eaton super-
charger is 52-percent larger, and second,
the LT5 not only has direct injection (same
as the base LT1), it also has port injection;
with each system using dedicated electron-
ics. The supercharger has larger high-flow,
high-efficiency rotors with optimized high-
twist, four-lobe rotors. The larger super-
charger meant that the entire system sits
taller and required a bigger hood dome.
The entire hood assembly is carbon-fiber,
as are the front fenders. Plus, the throttle
body is a larger 95mm unit. The Z06 dry-
sump oil system is pressurized with Mobil 1
0W-40W synthetic oil.
To keep everything cool, engineers have
used air to the max: for breathing, engine
and brake cooling and downforce. There
are four paths of airflow on the ZR1: under
the car, over the car, around the car and
through the car. Four additional radiators
were added to the ZR1, including a low-temp
radiator and two additional outboard radia-
tors specifically for supercharger cooling.
Two more radiators are used for engine
cooling, plus lay-down coolers for power
steering, differential and transmission.
The ZR1 can be an awesome track car,
especially with the $2,995 RPO ZTK Track
Performance Package that includes the
adjustable high rear wing that adds 950
pounds of downforce. ZTK also includes
springs with rates that are 30-percent
higher in the front and 13-percent higher
in the rear. The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2
tires are specifically designed for warm,
dry track conditions. Overall, RPO ZTK
adds 60-percent more downforce, with
the same air drag as the Z06/Z07 package.
Also, there’s a C7.R-type front underwing,
not visible from the exterior; that has the
same downforce and efficiency as the rear
wing. The ZR1 also has a unique front split-
ter. The C7 chassis structure needed no
additional reinforcements to handle all the
extra downforce.
Most of the standard ’19 Corvette
options are available, plus—unlike previ-
ous ZR1s—the C7 ZR1 is available as a
coupe or convertible, and with a manual or
automatic transmission. The automatic is
slightly quicker than the manual. As of this
writing (May 26, 2019), the base price of the
’19 ZR1 coupe is $121,995 and $126,495 for
the convertible. If you go to http://www.chevrolet.
com/performance/corvette-zr1-supercar
you can option the
ZR1 to over $150,000.
While the Z06-based
ZR1 isn’t strictly a track
car, even with the ZTK
track option to help its
track performance,
the ZR1 is perfectly
comfortable being an
everyday driver, just
with a ton of potential.
The suspension tuning
is the same as astandard C7 coupe and convertible.
Unlike the big-block beasts of the
late ’60s, several of which were barely
streetable, the C7 ZR1 is a beast you can
easily live with. The car provides comfort-
able transportation and astonishing street
and track performance. Yes, the price is
over double that of the base model coupe
($55,900), but Corvette high performance
has never been cheap. Look at the prices of
the C4 and C6 ZR1s; nearly double for the
C4 ZR-1. And like the C7 ZR1, over double
the price for the C6 ZR1. As of this writing,
only 2,588 ’19 ZR1s have been built, making
them the rarest of the C4, C6 and C7 ZR1s.
Only 53 C3 ZR1s were built, and these were
solid-lifter, LT-1–powered cars with L88
suspensions and brakes; not street cars by
any measure. The C7 ZR1 will smoke any
production Corvette on the track and be
happy getting groceries on the way home.
That is why the C7 Corvette ZR1 is the
greatest Corvette ever. VETTE