[VIDEO] Fortune Magazine Shows How Hard It Is to Drift a Corvette Z06

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[VIDEO] Fortune Magazine Shows How Hard It Is to Drift a Corvette Z06


Don’t expect to see too many C7 Corvettes Z06s in professional drifting competitions anytime soon.

That’s the word from Sue Callaway, senior automotive editor at Time Inc.

With all the electronic gizmos on a new Z06, Callaway decided to see if she could force the most powerful Corvette ever to drift.

Drifting, by the way, is a driving technique where the driver intentionally oversteers, causing loss of traction in the rear wheels or all tires, while maintaining control from entry to exit of a corner.

Some refer to it as a smoky sideways dance.

In this video, Justin Shreeve, a former Formula Drift driver and current GoPro and Red Bull driver, tries to teach Callaway how to drift in a $101,000 Laguna Blue convertible Z06 in a large and securely closed parking lot off of Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu.

As Callaway explains: “With the nearest track hours away and too much horsepower to fully unleash on public roads, I figured the best way to wring out the car’s capabilities was to go in a different direction: sideways.”

After Shreeve climbs behind the wheel of the Z06, Callaway says: “Immediately he threw the wheel in one direction, causing the car’s rear end to come around. Squeal, scream, screech—all very good. Then, as a drifter does, he threw the wheel into near opposite lock, trying to abruptly steer in the opposite direction that the rear tires were traveling in.”

No matter how hard he tries, though, Shreeve can’t get the Corvette to drift.

Callaway, in her Fortune story, explains why: “The car’s electronic systems were quicker than any human, including Justin. So no matter how hard or fast he tried to counter-steer and cause this blue devil to zig in one direction and zag in the other, the electronic differential controlling his inputs consistently forced the car to shoot straight ahead instead.”

Of course, while drifting may be impossible in a Z06, wild burnouts aren’t, and Shreeve and Callaway have a good time proving it.

As Callaway concludes: “Sure, Chevy’s latest flagship sports car stands proud next to most any other high-performer available today. But if you could add one more noun to the baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet mantra, surely burnout would be next. And I’m sure most popular.”


Source:
Fortune.com

Related:
[PIC] Throwback Thursday: Classic Corvettes Drifting at the Track
[VIDEO] Exotics Racing Drifts a Corvette Z06 with a Sexy French Model
[VIDEO] Drifting a Corvette Z06 on an Arctic Ice Track

 



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