[VIDEO] Corvette ZR1 vs McLaren 720S is What Everyone is Talking About

9
5993

[VIDEO] Corvette ZR1 vs McLaren 720S is What Everyone is Talking About


Have you seen the video of the 2019 Corvette ZR1 getting walked/spanked/decimated by a McLaren 720S in both dig and roll races? Apparently, we are supposed to believe it’s the end of the world if you take the word of the ZR1-haters that seemed to have come out of the woodwork just like they did when the C7 Z06 lost a race to a Viper in 2015.

As much as we want the Corvette ZR1 to be the literal King of the Hill, there are going to be cars (and drivers) that can outperform it, especially in a format like this that doesn’t take into account what the ZR1 was really built to do. Corvettes have traditionally performed well against sports car costing two to three times as much, but occasionally it will get beaten. Doesn’t make it the norm, and the video provides only visual evidence without any PDR or timing present for “driver-mod” comparisons.

[VIDEO] Corvette ZR1 vs McLaren 720S is What Everyone is Talking About


After all, the Corvette ZR1 and the McLaren 720S seemed to match up fairly well. To use the boxing term, the tale of the tape shows the ZR1 is 755-hp with 715 lb-ft of torque and has a top speed of 212 mph. The McLaren has 710-hp with 568 lb-ft of torque and also has a top speed of 212 mph.

But both cars are very different in how they get there. The Chevrolet Corvette does so with brute V8 power, an eight-speed automatic transmission, and a fixed high-wing spoiler that provides 950-lb of downforce. Powered by a bi-turbo 4.0-liter V8, the McLaren 720S is optioned with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission and the active-aero system that automatically streamlines itself at high speeds. One “huge” advantage goes to the McLaren which weighs less than 3,200 pounds while the Corvette ZR1 weighs in at over 3600-lbs.

And did we mention the price? The ZR1 starts at $123K and the one in this video topped out at nearly $140,000. The McLaren 720S starts at $284,745 but no mention as to the price as tested.


After watching the video, you got to say its most likely these three factors that led to the Corvette ZR1 appearing so slow against the McLaren: Weight, DCT transmission, and the Active Aero. The driver of the McLaren speaks afterward and talks about the weight disparity and aero has as to why he thinks the 720S did so well.

The McLaren 720S appears to be the real deal and if anything, the attributes that the 720S boasts are the same reasons why the mid-engine C8 Corvette is coming.

The Corvette ZR1 with its ZTK high-wing performance package was meant for the track and we are talking road courses, not quarter-miles. We see how well the 720S zooms in a straight line, could it hang with the Corvette ZR1 on a road course? Show me that video next…


Source:
Dragtimes / YouTube

Related:
[VIDEO] Twin-Turbo 1967 Corvette Dominates at the Pikes Peak Airstrip Attack
[VIDEO] Sibling Rivalry: 2017 Corvette Z06 vs 2017 Camaro ZL1
[VIDEO] Girl In a C6 Corvette Z06 Takes Down a 2014 Viper in Roll Race

 



-

9 COMMENTS

  1. Hate to say it, but the ZR1 looked like there might have been a soda can under the throttle…

  2. Sorry, but there’s no way that ZR1 is making 755hp. I understand there’s a 400 lb. weight difference but come on, that doesn’t explain the huge disparity in speed. That MacLaren just walked away from the Corvette.

  3. The 720s has about 710hp to the wheels, so it should be making around 800hp. As good as the ZR1 is, it isn’t going to beat 720s. The ZR1 is going to have a hard time beating a 570 McLaren. I would like to see how the ZR1 does against the Ford GT. I’m a fan of both the Corvette’s & McLaren’s, and please if you are going to do a story about a car manufacturer please spell their name correctly.

  4. These runs were an unfunny joke. Watch the drags Keith posted from https://youtu.be/aEx49xChTw0 and you’ll see how a ZR1 looks when it is being handled properly. The announcer here stating that the ZR1 did 0-60 in 3.2 was illuminating for me, as I recently posted a clip from the July 1 Watkins Glen IMSA race where the broadcasting company touted a 2.95 0-60 for the Z06. You can watch that here: https://youtu.be/n6MaNfatIY4 Videos of events can really be misleading, e.g., while scrolling Google thumbnails just now I noticed that a ZR1 had beaten a Dodge Demon that turned 11+ seconds. Dodge’s first ad for the Demon reprinted a legitimate letter from the NHRA quoting a 9.65, so it is easy to see how a singular event (the Demon probably had not been race prep’d with the skinny front tires and the engine management changes to switch it from 808 to 840 hp) can be image damaging. Anyone wanting to see “a” Corvette dust a McLaren, watch this: https://youtu.be/_DDswtLUhdM I came from an ancient generation, and a “souped up” 1967 Corvette coupe has always been my favorite fantasy, so I really love this guy and his boys for building and racing this jewel.

  5. The 720S is the only car I’d trade my Grand Sport for.
    Contact me if you happen to have an extra you don’t really need…

  6. Add a couple hundred extra pounds for the passenger in the ZR1 — didn’t see a passenger in the 720S (not that a passenger should make that much difference).

  7. You’re right about “that much” difference (I’ve already written my opinion of the lame ZR1 driving), but you reminded me of an embarrassing experience during my ignorant youth. I thought my 1957 Chevrolet was pretty quick, so I loaded up 5 of my friends (2 bench seats) and took them out for a demo. “What’s wrong with my car?” was all I could think, while my courteous friends, some who did not even have a car in 1958, mumbled stuff like “not bad.”

Comments are closed.