Here’s a Special Edition of Quick Shifts for Memorial Day

Welcome back to another exciting edition of Quick Shifts! Quick Shifts is a content feature here at CorvetteBlogger that highlights links to Corvette and automotive-related stories of interest. In this edition, Engineers will Explain the most impressive acts of the C8Z; the Brits finally give a Corvette its due, some ‘Vettes for sale are so good that we have questions, a 3.21 second 0-100 happened, the Hellcat van, big industry reveals and news, and more!

FIRST GEAR

The Engineering Explained YouTube Channel will kick things off this Memorial Day with a new Z06 video that, you know, explains three mind-boggling feats that the most exotic vehicle ever minted by General Motors achieves. First, how is it quicker with 670 HP than the 755-horse C7 ZR1? Second, how does it make more power with 5.5 free breathing liters than the previous Z06 did with more displacement AND a supercharger? Finally, how can the high-revving LT6 possibly have a flatter torque curve than its supercharged pushrod predecessor? Check it out, but only if you are prepared to be blinded by science!

SECOND GEAR

Once you get past the engineering excellence on full display in the C8 Z06, one of the most fascinating things about the car, and the C8 in general, has been its first-ever status as an export to countries like the UK and Australia (the latter of which is destined to become the nation with the most unfilled recalls in automotive history after this week’s announcement). In Britain, one of our favorite publications had a chance to sample a US-spec C8Z on their home turf, and even though they aren’t allowed to give a Corvette a five-star rating because of some apparent nationwide edict, evo came away more than impressed! The whole writeup is available here, but the article that poises the Z as “America’s 911 GT3” closes beautifully with the following; “It’s not just the Z06’s handling that impresses. The ride is excellent in all modes, from Tour to Track, even though in Track the Z06 is so taut it feels like a different car. And that’s the thing about this Corvette: the tyres, the aero and the engine’s top-end all shout race car but the specification includes multi-way electric memory seats, a 14-speaker Bose sound system and a head-up display. This sounds contradictory but isn’t because the Z06 has remarkable bandwidth; it can feel everyday effortless one moment and track ready the next. Is it as desirable or compelling as a 911 GT3, Ferrari F8 Tributo or McLaren 720S? We have a feeling it might prove even more impressive on UK roads.” Coming from a country where the automotive press is dyed-in-the-wool to lionize sports cars from Europe and belittle anything from the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave, that is high praise, indeed!

THIRD GEAR

Shifting to third, we will focus on some notable Corvettes for sale and the bigger questions that they inspire. For this exercise, we will start with another Inferno Orange Z06 Carbon up for grabs. After seeing almost none of the 85 similar examples hit the market in 2021 and 2022, a third IOM Carbon surfacing in the past couple of months begs the question, why are a relatively significant number of people suddenly deciding to part with one of the most special limited-edition Corvettes of the past two decades? We have a few theories. It could just be that the market for top-shelf C6s (the ZR1 and later Z06s, especially ones equipped with the Z07 Ultimate Performance Package) is very strong right now, and people are jumping at the opportunity to get $80,000+ for cars that were underappreciated for a while there. Another strong possibility is that Carbon owners look at everything on the horizon and see the current Z06 as their last chance to buy a car of any kind – Corvette or not – that suits their naturally aspirated preferences. Whatever is going on, I stand by my thesis that there’s never been a better time to have some extra coin at your disposal; I’d snap one of these up in a heartbeat (though probably not this one; it isn’t mentioned in the description, but upon further inspection, it sure looks like there’s a PROCHARGER sharing the engine bay with that particular LS7, which gives significant gains to be sure, but also takes away what makes the 7.0 unique amongst modern Z-badged Corvettes) before they take the next step and start trading for six digits.

Next up is a 2019 ZR1 with the holy trinity of options; ZTK Track Package, 7-speed manual transmission, and the Sebring Orange Design Package. Oh, and did I mention that it only has 395 miles!? It is the best one I’ve seen since the last time I checked JFK Autos’ eBay listings. Where and how are they sourcing all of these mint ZR1s? Their current inventory boasts a pair of matching top-dog C7s – an orange drop top ZTK to go with the coupe above and a Ceramic Matrix Gray example of each body style. All four sport big wings and three pedals, and the craziest part is that they have 1,647 miles… combined! In fact, at 950 miles, only the CMG ‘vert has more miles than the orange beauty that led off this paragraph. The other convertible has only turned over its odometer 72 times since leaving Bowling Green; it is completely insane (the 8-mile Viper ACR-E and modern 5.0-powered ’71 Bronco restomod that round out their current floorplan aren’t too shabby, either)! This is nothing new, either; a quick scroll through their recent sales reveals a murderers row of basically untouched ZR1s, S197 Shelby Super Snakes, S550 Shelby GT350Rs, and Gen V Vipers that all still have plastic on the seats. How is this even possible!? I gots to know!


One more for the road! This 2016 Z06 on Bring a Trailer doesn’t really raise any existential questions, but man, is she sweet! It features the top-shelf 3LZ equipment group, all black everything, the tide-rising Z07 package, a real-deal clutch, eye-catching yellow calipers, and Comp Seats! Bidding ends just before noon on Sunday, and it has only reached $55,000 as of writing, with three days left to go. Someone is going to get a fantastic car in this one; I hope it’s one of my readers!

FOURTH GEAR

It’s the Impatien’ Croatian! Now, it’s pretty common knowledge that electric vehicles don’t stir (or even register, really) your author’s soul like their almost living and breathing internal combustion counterparts, but the Rimac Nevera deserves a shoutout for the performance that it turned in this past week. The Croatian hypercar recently set 23(!) speed records in a single day, and some of them are hard to even wrap your head around! It hit 60 in 1.74 seconds, 100 in 3.21 seconds, 200 in 10.86 seconds, and completed the standing quarter in just 8.25 ticks of the clock! Strangely, I still don’t want one, but nobody can deny that this is incredible stuff, and you can check out the complete list of records for yourself here.

For more on the bewildering Nevera, we are going to send you back across the pond to evo.com, where they tested this ultimate EV against all four turbos and 16 cylinders of the 1,578-horse Bugatti Chiron Super Sport. Talk about a heavyweight title fight!

To be fair to the Rimac, as remarkable as the Chiron is, I don’t really want one of those either, even if I suddenly could afford one. We’ll call a wrap on fourth gear with something that makes similar power and absolutely does speak to me. Check out the Demon-possessed, carbon fiber wide-bodied Chrysler Pacifica from SpeedKore; automotive artwork, right there!

FIFTH GEAR

This could technically be split into two gears to make it to the six that we usually shoot for, but we’re going to call it a day after fifth gear’s smattering of industry news this week. Back in February, we wondered if the Corvette would enter the new off-road sports car market. Well, first tests of the Lamborghini Huracán Sterrato that led us down that line of thought are out, and we think a ‘Vette built in a similar vein is an even better idea now; this thing looks like a complete blast!

There’s a new Aston Martin flagship on the way! The DB12 broke cover on Wednesday, and, as we’ve all come to expect, it is bite the back of your hand pretty. The engine remains in front of the driver, but instead of the V12 that has come to define its lineage, the 12th member of the family makes do with a twin-turbo V8 sourced from the madmen at AMG. Losing cylinders is always a bummer, but when you start with 12, you can still hold on to most of your street cred by shedding up to four pistons, and it helps that the V8 is capable of outmuscling the outgoing 12 with 671 horses. On another note, it is extremely gratifying that after decades of hearing the English commentariat – most notably the face of the OG Top Gear lineup – dog American performance cars for lagging behind the Euros in HP/liter, we’ve reached a point in time when the humble Z06 can condescend to stuffy UK stalwarts like this Aston; “Oh, you need two turbos to get to that power number? How quaint!”

Cadillac’s famed V-line of four-door Corvettes turns 20 this year! To celebrate that first stuffing of the C5 Z06’s 5.7L LS6 into a gen-one CTS, the current Vs, and Blackwings are getting some new colors – including the sweet-looking Cyber Yellow from C&D’s lead picture –, special “20th” start-up graphics, and a handful of other light updates. Get these last and best examples of the breed while you still can; the CT4 V Blackwing is an American M3 featuring a 472-horse blown V6, and its big brother, the CT5, is motivated by a 668-horse version of the C7Z’s monster LT4!

Without doubt, the automotive news cycle of late has been dominated by mid-size trucks. The newly released third-gen Chevy Colorado has been joined by a new Ford Ranger (including a 405-HP “Raptor” version) and a fresh Toyota Tacoma in the past 14 days. Car and Driver was nice enough to put together a spec-sheet comparison before the trio can meet in the metal. With a Dakota resurrection on the horizon, this segment that was all but dead a few years ago suddenly looks like one of the most hotly-contested spaces in the industry! It will be fun to watch everything play out, and maybe the added pressure will finally force GM to greenlight our dream 6.2L Colorado that almost was!

Have an excellent weekend, Corvette Nation, and to my fellow educators out there, you made it! We officially have the best job in the world for the next couple of months!

Related:
C8 Z06 Meets C4 ZR-1, C6 ZR1 Makes Sense, Corvettes for Sale, SuperCar News, Forgotten C4 EV, and More
C8 Ownership Costs, The C6Z Still Has its Fastball, Weekend ‘Vette Auction Picks, and More!
LT6 Envy, Five Secrets of Carbon Fiber Wheels, Stingray Updates and C8Z Wallpapers