Corvette ZR1X Sets the Production Car Hill Climb Record at Pikes Peak

Jun 22, 2026

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Corvette ZR1X Sets the Production Car Hill Climb Record at Pikes Peak

Photo Credit: Larry Chen

You can add the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb to the list of records held by the 2026 Corvette ZR1X. The ultimate AWD Corvette made the run up the 14,115-foot summit on Sunday, smashing the old record by 23 seconds to set a new record time for a production car.

IndyCar driver and Pikes Peak veteran JR Hildebrand teamed up with Chevrolet and Mobil 1 for the assault on Pikes Peak, and the car apparently lived up to expectations after qualifying P1 in the Time Attack 1 division. Hildebrand completed Sunday’s “Race to the Clouds” with a time of 9:30.104.

Executive Corvette Chief Engineer Tony Roma was in Colorado for the event and was highly energized by the ZR1X’s result. “When JR and I first started talking about this program and what the car was capable of,” Roma said. “We knew the car would be fast. We did a little bit of analysis to know it should easily break the record, but I mean, he just crushed it!”

The Corvette ZR1X featured a modified version of the Stars and Steel package, and it wore the full Carbon Aero package and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires on visible carbon fiber wheels. The rules specify a number of safety devices must be installed in the car including a full roll cage, but nothing else was done to change the overall “stock” nature of the car.

Roma describes it as “basically a production car with the alignment and tire pressure set.” He says, “We’ve added only the things required for the rules: safety equipment, fuel cell, roll cage, seat belts, fire system, cutoff switches, things like that. There’s nothing performance enhancement-wise, everything is bone stock and legit, right down to the DOT tires that you can buy on your ZR1X.”

That safety equipment is very much needed because this isn’t just like any other track with broad run off areas. It’s a 12.42-mile trek featuring 156 curves and switchbacks with no guardrails and sheer drop-offs. In addition to the asphalt and ever-changing weather, the higher altitude and thinner air brings its own challenges.

The starting line for Pikes Peak is already at 9,390 feet where the thinner air already begins to impact performance, but the Corvette ZR1X’s twin-turbo set up counteracts the thinner air as it makes the climb. Also providing a leg-up on previous Corvettes making the hill climb is the ZR1X’s All-Wheel Drive which helps to pull the car through the 156 corners as it makes its accent.

“This is just the right tool for the job to come to a place like this,” Hildebrand said. “You’ve got the front drive unit literally pulling you out of the corners, right up into the RPM band of the ICE powertrain behind you. And it’s all just completely seamless… I’m just sitting here, locked in, enjoying the ride.”

This isn’t the first production car record held by Chevrolet at Pikes Peak. Back in 1955, Zora Arkus-Duntov drove a camouflaged pre-production 1956 Chevrolet 210 at Pikes Peak and set the “sedan-class” record with a time of 17 minutes and 24 seconds.Zora’s time shattered the record by more than two minutes. Unlike todays racers, Zora also had to contend with challenging road types which shifted from paved to gavel and dirt higher up.

Also setting a record this year was Emelia Hartford who drove a C8 Corvette ZR1. She became the fastest woman on four wheels “up the hill” by beating the former “Queen of the Mountain” Laura Hayes by six seconds. Emelia finished 17th overall and 4th in the Time Attack 1 Division with a time of 10:11.018.