Discover a detailed review of the 1953–1962 C1 Corvette — from its humble parts-bin beginnings to the engineering decisions that shaped its performance, style, and enduring legacy in Corvette history.
Corvette racers never had a better friend than Zora Arkus-Duntov. For the most part, Zora was good at sidestepping GM’s “we don’t race” edict. For those who knew what to look for, there were always plenty of “heavy-duty” and “off-road” options for Corvettes. As the new Sting Ray was being prepared for the ’63 launch, Duntov assembled the most advanced Corvette box racer to that date – the Z06.
For its day, the Z06 was a runner, so let’s just right to the performance numbers. With a power-to-weight ratio of 8.09:1, the Z06 could clock 0-to-60 mph in just 4.0-seconds and the quarter-mile in 12.0-seconds at 114-mph. Top speed was just over 170-mph! This was Dreamland in 2001! The best part was that this kind of performance could be ordered from your local Chevy dealer for about the same cost as the Corvette roadster. Gas mileage for this beast was astonishing. So long as you weren’t hot-dogging around, the Z06 could get 18 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway.
Corvette racers never had a better friend than Zora Arkus-Duntov. After the heavy lifting was completed and the new Sting Ray’s design was basically finished, Duntov and his team set out to create their Racer Kit for the new car. It is not known exactly how the moniker “Z06” was chosen, perhaps by chance, but it sure sounded sexy and no one knew that almost 40 years later there would be a separate performance model with the heart and soul of the Racer Kit, wearing a Z06 badge.
The 1970-1/2 – 1972 ZR-1: There have been three distinctive “ZR-1 / ZR1” Corvettes since 1970. The first ZR-1 was actually the last of Duntov’s “Racer Kit” option packages, designed to provide a Corvette customer with the basics needed to go SCCA racing. Offered from 1970-1/2 to 1972, the RPO ZR-1 (and RPO ZR-2) were strictly “under-the-skin” hardware packages. There were no special badges, scoops, vents, limps, bumps, or budges. From the outside, the ZR-1 looked like any other LT-1 or 454 (as with the ZR-2) Corvette. These unique cars were not “marketed” in any way at all. You had to know about them to seek one out, and most of them, likely never saw street use.
A fascinating vintage document has surfaced and is available as a free PDF download thanks to the GM Heritage Center. The 23 page document walks the reader through topics that includes everything a Corvette owner needs to know about how to race his Corvette!
Explore the story behind Roger Judski’s purchase of one of only two official 1969 ZL-1 Corvettes. Powered by the legendary all-aluminum 427, the ZL-1 stands among the rarest and most coveted big-block Corvettes ever built. This acquisition highlights the enduring mystique, performance heritage and collector significance of one of Chevrolet’s ultimate factory-engineered icons.
On March 16,2012 GMAuthority.com announced that for the 2012 racing season, the C6.R ZR1 Corvette would be wearing a new suit. We’re not talking about the livery, it’s still Competition Yellow with black graphics that seems to change every few races.
No, we’re talking about actual body parts. It was only six years ago that the production widebody C6 Z06 gave the new C6 that big, broad shoulders look that we love so much. It wasn’t long before lots of regular Corvettes were wearing Z06 outfits, and why not? It looks great, almost as if that’s the way the C6 should have looked in ‘05. But things evolve and we go from there. It wasn’t just a fad either. Chevrolet certainly noticed and and in ‘10 dished up the Grand Sport model, wearing Z06 cloths and a new set of front fender vents. The new look struck a chord, because in ‘10 the Grand Sport Corvette made up 49.5% of total sales and in ‘11 Grand Sports accounted for 58.7% of sales! That’s very impressive and the Corvette planners deserve credit for picking up on the widebody trend. – Catch the rest of the story, plus cool images, and a special video staring the one and only Jack LaLanne!
