Yes, it's a Corvette. And not even a
new Stingray
, the car that has met with so much approval in the UK. It's a
C4 ZR1
, 25 years old and resplendent in red with very shiny wheels, a gigantic steering wheel and seats apparently designed for cocooning, er, Americans. Oh, and it's £25K. What?
Woulnd't want to kerb those...
Hang on though, because all is not quite what it seems. The ZR1 isn't the old tank you may imagine it to be, largely because it's not really a Corvette. Alright, that's a little hyperbolic but the level of work to create a ZR1 from a C4 is incredible.
Take the engine. The LT5 was developed with Lotus following GM's 1986 takeover - more on that collaboration to follow - and is widely regarded as a fairly phenomenal V8. It was all-aluminum with four valves per cylinder, the only non-pushrod engine to ever be found in a Corvette and more powerful than a 964 Turbo. It was so advanced for the late 80s that GM struggled to build it so engine construction was outsourced to Mercury Marine in Oklahoma.
In a world of Audi RS3s and A45 AMGs, 380hp and 370lb ft aren't all that remarkable. However, the production car speed records the ZR1 achieved certainly are. It set seven FIA-verified records in March 1990, including a ludicrous average of 173.791mph for 5,000 miles. Think about that.
While we're on the ZR1 being a thoroughly modern muscle car, consider this: it has a valet key. Yep, all the fuss Ford is making now about 'MyKey', the Hellcat red fob and the Veyron top speed enabler were all beaten by this old Chevrolet. It became a 16-valve V8 with power limited to 250hp to limit the silliness those allowed to borrow the ZR1 could achieve.
But think of the engineering...
The Lotus link extends to the handling too. Chevrolet fitted 'Selective Ride Control' as standard to the ZR1, essentially a multi-mode damper system we're so familiar with today. Lotus was reputedly consulted on the settings for this, plus the steering calibration. And if there's one company you want on damper and steering set-up...
One last thing before we discuss the actual car for sale. Watch this video. It's a customer video for ZR1 owners and is crammed with glorious early 90s cringe moments. Beige slacks? Sure. Dodgy branded polos? Of course. Suspect gold jewellery? Hell yeah. But look past the presentation skills and there are some very interesting stats in the vid. Near-perfect weight distribution, brakes inspired by the race car, and the use of "aloominum" to reduce mass. And don't forget to check out our race driver performance testing at 1:50. That's how real men shift!
Anyway, the 'Corvette Red', er, Corvette. Obviously C4s aren't exactly commonplace over here but you will surely struggle to find a better one. It's been in the UK for the past 15 years but in storage for about half of that so the mileage is very low at 32,000. The owner is evidently very knowledgeable and fills the ad with useful info. The private plate isn't included either, which is a bonus.
Yes, Corvettes are available for less money. You may not even want a Corvette at all. But the ZR1 represents a fascinating point in Corvette history, where it was keen to shake off the lame image of the C3 and create actual sports cars with that evocative name. If anyone has experience of the ZR1 it would be fascinating to hear about. And if the current Z06 is at 650hp, what the hell will the next ZR1 be like?
Performance testing God bless Corvette vid
here
CHEVROLET CORVETTE C4 ZR1
Engine: 5,732cc, V8
Transmission: 6-speed manual, rear-wheel drive
Power (hp): 380@5,800rpm
Torque (lb ft): 370@4,800rpm
MPG: N/A
CO2: N/A
First registered: 1990
Recorded mileage: 32,000
Price new: $58,995 (1990)
Yours for: £24,950
See the original advert here.