Now,as all of you should probably know by now,Chevrolet has released the most powerful Corvette ever made,prior to the release of "Godzilla",aka Nissan GT-R for the unacquainted. It has been dubbed the Corvette ZR1. Quite surprising as Chevrolet,part of the Big Three,is on the brink of bankruptcy. Now,let us take a brief review of the car itself,starting from the exterior.
EXTERIOR
Hmmm. It looks just like the Z06,save the new and fully functional bumpers,new spoiler,a carbon fibre bonnet and side air vents to channel cool air,and as to act as aerodynamic help. Overall,it looks perfectly fine,nothing to shout about but nothing to complain...until you actually nudge the rear bumper. What's this? Now this car has been fitted with plastic bumpers. And not the firm,heavy duty plastic found in supercars but just tacky,Daewoo-esque plastic that can be bought in Wal-Mart for $3. Oh dear,the future looks bleak for our American friend here...
INTERIOR
Inside the ZR1,well,it doesn't strike a chord in the interior design department! It is all to greyish and bland,typical of American cars. I see plastic everywhere and not a percentage of creativity in the interior,let alone its build quality. Thank goodness it has a stick shift,not a ridiculous AMT. The door sills creak every time I apply pressure onto it,so it is an omen of worse things to come. I say a vast array of buttons on the perimeter of the meters,neatly arranged for practicality. The seats are wrapped in leather,albeit not as comfortable to sit on. And it is grey in colour.
ENGINE
Well,it seems that Chevrolet has used an LS3 engine and modified it extensively,and finally redubbing it the LS9,producing 638 hp (476 kW) and 604 ft·lbf (819 N·m). of torque, making this the most powerful production Corvette to date.Sure the V8 is great...for straight roads. The LS9 has a sixth-generation Eaton TVS R2300 roots 4-lobe supercharger with an intercooler. The supercharger's four-lobe design offers improved efficiency over three-lobe models. Nicely done. The ZR1's intercooler is located on top of the engine,clearly shown as the bonnet of the ZR1 has a polycarbonate window that is cut directly above it. I do not understand the whole point of it because other manufacturers have done the same thing but at least shown their cars' engines,not just an intercooler with fancy engravings done possibly by two fat blokes from Kentucky.
TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS
The ZR1 is what I call a modern car with archaic components. The reason why I said it is because I could not think of any other car in production now that still uses leaf spring suspensions. Why,I could get a Honda Civic Type R that has independent suspensions! At least it has Brembo 6 pistons and Brembo 4 pistons brakes on the front and back respectively. The brakes were initially designed for the Ferrari Enzo hypercar. It has Magnetic Selective Ride Control which offers standing start launch modifications.
DRIVING IMPRESSIONS
To the next keen buyer of the ZR1,please don't. You will suffer from the following
-osteoporosis
-eye complications
-massive headaches
Firstly,the car is in no shape at all to be driven by any man,let alone a living thing. It has extremely firm suspension,and when TCS turned off,it will spin out of control,assuming you're one of those post-grad yuppies who has less than a year of driving experience. It is definitely not for the faint hearted.
CONCLUSION
I think Chevrolet has not pulled this off. Never. If it weren't for the GT-R,there would never have been this ZR1. The car looks like a typical British Leyland car,all bits hammered on by some fat geezer. The car itself is in tatters. The only people,I think,who are willing to buy this total abomination of a car,are hardcore GM enthusiasts,or just American patriots who are pretty much stupid. The ZR1 will never be in the book of revolutionary cars. It is just too vulgar and too brash This car has not,and never will,win my heart. Not even if it were to be the last car on Earth.
-iGeek™
