C8 Corvette ZR1 On-Track at the Nurburgring

The 2025 Corvette ZR1 has been testing at the Nurburgring this week and our spy photographers were there to capture this running footage of the new turbocharged ZR1 as it made its way around the famous German track.
Read more at CorvetteBlogger.com:
www.corvettebl...
Check out our C8 Corvette ZR1 News Archive:
www.corvettebl...

[@nathangerzen3727]

Definitely sounds like there's turbos

[@RBZ06LT6]

True and no front axles can be seen in the center hub hole.

[@stoneeh]

Yep. And you can recognize it because there's no sound at all 😆

[@ReginaldGriffin-f3x]

Yep it’s twin turbocharged

[@silverfoxvr8541]

The track has a decibel limit. They have it a bit choked down to meet that and you can hear it struggling for air. If that's a TT 5.5, it's gonna be a monster.

[@stoneeh]

Nope, they just added a turbo and that sucks away the exhaust pressure and makes it sound like shit. Usual story.

[@anonymous..-]

First time hearing a turbo car huh ?

[@randomgamer6793]

yup u called it

[@JuanGarcia-yg5wo]

It surely has an active exhaust like most modern sports cars and they probably changed the settings to have the exhaust on normal. Also in the U.S. in the state of California they are very strict with exhaust noise, so the vehicle must comply to sell in that crucial part of the American market.

[@MrPrime269]

I think the weird exhaust tips are to probably mute the sound. I bet the car is so loud that it exceeds the track decibel limit

[@Tylerm684]

That front end and oh my gosh that hood! What a beast this is going to be! ❤

[@rocketpigrecords3719]

You could take a nice nap in the gap on the hood while waiting your turn to run 😂

[@mikeb9429]

Sounds like boost when it’s under load

[@minibikemadman]

ya its turbocharged.

[@yudodis]

​@@minibikemadmanmuffled exhaust is tell-tale that it's turbocharged

[@chipattack912]

@@yudodis you can see the turn-downs on the exhaust. A sign that they had to make this car quieter than what will be stock thanks to ridiculous sound regulations at the Nurburgring

[@beemteamkeem]

It's definitely boosted. That's why you don't hear the V8 sound as much anynore! No whine in sight either!

[@JackVac_joeblower]

​@chipattack912 this sound regulation is so much bs

[@dandanes2454]

ZR1 to GT3 RS: My wing is bigger than yours..

[@_kunkle]

They muffled the hell out of it but you can still hear that pressure through the exhaust lol

[@yugarten8523]

Nurburgring sound regulations will make you do that !

[@_kunkle]

@@yugarten8523 Its got turbos

[@ryanhamilton6445]

@@_kunklelook at the exhaust tips

[@CVetteMan1111]

They're definitely still disguising the real sound that's gunna be coming out the back of this one. I like to see how they're tinkering with the sharpening of the lines all around the car. I like that monster race wing. They're definitely trying to push the envelope. I like where it's going. I still think the Zora is going to be the most rediculous version. Even though he has been dead and gone for many years I think the bowtie boys want to make him proud and america proud and gain respect across the board in the car culture community.

[@rubyred93chev]

_They have to because there's a noise ordinance on the track. That said, the ZR1 is going to be the very best the C8 will ever have. (And if the model lineup includes the Father of the Corvette in its namesake, the buying public will be waiting). Here's an interesting clue about this car: the first person on the planet to drive the car will be Jay Leno. (Hope you saw his ERay vlog with Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter yesterday)._

[@jimblu86]

Thanks for the info! i was just thinking they must have put an extra muffler and the down turn tips on the car for the track. I had to watch a couple different vids to even hear it. We all know cats and the turbos are enough muffling! I cant wait to hear it sing, and see what the lt7 can do when turned up. Probably all forged, lower c:r, Ti rods ect...

[@zontetaji506]

The aero on this vehicle arouses me

[@zontetaji506]

This the car that's finna make America great again

[@zontetaji506]

I literally want to become an engineer just to work on this car it's so amazing what they are bringing to the public

[@toxicgracie3772]

Im assuming it'll match up against a Porsche GT3 RS. If not then they missed the ball. They need to start cutting weight i.e deleting creature comforts. The C7 ZR1 could've ate the Ford GT and Viper ACR for lunch had they not kept it fully equipped with all the creature comforts. It's time Chevy get serious about track times with the high end Corvettes

[@chriskolaska897]

Well the C7 ZR1 definitely beat the Ford GT but the rest you mentioned yea i agree with what you said but Chevy's trying to sell keep it a car with amenities so that way they can aim towards a larger variety of people instead of just the race enthusiasts or collectors.

[@silverback5347]

Considering the z06 kept up with the 992 gt3 rs I would hope the zr1 will be faster.

[@toxicgracie3772]

@@silverback5347 Sorry I meant GT2 RS

[@user-qc7dr3cd3q]

Agree, they need to shape the tail similar to McLarens and forget about golf clubs! Get the size down!

[@AutoSonic495]

Based off of the sound it seems to be reaching lower RPM than the Z06 while still giving off the same sound, which if that's anything to go by, my two guesses as far as what this engine could be is either the LT2 with a flat plane crank and turbos, or an LT6 with a cross plane with turbos, or maybe the RPM was reduced due to the extra induction

[@CarsandChris]

It's 100% a flat plane engine

[@_kunkle]

Yeah definitely flat plane but not revving as high. I assume they did lower compression and lower rpm to keep it reliable with turbos

[@minibikemadman]

imagine tuning this thing...what's a beast chevy releasing a ripper.

[@chemicalspore]

Chevy trying hard to keep true to the V8. Phuck V10, we put turbo

[@paulhammal7231]

I’m recently back from Canada and I saw quite a few Z06’s. And I must say they do look the absolute nuts!

[@mattsomeonewithansrt3948]

They should look pretty good for 150K. Personally I thought the base c8 looks ugly as hell. The z06 in person looks way better than the base C8 I was actually very surprised.

[@richardmorris7063]

Notice the different wings,one is bigger & flatter,the other shaped like the Z06 wing.

[@briandouglas5552]

Now, we can see the thinking in redesigning the boomerang trim on the side intake of the Stingray into the "T" or "Y" shape of the Z06. It never made sense to me, stylistically, to have that rearward piece. Now, we can see that it was in preparation for the little inlets above the rear tire wheel openings of the ZR1. I presume those are there to feed cooling air to the turbos.

[@dandanes2454]

The hood is cool but the rear end still looks like crap.. as if it were a last hour design and they just gave up!

[@patrickkelly9002]

Its definitely a hemi. With dual quads and tpi set up. And i heard its g9nna have twin turbos and supercharged. I got this from a reliable source. A friend of mines cousins girlfriends brothers best friend is 3rd cousin to a girl who is dating a guy that cleans the bathroom in bowling green plant. He found out and thats how i know.

[@stackenali7059]

BRB - I just pissed myself.

[@dekesone1]

The turbos take some of the edge off that screaming engine note, so it doesn't sound quite as ferocious. But it's an exceptional tradeoff based on the speeds we're seeing here.

[@dekesone1]

@@chrisdockman4762 All the auto magazines are reporting that it's turbocharged, and I can definitely hear a muffled "whoosh" that sounds like a turbo to me.

[@dekesone1]

@@chrisdockman4762 As a current owner of two GM turbo platforms (ATS-V and custom CTS-V), I respectfully disagree. Also,.it makes no logical sense that GM would spend the enormous amounts of money to test at the Ring with a mule that doesn't have the final engine config. It's definitely tubo'd.

[@TML34]

Twin turbo 5.5L. This will compete nicely with GT3RS. Much faster in a straight line, but that RS has some crazy aero!

[@RSnowin]

This is a rival to the upcoming GT2RS

[@jesusaliaga3981]

This car has no chance of defeating even the gt3rs

[@thenotoriousc8846]

yea it does fool@@jesusaliaga3981

[@YusufSayed-px2xy]

The C8 ZO6 already beat the GT3 RS around a handful of tracks

[@bulldog3019]

@@RSnowinas much as I’d like hate, it won’t come close to the 992 GT2 RS… it should be a little faster than the 991 GT2 RS maybe but definitely not the next gen…

[@trevorbrown4217]

The only thing that sucks about it is that I'll never be able to afford it.

[@AgeOfGrace2023]

Sounds to me like waste gates opening up in that exhaust note. I would bet its TT. Dont hear any super charger whine.

[@Mkiv-A80]

Is that boost I hear?

[@gen1c8rs88]

Yes and a quiet mode on the track and a marginally louder mode that was used a few times on the street(which sounds promising).

[@emilioedwards6316]

Yep that’s for sure. that is boost.

[@nastyz477]

Dealer price. 180k. Corvette is no longer a great attainable car which is was meant to be. What a shame

[@StillmanSpinningSteel]

Yeah. They are trying to identify themselves as a super car to justify their price jump. Really tacky if you ask me

[@AlexHigley]

I had long exhaust tips and had switched the air filter which definitely gave my C8 Stingray a higher pitched exhaust sound. I currently have a C8 Z06 and even though in this video the car isn’t getting up into higher RPMS, I still think that sounds much more like turbos on the LT2 engine, than on the LT6 flat plane crank engine. We shall see soon enough.

[@chriskolaska897]

Yea from what I've been reading they won't go with the flat plane crank because it'll be too unreliable once they put turbos on it as the internals are just to weak to handle it so they're probably going with the LT2 out if the Stingray or possibly going with a new LT7 7.0. I b personally hope they put the LT7 in it that'll be pretty cool.

[@Fat-bananas]

@@chriskolaska897We've had confirmation from multiple sources over the years that the ZR1 will mate the 5.5 engine to a pair of turbos. It also goes without saying its a far better match for the high power output Chevy is aiming for, and a better starting point than the ~500 hp 6.2 LT2. They're not benchmarking the car or engine versus a GT500 or Hellcat.. they're benchmarking it against the Pista and 765lt

[@CarsandChris]

It's definitely a flat plane engine. They just won't rev it as high. Might bring down the displacement too. But definitely a flat plane crank

[@DanteGonxhja]

Its gonna be based on the LT6 but with a cross plane crank instead of flat

[@CarsandChris]

@@DanteGonxhja not true whatsoever

[@dhan219]

At 2:39 hybrid Zora is spotted

[@al151]

It does look heavy unfortunately. With twin turbos and intercooler probably scales around 3800-3900 lbs. I remember c6 zr1 was around 3300 lbs.

[@moderngrub1876]

that sounds like a straight up fighter jet

[@johnpearce5693]

It's funny, Corvette builds another insanely fast car. What does Ford do? They build a $325,000 track mustang that is still slow 😢. Honestly Ford is doing the wrong thing, I respect keeping the muscle car around but keep it a muscle car. Make one with a big engine on it, and make one with a huge supercharger on it like a hellcat. If Ford made a "hellcat" mustang, it would sell like crazy.

[@Charlemagne89]

Now imagine this with the E-motor up front. It'll be a true supercar if it isn't already. Probably 4100-4200lbs but oh well.

[@800horsegarage8]

Does not sound as good as the C7 ZR1.

[@mma4rum736]

Shhh let people have fun

[@LagmasterB]

Flat plane vs cross plane crank

[@jonathanng138]

Hope this is able to compete with the GT2RS and Black series in terms of track records

[@dezeefresh5257]

Mad w GM cz they wnt REC - Rr Eng Car , fr d Best FEC - Fr Eng Car . Cz All RECs r DUMB. But hd 2 jst C How Good GM Fixd The Dumbness. Seem Pretty Stable. Dif Story cm Wet.

[@redstingraycorvette]

I think what is very sad every variation of this car that General Motors puts out pushes the normal person that works a normal job right out of the car market for this car . when I priced a stingray out it was well over $90,000. This is for a car that started out at 59 .900 . I am an employee of almost 40 years and as far as I am concerned, General Motors can shove this car where the sun doesn’t shine. They are so greedy that they can’t even give their employees the discount that they promised them on this car, I will never buy another General Motors product again.

[@kingsakie132]

Did they put long exhausts to disguise the sound ?

[@bd692]

Yes

[@applejacks971]

Anyone get the lap time of the yellow delivery truck at 3:48? Asking for Fed-Ex...

[@1993ka24det]

Usually they want to maximize the Aero efficiency, but there really isn't a rear diffuser on this car🧐

[@viperford6840]

It's a prototype

[@backroadbeetle4781]

Imagine if its the flat 8, turbo, annnndddd hybrid. Would easily break the 1,000hp mark.

[@clark-n-anitakalens7599]

Awesome Keith! This is the one we’ve been waiting for! Thanks so much for posting!

[@mayhemmike1789]

😂😂😂😂S L O W!

[@jostrander71]

If Maro Engel got the wheel the C8 ZR1 would have a blistering time. I guess having engineers drive makes it more relatable to average weekend racers.

[@bobsmoot8454]

The Z06 set the bar for performance per dollar metric, can’t wait to see what the ZR1 can do as far as lap times and straight line performance at a starting price of what, $150k?

[@fppro1679]

The Golden age has arrived!

[@n3s4r1]

💪🤤

[@JoeStill-un9gp]

Who's driving, Mario Andretti? Jeff Gordon, or the STIG?

[@scottgarner8270]

Two different cars shown? Two distinctively different wing spoilers

[@Grip_Addict]

Definitely sounds like a cross plane crank to me.

[@Luke-cb3ly]

my guess is that GM will do the same ford did it with the GT350/GT500. GT350 being IN/A flat plane, and the GT500 using forced induction with Cross plane

[@CarsandChris]

Nope. This is 100% a flat plane engine

[@stangnutlx]

This video is sponsored by New Balance shoes and Fruit of the Loom white socks.

[@CanadianSpeedster]

That thing just wants to go….

[@a.t1313]

There will never be an official Ring time released unless it beats Viper ACR 7:01 lap time

[@johnathanwilliams2913]

Yo this car is gonna sound crazy straight pipped or with a less restrictive exhaust 😳

[@emilioedwards6316]

It’s definitely turbocharged.

[@turbobros_online1561]

I agree, it's got that signature turbo hit boost sound with the intake induction noise. If not I will be surprised.

[@theranter]

Twin Turbo. Probably gonna be around 750-800 hp… maaaybe 840… the Zora was targeted to have 950-1,000 hp using the Twin Turbo Flat-plane V8 along with the electric drivetrain in the front and the batteries. Granted, this is info I got back when the ute development mules were running, but everything that was leaked in forums that I saw back then has been accurate so far.

[@yudodis]

They will advertise ~825-875 HP but it I'll probably put that power down to the tire...

[@theranter]

@@yudodis doubtful. The Z06 puts out 600 hp at the wheels. GM cites horsepower at the crank.

[@yudodis]

​@@theranterGM is evolving...

[@311superfly]

Yet Cadillac is halo racing brand. USA AOk

[@c.j.1089]

Euro spec exhaust is so restrictive the car sounds like a damn air blower.

[@peaohvee1784]

Don't even have a C8 Z06 ring time yet......

[@YouTuber-jz5nd]

I really like how you steal others content to make your videos...

[@privateer0561]

Sounds like sh*t. Something is off with the exhaust.

[@joelpierce3940]

Why be enamored with a flat plane crank? Just because Ford does it? Torque at low rpm’s is low, as opposed to the 2019 ZR1.

[@jostrander71]

Z06 does 2.5 to 60 so low end torque isn't an issue with proper gears. Why? Because 9000 rpm. 670hp NA. That's a start

[@turbobros_online1561]

OOOOFF!! Forced induction for sure!

[@stevenwright6573]

The C7 had 755 hp, I'm hoping for 900 on this C8.

[@georgegiannopouloscamarozl1028]

950

[@JJsGA]

Gonna be in the 800 range. The Zora will be 1000

[@georgegiannopouloscamarozl1028]

@@JJsGA Who told you that neggro George Floyd cousin 950 850 horsepower car and drive saying.

[@jostrander71]

​@@georgegiannopouloscamarozl1028 Definitely not 950. Almost 300 more than the Z06? Nope. 850 was leaked 2 years ago.

[@moderngrub1876]

@@jostrander71 things can change over 2 years

[@esco75]

It doesn't sound like the flat plane crank.

[@michaelriedl1591]

Look at the wing. This is a Z06, not a ZR1.

[@user-rw8zj1td9v]

Seems like they're testing two different engines.

[@oistein74]

Not a flat plane crank engine

[@eljefe3993]

What a slow looking vette

[@Repomex01]

Honda Civic wants its wing back.

[@thiosemicarbizidebenzoylal2921]

This aint no FPC engine folks.

[@pacekey694]

It is

[@thiosemicarbizidebenzoylal2921]

@@pacekey694 Sure doesn't sound like it.

[@jamesmuhray3204]

C8 z06 sounds way better

[@badass1g]

No active aero?! 😅 love the new hood tho. 100% guaranteed it’s turbo

[@blue597]

Floatplane crank motor no doubt.

[@ibsnipingyou]

I’m really liking the look of that bigger ZR1 wing!

[@thenotoriousc8846]

you would

[@ibsnipingyou]

I like you

[@thenotoriousc8846]

@@ibsnipingyou same.

[@erichaley4485]

Sounds like a pushrod V8

[@gtr485]

Sounds like a McLaren

[@xtop23]

Just wish the ass end of the new vette wasn’t so ugly

[@pizzaparty-r1c]

$400k after dealer markups.

[@juffurey]

turbocharged? wtf?

[@GoalDreamsLLC]

I'm just getting into cars is there a reason people dont like Turbos in a engine?

[@Tylerm684]

Generally it mutes the exhaust note quite a bit compared to naturally aspirated. In the past turbo lag was also a big deal but now with the twin turbo setups you tend to get more even power delivery.

[@SlowZz34]

Sounds like a Flat plane crank TT V8. Sounds just like the 488.

[@shaikymandel7593]

And they wanna say that it’s a 7L V12 hybrid supercharged and turbocharged internal combustion engine???! I say it’s electric.

[@BryanLopez-di7ui]

Sound like a baby venom f5

[@williamthornton5856]

Around 7 min 5 sec to 7 min 10 sec ?

[@jafferm1938]

VERY excited for this car. Definitely sounds like they went back to a cross plane crank like a v8 in a corvette should be. Flat plane garbage never should've been in a corvette. Cant wait to see power numbers and specs

[@tracewaybos]

GM did a hell of a job disguising the sound. Definitely not guttural and low enough to be the 6.2, plus the exhaust exits in the middle. Curious if they did the same thing Ford did and removed the flat plane crank and went cross plane with the 5.5 LT6.

[@LSC2001]

Sure hope they got the weight down on these cars. 3800lbs for a car like this is pretty gross. Missing the days of my 2006 Z06 that was well under 3300 lbs.

[@ferrarikingdom]

It’s sounds like a flat plane crank to me just feed a pair of turbos . I think the strange sound people are describing is the drastic change in exhaust manifold

[@jimblu86]

They have to muffle it extra to drive on the nurburgring

[@dr.jiIIaIicecooper2587]

Fast but Ugly

[@mcmc1863]

Thats a very planted car

[@williamduval9856]

The wing is still the same as Z06

[@smcremix8791]

thats a z06!

[@Michael-lz3bk]

It looks pretty damn fast

[@GT-OD]

Hybrid.

[@Chris-id1or]

I bet it has 950bhp

[@stokeswait1984]

Yeah it definitely sounds turbo charged, you can hear it get into boost once it really gets going. I could be wrong, but I think it's turbo charged, 2:42 yeah I'm pretty sure

[@theguy1224]

That does not sound like a FPC engine. Perhaps the 6.3L with boost.

[@kelvinwilson4419]

They altered that firing order and you can hear the turbos. So excited. ❤️❤️❤️

[@finwaydiddy1977]

These test are great to see. Also don’t forget, GM is already working on the next generation of corvette. The C8 is out the door. Will be seeing more of these types of testing. The key is when you see two to three testing. Some of these test are refinements for Zr1 and new parts for the C9.

[@Omega_TTRS]

If I had to guess based upon the sound, I’m thinking it’s the 5.5-based engine but, a cross plane crank instead of the flat plane crank. Still not super sure about the boost side of things but, it’s certainly a strong possibility that it’s a turbo setup.

[@Insignia-pp1eh]

sounds very much like the flat-plane

[@CarsandChris]

It's not a cross plane at all.

[@tonymontana3873]

wish it was cross plane equal headers they sound heavenly. it roars like cross but and screams like flat same time some have little v10 howl like this one kzbin.info/www/bejne/mny5g3V8gamqqbcsi=-v1iE-s6FN0BvHr2 or at least a flat crank with unequal like the mclaren 12c or 650 also roars and scream

[@TexasSteele67]

Owwww La' La'

[@BCmld83]

too rowdy