The Corvette ZR1 Crushed A Mustang That Costs Nearly Twice As Much

Chevy’s Corvette ZR1 is faster around the Nurburgring than the $328k GTD and only costs $178k in base form

                                        https://www.carscoops.com/author/chris-chilton-cc/                                    

by Chris Chilton

59 minutes ago

Chevrolet finally revealed Nurburgring times for all three of its hottest Corvettes this week, the headline being the 06:49.275 achieved by the so-called “American hypercar’s” new 1,250 hp (1,279 PS) ZR1X, making it the fastest American-built car at the Ring. But both the ZR1X and the regular ZR1 (06:50.763) beat the Mustang GTD (06:52.072), the former US record holder, and the ZR1 did it despite costing around half as much as the Ford.

We’re still waiting to hear how much the ZR1X will cost – estimates put the MSRP at well over $200,000, possibly flirting with the $300K mark – but the ZR1 is already on sale at $178,195 including gas guzzler tax and destination. That compares with $327,960 for the GTD, and $253,695 for the Porsche 911 GT3 RS, which costs $253,695 in stock form and lapped the track in 06:49.33.

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Complicating this comparison is the fact that none of these cars achieved their lap times in stock form. Yes, they were all full production-spec vehicles, but each was equipped with performance-enhancing options (also available to customers) that in some cases add tens of thousands of dollars to the final bill.

The GT3 RS, for instance, rocked up to the Ring complete with a Weissach package, currently priced at $34,730, which includes forged magnesium wheels, carbon fiber reinforced plastic anti-roll bars, and numerous carbon parts that cut 33 lbs (15 kg) from the curb weight.

And if you think that’s expensive, the new Manthey performance kit, which will surely help the RS leapfrog the ZR1X when Porsche gets around to announcing lap times later this year, costs $116,160. An entire Corvette Z06 (which registered a 7:11.826) is only $835 more, though, of course, the Ring-lapping Z06 wasn’t standard either. It was outfitted with the Z07 package, which added carbon brakes, sticky tires, and uprated dampers, and it’s priced at $8,995.

There’s no Z07 option for the ZR1 and ZR1X, both cars instead getting the $1,500 ZTK package that brings magnetic ride control dampers and Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires. That rubber was wrapped around lightweight carbon-fiber wheels that cost $13,995 and are pushed into the Nurburgring pavement by an $8,495 carbon aero package (mandatory with the ZTK option) consisting of a high-level rear spoiler, front drive planes, and underbody strakes.

Ford also added some goodies to the Mustang GTD to help it stop that Nurburgring clock a little quicker, but since it’s been coy about option prices, we don’t know how much those parts inflated the already hefty price. A Performance pack includes dive planes for the nose, an F1-style drag-reduction system for the rear wing, underbody flaps, and more.

So none of the cars you see on a virgin configurator screen are ready to put in the Nurburgring lap times the automakers shout about. But even adding almost $25k of optional equipment to the ZR1 still only brings the price to just over $205,000. That’s a ton of money in the real world, but pocket change in the Nurburgring league table one – and at least $130,000 less than you’d spend to go 2.3 seconds slower in a Mustang GTD.

In a moment of good sportsmanship, Ford CEO Jim Farley responded to the Corvette team’s Instagram post with a public congratulations and a hint that the GTD might not be done chasing lap records just yet. “Congrats to the Corvette team. Game on,” he wrote.