The all-new ʼ15 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 edition equipped with a 7-speed manual transmission should be in dealerships by late January, and models fitted with the new 8-speed automatic should appear early to late February.
“But we just opened orders for the car last week and got 5,600 orders, which is more than we can build, so if you haven't ordered one already, it's going to be a lot later than that before you get one,” Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter tells the Midwest Automotive Media Assn. at its annual fall rally to preview new ʼ15 model offerings.
The new high-performance Z06 with its 650-hp 6.2L supercharged LT4 V-8 boasts a 0-60 mph (97 km/h) time of 3.2 seconds with the manual and a blistering 2.9 seconds with automatic.
Asked what he expects the manual/automatic take rate to be, Juechter says, “I expect it would be the same as with all 'Vettes. (It) may surprise some, but two-thirds are bought with (an) automatic, one-third manual, and I expect two-thirds will want the new 8-speed automatic.”
So what will Chevrolet do for an encore after the 650-hp Z06?
“When we brought out the ZR-1 people said, ‛How much faster we could possibly go?’” Juechter says. “And now we bring out the Z06 and people ask the same question. And the answer is that our job is to figure out how we can surpass what we've done. Wait for it.”
Rumors abound that Chevrolet plans a “Zora” edition named after Zora Duntov, father of the Corvette, but Juechter says he knows of no such plans.
In addition to the impressive acceleration numbers, the Z06 also stops quickly. It will decelerate 60-0 mph in 99.6 ft. (30 m), about the length of a basketball court, and Juechter says a complete stop from 25 mph (40 km/h) is achieved in a distance equal to the length of the car.
