Supercharged 2015 Chevy Corvette Z06 is a True Supercar

It is finally here! The real deal, the fourth-generation, 2015 Corvette Z06. If you get one of these, you’d best keep it in tip-top shop with frequent quick stop oil changes because it is amazing. If Chevrolet makes a ZR1 version of the C7 Corvette, it’s going to be absolutely mega, because the Z06 is just about everything we got in the last ZR1, but better.

The amazing new Z06 engine is just an inch taller than the LT1 in the Corvette Stingray, and there are few inches that are more powerful than that extra one. The LT4 is a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that produces “at least” 625 horsepower and 635 pound-feet of torque. Usually when you hear the phrase “at least,” you don’t get such a high number. The integrated 1.7-liter Eaton supercharger and intercooler sit in the engine’s vee, that blower spinning beyond the ZR1’s supercharger limit of 15,000 up to 20,000 rpm and utilizing shorter rotors to get up to speed more quickly. To help keep gas mileage in check, you are still able to benefit from Chevy’s Active Fuel Management, as well as direct injection and variable valve timing. We can’t leave out that it has also been fitted with a dry-sump oil system that has a larger capacity than the Stingray’s Z51 package.

You’ve got a lot of options when it comes to gears, too. The Corvette Z06 will shift through either a seven-speed manual or the all-new 8L90 eight-speed automatic transmission. It is a conventional automatic with a torque converter overseeing four gearsets and five clutches, and it’s lighter than the six-speed in the Stingray while fitting in the same space. Chevrolet says there’s no performance sacrifice, declaring that “wide-open-throttle upshifts executed up to eight-hundredths of a second quicker than the dual-clutch in the Porsche 911.” Sounds good to us! As one would expect, it will come with paddle shifters. Those who prefer three pedals will find their seven-speed manual fitted with a new dual-mass flywheel and dual-disc clutch.