Not a fan of either GTR or ZR1, but glad to hear the competition.



NURBURG, Germany — During testing this week at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, the supercharged 638-horsepower Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 turned a lap of 7:26.4, quicker than the 7:29 set on April 16-17 by the Nissan GT-R, which is believed to be the lap record for a mass-produced sports car. Tadge Juechter, Corvette Chief Engineer, says, "The vehicle is exactly like the cars that will be built in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and sold around the world later this summer."

The 2009 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 has been testing at the Nürburgring over the last two weeks for final tuning before production begins later this summer. Development engineer Jim Mero drove the test car. Juechter reports, "Jim commented after the lap that conditions were good except for a strong headwind down the main straight and that the lap was solid, but he felt there were a few places he could have gone faster."

Just as with the recent Nürburgring attempt with the 2009 Cadillac CTS-V, the GM development team made some efforts to ensure the car remained scrupulously stock. Though it featured a bar to locate a seatbelt harness, there was no roll cage to reinforce chassis rigidity. The ride height and chassis alignment were stock, the emissions gear met EPA standards and there was pump gas in the tank. The Michelin Pilot Sport 2 tires have been developed for production, although they did carry a relatively soft tread-wear rating of 220.

Juechter notes, "The timed lap was run with a rolling start, a departure from our previous practice of standing starts. This is more aligned with current industry practice. The lap was electronically timed and confirmed with two handheld stopwatches."

An in-car video of the lap will be available after the Fourth of July holiday.

What this means to you: That sound you hear is the Nissan engineers loading a GT-R into a truck and heading for the Nürburgring.

 

I always say the person that really benefits the most from competion is the consumer. Good in the GTR,ZR1 and especially the CTS-V. I really cant wait to see what the Panorama will be capable of.

 

Watch the Cadillac CTS will set the new record soon, and the guys at GM will say:
"this is the same CTS (except for the Tube frame chassis, completely different
suspension, carbon brakes which we cant afford in Michigan and Oh the motor is
moved back 5" and lower 3 " in the chassis not to mention being hand assembled by a race factory in Phaffenhausen) that our customers can buy in ANY dealership accross the US!

 

back to you Nissan (for the V-Spec).

sad that Porsche has already blown its wad with the GT2

interesting to see what HVS will get in both the GT-R and the ZR1 when the time comes.

Yes these 'Ring times are irrelevant for most because 99% of owners don't have the skill to wring the cars to their full potential... but Porsche own used to own this roost, and now that other manufacturers have caught up or more, we're left with making excuses for Porsche.

I'm a Porsche guy first and foremost... and there isn't another car with as complete a package as a GT3 for instance, (in terms of the way it feels,) but I'll admit that other guys are moving the game on in terms of outright speed and technology.

 

the biggest advantage of the GTR is its DSG gearbox which provides instant up and down changes.Accelerating out of a corner[or on the strip]it will pull a fraction of a second on every change over a Porsche.How many turns on the Nurburgring?Everything will change when Porsche gets the DSG!The GTR is a BIG car with very little going for it in the style department.I would have my Porsche any day!

 

The biggest time getter for the Nissan are the non production tuning done to the car.

 

The ZR1 and Zonda times seems believable when you look at the specs, the Nissan GTR doesn’t.

Zonda F Clubsport
Power: 649.9ps @ 6200rpm
Torque: 575 ft•lb @ 4000rpm
Weight: 2712 lbs
Tyres: PS2 255 (F), PS2 335 (R)
Brake: Carbon Ceramic 380(F), 335 (R)


Corvette ZR1
Power: 638 SAE hp @ 6500rpm
Torque: 604 ft•lb @ 3800rpm
Weight: 3324 lbs
Tyres: PS2 285 (F), PS2 335 (R)
Brake: Carbon Ceramic 393.7 (F), 381 (R)

 

It think it is well understood that Nissan understated the power of the GTR. There is no way a car that heavy can move the quick with "only" 450 HP.

It is great to see a new champ though. Something tells me my S4 won't be breaking any records soon soon but with water/meth injection and nitrous it seems to hold it's own on the streets as well as the track (both road course and tight autocross)

 

The ZR1 is badass. I'm kind of leaning towards the new CTS-V too. For now the Z06 is awesome...

 

I wonder how they would under rate their GTR's when it gets a SAE certification in America.

Still im sure that Nissan isnt under rating all their GTR's by 200hp.................mules have been fast but production versions has been significantly slower.

 

The Nissan #'s are BS, and the ZR1 has 640hp compared to porsche's 530hp.

The ZR1 is more a competitor to the CGT which is a 7:28 if memory serves me right, and its 5 years old now.

Porsche's #'s are still the benchmark that everyone aims for.

 

Seriously.

The latest GTR 1/4 mile is @ 111mph trap. How the hell do you lose over 10mph in a AWD car with LC and DSG, unless your losing LOTS of power.

I think the times we have seen are for the ACTUAL V-spec version. The vspec mules will be even faster but I would imagine previous times claimed for the regular GTR will match the Real life vspec times.

Quite frankly with all the HP and Stat wars going on I would like for an offical group to start for cars "claimed records". This group would have to be present for all testing with all tested cars being dynoed before and after testing in order to public release times. This group would also check suspension and setups.

It would end the bull**** real fast.

 

great #'s for the ZR-1

 

I wish manufacturers would start competing in another "showroom stock" type of race, as opposed to just drive the cars as fast as possible around one race track...
Ahmet

 

couldn't care less if the GT-R had 200HP more OR less than a GT3/GT2/Turbo... point is, its a lot less expensive than any of the quicker Porsches and at least as fast. So its pretty ugly. And Porsche may not be worried too much about losing 911 buyers to the GT-R. But technology has moved the game on in terms of sheer performance, and that can't be denied.

not anywhere in the same market segment.

definitely. thing is, the margin to that benchmark is getting a lot closer. and in at least a few cases, the benchmark has been surpassed.

yes, we all don't make our car choices based solely on performance numbers, 'Ring times, etc. But c'mon, i can also remember when the Porsche Turbo (930/964/993/996) set the performance bar so bloody high that other manufacturers could only dream of getting close.