The Road Test: The Last Word on How a New Car Drives, Feels, and Performs

While there are many parts to Car and Driver, a foundational element is the road test. The ultimate expression of our product expertise and knowledge, the road test blends subjective opinion garnered from our experience with objective numbers generated by our instrumented testing. While we may not have invented the road-test format, we have spent just shy of seven decades perfecting the formula. Early tests included acceleration, top speed, and fuel economy. Our testing parameters have since expanded to include stopping distance, skidpad grip, passing times, sound-level measurements, and several we created, such as the 5-to-60-mph test. We challenge our vehicular subjects by highlighting their performance on some of our favorite roads throughout the world or testing their off-tarmac capability on chassis-chattering trails and dunes. It's all to inform you just how well a vehicle performs—and do so in a story that is as interesting and exciting as the vehicles and the places themselves.

If you're the guardian angel type, you'll want to make sure yours blocks out time in their schedule before you settle into the new Corvette ZR1. You also might want to issue them earplugs because there will be decidedly blasphemous outbursts when the mighty LT7 engine conjures its full output. It would be unprofessional to admit that the ZR1's specs are terrifying. But 1064 horsepower and 828 pound-feet of torque are certainly intimidating.

The $8495 Carbon Fiber Aero package’s wings, dive planes, and splitter help the ZR1 make more than 1200 pounds of downforce, but the package reduces the claimed top speed from 233 to 225 mph.

Twenty years ago, the Bugatti Veyron inaugurated the four-digit club and charged more than a million bucks for admission. Generating the Bug's 1001 horsepower took 16 cylinders, 8.0 liters, and four turbos; putting it to the ground required all-wheel drive and custom-made tires that cost $25,000 a set. The ZR1 has a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter V-8 and routes its torque solely to the rear axle. The Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2Rs on the car we tested aren't cheap, but the replacement cost basically amounts to the sales tax on the Veyron's rubber. Here is a comprehensive list of more powerful regular-production cars that are rear-wheel drive:

The list of quicker rear-drive cars is also nonexistent. The ZR1 blitzes to 60 mph in 2.2 seconds, to 100 mph in 4.5, and through the quarter-mile in 9.5 at 149 mph. Within this magazine's history was an era in which numbers like these were the exclusive domain of slingshot dragsters with the life expectancy of a hand grenade—and a similar kill radius. But here they are, generated by a regular-production Chevrolet covered by a five-year/60,000-mile powertrain warranty.

The force of the exhaust out the back creates 37 pounds of thrust, or as much as a large model-rocket engine.

Set up properly, the ZR1 launches with shockingly little wheelspin for something with such monumental output and only two driven wheels—though the rear tires are 13.6 inches wide and are very nearly slicks. Chevy sent us instructions on how to set up launch control for optimal acceleration. Step one: Perform hellacious burnout to clean the tires and bring them up to temperature. (Skip this step and the ZR1 will light up its tires and swing sideways if you floor it even at 70 mph on the freeway. This is not recommended unless you are hopelessly constipated.) Step two: Use the thumbwheel on the right steering-wheel spoke to experiment with different launch rpm and tire-slip allowances. Step three: You brushed up on what muscles fighter pilots flex to prevent blackouts during high-g maneuvers, right? Because the ZR1 sustains more than 1.00 g of acceleration until 85 mph.

With launch control engaged, the engine revs to your chosen rpm like any other supercar but then stutters as Chevy's antilag system steps in to allow the turbos to build a few pounds of boost. When you lift off the brake, the ZR1 hooks up hard enough to elicit an unintentional grunt, and your face gets all tingly as the blood rushes to the back of your head. (In the time it took you to read that sentence, the ZR1 has already hit 130 mph.) You might feel tempted to touch the back of your skull to see if you've developed a wind fairing, but it's best to keep both hands on the wheel since you're now doing about 170 mph. The eight-speed dual-clutch automatic shifts so quickly that you only notice it working at all because the yowling flat-plane-crank V-8 and whooshing turbo chargers drop in pitch—but only momentarily. (Oops, you're going 200 mph. This is frowned upon in most jurisdictions.) Not that anyone is recommending you try, but Chevrolet says the ZR1 will accelerate from 80 to 200 mph and brake back down to 80 in just 24.5 seconds. Based on our testing, it should need only about a mile and a quarter to do so. But you should not do so.

2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

The Great Eight

The ZR1's megapowerful Gemini V-8 democratizes four-digit horsepower.

Born from the same clean-sheet, dual-overhead-cam 5.5-liter engine architecture as the Z06's LT6 screamer, the ZR1 adds nearly 400 horses by way of two single-scroll turbochargers. Each makes up to 26.1 psi of boost, and they are integrated into the exhaust manifolds to quicken responsiveness. Changes to the cylinder heads and pistons create a larger combustion volume and lower the compression ratio to 9.8:1 from the Z06's 12.5:1, and the LT7 adds a seventh scavenge pump to the dry-sump oiling system. While the flat-plane crank remains, the ZR1's redline drops to 8000 rpm from the Z06's 8500 rpm. To handle the incredible thirst for fuel, the ZR1 adds port injection in addition to the direct fueling inherited from the LT6. Its 16 injectors can drain the ZR1's 18.5- gallon tank in just over nine minutes when the LT7 is running at full honk. Forced induction eliminates the need for the LT6's torque-boosting variable crossover intake. The ZR1's separate-breathing banks create so much twist—over 800 pound-feet from 3000 to 6500 rpm—that the bolt pattern of the rear hubs expands by 30 millimeters to cope with it. Wow. —Dave VanderWerp

The car we tested had a carbon-fiber surfboard bolted to its tail, which, together with the other Carbon Fiber Aero package components, generates over 1200 pounds of downforce at top speed but is already slowing the car by a few mph in the quarter-mile, according to Chevy's engineers. You won't miss those mph. It's not until it shifts into fifth around 130 mph that the ZR1 at wide-open throttle stays in a gear longer than three seconds. The scenery blurs relentlessly faster—but focus, because you should probably get on the brakes soon. They are deliciously meaty. Like the tires, they need to build up some heat before they'll do their best work. Pedal pressure, more so than travel, determines how hard the six-piston front and four-piston rear binders grab, but under a hearty stomp, they haul the ZR1 to a stop from 70 mph in a mere 140 feet.

2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

The ZR1's braking and 1.13-g skidpad figures are in a close dance with the Corvette Z06's performance, as expected. Usually, when an automaker introduces a new model with almost 400 horsepower more than an existing one, it tends to be, you know, a whole new car. The ZR1 is more than just a Z06 with a pair of 76-mm turbos, but not much more. The LT7 V-8 shares its naturally aspirated sibling's block but features unique heads and cams, a different (but still flat-plane) crankshaft, and port fuel injection in addition to the LT6's direct injection—the higher flow volume being necessary to generate that immense power. (In a day of track lapping, we achieved 4 mpg. With a full tank, the car projected only 84 miles until empty.) Redline falls from 8500 to 8000 rpm, as the turbos provide so much oomph that there's no need to spin the crank any faster. The eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission gets beefed up with sturdier input and output shafts and wider gears.

The ZR1’s Gurney flap creates a pressure variation that helps suck air through the radiator in the flow-through hood.

Outside the engine room, the differences between the Corvette Z cars are even fewer and mostly concerned with guiding air where it is needed. The frunk is gone, replaced by an intercooler under a vented hood that also increases front downforce. The trailing edges of the Z06's signature wishbone side air intakes are repurposed into ducts that cool the rear brakes. And carbon-fiber epaulets sprout from the ZR1's shoulders, feeding cold intake air to the engine. A carbon-fiber roof and carbon-ceramic brakes are also standard on the ZR1. A new manufacturing process incorporating longer fibers keeps the 15.7-inch front and 15.4-inch rear rotors cooler on the track and improves longevity compared with regular carbon-ceramics. They're similar to the brake rotors McLaren charges $15,523 for on the 750S.

Like the 1989 ZR1, the 2025 will get a one-year interior. Next year, all Corvettes get larger screens and lose the great wall of HVAC controls.

The car we tested is as close to a no-frills performance spec as the ZR1 can get. In the base 1LZ trim, it forgoes the 3LZ's nappa leather upholstery, heated and ventilated seats, and 14-speaker Bose Performance Series sound system, but ours boasted the $13,995 carbon-fiber wheels that cut unsprung weight by a claimed 42.8 pounds. The ZTK Track Performance package includes stiffer springs and the ultrasticky Pilot Sport Cup 2R tires, which have little more than a couple of circumferential grooves to make them street legal. Technically, ZTK only costs $1500, but it's not available unless you've already spec'd the $8495 Carbon Fiber Aero pack, which includes the mondo rear wing, a tall Gurney flap on the leading edge of the hood vent, and dive planes. Throw in a few odds and ends, and our ZR1 landed at $205,265.

Sports cars with more than 400 or so horsepower need a track to be fully appreciated. Cars with 1000 horsepower? Those need a special subset of tracks, the longer the better. We had GingerMan Raceway in South Haven, Michigan. Its 2.1 miles with 11 turns make good use of the region's few variations in terrain, but nowhere do they allow for more than eight or nine seconds of wide-open throttle. The longest straightaway tests the ZR1 driver's resolve with a little kink that coincides with a slight rise that the Corvette crests at upwards of 100 mph. It's odd to be leery of full throttle even above 100 mph, but the ZR1 is still pulling so hard at that speed that it accelerates from 100 to 160 in about the same time as it took an early C4 Corvette to reach 60 mph.

Prudence is supplied wholly by the driver, and they have already shown an aversion to it by choosing a car that will go from zero to 150 mph in less than 10 seconds. But it dictates a few cautious warm-up laps. Even driving seven-tenths or so for some scouting, the ZR1 is so fast that we're halfway through our third lap before we realize we're not even pushing the car yet. How much more speed is there in that bottom bit of pedal travel?

2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

Great googly moogly. Just as Chevrolet recommends a burnout to bring the Pilot Sport Cup 2Rs up to temp for the quickest acceleration, you'll need a couple of laps to get them warm enough for maximum grip on track. But with some heat in them, the tires have tremendous stick. And if you're expecting a 1064-hp twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter to be laggy, you're wrong. The wastegates close when you jump off the throttle, keeping the turbos spooled for immediate response when you get back on the accelerator.

Corner after corner, we gave it more gas earlier and earlier, each time bracing for disaster. Mostly, all that happened is we lapped faster. The ZR1 will accept heavy throttle inputs far earlier than your sense of self-preservation is comfortable with. Just keep in mind that idiot-proof and 1064 horsepower are mutually exclusive concepts. Roll in easy, and you'll probably survive. Chevy already offers Corvette buyers a substantial discount on a two-day performance driving school; it wouldn't be a bad idea to make the program mandatory before owners can take delivery of their ZR1.

On the road, the ZTK suspension feels only marginally more aggressive than other Corvettes'. Its springs are stiffer, but the magnetorheological dampers remain and allow the car to relax somewhat. In its heaviest setting, the steering is wonderfully weighty and direct, although with the alignment optimized for track use, it's so heavy that crossing the dotted line turns lane changes into brief arm-wrestling matches. There's also little notice through the wheel that you've exceeded the front tires' grip. It's up to your eyes and butt to notice the car is no longer responding to steering inputs.

The ZR1's greatest drawback is outward visibility. Anywhere but forward, the view is atrocious. Blind-spot monitors are not even available on the base 1LZ trim level; buyers wanting them have to throw down another $11,000 for the 3LZ. And while the C8 ZR1 marks the return of the fabled split rear window to the Corvette's greenhouse, it's a perfect reminder of why such a memorable styling element got dumped in the first place. The central spine is louvered to improve visibility, but that means there are two central spines with louvers between them. The glass flanking this carbon-fiber ribcage is tinted but does not reach all the way to the bottom of the louvers (allowing hot air to escape the engine bay). Glance at the rearview mirror, and you're peeping through a kaleidoscope of shapes and opacities with all the clarity of a dirty, beveled-glass mail slot. There is a rearview camera, but on cars with the Carbon Fiber Aero package, that just gives the driver a good look at the rear wing and the pavement for maybe 20 feet behind the car.

2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

The Tech: Code Brakers

To get the ZR1 to its 233-mph top speed, Corvette engineers had to play a few tricks.

Even with 1064 horsepower to work with, the ZR1 team had to overcome a couple of hurdles to reach their top-speed goal.

The first problem was that the engine would engage its rev limiter as it crept closer to redline in sixth gear, making 230 mph impossible. The powertrain team had to allow an extra 100 rpm, or about 3 or 4 mph of bandwidth, in sixth gear only. The extra revs are unlocked exclusively in Top Speed mode, which also has a workaround for the flip side of reaching top speed: safely stopping.

In the ZR1, the Bosch-based PTM software that manages stability control and ABS is limited by its code to 223 mph (99.9 m/s). Going faster means doing without electronic aids. Top Speed mode lacks stability control, but Chevy engineers spent a year developing and adding a second ABS for speeds above 223 mph.

Global vehicle performance manager Aaron Link tested the ABS calibration from 233 mph. Drivers who've gone 200 are in a small club; those who've done a panic stop from that speed are in an even smaller one. Link reported good stability and that it takes 1500 feet to stop, give or take a skid mark. He did it twice. —K.C. Colwell

And while the ZR1's various drive modes and Performance Traction Management (PTM) settings are absolutely essential to making the car approachable and keeping its driver alive, navigating them is needlessly complex. Accessing launch control requires twisting the drive-mode knob to Track, double-pressing the stability-control button—but not too quickly (seriously)—to activate PTM, then scrolling through menus with the thumbwheel on the right steering-wheel spoke. Don't forget to rub your head while patting your belly and reciting Ulysses backward. Then smash the brake pedal, stomp on the gas, and go. Other supercars require a lot less planning.

2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1

The ZR1's competition might be easier to use, but few cars are faster. Chevy has already collected a stack of records from lapping tracks around the country in the ZR1, including Virginia International Raceway, home of our annual Lightning Lap competition. There, the record it broke had been held since 2019 by our own executive editor, K.C. Colwell, in a $982,816 McLaren Senna.

One could argue that the last-generation ZR1's greatest achievement was proving to Corvette loyalists—and GM brass—the necessity of the transition to a mid-engine layout. Even with 105 more horsepower than a C7 Z06, the C7 ZR1 was only marginally faster. This ZR1 validates the decision to go mid-engine and opens a comfortable gap over its naturally aspirated sibling by ably applying stratospheric power to the ground. And in the proud Corvette tradition, its performance embarrasses cars that cost many times as much—only now, that truism targets the sort of car other manufacturers make you apply to purchase. It has never been more apt to call the Corvette a world-beater.

The ZR1 marks a return of the split-window Corvette.

Counterpoints

I didn't think I could feel more powerful than I do when I skip an advertisement on YouTube, but that was before I drove the ZR1. I am the Greek god Apollo. My winged plastic chariot has 1064 horsepower and needs to go 150 mph. I am giddy. I am . . . wait, is that Ford Explorer a state trooper? No, I see roof rails. Good to go. Accelerator, meet floor. The ZR1 flies by a Subaru Outback so quickly that I'm pretty sure I can speak Greek now. Opa! Opa! I try launch control. Even with each rear tire facing 532 horsepower, the Vette hits 30 mph as quickly as a Porsche 911 Turbo S. As the god of music, I must say that the V-8 sounds better outside than inside. Before the Corvette faithful ask, no, I have not grown donkey ears. —Tony Quiroga

On public roads, with cold tires, the ZR1 is diabolical. Note to future leavers of Cars & Coffee events: The boosted V-8 overpowers the rear rubber so forcefully and instantaneously that stability control is the only thing keeping you out of the trees. But within the relative safety of GingerMan Raceway, I decided to face the beast fully unleashed, switching off its excellent driver aids. Much to my astonishment, not only can the Cup 2R tires, once warm, take way more power than expected, but even when you overcook their high limits, they let go gracefully. Surpassing lofty milestones of 1000 horsepower and 230 mph is certainly impressive, but even more so, this insanely fast Corvette is (relatively) tractable. It's a freak on the street but a road-course savant. —Dave VanderWerp

The engine gets the headlines for good reason, but this car's chassis is just as intoxicating. It's a bit softer than the Z06—and better for it—while still clearly on the firm side of what a Lexus ES owner thinks is perfect. Back-road impacts in the ZR1 are rounded off just enough to brew a piping-hot carafe of driver confidence. Drink up. Embrace the warmth. The heavy steering leaves nothing open to interpretation. Suddenly I'm way too comfortable driving way too fast on way too narrow roads in a machine making way too much noise. And sorry to the Z06 owner who tried to flag me down and talk shop. I was late for dinner because I had spent too much time on good roads. I'm addicted. —K.C. Colwell