Considered to be an Undervalued Collectible, the C4 ZR1 is destined
to appreciate and starting to appear on collectors' lists as the
next 90's era car to start hunting.
With Just 30 Miles and still in the wrapper, this LAUNCH YEAR ZR1
is highly desirable with NO TRACTION CONTROL.
An engineering achievement, the ZR1 was well ahead of its time and
brought the Corvette back into the Super Car Performance
Category!!
Great lease rates and Financing also available on any of our
inventory!
Buy Sell Trade Consignments Welcome!
Please email
[email protected] or call
1-818-773-8181
About the ZR1
The C4 Corvette was produced from 1983 until 1996.
In early March 1990, the ZR-1 would set a new record for the
highest 24 hour-5,000 mile land-speed by going over a speed of 175
mph.
General Motors acquired Group Lotus, a UK based engineering
consultant and performance car manufacturing firm, during 1986. The
Corvette division approached Lotus with the idea of developing the
world's fastest production car, to be based on the C4 generation of
the Corvette.
With input from GM, Lotus designed a new engine to fit in place of
the L98 V8 that was powering the standard C4. The result was what
GM dubbed the LT5, an aluminum-block V8 with the same bore centers
as the L98, but with four overhead camshafts and 32 valves. Lotus
also designed a unique air management system for the engine to
provide a wider power band by shutting off 8 of the 16 intake
runners and fuel injectors when the engine was at part-throttle,
while still giving the ZR-1 a power output of 375 hp when at wide
open throttle.
The FX3 suspension system was engineered by Bilstein and was
similar to the system used in the Porsche 959 albeit with
modifications from the Lotus Formula 1 division. The system used a
gas-over-oil shock absorber whose hollow center shaft came fitted
with an adjustable orifice which controls the flow of oil in the
shock absorber. The system allowed for six damping settings in each
of the three driving modes namely Touring, Sport, and Performance
and had 14 total steps. Servomotors coupled with a microprocessor
governed the vehicle's speed and adjusted the suspension system
accordingly.
The 5.7-litre DOHC 32-valve LT5 engine unique to the car and GM
found that the engine required special assembly, and that neither
the Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky nor any of their
normal production facilities could handle the workload, so Mercury
Marine corporation of Stillwater, Oklahoma was contracted to
assemble the engines under their MerCruiser division. The engine
was largely assembled by hand and was Dyno tested before being sent
to Chevrolet. Mercury Marine secured two LT5 V8 engines for itself.
These engines were used in the ZR-1 owned by the company president
and a custom made speedboat called the "Wette Vette". The engine
was modified to be used in the boat and had an increased output of
420HP
In order to transfer power efficiently to the rear wheels, a unique
6-speed manual transmission manufactured by ZF was installed with a
code name of ML9. The transmission used Computer Aided Gear
Selection (CAGS) which forced the driver to shift from first to
fourth under low power urban driving conditions.
Tested performance figures by Road & Track magazine include a 0-60
mph acceleration time of 4.9 seconds, a quarter mile time of 13.4
seconds, braking distance of 132 ft from 60 mph and 233 ft from 80
mph along with skidpad acceleration of 0.94 g. The car's tested top
speed by the magazine amounted to 179 mph.
The ZR-1 was introduced at the 1989 Geneva Motor Show. It was
distinguishable from other Corvette coupes by its wider tail
section, and its new convex rear fascia with four square shaped
taillights along with a special red ZR-1 badge in between.
For model year 1993, modifications to the cylinder heads, exhaust
system and valvetrain of the LT5 brought power output up from 375
to 405HP and 385 lb�ft of torque. The model remained nearly
unchanged into the 1995 model year, after which the ZR-1 was
discontinued. A total of 6,939 ZR-1 models were manufactured over
the six-year period.
Although the ZR-1 was extremely quick for its time in 4.4 seconds,
the huge performance of the LT5 engine was matched by its
robustness. As evidence of this, a stock ZR-1 set seven
international and world records at a test track in Fort Stockton,
Texas on March 1, 1990, verified by the FIA for the group II, class
11 category.
100 miles at 175.600 mph
500 miles at 175.503 mph
1,000 miles at 174.428 mph
5,000 km at 175.710 mph (World Record)
5,000 miles at 173.791 mph (World Record)
12 Hours Endurance at 175.523 mph
24 Hours Endurance at 175.885 mph for 4,221.256 miles (World
Record)
Whilst Fusion Motor Company make a sincere effort to supply
information that is accurate and complete, we are aware that errors
and omissions may occur. Therefore, we are not able to guarantee
the accuracy of the information and we cannot accept liability for
loss or damage arising from misleading information or for any
reliance on which you may place on the information contained on
this website or our advertisements. We highly recommend that you
examine the vehicle to check the accuracy of the information
supplied. If you have any questions, please contact us at
[email protected] or by calling 818-773-8181
