Why the Corvette Z1’s Nurburgring Time Shouldn't be Compared with the Nissan GT-R

We’ll give GM plenty of kudos for creating a sports car that officially lapped the famous Nurburgring in a mere 7 minutes and 26.4 seconds as it puts plenty of supercars costing double its price to shame, but ultimately, its somewhat unfair to compare the Corvette ZR1 with the Nissan GT-R. True, in our article on the ZR1’s Nurburgring time we mentioned that GM’s sports car beat the Nissan GT-R (7 minutes and 29.03 seconds), but we only did it to give you a comparable example of how good the Corvette is.

However, we must put things into perspective. The 640Hp Corvette ZR1 is priced from $103,300, the 480Hp Nissan GT-R from $69,850. That’s a huge price difference -$33,450 or nearly 50% more. Practically, the GT-R should be compared with the 505Hp Corvette Z06 that starts from $72,125. Although this is not an official time, various sites (including Motortrend) have stated that the Z06 lapped the Nurburgring in 7 minutes and 42 seconds or 13 seconds more than the GT-R. -Continued

But to be totally honest, a sportscar’s Nurburgring time would be the last thing that would matter if we were in the market to buy one. Well before that we’d take into consideration a variety of factors including the emotional impact that the car has on us, the way it communicates with us on the road -maybe even on the track, and of course, the price tag. (Pic: Carscoop)

Corvette ZR1 Laps the Ring in 7:26.4, Beats the 2009 Nissan GT-R

GM’s 640Hp and $103,000 Corvette ZR1 has posted one of the fastest times ever recorded on the Nurburgring race track for a totally stock production car: 7 minutes and 26.4 seconds. And yes, the ZR1 has shaved almost three seconds off the 2009 Nissan GT-R’s official time of 7:29.03.

According to Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge J. Juechter, the ZR1 tested was bone stock with the exception of the communications and safety equipment. The tires were production Michelin Pilot Sport 2 which have been developed specifically for the ZR1 while chassis alignment and vehicle height were set to factory specs. -Continued

Likewise, Juechter said that the engine calibrations were absolutely stock, emissions compliant and the car ran on pump (not racing) fuel. In other words, it was the same vehicle as the ones that will roll off the production line in Bowling Green, Kentucky and sold around later this summer.