Latest Release:
CHEVROLET UNVEILS TWO UNIQUE '08 CORVETTE INDY
500 PACE CARS
INDIANAPOLIS - Known for their charismatic designs
and superior performance, the pack-leading pace
cars share a special place in Indianapolis 500
lore. History will be made at the 2008 Indianapolis 500
when a pair of distinctive yet highly differentiated
Corvette models will serve as the official pace
cars - one highlighting Chevrolet's commitment
to fuel solutions and the other marking 30 years
of Corvette's pace car heritage.
Chevrolet and Indianapolis Motor Speedway officials
gathered at the Indianapolis Auto Show to make
the historic announcement.
One of the pace cars is a customized Corvette
Z06 E85 concept that runs on E85 ethanol fuel,
a domestically produced alternative fuel similar
tothe E100 fuel that powers all of the race cars
in the IndyCar Series. It will be driven during
the race's pace lap by two-time Indianapolis 500
champion Emerson Fittipaldi.
The other official pace car is a black-and-silver
commemorative edition that marks the 30th anniversary
of the celebrated 1978 pace car - the first Corvette
to pace the field at the Indianapolis 500. Chevrolet
will produce a total of 500 pace car replicas in
both coupe and convertible form, each signed personally
by Fittipaldi at the Corvette's Bowling Green,
Ky., assembly plant.
Latest Release:
GM ANNOUNCES THAT THE 2009 CORVETTE ZR1
WILL BE POWERED BY THEIR MOST POWERFUL PRODUCTION
ENGINE EVER
When it arrives next summer, the 2009 Chevrolet
Corvette ZR1 will be the most powerful and fastest
production car ever produced by General Motors,
with performance enabled by a new, supercharged
6.2L LS9 small-block V-8 engine.
Incorporating the engineering experience already
found in the Corvette Z06's LS7 engine and the
new-for-2008 6.2L LS3 of the Corvette, GM Powertrain
is targeting 100 horsepower per liter for the
LS9, or 620 horsepower (462 kW), and approximately
595 lb.-ft. of torque (807 Nm); final SAE-certified
power levels will be available in early March
2008.
It is, indeed, the ultimate small-block engine
for the ultimate Corvette.
"When you experience the LS9 in the Corvette
ZR1, the terms 'performance' and 'refinement'
take on a new meaning," said Tom Stephens,
group vice president for GM Powertrain and Quality.
"The LS9 demonstrates an outstanding performance
range, with smooth driveability at low speeds,
and surprisingly fierce performance when the customer
wants more power."
The enabler of the LS9's performance is a new,
large positive-displacement Roots-type supercharger
- with a unique four-lobe design - developed for
the engine by Eaton. It is teamed with an integrated
charge cooling system that reduces inlet air temperature
for maximum performance. The LS9 represents the
first of several new, supercharged small-block
engines that will be introduced in GM vehicles
in the near future, each using superchargers of
similar design.
"The small-block V-8 once again demonstrates
its boundless horsepower potential, versatile
design and an architecture with proven quality,
durability and reliability," said Stephens.
"We haven't yet realized the small-block's
performance potential."
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