Will There Be a C8 Corvette Z06 ZTK?

Photo Credit: Keith Cornett

The modern Corvette lineage dates back to 1984 and the introduction of the C4. Apart from the base car, that generation gave us our first taste of a super-‘Vette model in the King of the Hill ZR-1. The C5 arrived in 1997 with a focus on refining and simplifying the C4 formula. It spawned a lightweight special in the Fixed Roof Coupe (FRC) that would eventually morph into the modern blueprint for the track slaying Z06.

With the 2005-13 C6, everything from the prior generations came together in a single showroom. The base car was the most powerful up to that point, with a 400-horse 6.0 LS2 making way for a 436 HP 6.2L LS3 in 2008. The corner carving Z06 was back with 505 ponies and a 7k redline, and the ZR1 topped things off with a supercharged powerplant delivering a 638-horse knockout punch to the supercar establishment.

On top of this unprecedented variety offered by the C6, there was plenty of part-sharing between Corvette models. The base car borrowed the Z06’s bodywork to create a volume-champion Grand Sport in 2010; then the Grand Sport drop top commandeered the Z06’s LS7 V8 to make the Swan Song 427 Convertible in 2013. Such unrestricted parts bin access also led to the creation of a “Z07” package that quite literally turned the Z06 up a notch with ZR1 goodies like ceramic brakes, Magnetic Ride Control, and carbon fiber galore.

The current mid-engine Corvette was supposed to arrive on the heels of the C6, but the economy necessitated a stop-gap C7 that gave the original recipe of front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, and an available manual transmission an abbreviated last dance that deviated from the C6 script in a few important ways. Through a C6 lens, the C7 Z06 was more of a continuation of the ZR1 formula, and the actual ZR1 was more of a ZR1-plus. Most importantly, the C7’s Z07 package pre-dated the ZR1, and instead of borrowing ZR1 parts, it acted as a building block for ZR1 exclusives like the big “ZTK” wing.

The C8, a Return to “Normal,” and Immense Possibilities

So, as radical as the C8 Corvette is, it actually represents a return to form for the hierarchy established by the C6. In 2025, we’ll once more have a base Corvette (Stingray), a naturally aspirated Z06 track monster, a ZR1 with an unfathomable stable of forced-induction ponies, and a further differentiated E-Ray in the Goldilocks position formerly occupied by the Grand Sport. As in the case of the C7, though, the C8 Z06 debuted with a Z07 package long before the ZR1 and its even more extreme ZTK track package was realized.

This overturning of the C6’s ZR1/Z07 reveal order, along with the fact that the ’25 Z06 is already benefitting from the ZR1’s development with a new, even grippier set of shoes, has us wondering if an aerodynamics package to supersede the Z07 might be on the horizon for the Z06?

The ZR1 is a – this is still hard to believe, let alone type in a public forum – 1,064 horsepower monster, but true to form, it’s intended as an all-around performer/grand tourer by its makers, while the lighter, higher-revving, free-breathing Z06 is billed as the track star. On Chevrolet’s official site, the word “track” is found no less than five times on the Z06 landing page, while it is conspicuously absent from the page of the new ZR1. Yet, the Z06 maxes out at 734 lbs. of downforce at 186 mph, while the massive wing that comes with the ZR1’s ZTK package hits an all-time Corvette record by pushing down on the car with 1,200 lbs. – which is like having Ralphie V standing on the roof – “at top speed.” It only makes sense that we’ll see the 1,200-lb. ZTK package grace the 8,600 rpm Z06 at some point as the Corvette Team continues to fine-tune what is likely their final batch of all-internal combustion creations!

During this era of apparent last chances, is there any other ZR1 tech that you’d like to trickle down to the Z06 or other members of the ‘Vette family? Let us know below!

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