2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 Horsepower, Torque Accidentally Posted Online by GM

According to information included on the General Motors minisite for the upcoming 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, the “most track capable Corvette ever” will pack 620 horsepower and 650lb-ft of torque. This bit of information comes from Jalopnik, who had a reader send in a screen shot of a Google search page showing a link to the new 2015 Corvette Z06 reveal site and in the description for that site was the line “With 620 horsepower and 650lb-ft of torque, the 2015 Corvette Z06 is the most advanced Corvette ever made.” That portion of the website description has since been removed but thanks to the screenshot sent to Jalopnik, the damage has been done.

While the power figures for the 2015 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 are impressive, they don’t come as a huge shock. Since it was learned that the C7 Z06 would likely pack a supercharged version of the Stingray’s LT1 – appropriately named the LT4 – we have been expecting power figures north of 600 horsepower and 600lb-ft of torque. I am a bit surprised by the massive amounts of torque offered by the LT4 as should these numbers be accurate, the 2015 Z06 will have 48 more lb-ft of torque than the C6 ZR1. Even with a touch less horsepower, the new Z06 shouldn’t have a problem outrunning the “old” ZR1 in almost any performance venue thanks to the jump in torque. There is also the possibility that the 2015 Z06 will feature a collection of lightweight chassis and body components to make the newest super-Vette even lighter – thus giving the C7 Z06 an even bigger advantage over the C6 ZR1.

The most intriguing aspect of these allegedly official 2015 Corvette Z06 numbers is that they leave room for an even more powerful model in the future. With 620 horsepower and 650lb-ft of torque, the 2015 Z06 should be faster than the previous ZR1 but those numbers are low enough that GM could fit in a C7 ZR1 above the new Z06. The previous ZR1 offered 638 horsepower and 604lb-ft of torque and with the LT4 making 620 and 650, it is very feasible that a C7 ZR1 with an even further revised version of the new LT1 engine architecture could make somewhere in the area of 650 horsepower and 680lb-ft of torque. Figure that after the 2015 Z06 is introduced and it sets the standard for American supercars, the Chrysler Group will counter the most track capable Corvette of all time with a newer version of the SRT Viper – presumably the ACR package – which could beat out the 2015 Z06. General Motors then fires back with an even more powerful Corvette with the C7 ZR1, putting them back on top of the American performance mountain while also being able to knock down some of the biggest European names in the supercar world.

Of course, this is all speculative since those power numbers for the 2015 Corvette Z06 of 620 horsepower and 650lb-ft of torque were leaked and are not official nor are they verified. Those numbers could be wrong but I am inclined to believe that they are indeed the official power numbers for the next generation Corvette Z06 and should that be the case – it is easy to see how the 2015 Z06 will be the most track capable Corvette of all time. With the 2014 North American International Auto Show set to open next Monday morning to the media, there are only a few days left to wait before we know all of the details on the new super-Vette.

Source: Jalopnik