Exactly What Makes the Corvette C7.R Racer Beastly?

Something I really enjoy whenever reading/hearing/watching anything from GM’s media bank is just how geeky their engineers get in their interviews. GM really seems to enjoy mixing their engineers in with the marketing folks.

It’s a subtle distinction that we can appreciate when these uber-geeky technical moments come out among the marketing releases and emotional plays. So for those who love their car specs overwhelming—their automotive stories to read like college lectures—here’s a real treat.

The good people at C&D recently posted this great list, illustrating the “7 Things You Need to Know Bbout the Beastly Chevrolet Corvette C7.R Race Car”. It’s the kind of article that goes into excruciating detail about the nuts and bolts of the automotive engineering process. The difficulty is compounded by the C7.R’s nature as a high performance race car fit for the Rolex 24 at Daytona.

Here are the cliffnotes, but be sure to check out their article for the dense as a dying star goodness.

• The C7.R is the product of “cascade engineering” and co-shares parts across the board with the C6, C6.R, C7, C7 Z06, and C7.R. Chevy claims nothing happens in isolation.

• Similar looks, but the C7.R sits lower in roofline, closer to the floor, with a stance that’s nearly 5 inches wider than the Z06 and ~7 inches wider than the stock C7.

• The C7.R rides with a beefed up 6-speed sequential manual transmission and iron brake rotors with the 6-piston stopping power of a military bunker wall.

• Fortified alumnium chassis structures have made the C7.R ride 40% stiffer than the C6.R.

• The C7.R has actually lost fendertop vents to improve specific airflow and cooling.

• The modified 5.5L small block V8, originally derived from the Zo6 LT4 races without the supercharger and variable valve timing. Direct fuel injection makes its return though (last used in 2009).

• European competitors are pushrod naysayers and have consistently pushed for Chevy to become “standardized”.

And with that, even the cliffnotes are crazy. Be sure to read C&D writer, John Lamm’s full breakdown and photo gallery. They’re fantastic.

via [Car and Driver]