A few bolt-ons and a bit of nitrous help this C6 Corvette ZR1 hit 179.56 in the half-mile.
This week’s featured Kill Story video was originally shared to the forum by “VTC WS6” from his own YouTube channel and it features the OP’s C6 Corvette ZR1 participating in the Wannagofast event in Ocala, Florida. This event pits high-performance machines head-to-head in a standing half-mile race. While they are technically racing each other, the objective here is to turn the best top speed possible.
In the case of this C6 ZR1, it turned the quickest half-mile top speed on record with so few upgrades, but the video shows four runs made by the OP at the Florida event.
The GreyMatterZ
We have featured this particular C6 Corvette ZR1 in the past in street racing videos. This time, we bring you a look at this Chevy supercar running at a sanctioned event.
In case you are not familiar with this Corvette, it is powered by the original LS9 V8, but the owner has added a cold air intake, long-tube headers, a 2.6-inch blower pulley, injectors and a good tune. This ZR1 also has a 200-shot of nitrous, but the heads, cam, throttle body, supercharger and the rest of the engine internals are stock.
The top speed action
In the first two clips, we ride shotgun in the GreyMatterZ as the OP makes the half-mile run without the nitrous. On these runs, the C6 Corvette ZR1 turns in solid speeds of 163.6 and 164.8 miles per hour.
Next, the driver engages the nitrous system and we get to see how much of a difference a 200-shot makes on a half-mile run. On the first bottle run, the ZR1 turns in a top speed of 179.56 miles per hour – his best of the day and the best for a C6 ZR1 with so many stock components.
On the final run, there must have been some headwind or some other factor working against the Corvette, as it “only” ran 176.81 miles per hour.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
