The seller of today's Nice Price or No Dice Corvette Z06 describes the special lightened model as "Mint condition" and "tastefully upgraded." Let's see if this absolute legend of a car can command some heavy cash.
๐ The Core Development
There is no more iconoclastic American fighter plane from the Second World War than the P-51 Mustang. What makes that all the more surprising is that the plane was originally commissioned by the British for use by the Royal Air Force. The Brits also gave the P-51 its noble nickname, the Mustang, because the fighter had the same sense of speed and agility as the wild American equine.
Two decades after the P-51 first plied the skies, Ford adopted the Mustang name for its new sporty car model, creating the "pony car" category in the process. While the Mustang used a galloping horse motif for its badging and mascot, Ford execs said the goal was for the car to embody the spirit and nature of the P-51 fighter.
๐ Background & Sector Context
We looked at a Mustang on Wednesday, a 2012 GT with a Coyote V8 and handling mods by Jack Roush Performance . At first glance, that 'Stang had lots going for it. A little digging, however, turned up a recent unsuccessful Bring a Trailer auction that noted some dings (albeit repaired) on the car's Carfax report. Based on that added info, the Roush-massaged GT's $23,950 asking price lost its shine. When all was said and done, that sent the 'Stang packing with a 78% 'No Dice' loss.
While not direct competitors, the Mustang has long played a similar halo-car role for Ford as the Corvette has for crosstown rival Chevrolet. Of course, the Corvette had a decade's head start on the Mustang and has always been more focused in its role than the broader-appealing Ford. Over the years, both cars have forged rivalries on the race track, often going fender to fender in search of that elusive checkered flag.
๐ Industry & Real-World Impact
The 2007 Chevy Corvette Z06 that comes our way today is a street car homologated for racing, lightened throughout, and fitted with the biggest, most powerful engine Chevy could cram into it at the time.
Benchmark Telemetry & EV Fuel Savings
Put top supercars and EVs to the test in The Pit Stop Lab โ launch head-to-head 1/4-mile drag strip battles & compute EPA electric fuel cost savings.
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๐ฎ Strategic Outlook & What Lies Ahead
This model doesn't just pay lip service to the goal of eking out the best power-to-weight ratio from the C6 platform; it goes all in. Those efforts included replacing the Corvette's steel chassis with an aluminum one, ditching the standard floorboards for balsa wood/carbon fiber composites, and adding a magnesium front subframe. To stiffen things up and drop a couple more pounds, the Z06's roof is fixed in place and not removable. Even with its wider, wilder bodywork and massive 7.0-liter engine, the Z06 is still almost 70 pounds lighter.
When new, the Z06's 7.0-liter V8, dubbed LS7 by General Motors' product coders, was the highest-output naturally aspirated engine in the company's lineup. It was also GM's largest-displacement small block ever. In the Z06, the hand-built mill reportedly produced 505 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque. This 63,600-mile Z06, in Velocity Yellow with a black leather interior, has a dyno run record in that ballpark.
