skank

Last Tuesday and Wednesday I was at Laguna Seca observing some of the Best Drivers Car Test by Motor Trend magazine. Chevrolet had two cars there. A Corvette Grand Sport with the ZO7 performance package and the new Camaro ZL1-1LE. There were 12 cars in the test. I will list the cars and their horsepower ratings as soon as Motor Trend put's it out shortly. Sorry but I can't do it right now out of courtesy to Motor Trend. Don't want to steal their thunder and I want to be able to revisit their tests when their here without any repercussions. I did get a unofficial lap time on the Grand Sport by my I phone lap timer. Randy Pobst of course was driving all cars. The Grand Sport was tested about 11:00 in the morning and it was a little foggy and a bit chilly(low 50s) so I don't anticipate an ideal time for it. It was still very fast!! I didn't see the big winged Camaro test so we'll have to wait for the magazine to put that out. I also got to talk to 2 GM test drivers that were at the Nurburgring a few weeks ago. Both great guys and were real fun to talk to. One was the Camaro test driver and the other was the ZR1 driver. I verbally played with them a bit by asking about the ZR1 and of course they just kept quiet and smiled. I threw a bunch of conjectured thoughts at them on what I personally thought were the differences on the ZR1 over the ZO6. Once again they just smiled but I think they were a bit amazed at what we at Corvette Forum have projected as possible details of the ZR1. I'll add more in a bit.

l2vette

Thanks for the post, keep us updated!!

95bat

That sounds like a good time! Just FYI, the cars have been posted on social media so you won't be letting the cat out of the bag on which cars were there.

skank

1.Ferrari 488 GTB 661 HP
2.Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE 650 HP
3.Mercedes AMG GT-R 577 HP
4.Porsche 911 Turbo S 991-2 580 HP
5.Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport 460 HP
6.Nissan GTR Nismo 600 HP
7.McLaren 570 GT 570 HP
8.Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio 505 HP
9.Aston Martin DB11 600 HP
10.Lexus LC 471 HP
11.Porsche 718 Cayman S 350 HP
12.Mazda MX5 RF 155 HP

I listed them to where I thought they may end up on the order of fastest to slowest. Join in and adjust the list to your own estimates for fun.

2cnd Chance

That's not good to hear, humid, damp and cold for the Grand Sport test, Ugh!!

skank

Yes, it was cold enough that most people were wearing coats.

2cnd Chance

^ Hopefully they ran it at another time as well so the numbers are not skewed.

This is exactly why most of these test are just too unreliable.

JerriVette

I think your list sounds about right. I'm surprised Ferrari let their beautiful and exotic 488 out for this test.

Usually they don't like to do that..

Still an amazing vehicle.

Zr1 vs 48& vs 720s vs lambo huracan....a battle royals..and of course let's add in the Ford GT

skank

Believe it or not, some of the manufacturer reps were concerned about the Camaro being there. Of course this test is not only about lap times. I did time the Grand Sport which was really hustling around there.

BLKTA

Motortrend was posting on FB live a few days ago when they were testing at Laguna Seca and the person recording mentioned the ZL1 1LE is faster than the Grand Sport. Randy was also talking to the Chevy Engineer about the soft brake pedal on the Camaro and the engineer said it was normal. Curious to see the actual results when they're published.

2cnd Chance

In your opinion how did the Grand Sport perform compared to the LS fast list? Thanks.

I believe the ZL1/1LE will be very quick; 650 HP, Substantial Aero with wing, fully Adjustable Suspension...
...if you want a track car that will be used lightly on the street it will be hard to beat.

hungryhippo

Best "drivers cars" doesn't necessarily mean fastest to slowest.

Les

I really look forward to any other info you can post. You're smart to stay in their good graces and allow yourself a future opportunity for another front row seat. Very stuff- you're a lucky guy. I'm dying to see how that ZL1 1LE performed.

skank

When talking to the guys from Chevrolet they commented that the Camaro would be slightly faster than the Grand Sport. I saw and timed the Grand Sport so by their comments the ZL1 1LE should be in the low 1:34 second range. The Grand Sport ran about 11:00 in the morning and it was foggy and in the low 50s so unless they rerun the Vette in warmer conditions I don't think it has a chance of matching the Camaro, F488 GTB, AMG GTR, or the 911-2 Turbo S.

Bucknut2006

I had to adjust to the pedal feel on my ZL1 compared to my prior C7. The Corvette would quickly put a lot more force to the brakes with a slight touch. The Camaro needs more input, but overall the both grip well.

2cnd Chance

Thanks!

FAUEE

I think the ferrari 488, mclaren 570, nissan gtr, porsche 911, and then amg gtr will round out the fastest laps

C5Longhorn

How did they decide which car ran at what time as obviously weather conditions at different times could impact performance.

skank

The Grand Sport was run at around 11:00 and it was still foggy then. They will delay if conditions aren't good. The first car on Tuesday was the Porsche 718 Cayman S then the Grand Sport. They probably pick testing position from a hat as some of the manufacturers are present and would raise hell if they were run under crappy conditions.

turbo8765

When will motor trend release the info?