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C7 Corvette Stingray Eats Quarter-Mile in 12 Seconds, HPE Does the Honors

They say numbers don’t lie, and actions speak louder than words. Chevrolet is definitely living up to both cliches with the highly anticipated C7 Corvette Stingray. But, there’s one auto p...
C7 Corvette Stingray Eats Quarter-Mile in 12 Seconds, HPE Does the Honors
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  • They say numbers don’t lie, and actions speak louder than words. Chevrolet is definitely living up to both cliches with the highly anticipated C7 Corvette Stingray. But, there’s one auto performance guru that looks to make the ‘Vette even more of a monster than it already is. Back in July, Hennessey Performance Engineering announced their aspiring plans to kick things up a notch, taking the Corvette to yet another accelerated level – literally and figuratively. Now, they’ve did the honors of testing the first consumer production release of the 2014 Corvette Stingray.

    With a laudably notable reputation for building fast toys, the Texas-based, tuning powerhouse recently announced their preliminary plan of action to expound upon their customized upgrade package for the new C7 Corvette. Now here’s the kicker – Chevrolet has yet to release official details for the Z07 and Z51 performance version of the Stingray, let alone mass-produce the base model of the vehicle for dealerships.

    But, regardless of the factory modifications Chevrolet will present, it probably won’t come close to the “Stingray on Steroids” that Hennessey looks to produce. With plans to tweak the ‘Vette’ up to approximately 1,000hp, Hennessey’s twin-turbo HPE1000 upgrade package looks as though it will be unprecedented and highly lauded in the modified auto world.

    But before the package can be deemed effective, the preliminary modification process has to start with a blueprint, and what better way to produce such a massive blueprint than to put it to the test. Hennessey had the esteemed honor of putting the first customer-owned ‘Vette on the asphault in a baseline dyno test.

    Hennessey stated that the Black Stingray in the video is a bone stock 3LT, 6-speed automatic, with a Z51 Performance Package. In the video, the Stingray puts down approximately 399rwhp with 400ft-lbs of torque. So in a nutshell, Chevrolet backs its promise to “under-estimate and over-deliver.”

    Chevrolet also stated that the Vette’s power-to-weight ratio improvement for a ‘lighter and faster’ execution are the components that make the car’s “0-60 in four seconds” possible. In all actuality, the Vette precisely produces 460bhp, hitting 60mph in 3.8 seconds. However, Hennessey’s speed test proved the results to be slightly different, but only by tenths of seconds in contrast to Chevrolet’s claims, reported Corvette Blogger.

    Hennessey’s black Stingray produced a 4.15 second, 0-60mph run, accelerating to 100mph at 9.5 seconds. So the power-to-weight calculations, in conjunction with the speed expectations, were slightly inaccurate. But, you have to take into consideration the kit designed to test the car which adds to its weight. This particular element actually rationalizes the reason for the baseline dyno test, but at this point, Hennessey’s tests are all preliminary, and the final results will probably end up totally different by the time their performance package is perfected under the hood.

    But aside from the preliminary test, Hennessey has no intention of waiting for Chevrolet to unveil their plans for the Z07 and ZR1 customized models. They’re already tenaciously at work designing powerful modifications and supercharged conversions, just as General Motors is working to mass-produce the vehicle for dealerships. This is definitely just the beginning for the C7 Corvette Stingray.

     

     

    Image via Hennessey Performance Engineering

     

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