Up next in 10
CORVETTE TODAY #271 - Corvette News & Headlines, Late June 2025
0 views
Jul 12, 2025
CORVETTE TODAY #271 - Corvette News & Headlines, Late June 2025 With the announcement of the C8 Corvette ZR1 X, Corvette officially entered the hypercar category! Keith Cornett from CorvetteBlogger was there to witness the reveal. He returns to the CORVETTE TODAY studio with your host, Steve Garrett to talk all about it! Along with the ZR1 X, Steve and Keith also discuss these topics and more... 1. The first ZR1's arrive at dealerships
View Video Transcript
0:00
[Music] Welcome to Corvette Today, the show that
0:06
talks about everything Corvette with your host Steve Garrett, lifetime member of the National Corvette Museum,
0:13
president of the Corvette Club of Kansas City, Missouri, and radio disc jockey at the number one radio station in Kansas
0:20
City for over 45 years. Here's Steve Garrett.
0:28
Thanks for listening and watching Corvette Today, the show that talks about everything Corvette and the only
0:33
current podcast dedicated to Corvette. I'm your host, Steve Garrett. I appreciate you tuning in. Corvette Today
0:39
is brought to you by Wheelcraft. Want to dress up your Corvette with bright chrome or black chrome wheels? Visit
0:44
wheelcraft.com and learn about their advanced PVD chrome finishing. They can refinish your wheels or offer a wheel
0:50
exchange for most models, and it comes with a 5-year warranty. Visit wheelcraft.com today or call them at
0:55
833-84-5334. You can listen to Corvette today on all
1:01
podcast platforms. You can also listen on your smart device. Just say, "Hey Google," or "Alexa, play the podcast
1:07
called Corvette today and you're connected." And be sure to visit the Corvette Today website. It's corvettetoday.com.
1:13
You can access everything there, including the Corvette today merchandise store. You can also join our Corvette
1:18
today Facebook group there as well. Also, make sure you sign up for the Corvette Today emails. notifications and
1:23
updates at corvette. CK.page and be sure to subscribe to our Corvette Today
1:29
YouTube channel. See all Corvette Today episodes on YouTube as well. And be sure to patronize our flagship sponsors of
1:35
Corvette Today, mid-eninec forum.com. The forum that focuses on the new mid-enine C8 Corvette. Meet a lot of
1:42
fellow Corvette enthusiasts like yourself at mid-engine corvette forum.com. Soul Performance Products
1:48
developed and manufactured in the United States. The Soul Performance Products exhaust portfolio has been tailored to
1:53
elevate the experience of the world's most exciting sports cars, including the latest generation of the Corvette, Soul
1:59
Performance Products at sulp.com. The official performance exhaust of
2:04
Corvette today. Aerolari wheels, a true forged wheel with over 20 unique styles to choose from for your C8, and widebody
2:11
versions of the C7, C6, and C5 Corvette. It's an amazing value starting at only
2:17
23.88 88 for a set of four fully forged wheels and use the promo code CT111 and
2:23
get $100 off your purchase. Visit aerolari.com. Sioka Corvettes. If you're a Corvette enthusiast, and I know you
2:29
are since you're listening and watching Corvette today, then you need to know about Sioka Corvette. They're based in Atlantic City where you can find over
2:36
100 new and pre-owned vets on the lot and inbound. Sioka also ships Corvettes all over the country, customordered to
2:42
your specifications. They're staffed with experienced pros who can answer all your questions. So don't compromise.
2:48
Visit seiocorvette.com. That's ciocorvette.com and find out more. Chevrolet together.
2:55
Let's drive E5 Wheels. E5 Wheels is a passionate and dedicated wheel company that serves only Corvette. They make
3:02
spun forged wheels for your C8, C7, and C6 Corvette. With the best fitment in the industry, E5 Wheels ensures your
3:09
wheels complement the aesthetics and functionality while optimizing the performance of your Corvette. Visit
3:14
e5wheels.com or call them at 3059647429.
3:20
C8 owners, tired of pesky water spots on your engine bay after a wash? So is Amora, the C8 Corvette lady. That's why
3:26
she created C8 dry bay vent blocks. These Americanmade blocks are designed to keep your engine bay dry while you
3:32
wash your C8. You get seven blocks, enough to cover all six vent wells on your coupe and the rear window strip.
3:37
Stop scrubbing those spots and get yours with free shipping at c8blocks.com. Veterans and first responders enjoy a
3:43
$15 discount. Also available at Paragon Performance and West Coast Corvette. Call 317-4570594
3:51
or go to cblocks.com. And a shout out to Corvette Forum. Welcoming Corvette enthusiasts from around the world. All
3:57
right, my friend. It's time to bring you the latest Corvette news and headlines with the one and only Keith Cornet from
4:02
corvette blogger.com. Keith is with me every other week. We keep you current and uptodate on what's happening with
4:08
America's sports car. Keith, welcome back to the show. It's the official start of summer, buddy. We are into it
4:13
already. I know. First summer of the weekend of 2025. It's hot here. It feels like summer. It actually felt like summer for
4:19
the last couple months, but it is here and we are ready to get going with it, Steve. Yeah, it's warm in Kansas City, too.
4:25
We've got heat indices in the triple digits, so it feels like Tampa, you know. And it's funny. It's like I'll
4:30
put my top down in the mornings or late at night, but in the afternoons, it's like, nope, I need that AC on full blast.
4:35
Thank God for air conditioning, right? Exactly. All right, buddy. Let's start like we always do. Let's get a Corvette
4:41
production update from the Bowling Green assembly plant. Yeah, you know, I was kind of looking ahead to see. We know that the model
4:46
year ends on the 1st of August. So, I was doing some counting. It looks like there's about 5 weeks remaining in the
4:51
2025 Corvette model year for production. We do know that there's at least a week they're going to take off for the 4th of
4:57
July. So, that's how we get to that five weeks. But, what's been interesting again is production continues to show a little bit more favoritism to the Z06.
5:04
It nearly outproduces the Stingray on most days. only one day or here or there that we've actually seen more Stingrays
5:09
in the Z06, but for the most part, your Z06 is your production leader right now. As for the production counts, we are at
5:15
a total of 23,133 cars produced for 2022. And they break
5:20
down like this. So far, we've got 12,735 Stingrays, 7,610
5:26
Z06s, 2,741-ays, and a whopping 47 ZR1s have so far been
5:33
produced. So that's our total 23,133. We had 310 orders for the ZR1s. And
5:40
there's actually some people starting to backtrack a little bit saying, "Are we going to get to that number?" It might not be. There's some people that don't
5:46
have TPWs yet for my understanding. And that's not good. You want actually a TPW and you want to see that status at
5:52
3,000, which means that it's being scheduled for production. We're going to keep a close watch on that Z1 production, but they are making cars
5:58
most days there, it seems like. So it is a good sign and it's just something we're going to watch there. We are, as I
6:03
mentioned, expecting the Fourth of July holiday, a shutdown. Either it's going to be that week of the 4th of July. Fourth of July is on a Friday this year,
6:09
or it'll be that following week. I actually have a note into Rachel at the plant to confirm that. So, as soon as we
6:15
have that, we'll talk about that on the blog. But yeah, there's your production for the 2025s. Sounds good. Also, speaking of the new
6:21
orders for 2026, I guess we got first order allocations and constraints for the first order cycle already, didn't
6:27
we? Exactly. Yeah, we've already had that first one. It's been put to bed. It happened about a couple weeks ago. And actually the constraints were both
6:33
positive and negative. We knew the negative would be the carbon fiber for the Z06. There's just no visible carbon
6:38
fiber for the Z06. It's like that's where they got all those high wings from the ZR1s, but for whatever reason, we're
6:44
still hoping that those quantities return the next few order cycles at least. But on the positive side, we
6:49
actually had really decent quantities for the two new colors, Roswell Green and Blade Silver. production usually starts up and it's either they might
6:56
roll out one color first and then a second color. But they've got nice quantities for both those new colors from the very beginning, which is nice.
7:02
And again, we actually saw the Roswell green in person. Under the lights, that car is beautiful. It's got a gold flake
7:08
to it. It really comes alive and pops. But outside, I saw it in the overcast. It was actually raining a little bit and
7:14
it's just a little bit flat for me. Some people are really going to like it under the lights, under the sun, it's going to be a dynamite color. I think those
7:20
colors are available and I think our next order cycle will happen in early July. I don't know if we're going to
7:26
have two order cycles in July or if it's just going to be one order cycle and then it's done. That's probably going to be the case since production starts
7:31
August 4th for the 2026s. Gotcha. You know, I did a little comparison. I took a picture of that
7:37
Roswell green Corvette against one of the green Lamborghini Aventadors, and you know what? The color is just about
7:43
the same, which I was pleasantly surprised to see. Yeah, Chevy's got so much flake in their paints these days.
7:49
When you see them, you know, even like the oranges and even Rapid Blue had flake in it. So, it looks like a flat
7:54
color, especially without direct sunlight or direct lights on it. But, boy, you get those things outside and they really come alive. And I think
8:00
that's one of the ways that Chevy's paint department and especially that paint shop inside the plant has really
8:05
found its place, you know, to be out to put these vibrant colors out. And again, some of these colors that weren't all
8:11
that popular, I go back to caffeine. Caffeine had more flake in it than any other color ever I saw. You know, it's
8:16
just one of those really that plays with your mind when you get out in the light. Again, this green color is not for everybody, but for some, they're going
8:23
to love it. That's one of the cool things about Corvette ownership. Yep. I love to see it in person. This next story, Keith, I'm really excited
8:29
about and real jealous about because the first ZR1 arrived at Seioa Chevrolet and at the National Corvette Museum as well.
8:35
Exactly. They're actually going around everywhere now in the United States. The first ZR1 delivery started about the first half of June. I think Sioka got
8:42
theirs in on like the 6th or the 7th. By the 10th, I know Le Stanford got a car. It was out the door that following week.
8:49
The NCM just hosted their first R8C museum delivery. It was a competition yellow Corvette that they had on the
8:54
floor there. That was an early car, too. I think it was number 12 or 14. I don't quite remember that. The Sioka car was a
9:00
black car with the blue stripes, the blue wheels. All these cars that we're seeing so far, they're all split window
9:05
coups with the big wings. So, congratulations to those owners. I actually my drive out to Stingray Chevrolet over the weekend. They got a
9:11
competition yellow coupe that they just got in as well. So, there's a lot of good stuff happening. We actually ended up having a video from one of the owners
9:18
that picked up his car first in Orlando area. He just loves it. He just did a walk around, not a driving video yet.
9:24
He's still doing a breakin, but so far so good. These cars are getting out into hands and we're excited to see it.
9:29
Was that the white one with the big wing? It was. Yeah. Okay. He said he paid $50,000 over MSRP
9:35
for that car. He paid 50 and he admitted he said, you know, if it was higher than that, he probably wouldn't have done it,
9:40
but he felt it was worth it. He wanted to be one of the first to get it. You know, it's just one of those personal things. He's bought five Corvettes. He's
9:46
really into the Corvette hobby. Probably has the income to go with other cars, but chose the Corvette. He said it's
9:52
always been a reliable car for him. Never left him stranded, which is why he keeps coming back to it. So, he had a lot of good things to say about the car,
9:57
but you know, and when he said, you know, you start talking about 100 over, he's like, there's no way I could do that. Everybody's finances are different
10:02
and some people have a little bit more disposable income and some people need a lot more disposal income to buy a car
10:08
like a ZR1. Yeah, that's true. Well, congratulations to everybody. Damn it.
10:13
I'm jealous. Get out there, enjoy the car. Give your friends a ride when you can. This is fun. This is exciting. So,
10:19
stop by Kansas City and give me a ride. Also, Also, Keith, this is really cool. The E-Ray is now available in Europe,
10:25
which I think is fantastic. Yeah, Chevy's first all-wheel drive performance hybrid car is now the third
10:30
C8 Corvette model to be offered on the European continent. Buyers will be able to order the -ray basically how we can.
10:37
They can order coupe convertibles. They have full access to all the 10 colors for 2025, 15 interior colors, the
10:43
four-wheel finishes. It's not exactly cheap over there. It starts at 193,000
10:48
United States dollars for the coupe. And while the convertible starts at over 22,000, the equivalent in the euros,
10:54
they actually have some standalone Chevrolet dealers are actually they're dealers that handle the Chevrolet brand over there. That's where you go to find
11:00
it. Not cheap, but they are available. So, if you got one, order one. I had actually had a guy email me from the UK
11:06
tell me not only was he getting one, but he was trying to source some of the upgrades like the Borl exhaust and some
11:11
other things for it. You know, it's exciting time to be a Corvette owner and not just for us here in the United States, but elsewhere in the world.
11:17
I think that's really, really cool, buddy. Also, I'm so excited about this. The Zora is here, but it ain't called
11:23
the Zora, is it? It's not called the Zora. They actually decided to go with the ZR1X. They did
11:29
trademark the Zora name, not only once, they trademarked it twice in the United States, 2015. I believe they had to do
11:34
it again in 2020 because it was a future product. I think you have to trademark every 5 years for that in United States.
11:40
But they all went around the world. They did Mexico, they did China, they did Japan, all over with the Zora. So, we
11:45
had legitimate reasons to believe that this car was going to be called the Zora. But then a couple weeks ago, you know, inside the order systems, dealers
11:52
were telling us when they came across one of the hybrids in the order system that they could look up as a 2026, it
11:58
would just say ZR1 with a little E after it. So, that looked like it was an internal model code and not something
12:03
that stuck. Actually, today, these cars are now saying ZR1X as the internal code in there. Chevy, right up to the point
12:09
of the reveal, was doing some changes with the name. They wanted to say that because it's the ZR1, it's within the
12:15
same family. Taj said that during one of his interviews as he was revealing the ZR1 that the ZR1 was always going to be
12:20
the range topper, the most expensive Corvette. So, it all kind of makes sense. But we do have confirmation from
12:26
General Motors that they are treating the ZR1X as a separate model. It's actually two VIN structures for the ZR1X
12:32
versus the ZR1 confirmed by General Motors. Now, we're just waiting on pricing and configurations. My big
12:37
question is, are they going to be releasing it, you know, in the fall, so we'll get a little bit later into the model year? They did that with the Z06.
12:44
You know, when the 2023s first started, Stingray started in September, and I think the Z06 started later, October.
12:50
Now, we've got the ZR1s. 2025s didn't start until the very end of the model year. At some point in 2026, we are
12:57
going to have that ZR1X. If I could just go over some of the info about this car, what they did was the motor actually
13:04
would cut out around 150 mph, and that's their trap speed in the 1/4 mile of this car. So what they did was they actually
13:11
juiced it with some additional voltage while strengthening the internals of it. So they get the power up to 160 mph and
13:18
now it generates 186 horsepower and 145 ft-lbs of torque compared to the - 160
13:23
horsepower. It also has a bunch of new modes to take advantage of that all-wheel drive system. There's like an endurance mode, a qualifying mode for
13:30
optimum power, and there's even a push to pass that maximizes max power on demand. And that push to pass button is
13:37
actually a repurposing of the cruise control button. Whether you have to push it once or twice or push to pass, I
13:42
don't know how they do that. Maybe you hold it down. They did some interesting things there, but they wanted that button on the steering wheel is what we
13:47
were told. And then one of the really big things about this car is its new brake package, the J59 brake package
13:53
from Alcon. They're a UKbased provider of braking systems for motorsports and sports cars. This is the largest and
13:59
most robust brake system ever tested on a Chevrolet. Josh Holder was talking about this at the live reveal at the
14:04
Corvette assembly plant that the stopping power is off the charts. They're at the Nurburgg Ring and they're going into a tear garden corner at 180
14:12
mph. They broke so hard that they recorded 1.9g of deceleration as the car
14:18
went from 180 to 120 in just around a second or so. 1.9 gs. That's nearly
14:23
double your body weight being affected by the momentum of the car stopping. He says actually when you take off in this
14:28
car, it'll distort your vision. There's so much pressure and force from this car taking off. We're still waiting on price
14:34
and availability come later this year. But I got to tell you, Steve, this is an exciting time to be a Corvette fan.
14:39
Absolutely right. Those numbers are just mindboggling. Alcon Brakes out of UK. They are really
14:44
known for their racing brakes. I asked Josh, why go away from Brebo? And of course, these are bigger brakes. They
14:50
actually get the rotors from somebody else and they're very specialized rotor made with a continuous piece of carbon
14:55
fiber as opposed to being pressed or anything like that. They gave them the best package they could buy. They really
15:01
tweaked it the way they wanted it, not just off the shelf from somebody else. That's why they went with Alcon and these J59 brakes. By the way, these are
15:08
an option on the regular ZR1. They come standard on the ZR1X. Gotcha. Gotcha. All right, buddy. That
15:13
sounds awesome. I can't wait to see this car in person. It'll be fun. Let's take our first break, Keith. When we come
15:18
back, it's Corvette Racing and Corvette Rumors on deck next here on Corvette Today. Wheelcraft's PVD chrome finish in
15:26
bright chrome or black chrome is the buzz of the Corvette community. But now Wheelcraft is proud to announce they can
15:33
now do custom finishes for your OEM wheels, including the bronze wheel color option. And you still get the Wheelcraft
15:40
5-year warranty on all wheels. Wheelcraft offers factory wheel exchanges for C4 through C8 Corvettes,
15:46
or they can apply the PVD chrome finish to your current wheels. Buying a new Corvette? Wheelcraft will work with your
15:52
Chevrolet dealership to get your PBD chrome wheels there on time. You can drive away with your new wheels already
15:58
installed. Doing an R8C delivery at the National Corvette Museum. Wheelcraft has
16:03
partnered with the NCM Motorsports Park to do wheel exchanges once your R8C delivery is completed. You'll drive home
16:10
from the NCM with your new Wheelcraft wheels. Plus, you still get free lifetime access to the Wheelcraft Pit
16:16
Crew. So visit wheelcraft.com or call them at 833639-4231.
16:22
Arrive in style with Wheelcraft. Hey Corvette lovers, this is Brian Sarf from IntelliSense Family Office. You've
16:29
formerly known us as True Wealth and Company. First off, a huge congratulations to Steve Garrett on
16:34
celebrating six amazing years of Corvette today. We've been proud sponsors every mile of the way. You know
16:41
the thrill and drive and the pride of ownership. But here's the big question. Do you have the same confidence in
16:46
managing your wealth? At IntelliSense Family Office, we specialize in helping high- netw worth individuals like you
16:52
protect, grow, and enjoy their wealth. Whether you're a successful entrepreneur, a professional athlete, or
16:57
someone who's worked hard to achieve your financial goals, we've got you covered with personalized expert advice.
17:03
We understand the unique challenges you face and the dreams you have for the future. From advanced tax planning to
17:08
succession planning, we provide comprehensive services tailored to your needs. Our goal to give you peace of
17:14
mind so you can focus on what you love. Ready to take your financial management to the next level? Visit
17:19
intellisense.com or reach out to us today at 9136538783.
17:25
Let's drive your financial success together. I'm Brian Sarf and I look forward to helping you live the dream.
17:31
Save the wave and see you on the road. Investment advisory services offered through IntelliSense Investment
17:36
Solutions Incorporated, an SEC registered investment advisor. Rev up your ride with the ultimate upgrade. The
17:43
Radiator Grill Store is your go-to destination for top-notch C8 Corvette
17:48
Stingray Z06 and -ray accessories. Elevate your style with custom painted
17:53
engine bay covers, sleek front splitters, and side skirts that scream sophistication. Keep your C8 protected
18:00
with premium radiator grill screens. Stand out from the crowd at car shows and beyond. Use code CT10 for an
18:08
exclusive 10% discount off your total purchase at radiator grillilstore.com.
18:13
Don't miss out on turning heads. Upgrade your Corvette today. Stretch the life of
18:18
your Corvette's paint with Nova Stretch, the performance protective cover. From bugs to rock chips, Nova Stretch covers
18:25
protect your Corvette utilizing stretch fabric technology and an innovative fastening system for quick installation
18:31
and easy removal and storage. Made in the USA for a tailored fit, the patented design and breathable mesh protects your
18:37
Corvette without rubbing or chafing the paint like traditional covers. And unlike clear film or oldtime car bras,
18:43
Nova Stretch provides full front-end coverage, including the grill, keeping radiators and heat exchangers clean and
18:49
debrisfree. Visit nova.com and use the code corvette today 15 to get 15% off
18:55
your order. Protect your Corvette with Nova Stretch.
19:02
I'm Harland Charles and you're listening and watching Corvette Today with Steve
19:07
Garrett. Thanks for checking out Corvette Today on podcast and YouTube. It's the only
19:12
current podcast dedicated to Corvette. Corvette Today is brought to you by Wheelcraft. Wheelcraft carries all the
19:18
latest factory wheel designs for the C8 Stingray, Z06, and -ay and popular wheel
19:24
designs from previous generations. Along with bright chrome and black chrome, Wheelcraft now offers bronze and custom
19:30
colors at half the cost of OEM. So visit wheelcraft.com today or just give them a
19:36
call 833-639-4231. I'm your host Steve Garrett. With me is
19:41
my buddy Keith Cornet from Corvette Blogger. We are keeping you current and uptodate on everything that is Corvette
19:47
every other week. In this second segment, we cover Corvette racing and Corvette rumors. Keith, let's start with
19:53
racing and let's talk about Corvette racing at Lama. Absolutely. So, we had three Corvette Z06 GT3RS competing this year at the 24
20:00
hours of Lemons. The good news is that all three finished the race. Not only they completed the race, they finished in the top 10 of LMGT3. And I believe
20:07
there was 18 cars, 20 cars in the class, I mean, it was a loaded class. So, the fact that not only all three finished,
20:12
but they all finished well says a lot about this car and these teams. The number 81 Corvette from TF Sport
20:18
actually did the best. They did a third place podium finish while other TF Sport entry in the 33 car finished seventh and
20:24
then the AWA Racing Corvette Z06 with their red Canadian flag motif. They finished in 10th place. It was a good
20:30
race about midway through the 81 actually moved into the lead in LMGT3 and then it was part of that back and
20:36
forth with three or four other cars at the leaders in the class and it stayed right up there all the way to the end. The number 33 is currently third in the
20:42
driver's championship points and then their teammates in the 81 are now sitting in sixth place. And the next race for TF Sport in the World Endurance
20:49
Championship happens July 13th in Brazil. There's a 6-hour race in Sao Paulo, I believe. Yes.
20:54
Corvette racing was actually in action at Watkins Glenn over the weekend. We'll have coverage of that race in our next news and headlines episode. But then
21:01
Corvette Racing is going to soon be heading to the Chevrolet Grand Prix at the Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in
21:06
Canada. That race happens the weekend of July 11th through the 13th. So stay tuned for that as well.
21:12
That sounds great. I thought this is really cool. Oliver Gavin honored Tajjar. Tell me a little bit more about
21:17
that. Exactly. So, the media was rolling out their embargoed stories and videos on the Corvette ZR1. I believe that
21:23
happened on May 30th or so. And just a couple days later, former Corvette racing driver and Hall of Fame member
21:29
Oliver Gavin shared a photo of him and former chief engineer Tad Shutter taken at the Nurburg Ring as the team was
21:35
testing the ZR1 at the track last year. Oliver actually drove it at one point with Tad riding shotgun during that
21:41
test. In this post, he wanted to talk about the cars and capabilities, but he really ends it on a personal note. He
21:46
says, "Amazing work, Taj and the whole engineering team at Corvette. You have built one mind-blowing vehicle." So, it
21:52
was just a really neat picture, you know, just one of those things where most people just might pass it, but I thought, "Wow, that's a nice little
21:57
tribute to Taz. He's retired. He's going off and doing his own thing right now." So, let's put that out there. That's a
22:02
nice thing to say. And of course, these guys had a great relationship with the drivers and the engineers. Boy, it'd be
22:07
sure nice to see Oliver Gavin maybe do one of those lap tests at the Nurburg Ring. Yeah, speaking of the Nurburg Ring, the
22:13
Corvette engineers are back at the ring and we're looking at lap records hopefully planned very, very soon.
22:18
And it does seem like that's why they're there. They kind of alluded to that at the NCM Bash this year. It was kind of
22:24
mentioned that, yeah, we're going back, but the regime has changed a little bit. We've got different leadership now at the Corvette team. But then you also had
22:31
Mark Royce, ZM's president. He was the guy that set the high speed record for the ZR1. 233 mph and now you've got the
22:38
Mustangs broken the 7minute barrier at the Nurburg Ring. Maybe there is going to be a new emphasis on trying to get a
22:44
fast lap down. And the reason why we say that is not only did they go over there with the ZR1 and the ZR1X, but they also
22:50
brought two Z06s as well. Over the last few years, we've actually made friends with one of the ring photographers over
22:55
there. We buy his spy photos. He's been a wealth of info for us this year. He actually says the engineers were over
23:01
there for one week of driving during that industry pool. That's when we had the photographs up, but then it ended on
23:06
that Friday, so they took a break, probably went down to Lemon, and then last weekend was the 24-hour Nurburg
23:11
race there. So, they weren't even on the track up to then. They will actually be heading back to the track this Tuesday,
23:17
and we know that they had the track reserved for their first record lap attempt, and then they're actually going to run again on Thursday for have their
23:24
second appointment with the Ring. And hopefully with Corvette history and setting a really fast lap times you everybody wants to see a sub 7minute
23:30
time. It's especially important that we finish ahead of that highly priced Mustang GTD which had a best time of 6
23:36
minutes and 52 seconds. Whether Chevy releases the time or not, that's another story. But we need to reclaim that time
23:43
and put Chevrolet at the top of American cars on the Ring leaderboard. Absolutely right. All right, buddy. Time
23:48
for our final break. When we come back, it's the fun side of Corvette on deck next here on Corvette Today.
23:55
[Music] Are you ready for a better insurance policy without the Corvette tax? With
24:00
agreed value protection, the value of your collector vehicle will never change. Plus, you'll save money. Get a
24:06
quick quote at ncm insurance.com. The National Corvette Restore Society is
24:11
a proud sponsor of Corvette today. Are you already an NCRS member? If not, you should consider joining. And here's why.
24:18
The NCRS means community. We're a community of individuals who love the Corvette hobby and enjoy the fellowship
24:24
that NCRS provides. We have NCRS chapters throughout the US and Canada where members can meet monthly and share
24:31
in the enjoyment of the Corvette with like-minded people. NCRS means excellence. NCS trains some of the best
24:37
and most educated judges and informed owners in the car collector world. NCS means inclusion. Owners of both classic
24:44
and new Corvettes are welcome. We offer flight and concourse judging for 53 through07 model years and sportsman
24:51
awards for Corvettes ranging from 53 through 2025. NCRS means leadership.
24:56
With over 10,000 members, NCRS researches, writes, publishes, and distributes tech manuals and judging
25:03
guides for the 53 through07 Corvettes. No other Corvette organization does this, and they're available for
25:10
purchase. Members also receive the bimonthly and award-winning Restore magazine and Driveline magazine
25:16
throughout the year. We also host an extensive technical discussion board at ncs.org.
25:21
Finally, NCRS means value. Many of our prestigious awards can and often do
25:27
increase the value of the cars that achieve our rewards. Whether you own a 53 Corvette or the latest 25 model, the
25:33
NCRS has a place for you. Check us out at ncs.org. When you want to buy a Corvette or any
25:39
Chevrolet for that matter, get yours from Hendrickk Chevrolet Shauny Mission located in Kansas City. Hendrickk
25:44
Chevrolet is the largest Corvette dealership and showroom in the Midwest. With a knowledgeable sales staff and
25:50
Corvette sales specialists on hand, they'll help you build the Corvette of your dreams, and they ship nationwide.
25:55
With Corvette certified master mechanics on site and a huge parts department with over 24,000 parts and $2 million in
26:02
inventory, Hendrickk Chevrolet is well equipped to take care of your every need. From sales to service to collision
26:08
repair, Hendrickk Chevrolet has you covered. Visit chevusa.com or call 913841550.
26:15
Hi, I'm Mark Falter, host of the Retirement Income Hour podcast and Corvette enthusiast. I know when I
26:21
bought my Z06, I was thinking two things. One, these cars are incredible.
26:27
And two, man, are they expensive? Owning a Corvette isn't just about driving fast. It's about living life in the fast
26:34
lane. But are your finances keeping up? On my podcast, I make wealth management
26:39
as smooth as your car on the open road. Whether it's planning your retirement, building your investments, or how to get
26:45
this retirement account to pay for your Corvette vision, I got you covered. Search for the Retirement Income Hour
26:52
podcast wherever you get your podcast and let's shift your finances into overdrive. I'll see you on the open road
26:58
financially and literally investment advisory services offered through Mid American Wealth Advisory Group, an SEC
27:04
registered investment advisory firm. Hi, this is Kirk Benion and you're
27:10
listening and watching Corvette Today with Steve Garrett. Hey, thanks once again for listening and watching
27:17
Corvette Today, the show that talks about everything Corvette. Corvette Today is brought to you by Wheelcraft.
27:22
Wheelcraft now carries all the latest factory wheel designs for the C8 Stingray, Z06, and -ay and popular wheel
27:29
designs from previous generations along with bright chrome and black chrome. Wheelcraft now offers bronze and custom
27:36
colors at half the cost of OEM. So visit wheelcraft.com or just give them a call
27:41
833-639-4231. I'm your host Steve Garrett. Keith Cornet is with me every other week and
27:48
we keep you current and uptodate on what's happening with America Sports Car. By the way, if you want a deeper dive into any of the stories that we
27:54
cover, you can always go to corvette blogger.com. In this final segment, we cover the fun side of Corvette. Keith,
28:00
Bowling Green assembly plant is going to be opening for limited tours in 2025. That was really good to see. Yeah, kind
28:06
of a surprise announcement from the National Corvette Museum, but there's just three weeks of tours that are going to be happening this year. Those dates
28:12
are the week of August 11th, the week of August 25th, which also corresponds to that same week as the NCM 31st
28:18
anniversary show, and then the week of November 10th, but excluding November 11th, which is Veterans Day. So, if you
28:24
want to book a tour of the Corvette assembly plant, and I was just in there over the week of I was there for the reveal, and anytime you can get into the
28:30
plant, you want to go. I mean, it's just fabulous. all the moving parts and stuff and they're going to be building four cars now. So, really good stuff to see.
28:37
But you need to go through the National Corvette Museum. They have a visit tab in plant tours. I believe the tickets
28:42
are still priced at $50 each or $35 for Corvette Museum members. Check with the NCM website to book your tour.
28:48
And you have to do it online. You can't do walkups. So, make sure you book online and get that reserved before you
28:54
go to Bowling Green. Exactly. I don't even think you can do same day. It has to be a day in advance as well. Yeah, that's true. Also, Keith, I
29:01
thought this was really cool. I'm looking through everything and it seems like the 2026 Stingray is going to get a new base wheel, isn't it?
29:07
Yeah, this was a total surprise from GM. It showed up one morning as a distribution update in the Corvette order guide. Wasn't mentioned at the
29:14
bash, wasn't mentioned in any the 2026 roll out. It's just, hey, you're getting a new wheel. So, the C8 Stingrays have
29:19
been offered with that five open spoke silver painted wheels since they first came out in 2020. It was the standard
29:24
wheel option. That's 6 years now. But now what they're doing is actually they're really going to freshen this up. They're going to the five split spoke
29:31
wheel. This is a new wheel that was introduced, I believe, last year, but it will be finished in pearl nickel, which is also the same standard finish now on
29:38
the -ay wheels. The difference between the pro nickels and silver paint is like night and day. And this is a base wheel.
29:43
This is the wheel that doesn't cost you anything. These new wheels offer a fresh design. And I think the Pro Nickel actually offers a more upscale look to
29:50
the entrylevel C8 Stingray. Definitely take advantage of that. It's a great looking wheel. I still think the open
29:55
spoke wheels will be there. They're just getting rid of the silver painted, but I think there's still a gloss black wheel and maybe a carbon flash wheel as well.
30:01
Check them out. You can check them out on the configurator. That wheel does look good, by the way. Also, this is interesting. Mark Royce
30:07
tells Jay Leno there's more to come for the C8 and the C9 is already in the works. That sounded really good. That
30:14
was promising. It was. So, Jay Leno's Garage, they had their driving portion of their ZR1
30:19
review up with all the others. They actually had Mark in the car in the studio like last October or so where
30:24
they did like the walkaround portion of it and you know Jay always has a great way of just asking direct questions to
30:30
the GM team and a lot of times they answer them. So in that part one video during the walkound you know one of the
30:35
I don't want to say a gotcha question but the probing question was would Chevrolet ever split off the Corvette
30:40
and be on its own and Mark stated very clearly that Corvette will always be part of Chevrolet. That's always been
30:45
something that's been speculated, but Mark would know that. In this video, Jay asked Mark, "Is a C9 in development
30:51
somewhere?" And Mark says, "Yes, there's a C9. You know, there's going to be a next generation. It will be the C9, but
30:57
he says the C8 has legs yet in terms of more to come from the family. So, we're not done ringing it out yet," is what he
31:03
said. Pretty cool. C8, more to come. And C9 underway. I think we're still looking at 2028, 2029, 2030, somewhere in there.
31:11
It could be moving a little bit, but that's where we are so far. Yeah, I think you're right. Also, this is pretty
31:16
interesting. This almost could have gone under Corvette Racing. Tracy Godu is going to be the first woman to drive a
31:22
Corvette in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. That's very, very cool. Yeah, I actually thought Betty Skelton
31:28
would be the first woman to drive a Corvette at Pikes Peak. After all, Zora set a production record there in a Chevy sedan. She went racing with Zora and
31:35
John Fitch on the beaches of Daytona for Speed Week. I really thought she was there and there was some references that
31:40
she was there, but I actually did a couple AI deep searches and could find no records of her actually appearing in
31:46
the hill climb itself. So, Tracy actually gets the call. She's going to be a Lady Corvette driver. She tracks an
31:52
Atomic Orange C6 Z06 with a Lincolnfelder LS7427 Eliminator Spec R motor that puts out
31:59
650 horsepower and 560 pounds of torque. She's got an impressive resume. Not only
32:05
is she a racer, she's an Air Force veteran and she also serves as a vascular surgery and trauma physician assistant in Tennessee. She's been
32:11
racing for quite some time now and excited to see how she does. Eventually happens Sunday, June 22nd. Hopefully,
32:17
we'll see some videos from the event and wish her well. Wow, that's an impressive resume there for that young lady. Yeah.
32:22
And our final story, Keith, this is really cool. James Garner's race car just sold on Bring a Trailer.
32:28
Yeah, this is exciting stuff. So, you know, if you know the story of James Gardner, back in the day, he did a driving movie and he got bit by the
32:35
racing bug and soon he found himself taking classes on being a race car driver and then he went out and bought
32:41
three L88 1968 Corvettes to go racing with. He was racing under the Air Team,
32:46
which stands for American International Racing. Pretty cool stuff there. One of these cars has been bouncing around for
32:52
a while, but eventually one of the owners recognized what it was, restored it back to its original configuration.
32:58
Now it's for sale on Bring a Trailer and the action's pretty heavy over there. Stephen, the crazy thing is I watched
33:03
this auction. It was one of these things that it'd been sitting at $200,000 since I think it was first listed. I think it
33:09
was an 8-day auction, but by Friday afternoon, it really started zooming. I started watching, like I said, I tuned in at $200,000. When I came back to it
33:16
with maybe 10 minutes to go, it was in the 380s. This thing went all the way up to $755,000,
33:23
but unfortunately, it did not meet reserve and failed to sell. Amazing. There's some old school photos
33:28
of James Garner in a shop with Mr. Corvette, Dick Goldstrand, who did the prep of work on the cars and stuff.
33:34
Really cool. You know, they raced at Daytona. They were going to race at Sebring. They went a little bit different direction there and then eventually dropped these cars and went
33:40
on to some of the more exotic stuff like Lotuses and stuff like that. Really cool cars, great Corvette history. And again,
33:46
our friend at Corvette, Mike, has just been finding these things, bringing them out of woodwork. So, good for him. Very cool. Well, buddy, thanks for being
33:52
back on Corvette today. Stay cool there in Tampa and I'll talk to you in two weeks. Sounds good, Steve. We see you out on
33:58
the road. Keep waving. Thanks again for listening and watching Corvette Today. And be sure to tell your family, friends, and other Corvette
34:04
enthusiasts about the Corvette Today Show. And thanks to our sponsors, Wheelcraft. Want to dress up your
34:09
Corvette with bright chrome or black chrome wheels? Visit wheelcraft.com to learn about their advanced PVD chrome
34:15
finishing. They can refinish your wheels or offer a wheel exchange for most models, and it comes with a 5-year
34:20
warranty. Visit wheelcraft.com today or call 833639-4231.
34:27
Soul Performance Products at sulppp.com. The official performance exhaust of
34:32
Corvette today. Seioa Corvette at ciocorvette.com.
34:37
E5 wheels at e5wheels.com. Intellisense at intellisense.com.
34:43
Also, Aerolari wheels. Get $100 off your purchase with the promo code CT111 at
34:49
aerolari.com. Mark Valter with the Retirement Income Hour podcast and Hendrickk Chevrolet in Kansas City at
34:55
chevyusa.com. Thanks for checking out Corvette today on podcast and YouTube. If you'd like to
35:03
contact Steve with ideas for Corvette today, you can email him at stevegared djgmail.com.
35:10
Garrett has two Rs and two T's. That's Steve Garrett DJ@gmail.com.
35:15
Also, sign up for email notifications at corvettetoday.k.page.
35:21
Follow Steve and the show on social media on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, and threads at Steve Garrett
35:28
DJ. Thanks again for listening and watching Corvette today. [Music]