2023 Chevy Corvette Z06 0-60 and 1/4-Mile Tested: As Good as We Hoped?

It’s been four model years since a Chevrolet Corvette was available with a Z06 package, and its return for 2023 marks the first time that the factory go-faster kit has appeared on the mid-engine C8 model. Unlike the previous Z06, the 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 doesn’t get a supercharged version of the stalwart 6.2-liter pushrod V-8, but an entirely new, rev-happy flat-plane-crank (like a Ferrari) 5.5-liter LT6 V-8 that doesn’t rumble as much as it wails.

Along with our first drive of the new super 'Vette, we had the opportunity, nay, the responsibility to put a 70th Anniversary Convertible Z06 through our battery of instrumented tests. Here’s what we found. (For our complete review that goes beyond the numbers, head here.)

Launch Party

The 2023 Corvette Z06's launch control makes running quick times easy, although it's not exactly easy to access the system. For the quickest times, Chevy recommends a burnout right before the launch to warm the tires. To do that, you select Track mode then disable stability control by holding the traction-control button for five seconds. Pull both shift paddles, then release and pull the right paddle again to activate manual launch mode. Flooring the accelerator spins the engine to 5,000 rpm, and simultaneously releasing both paddles drops the clutch, lighting up the rear tires.

Once you've smoked the meats, it's time to feast on speed. A single tap of the traction-control button reenables stability control, then a double tap of the same button activates Performance Traction Management. Twist the mode selector to choose PTM Sport for launching on a street surface or PTM Race 2 for a prepped drag strip. Mash the brake then the gas pedal, and when the revs settle at 4,500 rpm, release the brakes. The Z06 rockets from zero to 60 mph in 2.6 seconds. Keep your foot down and the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission fires off upshifts and 100 mph flies past in just 6.0 seconds on the way to a 10.6-second quarter mile at 131.6 mph over the finish line. Yeah, it’s quick and fast.

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Given Chevrolet reports that exact 2.6-second elapsed time for a roughly 100-pound-lighter C8 coupe with the soon-to-be released Z07 package’s even stickier tires and much lighter carbon-fiber wheels, we’re pretty pleased with that result. The only problem remains that, in the time it takes to perform the launch-control procedure, just about every Porsche 911 would have completed the quarter-mile.

Corvette Z06 Handling

We gather our initial handling impressions and data on the figure-eight course that MotorTrend developed. Primer: It’s two, standard 100-foot radius skid pads separated by 500 feet on center. One tightly controlled lap amounts to 0.33-mile traveled. The best lap time we’ve ever recorded, 21.9 seconds, is shared by three cars: the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series, McLaren Senna, and the Porsche 911 GT2 RS (991.2). This 3,774-pound Z06 Convertible on Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S ZP tires managed a 22.7-second best. Average left/right lateral acceleration computed to 1.10g. Nowhere near record-breaking but in a dead heat with a recent Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS. 

What’s missing here is the burst of speed afforded by turbocharging and a better set of tires. The power is prodigious, but the LT6 really needs revs to shine. Peak torque of 460 lb-ft arrives at 6,300 rpm while getting access to all 670 horsepower requires 8,400 revs. Those turbocharged record-holding cars were able to reach speeds of 90-plus mph across the middle of the course, where the Corvette Z06 could muster “just” 86 mph. This test car was optioned with the track-ready carbon-ceramic brakes ($8,495), but the run-flat PS4S Michelins were no match. Stopping from 60 mph required 99 feet, which is again admirable, but nothing we haven’t recorded about 35 times before in other sports cars.

Will Z06 + Z07 Solve All?

We’ll have to wait a bit to put our test gear to use on a track-ready Z07-equipped Corvette, but our suspicions will likely be similar to our first impression of the C8-generation Corvette and now even this Z06: “There’s so much more this chassis could handle that we feel like we’re only nibbling at the possibilities of this car.” Time will tell.