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When you think of a Corvette, you
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probably picture a loud, brash front
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engineed American muscle car. But the
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Z06 flips that on its head. Mid-enine,
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exotic flatplane crank V8 and a price
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tag that puts it directly up against
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Ferrari and Lamborghini. This isn't just
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another Corvette. It's Chevrolet's shot
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at building a proper supercar. The
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question is, does it deliver? The Z06
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takes the standard Stingray shape and
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cranks it up. The stance is wider, the
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bodywork more muscular, and the arrow is
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turned up with bigger intakes, flared
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arches, and on this tester, the full Z07
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performance package. That means a
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serious carbon wing Outback, carbon
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ceramic brakes, and cupsp spec
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suspension that instantly tell you this
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isn't just another sports car. It's
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built to perform at the sharp end. On
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Australian roads, where Corvettes are
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still a rare sight, the Z06 feels like
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an event wherever you take it. The
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styling makes people stop and stare.
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Kids whip out their phones to record it,
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and trades lean out of utes to yell
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their approval. It's the kind of car
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that draws attention the way a
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Lamborghini or Ferrari does, but with
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its own unmistakably American edge. The
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star of the show is of course the
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engine. A 5.5 L naturally aspirated flat
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plane crank V8 making 475 kW and 595
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newm in Aussie spec. It revs to 8,600
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RPM and sounds unlike any Corvette
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before it. Instead of a deep American
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rumble, you get a razor sharp whale that
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feels closer to a Ferrari 458 or 488.
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Only disappointment here is that
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Australian cars don't get the American
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central exhaust. Instead, we get a tamer
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Euro setup with petrol particulate
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filters, which steals some noise and
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about 25 kW of power. It's still
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intoxicating, but it doesn't quite
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scream the way US cars do. Of course,
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plenty of owners are already
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retrofitting the American system, which
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tells you everything you need to know.
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On paper, the Z06 does 0 to 100 in 2.9
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seconds. In the real world, rear wheel
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drive traction means launches are a bit
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trickier, especially on cold Aussie
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tarmac. But the sheer way it piles on
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speed makes the numbers feel irrelevant.
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Once you're rolling, the engine just
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keeps pulling harder and harder all the
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way to red line. The 8-speed dual clutch
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transmission deserves credit, too. It's
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lightning fast under full throttle, but
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still manages to be civilized in
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traffic. And the way the Z06 handles
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corners, it's sharp, predictable, and
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backed by enough grip to make your
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stomach drop. Compared to the -ray, the
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Z06 feels raw and more old school. With
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no all-wheel drive system to pull you
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out of corners, it rewards precision and
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punishes sloppy inputs. On a smooth
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mountain road, it's sensational, but
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you're always aware of just how much
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power is being sent to the rear wheels.
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Step inside and you'll find the same
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cockpit style cabin as every other C8
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Corvette. You sit low, wrapped by a high
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center console and that controversial
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wall of buttons. It's driver focused,
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dramatic, and feels special, even if
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some plastics don't quite match the
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$400,000 price tag in Australia.
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Tech-wise, you get a digital cluster,
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head-up display, Apple CarPlay, Android
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Auto, and a decent Bose sound system.
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Practicality is better than you'd think,
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too, with front and rear boots big
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enough for a weekend away. It's not
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perfect. Taller drivers will find
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headroom tight, and storage inside the
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cabin is minimal, but it does the job.
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Here's where it gets tricky. In the US,
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the Z06 starts at just over $112,000.
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In Australia, you're looking at $336,000
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before onroads. And this Z07 equipped
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car with options rang the till at almost
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drive away. That's not pocket change,
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but put it next to a Ferrari 296 GTB at
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over $600,000 or a Lamborghini Huracan
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at $450,000, and the Z06 suddenly looks
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So, does the Corvette Z06 live up to the
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hype? For me, absolutely. The engine
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alone is worth the price of admission,
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screaming to nearly 9,000 RPM in a way
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no other American car ever has. It looks
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exotic, drives with real precision, and
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still undercuts the European rivals it
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was built to beat. It's not perfect. The
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Aussie exhaust takes away some drama.
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The interior plastics could be better.
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And the price jump here is hard to
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ignore. But if you want a car that turns
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heads, thrills every time you get behind
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the wheel, the Z06 is
