Car Feature 2007 ZO6 CorvetteBefore we delve into the details, it is critical to understand one thing about this 2007 ZO6. This is a street car. A street car with air conditioning, heated seats, and no rollcage. It runs on pump gas, drives to the track and runs 8.81 at 154 miles per hour. It is, currently, in a class all of its own as the fastest C6 ZO6 in the country. A couple of years ago, the 8-second zone was reserved for full-out race cars, the kind that couldn't drive two miles even with a spare can of race gas and a prayer. Today, it is guys like Issac Forrest and Fran Schatz that are pushing the envelope of technology. Starting with one of the best GM products of all time, the C6 ZO6, Issac and Fran make a very good case for late-model racing.
According to Fran, "We got the car done Monday night, put it on the dyno Tuesday morning, and then headed down to Louisiana Tuesday afternoon, which is a 20-hour drive. We made a couple eighth-mile runs and our first full pass was 9.37. After a few changes and two more passes we went 8.89. We made one more change and went 8.81. The car sees a lot more street action than people would think. If it's nice out we are out driving the car. It is a 110 percent street car. It has A/C, heated seats, drag radial tires, and runs on pump gas."
To make an 8-second pass on pump gas, you need a carefully built combination of both cubic inches and boost. For Isaac to make so much horsepower, he first turned to Andy Greene of A&A Corvette, to build one of the meanest supercharger kits on the market. What Andy assembled was an A&A system, complete with an 8-rib Vortech YSi supercharger. This blower, with just 16 psi through the A&A front-mount intercooler system was enough to make 964 rear-wheel horsepower, not to mention propel the car to its famed 8-second passes. Of course, you can't put this much power to a stock motor and expect it to stay together.
Starting with a stock LS7, Fran and the crew at Race Proven Motorsports added only what was needed to reliably handle the expected power. Inside the stock cylinder, the crew installed a set of low-compression Mahle pistons, which ride atop a set of Callies forged connecting rods. These rods transfer power to a stock LS7 crankshaft, which has proven very reliable at this power level. Bolted above the Mahle pistons are a pair of ported LS7 cylinder heads, which breathe off a ported LS7 intake and are commanded by an aggressive, and secret, Comp Cams custom hydraulic roller camshaft. While Fran was very quiet about the camshaft, he did tell us that it uses the new Comp LSR lobes, which help make such an immense amount of power. Starting with an A&A return-style fuel system, the crew at RPM added a set of Racetronix 83-pound injectors and an AEM "peak and hold" injector driver box. Fuel is kept in the rails by an externally mounted Bosch pump, which is regulated by an A&A-supplied fuel pressure regulator. For safety, RPM also uses an external methanol system, which has nozzles in both the charge pipe and directly before the supercharger inlet.
Out back, RPM Transmission stepped up with one of its infamous 4L80E conversions. Starting behind the crankshaft, an RPM-upgraded torque tube sends power to a custom Coan 3,800-stall converter, which turns an RPM 4L80E transmission. Mated to the back of the transmission is a 3.42 rear geared, RPM-built C6 ZO6 differential, packed with carbon clutch packs and HD preload springs. A set of stock C5 rear axles turn the massive 17x12 CCW wheels, which are wrapped in a set of 390/45/17 M&H drag radials. The suspension setup is extremely tame, with the only modification being a set of QA1 shocks at all four corners.
As of this writing, Isaac holds the C6 ZO6 quarter-mile record by over 0.40 of a second. According to Fran, "it has an 8.50 in it, we have made some changes and are just waiting for another nice track day." We know of several other Corvettes that have him in their sites, so it will be interesting to see what happens. Whatever the outcome, it should go without saying that this is truly a work of modern art. A masterpiece of technology, horsepower and brutal speed, this C6 ZO6 is one to remember.
Like the exterior, the interior is almost exactly how it came from Chevrolet. Honestly, from the driver's seat, besides the lumpy cam and slight blower whine, you would be very hard-pressed to tell this car was modified. The A-pillar has the standard Auto Meter gauges, including boost, fuel pressure, and an AEM wideband air/fuel gauge. Of course, being a street car, you still have full control over the A/C, radio, and heated ZO6 seats. Taking a look in the rearview mirror, however, gives you a very different impression. Sitting proudly are a pair of carbon-fiber 12-pound NX nitrous bottles, which are tasked with cooling the intercooler to keep air temperature under control (these were not used on the 8.81 run). Behind these bottles rests the Alcohol Injection Systems methanol tank and pump. Without either of these two, it would be very hard to make an 8-second pass on pump gas, so they are extremely vital to keeping the motor together.