A drag racer got a nasty surprise when the outlaw Corvette dragster he was driving took to the air at over 200 mph in Oklahoma.
According to Motor1, driver Daniel Pharris was at the controls of Alepa Racing’s eye-wateringly powerful 4,000 horsepower twin-turbo C7 during the Radial Revenge Tour at Tulsa Raceway Park on April 1. He was up against an equally ridiculously powerful Camaro in the semifinals of the 1/8-mile competition, and everything was looking great for the widebody Vette. Within seconds of launch, however, everything went sideways.
As they left the starting line, both cars lifted their noses off the ground. But while the Camaro settled down and soldiered on down the track, the C7 just kept lifting. Eventually, aerodynamics got the better of things, the front clip tore away, and the car took to the air. It flew over the center line of the track and crashed into the other lane, [...]
The original Corvette Grand Sports were purpose-built racing prototypes that looked like production models — only five were ever built. There have been a few other Grand Sport Corvettes through the years, and the latest version is the C7 Grand Sport. “The racing DNA of the original Grand Sport race cars is in the 2017 model, adding greater dimensions of capability and driver involvement to the Corvette’s award-winning architecture, for a purer driving experience,” said Harlan Charles, Corvette product marketing manager.
This special Vette features Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires, Brembo brakes, a 7-speed manual transmission, an electronic limited-slip differential and unique springs. An optional Z07 package adds ceramic brakes and Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, making the Grand Sport the ultimate track toy. Performance stats are impressive — the Grand Sport can corner at 1.2 Gs and reaches 60 mph in 3.6 seconds.
Source: http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/research-guides/classic-cars-of-2042/ss-AAneLrR?li=BBnb7Kz#image=12
[...]The Palos Verdes Concours D’Elegance will be held on Sunday, October 1st at Zamperini Field in Torrance. This year’s theme is elegance and speed which will include a C1 and C2 Corvette class as well as integrating vintage aircraft at the exhibit.
Please visit the website PVConcours.org for additional details. Click here to download the Class List
It looks like future Corvettes may be getting Active Aerodynamics.
The newest rumor is based off a patent filed way back in May of 2016, but just published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. The patent shows a C7 Corvette sporting the system, but while General Motors used a C7 Corvette to show the system, there is no way to be sure if the Vette will get it, or if it is for some other vehicle, or for both. As the Corvette is GM’s flagship performance car, it is easy to assume that a future Corvette may be getting this system; ZR1 anybody?
The name GM gave the system in its filing was “Vehicle Ride-Height Determination for Control of Vehicle Aerodynamics”. The patent has details on an active-aerodynamics setup that includes an adjustable rear wing, diffuser, front splitter, air dam, hood louvers, [...]
