Hennessey to build 1,200-hp Corvette ZR1

The Corvette ZR1 isn’t even out yet, but John Hennessey is already thinking about how to make it faster

The Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is undoubtedly one of the most acclaimed American cars of this year. This is true despite the fact that it has yet to be released on the market. Perhaps more interestingly, tuners like Hennessey are already thinking about extracting extra power from its twin-turbo V8 engine.

The ZR1’s stock engine produces 1,064 horsepower (793 kilowatts) and can reach a top speed of 215 miles per hour (346 kilometers per hour). This is a true supercar. However, that’s not enough for John Hennessey, who makes a living making fast cars go faster.

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He recently praised the Corvette team in an interview with CarBuzz. “For $200,000 to do this well? God bless America. God bless GM and the Corvette team,” he said. The Venom F5 creator also talked about what he plans to do when he gets his hands on the ZR1.

“We’re going to do 1,200 horsepower in the ZR1. We’ll announce that in the next, I don’t know, near future, but we’re definitely going to modify the ZR1, and it’s going to be an amazing car.” So, this already very fast car will become even more extreme after Hennessey modifies it.

Interestingly, he also commented on the Chevrolet ZR1’s tagline, “It’s the most powerful V8 engine ever produced by an American automaker.” The Venom F5 has a whopping 1,817 horsepower (1,354 kilowatts), but Hennessey admits there’s a big difference between the two.

“We make 12 cars a year, and when the ZR1 goes into production, they’ll make hundreds or even thousands,” Hennessey said. “So, I think it’s fair for them to say they have the most powerful American-made engine, in high volumes. We’re in very small volumes. So I think that should be the dividing line.” We can’t wait to see if Hennessey can actually beat its early horsepower estimates.

The main picture is Hennessey H700 Corvette