Everyone knows the new 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is fast. With a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter flat-plane-crank V-8, the American supercar makes 1,064 horsepower and has an estimated top speed of 215 miles per hour. Or—had an estimated top speed of 215 mph, since Chevrolet just shattered that number in an official top speed run.
While testing at the High-Speed Oval Track at ATP Automotive Testing in Papenburg, Germany, Chevrolet broke its owned claimed top speed with GM President Mark Reuss behind the wheel and an engineer in the passenger seat.
The ZR1 hit 233 mph on the track in sixth gear at redline, setting a new top speed record for any mainstream American manufacturer and any car under $1 million. And that wasn't just a one-off. According to Chevy, five engineers were able to hit 230 mph or more during that same testing.
"The car feels stable so that it doesn’t present as that big of an event," noted Chris Barber, Corvette ZR1 lead development engineer. "It just feels like you’re going pretty fast on the highway. Which is crazy to say, but that’s how good the car was."
The ZR1 in question didn’t use any special equipment for the run. It had the standard chassis and the aero package equipped with a normal spoiler, carbon fiber ground effects, Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires, and aluminum wheels. Chevrolet used the Top Speed mode, which tweaks the chassis control system for maximum speed runs.
As for the test track—the High-Speed Oval covers 7.6 miles and is banked at nearly 50 degrees. Talladega is banked at just 33 degrees, by comparison. At 150 mph on this track, it feels like you're driving straight, GM notes.
"Going into the banking was the most intense part," noted Barber, who was one of the engineers lucky enough to drive the ZR1 on the oval. "That feeling is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. It just pushes you so hard into the ground. Even NASCAR tracks, they don’t come close to 50-degree banking. Almost nobody gets to experience something like that."
With that record-breaking top speed achieved, the Corvette ZR1 is the fastest car GM has ever built.
