Chevy’s Mind-Boggling 2025 ZR1 Includes a Feature Not Seen on a Corvette Since 1963

The design team paired a retro Easter egg with the supercar’s four-figure horsepower

The 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1, which features a split rear window design
The specs for the 2025 ZR1 are insane. But there's more to love here than V8 horsepower.
Chevrolet

The eighth-generation Corvette has proved to be an out-and-out triumph for Chevrolet. But just because sports car fanatics fell in love with the original C8 Stingray doesn’t mean they weren’t thirsty for more. Almost immediately after the (relatively) affordable speed demon was revealed in 2019, rumors began to circulate about more powerful models on the horizon. First came the Z06, with its naturally aspirated 5.5-liter V8 and 670 horsepower. Then the E-Ray, with its Stingray engine paired with battery power that made it the quickest production Corvette ever made. Now, five years later, we’ve reached the zenith: the ZR1.

Revealed Thursday night, the 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 immediately made headlines for its record-breaking motor and mind-boggling horsepower. Inside this high-performance monster is a new engine called the LT7, which produces a maximum 1,064 horsepower, meaning this is “the most power ever from a factory Corvette and the most powerful V8 ever produced in America from an auto manufacturer,” according to the company. As they stress, while it may seem like they simply added twin turbochargers onto the Z06’s engine (which is called the LT6), it’s more accurate to say the two powerplants come from the same family with many differences in final execution (from unique combustion chambers to intake systems). 

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Did we mention that the ZR1’s top speed is estimated to be “over 215 mph”? When this goes into production in the middle of 2025 and then makes its way into the hands of drivers, the ZR1 is positioned to be an American supercar (some are saying hypercar) that can go toe to toe with Italy’s best — and if it doesn’t beat them in performance, it will certainly beat them in price.

By way of example, the Ferrari SF90 Stradale, which Chevy tested the ZR1 against, offers about 1,000 horsepower and a top speed around 211 mph, but it starts at around $530,000. While pricing isn’t yet available for the ZR1, it’s estimated to start at about a third of that.

The 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 coupe with a split rear window, a callback design to the 1963 Corvette Sting Ray
The split rear window on the new ZR1 isn’t just a design callback, it has a functional aspect, too.
Chevrolet

So it looks like Chevy has another high-powered hit on its hands, a continuation of a years-long winning streak. But of course, this is all press release speculation — the final word will come when these are actually available to test. There is one unique feature though that shows how confident General Motors is in this king of Corvettes: the rear windows.

The rear window? No, windows, plural, which is the key factor here. There are plenty of mechanical details to dig into with the ZR1, which outlets like the Autopian and Road & Track have done well, but one of the biggest clues into Chevy’s confidence in this model is the split rear window, a design detail that hasn’t been seen on a production Corvette since 1963, when it was featured on the first year of the C2 Corvette before being discontinued for 1964 models. (It did however make it into the recent Z06 GT3.R race car.) Because of the rarity of the design, split-window Corvettes have become something of a white whale among collectors, and they’ve sold for exorbitant amounts in recent years — well into six-figure territory.

1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray Split Rear Window Coupe
The 1963 Corvette featuring a split rear window, which was discontinued for 1964.
General Motors

So why did Chevy decide to bring this iconic design back for this specific Corvette? “We didn’t approach this decision lightly, we know this is a beloved element from Corvette’s history,” Phil Zak, executive design director, Chevrolet, said in a press release. “Not only does this element provide function, but we were able to integrate passionate design into the form and do it in a way that paid homage to Corvette’s history.”

That function Zak mentions comes by way of a “carbon fiber ‘spine’ between the two rear windows…[which] provides increased heat extraction from the engine compartment,” per Chevrolet. With all the power packed into this car, cooling was a critical counterbalance to consider in the design, and so they used a retro feature not only as a megaphone to tell the world that they believe this ZR1 is going down in the history books but to actually improve its performance to make sure that legendary status comes to pass.

We should mention that when the ZR1 makes its way to dealers, you will have the choice between a coupe and a convertible. Normally, we’d never dream of arguing against an open-top speedster like this, but when the split rear window returns after a 60-year hiatus, you just don’t pass that up.

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