Corvette chief engineer Tony Roma says a Z06X makes sense only at ZR1 money, and GM is not committed to building one

A Z06X that costs too much to make sense

A brand-new Z06 retails at $121,800 in GM's home market, and a hybrid Z06X could theoretically cost no more than $30,000 more, landing at $151,800 before extras ^[1]. Corvette chief engineer Tony Roma says the car would make sense only if priced similarly to the ZR1 ^[2][1]. If you are weighing a Corvette purchase, that gap between the two figures is the heart of the issue.

The Z06X would be a hybridized Z06 producing close to 860 horsepower ^[1]. Roma says GM could easily assemble one but is not committed to building it soon ^[1].

Why the pricing is tricky

An electrified Z06 would be a niche, low-volume special ^[1]. Spreading development costs over a thin pool of buyers is the main financial reason GM would not price it near ZR1 money ^[1].

Pricing the Z06X near the ZR1 would also cause two Corvette models to compete for the same customer and hurt each other ^[1]. The ZR1X starts at $227,800 before destination freight charge, while its non-hybrid ZR1 twin costs $198,000 without that charge ^[1].

What the C9 needs to be

Roma says the C9 needs to be a Corvette at its core ^[2]. He says it should improve performance over the C8 and offer customers more value than their current car ^[2].

He rejects the notion that Corvette needs to target a higher price point to compete ^[2]. Chasing Lamborghini and Ferrari is not the core of what a Corvette is, he says ^[2].

The C8 moved the engine to the back for first-principle physics reasons, putting weight over the drive wheels ^[2]. Roma says it maintained the ride comfort owners expect from previous Corvette generations ^[2].

The manual transmission problem

Roma says the C9 is likely to keep a dual-clutch transmission ^[2]. He would prefer that the Corvette be offered with a manual ^[2]. He also says transmissions are super expensive ^[2].

For the C5, C6 and C7, GM used a manual architecture that had been developed over about 30 years and was mostly paid for, which kept production costs reasonable ^[2]. With the C8, that investment was discarded ^[2].

Building a new manual for the C8 layout would require developing something new, which Roma calls a really expensive undertaking because there is no off-the-shelf unit ^[2]. He is skeptical that Tremec's aftermarket gearbox is viable for production, and says he has not seen it installed in an actual car ^[2]. A production manual would also need validation and emissions certification before it could be used ^[2].

Roma describes a cyclical trend ^[2]. When most cars had manuals, luxury meant automated manuals, and now that most mainstream cars use DCTs, the manual is the distinctive option ^[2]. The added cost of a manual would be antithetical to Corvette's goal of delivering value, he says ^[2].

The current lineup

Six variants are available to configure for the 2027 model year, starting with the LS6-engined Stingray ^[1]. The Grand Sport X costs $110,000 before taxes and options, which is $23,700 more than the gas-only Grand Sport ^[1].