2019 Corvette ZR1 Spits Out Flames Like The Batmobile

Corvette ZR1 Spitting Flames

In recent admissions from Chevrolet - they claimed that the new 2019 Corvette ZR1 will be capable of shooting flames out the exhaust pipes. No one really knew what that meant - would it shot out puffs of flames when you let off the throttle, would it shoot out flames at full throttle, or did it have some kind of flame-throwing device on it?  

Our questions are answered with this Chevrolet 12 second video. When the ZR1 LT5 powerplant is running at open throttle, beautiful whitish, blue flames shot out of the exhaust pipes. When the throttle is released, aggressive sounding pops are said to follow as the flames disappear.

All this can be contributed to the dual overhead cams on the 6.2-liter engine that promotes a 52 percent larger supercharger than what you will find on the current LT4 Z06. Also contributing to the light show is Chevrolet's first duel-fuel-injection system. And flames aren’t all this exhaust system does.

The new sound flap that Chevrolet has installed gives the ZR1 an amazing sound, one of which is so loud, in some of the videos of the ZR1 running the track at Nürburgring in Germany, you can see that the exhaust system has been altered to point in a certain direction. The conclusion that can be made for the odd-looking extended exhaust is to point the exhaust sound away from the noise emissions meter.  Nürburgring has strict noise pollution levels that can’t be exceeded.  

  

The 2017 Autorama Detroit: Not Enough Time for the Fun

From the cars to the entertainment, the largest indoor car show in Michigan is a nice hold-over to the nicer days of Michigan car cruises, car shows, drag racing, etc. The nice thing about the 2017 Autorama Detroit this year opposed to some of the years in the past, is being able to walk to COBO Hall without freezing to death.  

The crazy Dukes of Hazard jump was even able to be performed without the worries of sliding across a sheet of ice - didn't even need to shovel and lay a bunch salt down before hand. Danny's band "Count 77" performed an outrageous show like they always do. I think since his love for cars runs so deep, being in a facility with so much automotive madness around just makes his band perform that much better. 

Seeing Daisy Duke and Luke Duke show up was crazy. I was so young when I used to watch them on T.V. it's amazing to see how great they still look. About 30 years ago I can remember my first Detroit Autorama. I was aloud to sit in the orange charger (General Lee) and the Batmobile from the Batman series and have my picture taken in it. That year they had a monster truck car crushing exhibit in the COBO arena portion of the facility. Those are some of my earliest memories and I still have the pictures and autographs. 

From what I've seen at this three day spectacular event is a lot of new and exotic looks in an attempt to probably stand out from the crowd. A lot of wild paint jobs and impractical suspension and rim setups. Cars and trucks customized to the tune of looking more like a "Hot Wheels" car than something you could drive out of COBO Hall with. 

But I did see a lot of people and car builders going back in the other direction. A lot cool vehicles that our modest - ones we will probably see cruising the streets of Woodard this year. Old classics, muscle cars, trucks, sports cars, even some of those pesky 80's cars that don't really draw much attention in any aspect of the automobile world. 

Unfortunately, I had to head home before the best part of the whole show got on its way. There's nothing like it when you get to watch the cars leave one-by-one when the show is over. All of them off to their trailers, all of the drivers wanting to give one more punch of the throttle for the cameras. Maybe Next Year Autorama Detroit.