Wearing A Speedo: This is...
Wearing A Speedo: This is not an optical illusion. The speedometer does read up to 200 mph. The LEDs below it will not flash "Oh WOW!" at any speed, especially over 100.
SPECIAL WINS = SPECIAL CAR
The '04 Corvette Commemorative Edition was built to celebrate the back-to-back GTS class wins that the Corvette C5R scored in the '02 and '03 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Available on the sport coupe and convertible, as well as on the hardtop, it featured:
* Le Mans Blue main body color
* Red/white accent striping on hood
* "Commemorative Edition" badging on the front fascia
* Carbon-fiber hood panel that weighs 10 pounds-half of what a stock '04 Corvette hood weighs. "Unidirectional" carbon-fiber array used in constructing it resulted in surface quality/paintability matching Corvette's regular-production body panels. This is the first time that carbon fiber had ever been used in a painted body panel on a production car.
* This Commemorative Edition Z06 also features the Magnetic Selective Ride Control System, which includes an on-board computer using four wheel-to-body displacement sensors (plus steering and brake inputs) to control a set of magnetorheological-fluid-based dampers in the shocks. By controlling the current to an electromagnetic coil inside the piston of the damper, the fluid's consistency can be changed, resulting in continuously variable real-time damping with instant (one millisecond) response, leading to ride, handling, and control unavailable with a conventional suspension system.
That's along with the other Z06 features, which included:
* 5.7L LS6 version of GM's Gen IV small-block V-8, rated at 405 hp and 400 lb-ft of torque
* Six-speed manual (with overdrive) transmission, with 3.42:1 rear gear ratio
* Goodyear Eagle F1 SC tires, P265/40ZR17 (front), P295/35ZR18 (rear), mounted on five-spoke, cast spun-aluminum wheels
* 12.5-inch-diameter front disc brake rotors, with 11.5-inch-diameter rotors in back (power assisted with ABS)
Base price of the'04 Corvette Z06 hardtop was $52,385, with the Commemorative Edition package adding another $4,335 to the sticker.
A total of 2,025 Z06 hardtops were built with the Commemorative Edition package, of which this is the last one built.
The total Z06 coupe production was 5,683. The total '04 Corvette production (all models) was 34,064.
Not Just Another Hood: Special...
Not Just Another Hood: Special hood graphics are part of the '04 Commemorative package. Look close, and you can see the hood's carbon fibers between the stripes. Look even closer, and you'll see a resemblance to some of Corvette's historic factory hood stripes, like the first LT-1s.
Office Politics: Nothing...
Office Politics: Nothing less than a six-speed, sport seat, and a full set of gauges awaits the driver of this top-line version of "America's Only True Sports Car" for 2004. Black seats and trim was the only interior color choice offered on Commemorative-equipped Z06 hardtops.
Just Exhausting: Yes, the...
Just Exhausting: Yes, the exhaust tips on this last-ever C5 Z06 look great. Want to hear them? Log on to Mid America Motorworks' Web site, click on the "MY Garage" link, then look for the "Last C5 Z06."