Texas-based Hennessey was among the first to grab the keys of a 2020 Chevrolet Corvette C8 production car and it didn’t take too long for them to complete a twin-turbo conversion. As you all know, the mid-engined sports car is equipped with a 6.2-liter V8 engine delivering 495 horsepower and 470 pound-feet (637 Newton-meters) of torque provided it has the optional Z51 performance package adding an extra 5 hp and 5 lb-ft (7 Nm) over the base model.
Those official output numbers quoted by Chevy are available at the crank, with the tuner mentioning its car had 466 hp and 451 lb-ft (611 Nm) at the rear wheels when the LT2 was still in its standard naturally aspirated form. Following the twin-turbo conversion, the first Corvette with the engine behind the seats now pushes out 643 hp and 570 lb-ft (773 Nm) at the wheels, representing an increase of 177 hp and 119 lb-ft (162 Nm) over the stock C8.
Tuners Are Already Working On The C8:
While this C8 is Hennessey’s car, the tuner has promised it will sell twin-turbo conversions to customers eager to get more power from their shiny new Corvettes. The first order of business will be a custom exhaust system bringing a “slight power increase” followed by a supercharger to lift output to 700 hp. The range-topping package will include slapping a pair of turbos and upgrading the LT2’s internals to extract a mighty 1,200 hp, while the dual-clutch automatic transmission will be reinforced to cope with the massive power gains.
An Older Car On The Dyno:
Should you want a more powerful mid-engined machine straight from Chevy, the Z06 and especially the ZR1 should quench your thirst for power. We’ve heard rumors of a twin-turbo electrified V8 with as much as 900 horsepower for the range-topping model, which will not only be the most powerful stock Corvette in history, but also the first to employ an all-wheel-drive layout.
Source: Hennessey / YouTube