Sorry Mr. Hellcat. Yes, the 2015 Corvette Z06 makes 650hp and 650 lb/ft of torque and you make 707hp and the same amount of torque but when you combine that power with a chassis that is far more refined and 1,000lbs lighter you get something that even the mighty Dodge needs to respect.

I recently had the chance to spend some time on both back roads and highways in a brandy new 2015 Corvette Z06 which was equipped with the Z07 package and my reference point for factory ridiculousness was reset. With all of the incredible acceleration of the Hellcat in my back pocket, I  also had the ability to shift my organs inside my body with lateral G-forces as well because this thing not only goes in a straight line, it was designed to carve corners with the best super cars in the world and while wearing the Z07-spec Michelin Sport Cup 2 tires on all four corners it can.

To be honest, it is an unfair comparison to line this car up next to a Hellcat. They are different animals with a different heritage and my point here it not to set them against each other but rather at least illustrate that there’s something else on the road that can match it blow for blow in a straight line and then literally bury it in the corners. This car also matches the Hellcat’s penchant for violence and noise which is something that we’re not sure anything else currently sitting on an American showroom floor can do.

There’s a lot to love about this thing outside of the obvious. Styling-wise there’s the aggressive body upgrades that add the air splitter up front, the cowls on the rear quarter panel brake ducts, and of course the removable carbon fiber roof panel along with the stubby duck-tail spoiler out back. There’s also more design aggression down the sides of the car with the stylized rocker panels, great looking wheels, and the massive 335 tires out back. As good as the C7 Corvette looks, the Z06 is definitely distinctive enough to get even the most casual Corvette fans attention as being a complete and total weapon. Remember, this is what the feeling is before you hit the start button.

When you do hit that start button, this is the bellowing monster that you are summoning to life. The LT4 is the first supercharged engine to be offered in a Z06 package Corvette and while there have been some stories popping up about them expiring, we feel that this is the very off exception and that we’d not hesitate to own and hammer on one of these engines. With the seven speed manual behind it, the thing is always right in the power and with the dual mode exhaust it breathes through, it sounds nice and rumbly around town but when the pedal hits the carpet, it emits a sound that’ll make the hair stand up on the necks of both you, your passenger and everyone in a 25 block radius. It really is glorious noise and it’ll make it for as long as you have the guts to stand in it. We heard a rumor of this thing pulling from 80 to a lot faster speed in less time than it took us to write this sentence. If that rumor is true and we strongly suspect that it is, you’ll lay waste to virtually anything and anyone that is dumb enough to test you.

There are multiple driving modes that can be selected from Eco all the way through Track. We had it in Sport while terrorizing the ‘hood and that was a fun mix of taught suspension, great noise, and a cool dash display. The car is good for over 20 mpg if you are being gentle with it and loping along in the deep 7th gear on the highway and it is rated for 15 mpg during around town driving. Perhaps our favorite gadget is the rev matching which blips the engine to the perfect RPM while downshifting and makes you sound like a freaking boss. Even the best driver in the world cannot match as quickly and precisely as this system does. There is nothing cooler than knocking this thing back down through the gears coming off the highway while using this function.

The interior of the car stays in the tradition of the C7s well laid out design. It is very comfortable, there is an economical use of buttons and knobs which keeps things clean and even with the suspension in “Sport” mode the car is super comfy and could be driven for nearly endless miles. You can soften the suspension up in Eco and Touring if you really want it to soak up the bumps as the vaunted magnetic ride control continues to be world standard type stuff on various kinds of cars. We would have maybe liked it a little more hardcore racer in the cockpit as this is a Z06 and not a golf bag toting base model, but in terms of comfort and function we really liked it.

So what does all this fun cost? The model we drove carried a window sticker of $94,620. $15,600 of that was in options on to of the existing Z06. The premium equipment group which gives you the spiffy interior and some of the luxury gadgets like the memory package was $8,650 of that with other notable options being the exposed carbon fiber top for $1995 and the actual carbon fiber package for $2,995. The special yellow brake calipers are $595, the interior carbon fiber package was $995, and the suede seat inserts were $395.

Corvettes have long had an interesting relationship with the hot rodding world. One the one hand some guys like to bag on them for being gold chainer cars that people idle along down the road and spend more time rubbing at car shows than driving and on the other hand some of the most legendary road and drag racing cars in American history have been Corvettes. The Z06 falls under the hot rodders realm in our opinion because it has the looks that will stop people in their tracks and the performance that will leave them with bulging eyes and an elevated heart rate in the passenger seat.

This car is bad ass and 100% BangShift approved.