With 495 horses (when equipped with a Z51 Performance package), the mid-engined 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray will officially be the most powerful entry-level ‘Vette ever when officially debuts in January. Then there’s Hennessey Performance’s “HPE1200 Twin Turbo C8 Corvette.”
As usual, the Texas-based tuning house will drastically over-deliver in the output department by aspirating a “specially built” version of the eighth-generation Corvette’s new LT2 6.2-liter V8 with a twin-turbo system. The promised result is an emphatically insane 1,200 hp.
Yes, Hennessey has put up those exact numbers before in its custom ZR1 and, more recently, this hellacious “Resurrection” Camaro ZL1 1LE. But what’s especially noteworthy about the custom Stingray is that straight from the factory it’ll hit 60 mph in a blistering 2.8 seconds—two tenths of a second quicker than the stock version of the flagship ZR1 Corvette, according to Motor Trend. With nearly 700 extra horsepower on tap, there’s no telling just how deep into sub-three territory Hennessey’s Stingray will go.
Other upgrades include a cabon fiber splitter, airdam and rear wing, a full Brembo brake system, an adjustable Penske suspension, and a set of new wheels and rubber. Provided art shows a particularly patriotic version with a white paint coat, red and blue racing stripes, and American flags printed on the ends of the spoiler, so we imagine that will be an available colorway.
“We are very excited about the new C8 Corvette and have big plans for it,” said company founder John Hennessey. “From mild to wild, we plan to offer a wide variety of track tested parts and upgrades that come with a warranty. We’ve modified over 500 C7 Corvettes since 2013 and expect to upgrade many more C8 Corvettes starting in 2020!”
Visit Hennessey’s website to “register your C8 interest.”.