Chevrolet Will Let You Build Your Corvette Z06’s Engine Yourself
The Build Your Own Engine option doesn’t come cheap, but it’s a unique experience to get hands-on with your own Corvette build.
Attention all wealthy DIYers: If you buy a new 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, you now have the option of traveling to the factory and helping to build the engine destined for their very own car.
The program was announced by Kai Spande, director of the Corvette Assembly Plant, at the National Corvette Museum's 28th anniversary event earlier this month, as covered by Corvette Blogger. It follows on from similar offerings on earlier Z06 and ZR1 models. In previous generations, the Build Your Own Engine service has cost buyers around the $5,000 mark. Given the current inflationary environment, expect that to be higher for this generation.
The Build Your Own Engine program invites customers to the factory in Bowling Green, Kentucky, to work on their own mills under the watchful eyes of Corvette's own experienced engine builders. Each participant will be assigned a build station, with engine parts brought to the customer throughout the process. It's a different method to that used previously, where customers would travel from station to station building their engine on a cart.
Once built, the engine will be put through a dyno run to verify its performance. From there, the engine then gets sent to the assembly line for later installation into the customer's own Corvette Z06.
And they're working on a pretty special engine—the Corvette Z06 features the all-new LT6, a 5.5-liter V8 with a flat-plane crank, which combines with an 8,600 rpm redline to produce a searing wail at full send. It abandons decades of small-block history, eschewing ancient pushrod technology for double overhead cams instead. In fact, new engine breathes so well that it makes more horsepower than the previous Z06 without the need for a supercharger on top. It's good for 670 horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque.
It's rare for an automaker to invite the public into one of its factories. It's rarer still for them to let anyone touch anything inside. The Build Your Own Engine program is a highly unique opportunity, and likely an unforgettable experience for diehard Corvette enthusiasts.
Got a tip? Let the author know: lewin@thedrive.com
