Current-gen Chevy Corvette Z06s and ZR1s may be at risk of catching fire while refueling. It sounds like, if enough gasoline spills into the pocket where the fuel filler is, the left-side cooling fan can waft it toward the engine and cause some external combustion. GM says it’s issuing a voluntary recall while forums are tracking a stop-sale from dealers.
The issue specifically affects 2023-2026 Chevrolet Corvette Z06s and 2025-2026 Corvette ZR1s in North America.
A thread on Corvette Forum put the issue on our radar—one poster wrote [sic]: “Just got off the phone with a dealer letting me know that about a half hour ago they received a stop sale order from GM for a fuel rail issue.” Another posted [sic]: “Dealer called to tell me car cant leave until a safety problem is fixed.” I popped a random Z06 VIN into GM’s recall site and confirmed that this product safety recall, N252514930, notice went out yesterday (August 21, 2005):
“General Motors has decided that a defect which relates to motor vehicle safety may exist in certain 2023 – 2026 model year Chevrolet Corvette vehicles equipped with a left-side radiator/fan combination. In these vehicles, excess fuel spilled into the vehicle fuel-filler pocket during refueling may leak onto an ignition source.”
The notice specifies: “If fuel contacts an ignition source, there is increased risk of a fire. To reduce the risk of the condition occurring, owners should always follow the fueling instructions in their owner’s manual,” before adding some standard refueling safety tips in all caps: “ALWAYS CONFIRM THAT THE FUEL NOZZLE IS COMPLETELY INSERTED INTO THE VEHICLE’S FUEL PIPE BEFORE FUELING. NEVER OVERFILL THE TANK OR ATTEMPT TO FILL AFTER THE FUEL PUMP’S AUTOMATIC SHUT OFF CLICKS ONCE. ALWAYS TURN OFF THE VEHICLE’S ENGINE DURING REFUELING.”
Indeed, no matter what you’re driving, don’t pull the gasoline trigger again to top off after it stops. Just be OK with an uneven dollar amount at the end of your refuel (you’re probably paying with a credit card anyway). That last splash of gas can make a mess or send fuel down a vent it’s not meant to be in.
The remedy is that Chevy dealers will be installing “an insert/shield to divert spilled fuel,” which is not yet available.
In the meantime, you could probably just refuel your Vette carefully—maybe triple-check that those fans have stopped running before you plunge the fuel nozzle into the filler neck. But don’t call me up if your car catches fire!
Regular C8 Corvette Stingrays and E-Rays are not part of the recall yet. While cars with the Z51 package also have cooling fans near the fuel filler, this recall specifically covers cars with a radiator and fan combo that’s unique to the ZR1 and Z06, so it shouldn’t expand to other Corvette models.
We dropped GM a line directly, and one of their spokespeople shared this statement:
“General Motors is voluntarily recalling model year 2023-2026 Chevrolet Corvette Z06s and 2025-2026 Corvette ZR1s in North America to resolve an excess fuel spillage issue during refueling. This is a rare occurrence, and malfunctioning filling station pumps appear to be a contributing factor. The safety of our customers is the highest priority for the entire GM team, and we’re working to remedy this matter as quickly as possible.” The company also confirmed the stop-sale.
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