At the 104th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on Sunday, a near-stock Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X reset the production car record on America’s most iconic hillclimb course. Piloted by IndyCar and Pikes Peak veteran JR Hildebrand, the 1,250-horsepower hybrid supercar covered the 12.42-mile course to the 14,115-foot summit in 9:30.104, erasing the previous certified production car mark by more than 23 seconds.
The previous benchmark was a 9:53.541 run set by David Donner in a 2022 Porsche 911 Turbo S on a non-race-day PPIHC-certified attempt. In a notable coincidence, Donner was also present Sunday and turned in a 9:53.740 under near-ideal conditions, essentially confirming the old record before Hildebrand started his run two positions later.
How the ZR1X Was Prepared
Chevrolet entered the ZR1X in the Time Attack 1 class, which permits substantial modifications, but the car ran with essentially nothing changed from production specification. The only additions were safety-mandated items: a roll cage, fuel cell, fire suppression system, seat belts and cutoff switches. The wheels were the standard carbon units. The tires were the DOT-legal Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R that buyers can order directly from the factory. The ZTK performance package was fitted, also a factory option.
Global Corvette Executive Chief Engineer Tony Roma was on hand at the finish and described the setup plainly. “This is basically a production car with the alignment and tire pressure set,” he said. “There’s nothing performance enhancement-wise, everything is bone stock and legit, right down to the DOT tires that you can buy on your ZR1X.”
Hildebrand’s preparation included weeks of testing on the mountain ahead of race day. In qualifying, run over a portion of the course, he posted a 3:57.504 that placed him 13th overall. His sector times on race day were quiet on the leaderboard until the third of four segments, where he had already built a five-second cushion over Donner. He reached the summit more than 23 seconds clear.
The Drivetrain’s Role on the Mountain
The ZR1X pairs a 5.5-liter twin-turbocharged flat-plane crank V8 with a front electric drive unit, producing a combined 1,250 horsepower and routing torque to all four wheels. That combination proved well suited to Pikes Peak’s 156 corners and the challenges of thinning air at altitude.
Hildebrand described the hybrid system’s behavior in the corners. “You’ve got the front drive unit literally pulling you out of the corners, right up into the RPM band of the ICE powertrain behind you,” he told reporters at the mountain. “And it’s all just completely seamless. I’m just sitting here, locked in, enjoying the ride.”
Roma noted the car’s potential had been clear from early analysis. “When JR and I first started talking about this program and what the car was capable of, we knew the car would be fast,” he said. “We did a little bit of analysis to know it should easily break the record, but I mean, he just crushed it.”
The overall event win went to Romain Dumas in Ford’s purpose-built Super Mustang Mach-E, a 1,400-horsepower three-motor EV with aerodynamic bodywork bearing little resemblance to the production Mach-E. Dumas posted an 8:18.202, the third fastest time ever recorded at Pikes Peak. The ZR1X’s production car record stands in a separate and uncontested category.
Hildebrand also won the Time Attack 1 class by 15 seconds over Jeff Zwart in a Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport. Elsewhere in the results, Emelia Hartford drove a base Corvette ZR1, without hybrid power or all-wheel drive, to claim the fastest time by a woman at the mountain, besting former Queen of the Mountain Laura Hayes by more than six seconds.
The ZR1X starts at $209,700. Its Pikes Peak run adds to a record list that already includes the fastest lap by an American production car at the Nurburgring, at 6:49.275, along with track records at NCM Motorsports Park and Sonoma Raceway.
