The New LT6 Engine: How It Compares To Previous Z06 Models

Now that the 2023 Corvette C8 Z06’s 5.5L LT6 engine has been revealed with its specifications, it has already been labeled one of the all-time greats from any American sports car manufacturer. It is, indeed, fair to even call it a supercar engine, as it does match and even beat some of the naturally aspirated V8’s from across the pond! It’s only fair, then, that we look back through the progression of the Z06’s monster V8 powertrain, from the first modern C5 Z06 through to the C8 Z06.

We’ll be looking at it from a general layman’s overview, so overall numbers like horsepower, torque, capacity, and the like are going to be the focus. If you want to go further into the nitty-gritty details, the drivetrain, crankshaft, valvetrain, and all the specs that Chevy has released, we have a deep dive article here for your enjoyment.

The 2023 LT6 5.5L V8

The new LT6 V8 is, at the time of this article, the single most powerful naturally aspirated 8 cylinder engine put into any production car that accepts 93 octane fuel. There are more powerful V8s out there that you can put into a car, but these are crate engines, or bored, stroked, and tuned by professional shops for drag racing usage, and usually on JP2 or 98+ octane fuel.

In terms of numbers, the LT6 chucks out 670 HP (SAE) and 460 lb-ft (SAE) of torque.