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Last month, Howard Tanner from Redline Motorsports and Dan Carlton from DeNooyer Performance invited us to drive their newest tuned-up Corvette: the Redline HTR-GS640/SC.
Unfortunately, the car’s right rear tire picked up a nail en route to the famed MOTSLOPD (pronounced: “Cops? What Cops?”), a.k.a., McNessor’s Official Top Secret Location O’ Photos and Driving.
However, because the ‘Vette rolls on P325/30ZR19 Eagle F1 Supercar run-flat tires, Howard and Dan kept motoring and proceeded to let me and Terry McGean drive the car anyway. A little more about those shenanigans in a moment, but first some background….
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The HTR-GS640/SC (Translation: Howard Tanner Redline – Grand Sport 640hp Super Charged) started out as an unsuspecting 2010 Corvette Grand Sport in Cyber Gray Metallic with Red Interior and the 3LT package.
The car was also ordered with a $750 removable roof panel; $395 Competition Gray aluminum wheels; $695 optional two-tone seats, a $1,750 Nav system, and a $410 full-width spoiler, plus custom stripes, applied by DeNooyer, for a grand total of around $64,000.
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Then Howard put the GS on a muscle-building program. To the stock 430hp LS3 he added: an Edelbrock E-Force blower; a new cam with more lift and duration than stock but with a wide lobe separation to take advantage of the supercharger’s boost; heavy valve springs; chromemoly pushrods; titanium retainers and heavy-duty keepers; a set of Borla stainless mufflers and an MGW short-throw shifter.
The result is…640hp at the crank and 566hp at the rear wheels.
Howard says he likes the new Edelbrock blower because it packs a bigger low-end punch than the Eaton unit used on the ZR1, yet it looks like something that would’ve been installed at the factory.
“Edelbrock has incorportated 13-14-inch-long runners that extend the length of the intake port. This unit has a lot more throttle response and power down low than the 2300 blower on the ZR1 because that blower is top mounted with no runners,” he said. “What I really like about it is that the fittings are all factory-style connections and, for us to build a car and put a warranty behind it, we need to know that we’ve got a product that’s not going to break.”
As with all of the DeNooyer Performance/Redline beasts, the GS is sold with a 3 year/36,000-mile warranty. They also take trades at their new Central Avenue, Albany, New York- based dealership and will finance any of their machines.
Now a word about the car’s performance. You’re thinking (like I was) yes, the warranty on a tuned-up car is very cool but uh…big deal, it’s a Corvette with a bolt-on supercharger and a cam.
It’s surprising, though, how hard this thing hits from its lopey idle up to as high as you dare spin the engine while driving on a runflat with a nail in it. I haven’t been in a ZR1 (yet) but the CTS-V and the Shelby GT500 seem mild on the low end. I suspect this is by design, to prevent unintentional burnouts and donuts at every traffic light.
The HTR-GS640/SC has gobs of power everywhere in the RPM range and the blower goes about its business without a lot of whining. The Borlas, however, are quick to speak up under heavy throttle. The MGW shifter is also an impressive piece of hardware. Honestly, I hadn’t heard of this stick, but it’s built like the Pentagon spec’ed it and practically snaps itself into the next gear.
Okay, enough yammering already, how much does all of this tomfoolery cost?
At $82,000 the HTR-GS640/SC ain’t cheap but with ZR1-like power and the production Grand Sport’s Z06 chassis pieces, plus the option of a removable top (unavailable in a Z06), it’s a lot of track-day weaponry for the money.
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