GM has been building dominant V-8 small blocks for many generations now. One thing that has always been true with their small blocks is that they are always put into the Corvette. GM’s latest rendition of the small block is the LS7 which is used to power the Corvette Z06. The LS7 is so precise that it is hand built by engine builders specific to that job only.
The end result shows the precision and craftsmanship that comes with hand built engines as the LS7 pumps out 505 horsepower and 475 foot pounds of torque. With numbers like that it is easy to understand that the LS7 engine was born with a lot of influences from the racetrack and more specifically the C5.R racing program.
The LS7 displaces a massive 7.0 liters and is 427 cubic inches which is truly amazing when you consider that this engine is found in a street legal production Corvette in the Z06. The engine itself has its very own engine block casting and is totally separate from the base model Corvette engine casting. The LS7 also features:
- A crankshaft that is forged steel.
- Connecting rods that are titanium.
- Aluminum cylinder heads.
- Titanium intake valves.
- An oil system that is dry-sump.
So precise are these small block beauties that GM has a special place where they are all assembled. GM’s Performance Build Center is in Wixom Michigan and its sole purpose is to produce LS7 engines. Each engine that is made at the center is put together literally by hand and each engine has its own dedicated engine builder. After completion the LS7 is put through a series of tests and once approved it is then shipped out to be married to a Corvette Z06. Because of the intricate and detailed building of these small blocks there are only about 30 per day that can be produced.
What comes out though is something truly special. The LS7 engine is basically a race car’s engine that is going into a street legal car. Not that the Corvette Z06 couldn’t fair well if taken directly onto the track, but it is nonetheless a daily driver. That means that someone who buys a Corvette Z06 will not only be getting a Corvette packed with power, but they will also be getting one of the fastest stock grocery getters known to man.
Once again GM has outdone themselves and just when you think they can’t possibly squeeze out any more ponies form a small block, low and behold they do it (this is evident with the Corvette ZR1’s LS9 engine that boosts the horsepower to over 600 thanks to being supercharged). No wonder the world is holding their breath with great anticipation for the next generation of the Corvette to come out. When the C7 does roll of the assembly line you can bet that GM will have something special to go under the hood. But for now at least, the LS7 has taken its rightful place as the king of the small blocks.
