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In 2019, Bugatti’s Chiron Super Sport 300+ broke the world record for fastest production car. Its top speed was 304.773 mph. It’s amazing how much hypercar you can build when you essentially decide the cost doesn’t matter. But while you must pay $12k for every mph of your Bugatti’s top speed, Chevy’s latest Corvette is a comparative bargain. Though its top speed is closer to 200 mph, it’s projected to cost just $1k for every mph.

Where in the world do these numbers come from? The MSRP of the Chiron Super Sport 300+ was $3.9 million. Bugatti only built 30 of these beasts. So if you were to buy one on the used market, it would cost you much more. Bugatti charged $3,900,000 for a 304.7 mph car. That comes out to $12,799.47 per mph.

The 1,600 Chiron Super Sport 300+ was the crowning grace of Bugatti’s W16 engine. After VW acquired the name, it created a standalone company that introduced the Veyron 16.4 hypercar for the 2005 model year. Its 8.0-liter quad-turbocharged W16 was one of the first engines to break 1,000 horsepower from the factory.

Two black Bugatti hypercars drive on a track
Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport & Super Sport 300+ | Bugatti

Fast-forward twenty years and the market has multiple 1,000-horsepower hypercars. They include the Aston Martin Vakyrie, Mercedes-AMG ONE, McLaren Speedtail, multiple Koenigseggs, the Hennessy Venom F5, Zenvo TS1 GT, and SSC Tuatara Striker, just to name a few. What’s more, 1,000 horsepower seems to be standard for performance EVs.

Then Chevrolet unveiled the ZR1 trim of its mid-engine C8 Corvette. The 2025 Corvette ZR1 takes the flat-plane-crankshaft V8 designed for the Z06 and adds twin turbochargers. That bumps its output from 670 horsepower to 1,064 horsepower and 873 lb-ft of torque at 7,000 rpm. Best of all, Chevy is expected to announce an MSRP between $180,000 and $205,000.

That’s right. America’s sports car just became America’s hypercar. And will probably manage to do it for under $200k. The Corvette ZR1 can hypothetically exceed 215 mph. It has already set records in excess of 205 mph. So let’s say Chevrolet charges a base MSRP of $205,000 for this car and it never sets a record above 205 mph. Thats still $1k for every mph.

A bright-yellow 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 on an open road.
2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 | General Motors

If the new Corvette ZR1 can truly break 215 mph and it starts at $180k, that will be just $837.21 for every mph of its top speed. No, that wouldn’t make it quite as fast as the Bugatti. But you could argue that its 15 times as good a deal. What’s more, you may be able to buy 21 Corvette ZR1s for what that Bugatti cost.

Does this seem like a bizarre matchup? Perhaps. But this is an excellent illustration of how much cheaper “speed” is getting. When Jay Leno first saw the $100k Corvette Z06, he said its bargain price is a testament to American ingenuity and manufacturing prowess. GM engineers admit they benchmarked the Ferrari F8 (the final mid-engine Ferrari with a V8 and no hybrid tech) when designing the Corvette Z06. They matched its performance numbers. and the Ferrari F8 Tributo starts at $284,000. The Corvette ZR1 promises to be even faster.

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Staff Writer

Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.