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First 2015 Chevy Corvette Z06s en route to owners [w/video]

Pretty much right on schedule, Chevrolet has begun shipping the very first customer examples of its 650-horsepower, supercharged Corvette Z06. In fact, according to General Motors, the earliest Z06s could be in customer hands by the end of this week. "It has been an incredible opportunity to work on Chevy's most capable model," said Jeff Lamarche, manager of Chevy's Bowling Green Assembly plant. "It truly is an amazing car, and we're thrilled to get them into the hands of our eager customers." Prices for the Z06 start at $78,995 for the hardtop model, while the first-ever Z06 Convertible kicks off at $83,995. Take a look below for the official press release from Chevrolet, and while you're down there, we've slipped in a new video of Corvette Racing's Tommy Milner taking a hot lap of Road Atlanta in a Z06, complete with some Performance Data Recorder footage. First 2015 Corvette Z06s on Their Way to Customers Most capable model in Chevrolet's history now shipping from Bowling Green BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – Chevrolet is now shipping the all-new 2015 Corvette Z06 coupe from Bowling Green Assembly and some early customers could receive the much-anticipated supercar later this week. "It has been an incredible opportunity to work on Chevy's most capable model," said Jeff Lamarche, plant manager of General Motors' Bowling Green Assembly plant, "It truly is an amazing car, and we're thrilled to get them into the hands of our eager customers." The new Corvette Z06 offers the most choice for customers in the model's history. It is the first Z06 to offer an available eight-speed paddle-shift automatic transmission and, thanks to a stronger aluminum frame, a removable roof panel. In addition, it is the first time since 1963 that the Z06 is available as a convertible – which will arrive in early 2015. The new LT4 supercharged 6.2L V-8 engine is SAE-certified at 650 horsepower (485 kW) at 6,400 rpm and 650 lb-ft of torque (881 Nm) at 3,600 rpm – making the 2015 Corvette Z06 the most powerful production car ever from General Motors and one of the most powerful production cars available in the United States. To balance performance and efficiency, the LT4 leverages a trio of advanced technologies – direct injection, Active Fuel Management (cylinder deactivation) and continuously variable valve timing –with a new, more efficient supercharger. The LT4 helps make the Corvette Z06 the most capable car in the brand's history.

Nissan Leaf sales get January jump as Chevy Volt trends downward

The cold January sales dip hit both the Nissan Leaf and the Chevy Volt last month, but when compared 2014 to 2013's first-month-of-the-year sales totals, one of the two early plug-in vehicles obviously came out on top. The top Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months. Last year, the Leaf sold just 650 units in January, but it managed to move 1,252 last month, a 92.6-percent increase over 2013 but a big drop from the 2,529 sold in December 2013. Paige Presley over at Nissan told AutoblogGreen that the Leaf has now broken sales records for 11 months straight and that, "we see unique seasonality with some December pull-ahead demand based on federal and state tax incentives." The number one Leaf market also shifted away from Atlanta for the first time in months, moving back to San Francisco. That change could be short-lived. "We had some inventory constraint issues early in the month in Atlanta with end-of-year demand depleting stock," Presley said. "By the time we resolved that, the weather hampered sales." There was not as much good news on the Chevrolet front. Last month, the Volt sold 918 units, down from 1,140 in January 2013 and 2,392 in December 2013. It also marks the first time the Volt has sold in the three-digit range since January 2012, when it sold 603 copies. That string of solid months means that the plug-in hybrid has a roughly 12,000-unit lead over the EV since the two cars brought plug-in vehicles back to the mass market all the way back in December 2010. We will have our full report of January's green car sales up soon.

GM execs fired over fraudulent India emissions testing

General Motors hadn't had a recall in India since 1995. That changed when it was discovered that certain employees were playing tricks with local emissions testing in order to ensure passing grades for engines. More than ten GM Powertrain employees in India and the US have been let go over the ensuing emissions flap, including Sam Winegarden, VP of global engine engineering, a man who has been with the company since 1969, leading development of some marquee powerplants.
According to Automotive News, an internal investigation revealed that employees "violated testing procedures," sometimes swapping specially prepared low-emissions engines during testing regimes for the Chevrolet Tavera SUV equipped with the 2.0-liter and 2.5-liter engines. Employees were also manipulating weights in order to get vehicles placed into different emissions categories. The discovery has led to GM recall the 114,000 Taveras produced over an eight-year period and halting their production and sale.
The Economic Times of India reports that the issue is due to "a faulty component." GM has developed a solution to the issue, and once it is validated in testing and approved by the Indian authorities, the recalled vehicles will be fixed at dealers and production will resume.