[1]John Edward’s Christmas present from 2010.
Floridian John Edwards decided to buy himself a christmas present in 2010, primarily to celebrate the ever-present Corvette weather in his current hometown of Naples.
His Christmas present was a single-owner 2006 Corvette Z06 that he spotted at a Ferrari dealership in town.
Originally, the Z06 came off the showroom floor with a handbuilt LS7 that was the most powerful naturally aspirated engine ever put into a production car from GM at the time. Rated from the factory at 505 hp, there was little else needed to make this 7-liter monster a real tire shredder.
[2]In addition to the lethal hand-built LS7 under the hood, Edwards has a custom painted mural that celebrates Florida’s year-round Corvette weather.
Edwards decided to add a few goodies however. Upgrading to a high lift COMP Cams [3] camshaft and a Callaway cold air intake to open up the beast’s breathing was a major improvement for the proud sportscar owner.
“I just drive it on the weekends, to and from car shows and cruise-ins around Florida,” says Edwards, adding “when it’s not raining.”
Edwards also added Kooks [4] 1 7/8-inch long tube headers and a Corsa extreme exhaust with high flow cats with 4-inch tips to get rid of the exhaust gasses efficiently and free up some extra power. Capping off the upgrades with a custom dyno tune to take advantage of the engine’s better air flow, Edwards claims a total horsepower rating over 600hp.
“Besides all the glitter and shine, it does have these performance modifications,” he says proudly. Adding to that glitter is chrome and stainless accessories from American Car Craft to dress up the engine bay.
[5]Adorn with Michelin Pilot Super Sport tires, this Z06 has no trouble gripping the road.
Originally shipped from the factory with 275/35ZR18 tires in the front and 325/30ZR19 tires in the rear, Edwards Vette now sits on a set of Michelin rubbers with the maximum performance Pilot Super Sport 285-35-18 on front and 345-30-19 on the rear combination.
The Michelin tires are mounted on the unique lightweight forged aluminum wheels that came stock on the Z06 models in the chromed finished option.
The Michelin PPS tires were initially introduced as original equipment on several of the world’s most sophisticated performance vehicles, including the limited edition Ferrari 599 GTO – Ferrari’s fastest road car ever. Traction won’t be an issue with these donuts gluing this red bowtie to the road.
The stock 6-piston front and 4-piston rear calipers with 14-inch front and 13-inch rear cross-drilled rotors provide the stopping power. These calipers work well with the Z06 upgraded functional front and rear brake ducts for added brake system cooling.
From the moment that he purchased the Corvette, Edwards knew that he was going to “transform this beast into a high quality show car.”
“It is exclusively a show car and will never see the track, despite having 600-horsepower,” he assures us.
[6]The Chevy supercar received special treatment on the inside as well. Italian-leather seat skins from leatherseats.com grace the Victory Red and Ebony interior.
Edward’s Z06 is a big step up from the standard C6 model. Sporting the hand built LS7, 427ci V8 7-liter engine makes this an incredible platform to work from. In addition to the larger displacement engine, the Corvette Z06 was built with a dry sump oiling system and connecting rods made out of titanium alloy. This GM sports car is still a great example of cutting edge technology.
The extra muscle under the hood caused the GM engineers to add larger and stiffer anti-sway bars with stiffer springs and shocks to the suspension.
The Z06 versions also received wider carbon fiber front and fiberglass rear fenders. The model specific front fascia features a fully functional intake inlet for performance, and to help cut a path through the air, a large front splitter and larger rear spoiler add to the exterior.
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Don't be surprised if you see this fair weather show car on the streets of Florida heading to the next car show.
Edwards enters his pride and joy into car shows around the region and drives to cruise-ins whenever possible to share his love of high performance sports cars. If you happen to be in the Naples area of Florida on any given weekend – and the sun is shinning – don’t be surprised if you see a beautiful red Corvette Z06 heading to the next car show.
If you’d like to share your ride with us here at SLTV, send us an email at Reader’s Wheels [10], and tell us a little about your car. Get some pictures ready and we’ll contact you and get more information and you’ll be on your way to sharing your car with the rest of our readers. Let us know what you think in the comments section below!