This Corvette ZR1 Was So Hot on Track, It Melted Itself
While C8 Corvette owners face fire risk recalls, John Anhalt took his heavily modified 2019 Corvette ZR1 to the extreme at the Big Bend Open Road Race in Texas. Not only did he and co-pilot Kelli Hughes shatter the speed record, but the sustained mechanical stress caused the car to literally melt its own rear end, earning it the nickname, “Toasted Marshmallow.” This incident showcases the intense demands of high-speed competition, contrasting with the factory issues that led to a safety recall for the C8 Corvette.
Record-Breaking Speed and Mechanical Stress
John Anhalt’s attempt at the Big Bend Open Road Race was a test of both extreme modification and endurance, yielding both a record and dramatic body damage.
- Record Set: Anhalt and Hughes posted a two-way average speed of 173.004 MPH over the 118-mile course.
- Previous Record: This time is 17 MPH faster than the previous record, which had been held since 2013.
- The Car: The car is a heavily modified 2019 Corvette ZR1. It came from the factory with a 755-horsepower LT5 supercharged V-8 engine, but Anhalt’s modifications—including the cylinder heads, supercharger, and exhaust system—push its power to north of 1,000 hp.
- The Damage: The amount of mechanical stress and sustained heat exposure during the 41-minute timed run caused the Corvette to literally melt its own rear end.
- Performance: The straight-piped exhaust allowed the car to run at 200 mph for most of the timed run. The stock ZR1 could achieve 0-60 mph in 5.3 seconds and clear the quarter-mile in 14.1 seconds (outsprinting a Ferrari 348ts in a famous test).
Big Bend Open Road Race: The Ultimate Legal Speed Test
The setting for this record is one of the most extreme legal speed competitions in the United States.
- Location: The Big Bend Open Road Race takes place on a 59-mile stretch of Highway 285 in Texas between Fort Stockton and Sanderson.
- The Format: Competitors transform the two-lane public road into a high-speed test track featuring long straightaways. To compensate for wind and elevation, competitors drive the course in opposite directions and calculate their average speed across both drives.
C8 Corvette Fire Risk Recall (Unrelated)
This intense track incident stands in stark contrast to a separate, production-related safety issue affecting newer C8 Corvettes.
- C8 Recall: General Motors (GM) voluntarily recalled over 23,000 units of the 2023–2026 C8 Corvette Z06 and the 2025–2026 Corvette ZR1.
- The Cause: The fire risk is caused by a design flaw that allows fuel vapors or spilled fuel to be directed towards the path of a hot engine by cooling fans. This risks a fire, the opposite of the cooling fans’ intended purpose.
- Analogy: The C7 ZR1’s self-inflicted damage due to max-effort competition is a “risk worth taking” for enthusiasts, unlike the C8 recall, which addresses a mechanical vulnerability in the factory design.
Final Thoughts
John Anhalt’s record run is a remarkable display of mechanical modification and human determination, perfectly illustrating the spirit of open-road racing. The result—a melted tail panel and a new nickname—is a battle scar earned through the pursuit of speed. While the C8 recall highlights factory safety concerns, the C7 ZR1’s story is a celebration of pushing a high-strung race car to its absolute limit.
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