The Shelby GT350 has a flat-plane crank and 5.2L of naturally-aspirated power. It's a 32-valve DOHC engine. It's rated at 526 bhp.
I suppose with another 0.3L of displacement, if the Z06 engine is going to be a 32-valve DOHC, 550hp is certainly attainable. 600... maybe?
Another comparison: The Ferrari F136 I, the engine Ford used to build the Voodoo found in the GT350. It is 4.3L and produces 454 hp.
Hmmmm... Ok, lets do some maths.
If the Ferrari has 454 hp @ 4.3L, that's 105.6 hp/L.
The Ford with 526 hp @ 5.2L is 101.1 hp/L.
So, if the Z06 is naturally-aspirated, one can assume it could have around 556 to 581 bhp. Since it's American tech vs. Italian, it would probably have closer to the former.
This all sounds fine and great, but 560 hp is not a giant leap from the 495 bhp in the Stingray.
That being said, historically, the Z06 has been naturally-aspirated (NA), only switching to forced-induction (FI) in 2015. This all appears to fall in line with what customers wanted at the times. The closest European and American competitors (In my opinion, the Porsche 911 Turbo and Dodge Viper) were producing similar power figures for each year the Z06 was released. It would make sense that the Z06 will maintain this 'relative to competition' formula. How much power the competition has in 2021 (or 2022??) may dictate the power of the Z06, and thus possibly deciding whether or not it will have FI.
For 2020, Porsche's power output maxes out at 540 hp in the 911 Turbo. Dodge no longer makes the Viper, so we'll have to go to the next closest thing: The Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 or GT500 at 526 hp and 760 hp respectively. What will GM attempt to compete with? Will they be content with the mid-500 hp and stay with the competition, or do they want to run away with the horsepower war that took place in the 2000's and 2010's? Do we have enough power now, or do we need to keep getting more?
Personally, I imagine GM will not keep pushing the power envelope. The new, 495 hp Stingray out-drags the current Z06 with its 650 hp in the 0-60 mph test. Boat-loads of power aren't necessary when comparing to the competition. It would make sense if they make it NA. The C5 and C6 Z06 didn't have gobs of power compared to the base model Corvette, as they were more about handling than brute power. As the Z06 is meant to be the "track-ready" Corvette, it would be nice to see them continue this trend. Yes, it would be shocking to see a generation of Corvette to lose power from the past generation, but at 580 hp, a C8 Corvette would likely increase 0-60 mph times to match or beat the C7 ZR1. Isn't that all you need?
When it comes to insane power, let us wait and see what they do with the ZR-1, which has always been the king of power.
Data:
| YEAR | BASE POWER | Z06 POWER | % INCREASE | Europe | America |
| 1962 | 250 hp | 360 hp | 44% | | |
| 2002 | 350 hp | 405 hp | 16% | Porsche 911 Turbo - 444 hp | Dodge Viper - 450 hp |
| 2006 | 400 hp | 505 hp | 26% | Porsche 911 Turbo - 473 hp | Dodge Viper - 510 hp |
| 2015 | 460 hp | 650 hp | 41% | Porsche 911 Turbo S - 552 hp | Dodge Viper - 640 hp |
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