The builder behind Phoenix, the twin-turbo C8 that ran 9.36.
Emelia Hartford is a car builder, driver and presenter best known to Corvette people for Phoenix, her twin-turbo 2020 C8 Stingray. It made 1,022 hp at the wheels and ran a 9.36-second quarter mile at 147 mph at Famoso Raceway in June 2021, the quickest C8 pass at the time.
I have owned four C8s, one of them a Stingray, the same car Emelia Hartford started with. She took hers a lot further. This page is the Corvette side of her story in date order: the build, the records, the broken parts, and the Corvettes that came after.
Who Emelia Hartford is, for Corvette people
Hartford launched her YouTube channel in 2017 and built it around modifying cars herself. Corvette people know her for one car above the rest: a white and orange 2020 Stingray she named Phoenix, which held the C8 quarter-mile record in 2021.
Her work has spread out since then. She played Leah Vega in the 2023 film Gran Turismo, began co-hosting the Car Stories podcast with Sung Kang in September 2023, and in June 2026 she drove a Corvette ZR1 up Pikes Peak. Her official site is emeliahartford.com.
Phoenix is a 2020 Stingray that made 1,022 hp at the wheels
Phoenix started as a 2020 Stingray, so the base engine is the 6.2L LT2 that Chevrolet rated at 495 hp with the performance exhaust. The turbos went on in the summer of 2020. CorvetteBlogger reported on July 30, 2020 that the kit had been added over roughly the previous month, and that an early dyno session showed 539 hp and 609 lb-ft.
By March 2021 the numbers had nearly doubled. The dyno figure was 1,022 hp and 942 lb-ft at the wheels, which is more than double the factory rating, and the factory rating is measured at the crank. The parts list that got it there:
- Short block: upgraded, with forged pistons.
- Turbos: twin Precision 62/66 units.
- Power adders on top: methanol injection and nitrous.
- Transmission: upgraded clutches in the dual-clutch gearbox.
- Turbo control: a Peitz Performance control unit.
- Fueling: a Holley Dominator EFI standalone ECU running auxiliary fuel.
- Fuel: 91 octane mixed with C16 race gas.
The two extra control boxes are there because the factory C8 ECU is encrypted. It could not be tuned directly at the time, so the team ran the boost and the added fuel on separate hardware beside the stock computer. The team said that piggyback setup needed constant tuning, and controlling the transmission became the recurring problem.
If you want boost on a C8 without chasing records, I cover the bolt-on route in my C8 supercharger and ProCharger guide.
The records: 9.41 in March 2021, then 9.36 in June
Both record days happened at Famoso Raceway in California. Going into March 2021, the quickest C8 quarter mile was a 9.95 from Extreme Turbo Systems. Hartford made three passes that reset it: 9.908 seconds at 138.70 mph, then 9.474 after the boost went up to 11 psi, then 9.41 seconds at 144 mph. Turn 14’s report from March 16, 2021 has the day in detail.
She came back in June 2021 for a private two-day test. Day one produced a 9.39 and a 9.36, the 9.36 at 147 mph. Day two went the other way. The car ran 9.63, then 9.75, dropped into limp mode in fourth gear, and the crew parked it with the clutches as the suspect, as CorvetteBlogger reported on June 15, 2021.
The record did not last. FuelTech’s C8 later ran 8.973 seconds at 160.92 mph, the first C8 pass in the eights. CorvetteBlogger still listed 9.36 as Hartford’s personal best in April 2022, and I have not found a sourced quicker pass for Phoenix since.
Timeline: her Corvette milestones in date order
| Date | What happened | Key number |
|---|---|---|
| Summer 2020 | Twin turbos go on the 2020 Stingray | 539 hp, 609 lb-ft |
| July 2020 | First engine failure, a piston, on a street pull | Engine rebuilt |
| March 2021 | Dyno figure with the built engine | 1,022 whp, 942 lb-ft |
| March 2021 | Takes the C8 quarter-mile record at Famoso | 9.41 s @ 144 mph |
| June 2021 | Lowers her own record at a private Famoso test | 9.36 s @ 147 mph |
| June 2021 | Day two: limp mode in fourth gear, clutches suspected | 9.63 s, 9.75 s |
| October 2021 | Helps Chevrolet reveal the 2023 Corvette Z06 | Z06 reveal |
| By January 2022 | FuelTech’s C8 takes the record into the eights | 8.973 s @ 160.92 mph |
| April 2022 | Return to Famoso ends with coolant in the oil | 9.74 s @ 144.21 mph |
| December 2022 | Phoenix’s turbo system moves to her new 2023 Z06 | 3 psi first drive |
| April 2023 | New Texas Speed LT2 arrives for Phoenix | 1,500 hp billing |
| June 2026 | Runs a 2026 Corvette ZR1 at Pikes Peak | 10:11.018 |
The setbacks: two engines and a lot of clutch trouble
July 2020, the first engine. The turbos had been on the car about a month. During a quick pull on the street while she was getting the car ready for a road rally, the LT2 started ticking. A borescope showed a failed piston. The plan from there was a stronger engine, and by March 2021 the short block had forged pistons.
June 2021, the transmission. The day after the 9.36, Phoenix backfired, went into limp mode in fourth gear and slowed to 9.75. The team suspected the tune and the clutches, not the engine.
April 2022, the second engine. Phoenix went back to Famoso with a prototype transmission controller. Boost started at 9 psi and went to 13 psi. The best pass was 9.74 seconds at 144.21 mph, short of her 9.36. On one run the transmission jumped straight to sixth gear. The outing ended with what looked like coolant in the oil, and the engine was torn down afterward. CorvetteBlogger covered that outing on April 10, 2022.
I broke a rear half shaft launching my Stingray, so none of this surprises me. Making 1,022 hp at the wheels was the easy half. Getting a dual-clutch gearbox and a locked factory computer to live with it was the half that kept sending Phoenix home early. Related: C8 Corvette axle and half shaft failures.
The video: why Phoenix went quiet at the end of 2021
After the June 2021 record the Corvette mostly dropped off her channel. This update, which CorvetteBlogger wrote up on January 7, 2022, is her explanation. The short version is testing and development behind the scenes. What she walks through:
- The intercooler had a hairline fracture and was replaced with a reinforced one.
- The direct injectors were gummed up from leaded fuel and methanol and were replaced.
- The PCV lines were rerouted, and oil return reservoirs were added at the back of the car.
- Extra cooling went in, with mesh to protect it.
- Transmission control was still the open item, with dyno time planned before any return to the strip.
The April 2022 Famoso trip above was the return that followed.
What Phoenix runs now
The most recent build state I can source is from April 2023. CorvSport reported on April 13, 2023 that Hartford had taken delivery of a rebuilt LT2 from Texas Speed, billed at 1,500 hp, along with a new turbo system, clutch plates, a flywheel and lighter brakes. The stated goal was a 7-second quarter mile.
I have not found a published time slip for Phoenix on that engine, so I am not going to quote one. The 9.36 at 147 mph from June 2021 is the number that stands.
Her other Corvettes: a twin-turbo Z06 and a Pikes Peak ZR1
The 2023 Z06
Hartford helped Chevrolet reveal the 2023 Z06 in late October 2021. By December 2022 she had a new 2023 Z06 of her own, and she moved Phoenix’s twin-turbo system onto it. The first drive was at 3 psi with no problems reported. Her own verdict on camera was that she liked the flat-plane car better without the turbos. If you know the Z06 and its LT6, that makes sense. The sound is the car.
The 2026 ZR1 at Pikes Peak
In June 2026 she entered a 2026 Corvette ZR1, the 1,064 hp car, in the Time Attack 1 division of the 104th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. Her time was 10:11.018, good for 17th overall and 4th in class, and it made her the fastest woman to run the mountain, according to CorvetteBlogger’s July 1, 2026 report.
The car was not stock. It ran Carbon Revolution carbon fiber wheels, 2.5 degrees of rear camber and extra roll cage gusseting, and it wore a livery that pays tribute to Phoenix. I own a ZR1, and my notes on the street car are in my C8 ZR1 review.
One non-Corvette number for context. Her quickest quarter-mile car is a Nissan Z she built herself, which ran 7.75 seconds at 181.85 mph in December 2024.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Emelia Hartford?
Emelia Hartford is a car builder, driver and presenter who started her YouTube channel in 2017. Corvette owners know her for Phoenix, a twin-turbo 2020 C8 Stingray that held the C8 quarter-mile record in 2021. She also played Leah Vega in the 2023 film Gran Turismo.
What is Emelia Hartford’s C8 Corvette?
It is a white and orange 2020 Corvette Stingray named Phoenix. The 6.2L LT2 was rebuilt with forged pistons and fitted with twin Precision 62/66 turbos, methanol injection and nitrous, with a Holley Dominator standalone ECU handling the extra fuel beside the locked factory computer.
How fast is Emelia Hartford’s C8 Corvette in the quarter mile?
The best documented pass for Phoenix is 9.36 seconds at 147 mph, set at Famoso Raceway in June 2021. That beat her own 9.41 at 144 mph from March 2021. Her April 2022 return produced a 9.74 at 144.21 mph before the engine had to come out.
How much horsepower does Emelia Hartford’s Corvette make?
Phoenix made 1,022 hp and 942 lb-ft at the wheels on the dyno by March 2021. A stock 2020 Stingray is rated at 495 hp at the crank. In April 2023 she received a new Texas Speed LT2 billed at 1,500 hp, but I have not seen a dyno figure for that engine.
Does Emelia Hartford still hold the C8 quarter-mile record?
No. Her 9.36 from June 2021 was beaten by FuelTech’s C8, which ran 8.973 seconds at 160.92 mph and became the first C8 in the eights. Hartford took the record in March 2021 from Extreme Turbo Systems, whose car had run 9.95.
What Corvette did Emelia Hartford race at Pikes Peak?
A 2026 Corvette ZR1 with 1,064 hp, entered in Time Attack 1 at the 104th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb in June 2026. She finished in 10:11.018, which was 17th overall and 4th in class, and the fastest time by a woman on the mountain.
Want more C8 content?
Daily photos, spec drops, and ownership reality from someone who’s owned 4 C8s.