‘Gonna miss her!’ owner watches Corvette explode at gas pump, Chevy unsurprised
Imagine you take your Corvette for a Sunday drive. You pull into a gas station, turn off your car, and begin fueling. You step away to chat with someone. Then you hear a loud explosion—and turn to find your $100,000 Corvette engulfed in flames.
This isn’t the opening of the latest Fast & Furious movie. It’s what Corvette owner Shawn Conner just experienced. You can see the security camera footage embedded below:
I wonder what that will cost @GM
— Aaron @ We Buy Pinball (@WeBuyPinball) September 15, 2025
I’m glad the owner wasn't standing there, as that design flaw may have caused a death. pic.twitter.com/LgWhUAFjX6
Conner’s 2024 Z06 vanished in a fireball and burned to the ground. Afterward, he posted to a forum: “Gonna miss her!” He asked, “Anybody have any experience, or ever heard of anything like this before?” Spoiler alert: they had.
The history of Corvette ZR1 and Z06s exploding
Other owners chimed in. “Same thing happened to a blue one that was posted recently,” one wrote. Another added, “A white Z06 caught on fire.” That’s at least three similar cases on a single forum. So what’s going on?
Chevrolet recently issued a recall and “do not drive” order for Z06, ZR1, and ZR1X C8-generation Corvettes. These trims feature more powerful engines and extra radiators—including one directly beneath the gasoline filler cap. A single drip onto a hot radiator can start a fire.
But it gets worse.
Directly above the radiator sits an electric fan. It activates automatically when the vehicle gets hot—even if the ignition is off. So if you shut your Corvette off after a hard drive, the fan might switch on. It could suck drops of fuel from the pump nozzle into the hot radiator.
General Motors says it’s working on a fix. It plans to install a shield between the filler tube and the radiator fan. But space is tight. The new shield must not block airflow or cause the car to overheat.
In the meantime, GM is warning owners not to drive these cars. It hasn’t delivered any ZR1X trims to the public yet.
Still, after Conner’s post, other owners asked on the forum, “Anyone still driving their Z06 after the fire recall?” Hopefully, these videos of burning Corvettes convince them to take the warning seriously.
