RE: Mid-engined Corvette spied testing
Discussion
I still wish they had built this back in 2009 but without the electric openers of course. Still front engine in those days, quite a homage to previous Vettes with an outrageous edge. It does have a certain presence IMHO
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IOkC3MwWNDA
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IOkC3MwWNDA
Edited by SeeFive on Wednesday 3rd July 02:11
unsprung said:
It will be produced in RHD, as this has been promised to Australia -- where, as we all know, the on-road use of LHD imports is prohibited.
The C8 Corvette will be factory-produced in RHD just as Ford does with the Mustang (and not a cut-and-kitbash effort by an in-market specialist as with the RHD Camaro that is sold only in Australia).
That said, I believe that C8 sales in the UK will be infinitesimally small and of almost no consequence outside the pages of PH and so on.
Can drive LHD cars here, just not "new", but that's up for debate and possible future change : The C8 Corvette will be factory-produced in RHD just as Ford does with the Mustang (and not a cut-and-kitbash effort by an in-market specialist as with the RHD Camaro that is sold only in Australia).
That said, I believe that C8 sales in the UK will be infinitesimally small and of almost no consequence outside the pages of PH and so on.
https://www.caradvice.com.au/575846/turnbull-govt-...
Doubt it'll be any time soon.
I'm sure HSV are happy to do the conversions, it's not like they have much else to do anymore.
Edited by Bibbs on Wednesday 3rd July 03:18
kambites said:
Presumably in Australia they'll offer Chevrolet franchises (if that's a word) to the Holden dealers? Not sure how they'll sell them in Europe though.
The rumors are that Holden will get sold by GM, the same as Vauxhall/Opel did. https://www.drive.com.au/news/report-general-motor...
unsprung said:
Jader1973 said:
GM do not care about any markets except the US and China and have zero interest in any sort of global car.
They have no global brand selling anything resembling a global car, and never have had. Why would that change now?
You don't believe that offering Corvette more formally, and in the best-in-class mid-engined form factor, can help Corvette to grow outside the US? And be of use to General Motors portfolio brands outside the US?They have no global brand selling anything resembling a global car, and never have had. Why would that change now?
“Why did you buy a Bolt?”
“Oh you know, I saw a Mid-engined Corvette and thought I need a piece of that.”
Saying this car is the spearhead of some global grand plan to raise awareness is nonsense. GM don’t need any more awareness in the North / South America and China, which are the only markets they care about.
The fact they might sell a few in Australia if it comes here (it isn’t confirmed, only rumours and speculation) doesn’t matter to GM at all.
cybertrophic said:
But a Corvette was never a sports car, it was the definitive muscle car coupe. Vipers and ‘vettes sold not because they won on track (although both did well in their Le Mans class, Porsche Bentley and Audi all claimed outright wins during that time), but because they looked *cool*. They make your inner six year old giddy with excitement.
No one same buys a TVR either - or, rather, you don’t buy one as a serious track weapon, as a Caterham or even a tuned Elise would leave them for dead - we like such ludicrous cars, because they are *fun*. This car makes me worry, because by focusing on trying to be a Ferrari-clone, they’ve designed a car that looks like one of those “supercars” you could build using a Sierra chassis in the 90s - like a Poundland Ferrari 360 but with slabbier sides so the fibreglass comes out of the mould more easily and the awkward proportions where the wheelbase looks a bit off.
I’m sure it will be fast and comparatively cheap, but I really don’t *want* one.
I disagree. Corvette and Viper were conceived and sold as sports cars. They are not Mustangs or Camaro's.No one same buys a TVR either - or, rather, you don’t buy one as a serious track weapon, as a Caterham or even a tuned Elise would leave them for dead - we like such ludicrous cars, because they are *fun*. This car makes me worry, because by focusing on trying to be a Ferrari-clone, they’ve designed a car that looks like one of those “supercars” you could build using a Sierra chassis in the 90s - like a Poundland Ferrari 360 but with slabbier sides so the fibreglass comes out of the mould more easily and the awkward proportions where the wheelbase looks a bit off.
I’m sure it will be fast and comparatively cheap, but I really don’t *want* one.
RumbleOfThunder said:
I disagree. Corvette and Viper were conceived and sold as sports cars. They are not Mustangs or Camaro's.
+1one winces when people toss Corvette in with the muscle cars
there is, of course, the perennial argument of sorts here on PH in which there is room solely for a purist's definition of sports car -- eg: a classical roadster in the form of an MX-5 or Triumph Spitfire; I find this to be limiting, but I understand and accept where it comes from
unsprung said:
+1
one winces when people toss Corvette in with the muscle cars
there is, of course, the perennial argument of sorts here on PH in which there is room solely for a purist's definition of sports car -- eg: a classical roadster in the form of an MX-5 or Triumph Spitfire; I find this to be limiting, but I understand and accept where it comes from
Agreed Corvettes were always "American Sports cars" one winces when people toss Corvette in with the muscle cars
there is, of course, the perennial argument of sorts here on PH in which there is room solely for a purist's definition of sports car -- eg: a classical roadster in the form of an MX-5 or Triumph Spitfire; I find this to be limiting, but I understand and accept where it comes from
I'd suggest Sports GT elsewhere
Jader1973 said:
“Why did you buy a Bolt?”
“Oh you know, I saw a Mid-engined Corvette and thought I need a piece of that.”
“Oh you know, I saw a Mid-engined Corvette and thought I need a piece of that.”
that was almost a coffee-through-the-nose moment, over here
if you want to understand things more clearly, I reckon you'll be just a bit less dismissive
let's remember: Chevrolet intends for the C8 portfolio to include the offer of a hybrid powertrain; it's not merely the mid-engined format that is new; General Motors wants Corvette to be more relevant and more inspiring both today and tomorrow
think for a moment about how Ford approached the design statement and engineering challenges which it set for itself in developing the newest Ford GT super car; Corvette is not a duplication of that effort (indeed, Corvette endeavours to be far emore top-of-mind); but some elements of the story are similar
The same PH forum that worships a theoretical "new-TVR" can't get it's head around the fact there really is a new mid-engine sportscar arriving on the scene in just two weeks time, thoroughly engineered with American reliability.
Depending on final price structure the new Corvette could make some other cars look very old-fashioned.
Perhaps even an n/a V8 with manual transmission when the latest "traditional" Morgan is turbocharged and auto only.
Corvette details t.b.a.
Depending on final price structure the new Corvette could make some other cars look very old-fashioned.
Perhaps even an n/a V8 with manual transmission when the latest "traditional" Morgan is turbocharged and auto only.
Corvette details t.b.a.
rockin said:
The same PH forum that worships a theoretical "new-TVR" can't get it's head around the fact there really is a new mid-engine sportscar arriving on the scene in just two weeks time, thoroughly engineered with American reliability.
Depending on final price structure the new Corvette could make some other cars look very old-fashioned.
Perhaps even an n/a V8 with manual transmission when the latest "traditional" Morgan is turbocharged and auto only.
Corvette details t.b.a.
American reliability is a positive or negative? Depending on final price structure the new Corvette could make some other cars look very old-fashioned.
Perhaps even an n/a V8 with manual transmission when the latest "traditional" Morgan is turbocharged and auto only.
Corvette details t.b.a.
I was mildly interested in the unveiling of the C7 (and I'm still disappointed by the shift away from the classical tail lamps). I must admit, however, that my anticipation of the C8 is just a bit more coloured with excitement.
Corvette has not been much of a risk-taker in the last couple of generations. Progress of a sort, we might say, defined by incrementalism. The C8, however, is several things rolled into one: nothing short of a revolution for the marque.
Although I'm keen to learn about the car later this month, there is also a slight sense of unease -- that I'm not fully in agreement with the engineering, the designs, and the brand plans revealed to date. Maybe that's a good thing.
Yes, I imagined mid-engine was something they'd continue to talk about every few years but never actually get around to doing! My guess is that it's a nice, tidy route to hybrid and 4WD in one shot.
500+bhp though two driven wheels is stretching things. 700bhp through four wheels sounds much more manageable - especially with hybrid efficiency to boot.
500+bhp though two driven wheels is stretching things. 700bhp through four wheels sounds much more manageable - especially with hybrid efficiency to boot.
Chevrolet has officially posted a photograph of the C8... steering wheel
really
details and sarcasm, here:
https://www.autoblog.com/2019/07/12/c8-corvette-st...
really
details and sarcasm, here:
https://www.autoblog.com/2019/07/12/c8-corvette-st...
unsprung said:
Chevrolet has officially posted a photograph of the C8... steering wheel
really
details and sarcasm, here:
https://www.autoblog.com/2019/07/12/c8-corvette-st...
Shame it’ll cost so much here, looks like a bargain in the US. really
details and sarcasm, here:
https://www.autoblog.com/2019/07/12/c8-corvette-st...
Jader1973 said:
The back end was snapped a few days ago. The lights are very Camaro like.
And that family resemblance is precisely what General Motors wants, we can speculate.The plan, again speculation fortified with unequivocal statements by GM executives, is that Corvette will now move slightly upmarket in its embrace of a mid-engined format and the potential for "global" sales.
Consequently, the Camaro portfolio must offer a broader range of products so as to stretch from very affordable (where it's always begun) to rather on the pricey and very high perfomance side (just a notch or two higher than it is today).
Obviously, being a 2+2, Camaro is unable to be a substitute for the front-engined two-seaters that Corvette previously produced. As some here on PH have pointed out, there is likely to be a gap in the Chevrolet portfolio -- ie: two-seater performance will no longer be available for quite such a bargain of a price.
unsprung said:
And that family resemblance is precisely what General Motors wants, we can speculate.
The plan, again speculation fortified with unequivocal statements by GM executives, is that Corvette will now move slightly upmarket in its embrace of a mid-engined format and the potential for "global" sales.
Consequently, the Camaro portfolio must offer a broader range of products so as to stretch from very affordable (where it's always begun) to rather on the pricey and very high perfomance side (just a notch or two higher than it is today).
Obviously, being a 2+2, Camaro is unable to be a substitute for the front-engined two-seaters that Corvette previously produced. As some here on PH have pointed out, there is likely to be a gap in the Chevrolet portfolio -- ie: two-seater performance will no longer be available for quite such a bargain of a price.
Only problem being that the Camaro is strongly rumoured to be axed in 2022. The plan, again speculation fortified with unequivocal statements by GM executives, is that Corvette will now move slightly upmarket in its embrace of a mid-engined format and the potential for "global" sales.
Consequently, the Camaro portfolio must offer a broader range of products so as to stretch from very affordable (where it's always begun) to rather on the pricey and very high perfomance side (just a notch or two higher than it is today).
Obviously, being a 2+2, Camaro is unable to be a substitute for the front-engined two-seaters that Corvette previously produced. As some here on PH have pointed out, there is likely to be a gap in the Chevrolet portfolio -- ie: two-seater performance will no longer be available for quite such a bargain of a price.
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff