Posts
10108
Joined
4/1/2008
Location
Dallas, TX
US
Edited Date/Time
7/23/2019 8:43pm
I’m sure that the new Vette will get nitpicked like crazy, but I’m on the thumbs up side. The base model starts under $60K, and does 0-60 under 3 seconds. Still retains some styling cues from the C7, but the mid-engine definitely adds to the exotica factor.
The Shop
I think that they should stop building the smaller engined Camaros and focus them on the higher performance V8 side of things (maybe even 10 or 12 cylinders!), then do something like a variation of the old CTS-V coupe for the next rung.
Camaro should be a poor man's 812, the Corvette a poor man's 488. Or something like that.....
My thinking is that the Camaro has been a little more experimental of a platform and this design (esp 3rd pic down) has cues of a 90s Camaro/firebird. The Corvette has held it's iconic swooping front fenders and long nose for over 60 years with the most iconic the 70s stingray. This puts a nail in the coffin of that aesthetic imo as much as they tried to recreate it. At least it pays much better homage than the new Blazer
My wife has a 2012 camaro. I hope they don’t kill that car again. They’re sharp. Love them.
Very nice though. I like it. It looks expensive but it’s not. Looks like a true super car instead of a red neck car.
they have always been front engined RWD, and should be, Chevy should have called it something else,
What happened to American muscle, big motor, a trans you have to shift by yourself and rear wheel drive.
The only cars that are really keeping this is the mustang with the 5.0 and the challenger!
Really the only sports cars I like is the challenger the mustang and the Ferrari 419
I'm no pro driver, but theres no way I could get off the line as well with a stick and 600+ horse as I can with DCT and launch control. Turn it on, Lay on the brake, WOT, listen to it rev clip , and dump the break it and it just hooks and GOES.
Call me old, but I can't shake the image of Tom Selleck sitting in this thing cruising down some Hawaiian highway
Everyone else is reasonable
It like a 2-4 k in Chevy and dodge
Pit Row
The "cheapest" Dodge Challenger with a V8 and manual transmission is about $2K less than the "cheapest" Camaro with a V8 and manual. It's basically $36K vs $38K. It isn't much of a difference, and certainly not enough to suggest that one is just too expensive and the other is reasonable......
Nice proportions.
Still not a Corvette.
Give me a manual Miata over an automatic Corvette any day.
Why The 2020 Corvette C8 Really Is a Bigger Deal Than Every Other Car Right Now
Andrew P. Collins
Impressive engineering, relatively low list price and striking looks aside the 2020 Corvette C8 really is one of the most significant things to happen in cars in a long time. If you disagree, I’m going to change your mind.
I know, I can’t believe we’re not done thinking about the new Vette either, but frankly that’s part of the reason this thesis is worth discussing before we return to our regularly scheduled programming and talking about literally anything else going on in the automotive industry.
The greatest triumph of the C8 is that it represents a major departure from tradition for a mainstream automaker, while simultaneously staying true to the longstanding Corvette ethos of democratizing elite-level speed and handling and distributing it to the masses.
For clarity–Corvettes have never been “cheap” off a dealer lot. But they have historically offered up huge doses of performance for your dollars. And taking the platform mid-engine, while keeping that engine enormous and the whole package somewhat affordable, elevates the concept to a new level.
Until this week, a big-displacement mid-mounted engine was pretty much exclusively Lamborghini territory. Soon, you’re going to be able to get that at a dang Chevy dealership.
As far as historical gravity and just general gobsmacking, the C8 launch pretty much kicked everything else we’ve been excited about over the last few years into the trash. OK, that’s a little hyperbolic, but think about it:
The 2019 Ford Ranger is a mild revision on a 2012 design.
The EcoBoost Ford GT is cool, but it’s unobtanium. You’ll be lucky to see one, let alone drive one in your lifetime. The new NSX isn’t quite as exclusive but it still starts at almost double the C8’s implied MSRP of $59,999.
The Toyota Supra seems fun but it’s not built on a unique platform which, sorry, does diminish its epicness a little.
Everybody loves the JL Wrangler, but let’s be real, it’s a cautious evolution of its predecessor.
The Honda Civic Type R, Dodge Challenger Demon, Ford Focus RS, Ford F-150 Raptor... all fun and good and impressive in their own ways, but those cars simply don’t stand out with the C8 in terms of pure uniqueness and monumentality.
The only recent car that comes close to being as much of a mic drop as the new Corvette is the Tesla Model 3. I’m taking points off for execution there, though. Remember when the $35,000 variant that disappeared due to “lack of demand?” Lame. (Don’t worry, we’re all ready to bitch and moan if Chevy pulls that crap and quietly disappears the “under $60,000” C8 too.)
Point is: you don’t have to like the new Corvette, or be into sports cars at all, but recognize that GM has executed something truly legendary here. At least, in concept–I have to hedge just enough so I don’t look like a dingus if we go drive it and it feels like junk. But with almost 500 horsepower mounted behind the driver, I don’t think there’s much danger of that happening.
Post a reply to: C8