Believed to premiere this summer, the C8 Corvette will embody Zora Arkus-Duntov’s dream of a mid-engine sports car for the road. The biggest departure from the C2 Corvette will further feature different badging and fonts from the current generation of America’s sports car.
GM Trucks uploaded the startup animation of the C8 on YouTube, and the differences are clear. The Corvette logo mirrors the design featured on the key fob certified by the Federal Communications Commission. The gauge cluster is thought to consist of a color display, but only time will tell how high-tech the interior of the ‘Vette turns out to be.
What’s more than certain is the infotainment system, larger than before and with smartphone-like features. Aluminum shift paddles, a heated and flat-bottom steering wheel, and a rotary control knob are also featured.
GM Trucks won't comment on how the forum obtained the animation. On the other hand, the animation, badge, and script are valid because the animation “was collected from a publicly available file by a third party and passed along to us.”
The C8 Corvette is expected to feature a dual-clutch transmission from the get-go, likely the seven-speed from the Shelby GT500. Tremec manufactures it and TR-9007 is how it’s called. Capable of handling up to 650 pound-feet of torque, the transmission weighs 90 kilograms (198 pounds) and can be had with two ratio spreads (6.5 or 5.6).
An upgraded LT1 small-block V8 is expected to serve as the entry-level engine option. In the Camaro SS and C7 Corvette Stingray, the powerplant is capable of 455 and 460 ponies, respectively. A twin-turbo V8 borrowing the hot-vee design from Cadillac is in the pipeline too, and with hybrid assistance, rumor has it the range-topping C8 Corvette will output in the ballpark of 1,000 horsepower.
Expect the hearsay to get even wilder as the summer gets closer, but hey, what did you expect? It took Chevrolet more than six decades to come up with a road-going Corvette with the engine in the middle, explaining the over-the-top speculation of both enthusiasts and motoring publications.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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