The C8 is arguably the most ambitious Corvette platform of them all because even the Stingray pushes the envelope with a mid-engine layout for the small-block V8 and a dual-clutch transmission. For the 2023 model year, America’s premier sports car is getting a well-deserved upgrade in the guise of a wider body, wider tires, and an FPC V8.
Scheduled to premiere on the 26th of October, the performance-oriented Z06 is expected to develop in excess of 600 horsepower from 5.5 liters of displacement. A magnesium transmission casing, Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires confirmed to measure 345/25 by 21 inches out back, and crazy aero further need to be mentioned, along with the kind of aural pleasure one would expect from a Ferrari supercar instead of a sub-$100,000 sports car.
A near-production mule of the Z06 with the aforementioned rubber has been recently spied at the GM Test Center Nurburgring, and the E-Ray photographed next to it has many similarities. Take, for instance, the size of the front-mounted tires: 275/30 by 20 inches although the hybrid car has road-oriented Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S shoes and a different wheel design.
The wide-bodied Corvette E-Ray also happens to share the front-end styling of the Corvette Z06. The quad-piped exhaust layout mirrors the design of the Stingray as opposed to the center-mounted pipes of the Z06, and the E-Ray also differs in terms of engine design. More specifically, the clean-looking rear deck is hiding the direct-injected 6.2 of the outgoing Stingray.
Expected to launch as a 2024 model based on the current rate of production and the chip-related crisis, the E-Ray is rumored with anything between 600 and 650 ponies (most likely the latter figure) thanks to an electrified front axle. It’s not known if we’re dealing with one or two electric motors, but nevertheless, the all-wheel-drive Corvette E-Ray is likely to outaccelerate the Z06 to 60 miles per hour despite weighing a few more pounds.
A near-production mule of the Z06 with the aforementioned rubber has been recently spied at the GM Test Center Nurburgring, and the E-Ray photographed next to it has many similarities. Take, for instance, the size of the front-mounted tires: 275/30 by 20 inches although the hybrid car has road-oriented Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S shoes and a different wheel design.
The wide-bodied Corvette E-Ray also happens to share the front-end styling of the Corvette Z06. The quad-piped exhaust layout mirrors the design of the Stingray as opposed to the center-mounted pipes of the Z06, and the E-Ray also differs in terms of engine design. More specifically, the clean-looking rear deck is hiding the direct-injected 6.2 of the outgoing Stingray.
Expected to launch as a 2024 model based on the current rate of production and the chip-related crisis, the E-Ray is rumored with anything between 600 and 650 ponies (most likely the latter figure) thanks to an electrified front axle. It’s not known if we’re dealing with one or two electric motors, but nevertheless, the all-wheel-drive Corvette E-Ray is likely to outaccelerate the Z06 to 60 miles per hour despite weighing a few more pounds.