Photo: USPTO
In the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office library, 0371822 A1 from December 27th, 2018 was filed by General Motors for a “vehicle with power swinging door and position-based torque compensation method.” That jibber-jabber can be summed up as power swinging doors, and the vehicle in question is unmistakably the Chevrolet Corvette.
The ‘Vette appears to be the C7 generation, sporting a long hood and the proportions we all know and love. But don’t forget that this patent refers to the mechanism, not the vehicle. In other words, the C8 Corvette could get this system if Chevrolet can make a case for it.
“But hold up, wouldn’t that weigh down the mid-engine Corvette?” You’re right, dearest reader! Given this outcome, we’re not sure what Chevrolet is thinking about. The midship configuration makes the C8 more of a supercar than a sports car, and unwanted weight would take a toll on straight-line performance and handling characteristics.
Digging deeper in the patent application, General Motors filed it in June 2017 but the USPTO published it in December 2018. It’s all techno-speak in there, so let’s move on to more important matters about the incoming model.
The embodiment of Zora Arkus-Duntov’s ideal Corvette, the C8 will ship as standard with the LT1 small-block V8 from the C7. In the Stingray, the 6.2-liter engine is much obliged to develop 460 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, translating to 3.7 seconds to 60 mph.
A high-output V8 with twin-turbo technology will follow, taking inspiration from the Blackwing V8 that develops 550 horsepower and 627 pound-feet in the Cadillac CT6 V-Sport. The third and final tier comes in the guise of a hybridized V8 option, expected to feature an electrified front axle that would take output to a total of 1,000 horsepower.
Look forward to Chevrolet taking the veil off the C8 sometime in the summer of 2019 at a standalone event. Of course, production will be taken care of by the Bowling Green assembly plant in Kentucky where the Corvette is manufactured since 1981. For a brief moment, the ill-fated Cadillac XLR shared the assembly line with the C6.
“But hold up, wouldn’t that weigh down the mid-engine Corvette?” You’re right, dearest reader! Given this outcome, we’re not sure what Chevrolet is thinking about. The midship configuration makes the C8 more of a supercar than a sports car, and unwanted weight would take a toll on straight-line performance and handling characteristics.
Digging deeper in the patent application, General Motors filed it in June 2017 but the USPTO published it in December 2018. It’s all techno-speak in there, so let’s move on to more important matters about the incoming model.
The embodiment of Zora Arkus-Duntov’s ideal Corvette, the C8 will ship as standard with the LT1 small-block V8 from the C7. In the Stingray, the 6.2-liter engine is much obliged to develop 460 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque, translating to 3.7 seconds to 60 mph.
A high-output V8 with twin-turbo technology will follow, taking inspiration from the Blackwing V8 that develops 550 horsepower and 627 pound-feet in the Cadillac CT6 V-Sport. The third and final tier comes in the guise of a hybridized V8 option, expected to feature an electrified front axle that would take output to a total of 1,000 horsepower.
Look forward to Chevrolet taking the veil off the C8 sometime in the summer of 2019 at a standalone event. Of course, production will be taken care of by the Bowling Green assembly plant in Kentucky where the Corvette is manufactured since 1981. For a brief moment, the ill-fated Cadillac XLR shared the assembly line with the C6.
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