Known as TEN on the New York Stock Exchange, Tenneco Inc. is the supplier of the exhaust system of the mid-engine Corvette. Two versions are offered, featuring two or four butterfly valves that vary the backpressure from mild to wild.
Only a certain amount is beneficial to the small-block engine in the Stingray, which is why Tenneco designed the quad-pipe exhaust to provide the right balance of regulatory compliance, performance, and aural pleasure. As expected of a modern car, the Active Fuel Management (AFM) works in tandem with the valves.
The exhaust is an important part of the Stingray’s appeal, allowing the LT2 to sing the song of its people at the simple tap of the loud pedal. Be it idling, slow speeds, highway driving, or tracking, the 6.2-liter engine does sound compelling.
YouTube channel JaggerWolf put together a 10-minute exhaust sound compilation to bring the point home, featuring plenty of stock cars as well as a few aftermarket solutions. As we wait for the Z06 to roll out with an ear-piercing redline of 9,000 revs per minute, the pushrod V8 will have to suffice for the time being.
“Corvette’s mid-engine architecture required creative technical solutions to accommodate the packaging and thermal requirements of the emissions system,” declared Patrick Guo, executive vice prez of Tenneco. “We partnered with General Motors, combining our experience in system integration with Corvette’s engineering team to deliver technologies that help to enable a more efficient, high-performance vehicle with reduced emissions.”
Described as a global effort by its maker, the exhaust system was developed in Grass Lake, Michigan and Edenkoben, Germany. Tenneco also supplies a number of engine components, starting with protection products. Other parts include the piston and piston rings, bearings, bushings, valve seats, and valve guides.
Including the heat shielding, cats, and resonators, the performance exhaust included in the Z51 Performance Package tips the scales at 142.85 pounds (65 kilograms).
Chevy is currently developing a center-exit system with four pipes, featuring two smaller tips flanking two larger finishers. Some say the outer pipes are for the turbo wastegates. The Z06 is expected to retain the exhaust design of the Stingray while the ZR1 - which features a twin-turbo motor - may get the center-exit system.
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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