Photo: Chevrolet
“After 70 years, we’re introducing one like none,” says Chevrolet on social media. The Golden Bowtie refers to the first-ever hybrid Corvette, which is expected to be called E-Ray due to the small-block V8 sourced from the Stingray. The E in E-Ray, on the other hand, stands for a front-mounted electric drive unit. Said combo should be good for 600 horsepower or thereabouts, and electric all-wheel drive is certain to make this fellow a very interesting machine in the twisties and in bad weather.
The screenshots in the photo gallery offer a few other clues in anticipation of the 2024 model’s debut on January 17th, 2023. First things first, the fine print reads that we’re dealing with a pre-production car that flaunts available features. Zooming in on the five-spoke wheels reveals Corvette-branded brake calipers that read carbon ceramic. Their design is pretty similar to the Z06-specific Brembo brake calipers, which retail at $8,495.
The Z06 similarities don’t end here, though, because the E-Ray is a wide-bodied sports car as well. The front end is different from the Z06, albeit only a little, and the rear end features corner-mounted tailpipes à la the Stingray. To whom it may concern, the Z06 meant for export markets also drops the center-mounted exhaust system in favor of corner-mounted tailpipes, a change brought by the adoption of two Otto particulate filters.
Another screenshot confirms an EV-only start vehicle mode. Stealth is the EV-only start vehicle mode’s name, which is a bit funny given that a C8 is anything but stealthy. Even if it doesn’t make a sound, the eighth-generation Corvette turns heads without fail. We still don’t know if a zero-emission drive mode is also featured, but we expect the lithium-ion battery to be located in the center tunnel that doesn’t house the transmission. As a brief refresher, the C8 boasts a dual-clutch transaxle mounted out back.
On the upside, we are aware of the existence of a Regen on Demand button on the driver’s side of the center tunnel. It’s impossible to tell what kind of tires are fitted to the blue-painted car in the clip below, but chances are that prospective customers will be offered a couple of choices. In the case of the Z06, the Z07 Performance Package gets you 275/30 ZR20s and 345/25 ZR21s from Michelin, as in the Pilot Sport Cup 2 R.
The standard tires are summer-only affairs from Michelin as well, good for up to 1 G of lateral acceleration on the skid pad. Combined with the torquier LT2 of the Stingray and the instant torque of the electric motor up front, the E-Ray needs all the tire it can get. Torquier than the flat-plane crankshaft LT6 in the Z06, the LT2 produces 470 pound-feet (637 Nm) with the available performance exhaust. Assuming the electric motor provides 130 pound-feet on full song, that’s 600 pound-feet (813 Nm).
The Z06 similarities don’t end here, though, because the E-Ray is a wide-bodied sports car as well. The front end is different from the Z06, albeit only a little, and the rear end features corner-mounted tailpipes à la the Stingray. To whom it may concern, the Z06 meant for export markets also drops the center-mounted exhaust system in favor of corner-mounted tailpipes, a change brought by the adoption of two Otto particulate filters.
Another screenshot confirms an EV-only start vehicle mode. Stealth is the EV-only start vehicle mode’s name, which is a bit funny given that a C8 is anything but stealthy. Even if it doesn’t make a sound, the eighth-generation Corvette turns heads without fail. We still don’t know if a zero-emission drive mode is also featured, but we expect the lithium-ion battery to be located in the center tunnel that doesn’t house the transmission. As a brief refresher, the C8 boasts a dual-clutch transaxle mounted out back.
On the upside, we are aware of the existence of a Regen on Demand button on the driver’s side of the center tunnel. It’s impossible to tell what kind of tires are fitted to the blue-painted car in the clip below, but chances are that prospective customers will be offered a couple of choices. In the case of the Z06, the Z07 Performance Package gets you 275/30 ZR20s and 345/25 ZR21s from Michelin, as in the Pilot Sport Cup 2 R.
The standard tires are summer-only affairs from Michelin as well, good for up to 1 G of lateral acceleration on the skid pad. Combined with the torquier LT2 of the Stingray and the instant torque of the electric motor up front, the E-Ray needs all the tire it can get. Torquier than the flat-plane crankshaft LT6 in the Z06, the LT2 produces 470 pound-feet (637 Nm) with the available performance exhaust. Assuming the electric motor provides 130 pound-feet on full song, that’s 600 pound-feet (813 Nm).
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