Is the 2020 C8 Corvette Steering Wheel as Good as The Car?

Chevrolet launched the latest version of its Corvette lineage last year, featuring a brilliant 6.2-liter mid-mounted V8 that was an instant hit with fans of the brand.

Stepping into the car, customers were greeted by a luxurious and futuristic design that is perfectly driver oriented.

It consists of premium materials executed at an elevated level of craftmanship and it features the latest technological trends like the fully digital 12-inch instrument cluster, latest GM infotainment system and wireless charging, among others.

The focus of any interior for many of us performance car enthusiasts must be the steering wheel. The C8 features a beautifully crafted steering wheel that is only the second two spoke wheel in Corvette history after the C4, which roamed the streets in the 80s and 90s.

The shape has been revised from the earlier model to a smaller, squared-off finish to make it look more like a supercar steering wheel and for practical purposes, like being able to view the digital instrument cluster unobscured.

The finishing on the wheel is as good as the rest of the interior, it is leather-wrapped and comes with a central leather marker and stitching available in the same color as the interior or exterior.

The shapes that surround the buttons and the center marker have a nice metallic finish and the quality of the materials used is excellent.

After stepping in and driving the car for a while, though, you get a feeling that the ergonomics of this wheel could have been better.

You may have a hard time gripping the whole steering wheel in the old-school ten and four hand position that it was designed for because of the two bulky spokes that drop right underneath your hands.

The same applies for the nine and three position. This may not be felt on the road, where we adapt and often change the position of our hands but on a long track day, where you must grip the wheel with both hands in a more efficient way, this will affect the whole driving feel.

A complete 90-degree rotation feels awkward and is almost impossible to carry out. Even if you try to move your hands higher, the square shape of the wheel makes it impossible to feel any comfort.

The paddle shifters are not as crisp as some would like. The actuation of the paddles feels cheap, which contrasts the whole car.

We get a better feel out of most mid-range gaming steering wheels than we do from these paddles. The unfortunate shape of the spokes also makes the wheel stand a bit awkwardly in your hands while shifting.

Overall, the steering wheel looks great and will not hinder your ability to drive the Corvette but if you bought the car with racing in mind, you may be annoyed by its impractical design.

Chevrolet has done an outstanding job with the Corvette C8 in about every way. We hope that the 2021 model will go back to a slightly more rounded steering wheel for the sake of ergonomics.