Stunningly Beautiful C8 Corvette Z06 is the Highlight of GM at 2022s New York Auto Show

Well, who's laughing now, huh? Certainly not us as we walked through the Chevrolet section of the 2022 New York International Auto Show. Except maybe in shock and awe of just how menacing the all-new Z06 Corvette looks in a coupe and convertible form. Now, it's important to understand that Vettes have traditionally been large, docile things that weren't up to the cut of European sports cars while fun to drive and nice to look at.

That's why if you seldom see C8 Vettes out in the wild, seeing one in the flesh right in front of you can be a real head trip. Mostly because of how people seemed to be taken off guard about the C8 Z06, especially.

Where there were once blob-like fiberglass panels present in Vettes of the past sit well defined, angled curves and an entirely different disposition thanks to the engine moving from the front to the middle of the car.

From a strictly first impression perspective, the awesome spectacle that is the Z06 Corvette C8 in New York this year reminds us of the frenzy the C6 Z06 became when it made its appearance in New York over 15 years ago. In this time, Corvette has evolved from a strictly American obsession into a world-contending legitimate sports car, something plain to see after just a few seconds of seeing it in person.

At least from a subjective point of view, the C8 Z06 is not one of those supercars which lose most of its luster when you take the roof off. If anything, it's the perfect opportunity to show off an interior that some will argue has been a work in process since the C5 Corvette.

Much like the exterior, where there was once cheap plastic all around is now home to supple leather trim pieces, ample LCD screen real estate, and overall quality we're simply not used to in American cars.

The interior of the Z06, complete with dainty bucket leather seats, serves as the perfect cockpit to take the 670 horsepower 5.5-liter naturally aspirated LT6 V8 from a standstill to 60 miles per hour (0-97 kph) in a scarcely believable two and a half seconds. That's up there with high-end electric cars, let alone supercars. Conveniently placed a few paces away from the new Corvette Z06 was a 1 to 1 scale model of the car's new LT6 V8.

With a cutaway taken out so you can see the flat-plane crankshaft at work in conjunction with all the other racing-derived goodies, we can see exactly what goes into making the new Z06 not just the world's fastest Corvette but one of the fastest American cars ever constructed that doesn't have the word, Tesla, or Hellcat in front of its name.

From just about every angle imaginable, the C8 Z06 presents like a time capsule of all the engineering achievements accomplished under the corvette moniker since the early 1950s. The Z06 is a strange chimera of this phenomenon combined with just enough of a European-adjacent aesthetic to create a design ostensibly unlike even other supercars it competes with.

We can envision Lamborghini Huracan or Ferrari Tributo owners seething in jealousy as crowds of people flock to the Corvette instead of their own Italian supercars. Shame to say, but a supercar with the novelty and pantomime of the Z06 Corvette has considerably more curb appeal than something from the snooty, upper-crust Euro supercar elites.

With an estimated price ranging from $86,200 on the lower side to $89,200 on the higher end before specialty trim package options, it puts the Vette firmly in the "half as expensive as its rivals" category.

With its first impressions now in the books, if you weren't excited about what's to come from Corvette, you ought to be now. If you still aren't, we might recommend you check your pulse to make sure you're still alive.

But what are your thoughts? Are you hyped as heck for team Corvette? Or can a lineage derived from fiberglass boats on wheels never hope to compete with Lamborghini and Ferrari?

Let us know in the comments down below. Check back soon for more coverage from the 2022 New York International Auto Show here on autoevolution.