10 Mid-Engine 2019 Corvette Rumors That Should Terrify Porsche Owners
Chevy Is Making Revolutionary Changes For The C8 Corvette
Back in 2014, GM debuted a radically updated version of its flagship sports car, the Chevrolet Corvette. When the revamped car rolled out on stage at the Detroit Auto Show, the audience was shocked.
That year, several things happened. First off, there was a massive surge in Corvette sales. Suddenly, the Corvette’s reputation as being an old man’s plastic-fantastic, mid-life crisis car began to fade. Once again, the Corvette became a piece of Americana that people of all ages could aspire to own. Something else happened – the automotive community began to entertain the possibility that what might follow the Stingray could very well be an even more radical departure from everything that defined the history of the Corvette.
Some of the speculation should be extremely interesting to anyone who considers themselves a Corvette fan. Here’s a round-up of the juiciest bits of speculation surrounding the C8 Corvette, rumored to begin production for the 2019 or 2020 model year (At this point, we’re leaning towards 2019 – Exciting!). (Continues on Page 2)
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Mid-Engine Layout
Few people would have thought it, but now that the long-rumored mid-engined layout is finally coming to fruition, it may be the least shocking change coming in the C8 Corvette. In part, the mid-engine layout may finally be happening because GM Engineers have finally squeezed every last bit of performance they can from the tried and true front engine design.
However, pushing the engine behind the seats isn’t a new concept. Chevrolet has been testing the mid-engine design since the 60’s – GM engineers even produced several prototypes that never made it to production. Not everyone is happy about the prospect of an exotic mid-engine Corvette, but the next rumor on our list may put that concern to rest.
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Three Engine Options
One of the latest rumors to come out of the woodwork is that the C8 will come in three very different engine offerings. The traditional 6.2L V8 will be one of the options, likely offering around 500 horsepower. After that is where things get interesting.
The next very interesting tidbit is that there will be two twin turbo engine upgrades to choose from – a 4.2 Liter and 5.5 Liter option. The 4.2 Liter option is rumored to output around 650 horsepower, similar to the C7 Z06, while the 5.5 Liter Twin Turbo will be an absolute monster at 850 horsepower. Read that out loud – repeat after me: Eight. Hundred. And. Fifty. Horsepower. With. A. Warranty. Both Twin Turbo engines will be DOHC.
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Porsche owners will likely stay steadfast in their claim that they’re happy with the lawnmower sound effects coming from their tailpipes, but proud owners of the 5.5 Liter C8 Corvette will know better.
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Corvette As A Separate Brand Portfolio
One thing you’ll notice if you compare the Corvette to its brother, the Camaro, is that the Chevrolet bowtie is much less present throughout the car. The Corvette’s identity is very much exclusive as a Corvette. On the contrary, the Camaro, especially the 5th and 6th generation models, use the bowtie branding throughout the car. Some think this is less than coincidental, and that it suggests Chevrolet is priming the Camaro to replace the Corvette as the flagship car of Chevrolet. Corvette, on the other hand, will become its own separate performance brand with a much greater range of performance levels and designs.
Porsche has a similar way of handling their 911 brand of cars. Porsche 911’s range as low as $90,000 for the 911 Carrera, and as high as $300,000 for the Porsche 911 GT2 RS. This leads us to our next rumor.
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As High As $200,000… Or As Low As $60,000
One concern Corvette owners have is that the the current front engine design will disappear and be replaced by a much more expensive, exotic mid-engine layout. However, there may be no need for concern. If GM intends to spin Corvette off into its own performance brand, there will be plenty of rumor for a wide range of pricing. It’s entirely possible that the mid-engine design will not replace the traditional design at all, and instead operate as a completely separate class of Corvette.
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Imagine having the option to purchase a C7 Corvette Stingray OR a C8 Corvette Mid-Engine Exotic. Not only will this type of strategy lift the entire Corvette brand, but it will provide Corvette enthusiasts with many more choices and likely convert some Porsche fans to Corvette believers.
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V6 Twin Turbo Engine
With all of the focus on the placement of the engine, there hasn’t been nearly as much focus on the engine design. While a small-block V8 has been one of the cornerstone elements of what defines a Corvette, there has been speculation that nothing will be sacred as Corvette moves into the future – engine designs may become more diversified, as well.
Most recently, the new iteration of the Ford GT40 raised eyebrows by replacing it’s V8 with a Twin Turbo V6 making 647 horsepower. That fear was put to rest when the car went on to win the LeMans, and those who have driven it will tell you that you wouldn’t even know it’s a V6 unless someone told you.
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Electric Hybrid Engine
A Corvette with an ELECTRIC engine? Now that’s blasphemous. However, it would only serve to make the Corvette a Frankenstein’s monster of old and new technological influences. Key word: monster. Think Porsche 918 Spyder levels of performance. That car costs almost a million dollars, by the way.
This rumor is fueled not just by the revolution that is taking place in automotive technology and renewable energies, but because it was discovered that GM filed a trademark for the name “E-Ray”. Ray as in Manta Ray, the name used for a 1969 Corvette concept prototype.
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Dual Clutch Transmission
If you’re a diehard manual transmission fan, you probably don’t find yourself spending too much time thinking about automatic transmissions. However, the car market has been changing and the demand for a fast & smooth Automatic transmission has increased tremendously in recent years.
The current pinnacle of automatic transmissions is the dual-clutch design, and specifically the Porsche PDK Automatic Transmission. If Corvette is going to be competitive on the global stage, especially with Porsche, they’ll need to develop their own dual-clutch design. For this reason, it’s highly likely that you’ll see a dual-clutch automatic transmission in the C8 Corvette.
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It Will Be Named The C8 Corvette Zora
You are probably familiar with some of the names used for the various Corvette models over the years. Recently the Stingray badge was brought back, the Z06 badge has been used for the 3 most recent generations, and the Zr1 has been used for the model that sits above the Z06. However, because this true revolution in the design of the Corvette will be such a monumental milestone, Chevy needs something even more epic to appropriately name the beast. What better name to use than the first name of the man dubbed “Father of the Corvette”, Zora Arkus-Duntov.
Zora joined GM in 1953 after falling in love with the sheer beauty of the Corvette design. He was a key designer on the Corvette team for a long period of time, and was primarily responsible for launching the Grand Sport program. Zora is often credited with transforming the Corvette from a Roadster into a car that could go head-to-head with the European racers, such as Ferrari, Porsche, and Maserati. With that in mind, wouldn’t Zora be the perfect way to usher in a whole new class of Corvette designed to crush its European competitors?
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It Will Be Unveiled At The 2o18 Detroit Auto Show
And now what everyone wants to know – when will these rumors be confirmed? When can we see the car? When does the Corvette revolution begin? Well, all signs point to the 2018 Detroit Auto Show. Here’s why.
Typically, General Motors reserves its big reveals for the Detroit Auto Show. In 2017, General Motors opted to unveil the most powerful Corvette ever, the 2018 C7 Corvette Zr1, well before the 2018 Detroit Auto Show. There have also been spy shots showing a Corvette with camouflage and a massive rear-end. This all suggests that as epic as the C7 Corvette Zr1 is, GM has something even bigger waiting in the wings for Detroit. Expect to see this Porsche killer in January 2018.
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