Every year
attendees can feast their eyes on the many different types of 'Vettes as they
participate in the Woodward Dream Cruise: it is the world's largest one-day
automotive event, drawing 15 million visitors and 40,000 amazing cars from
around the world. This annual caravan to Detroit scrolls past some of the sites
of Michigan's very first classic drive-ins, such as the Totem Pole that opened
back in 1954. Motor Trend caught up with the C8's chief engineer
Ed Piatek at a Dream Cruise event, where they were able to nail him down on
just what may be in store for the future of the C8.
The base Stingray now
sports a pushrod 6.2-liter small-block V8, and the updated LT2 makes 490 hp and
465 lb-ft of torque. Adding on top of that the performance exhaust with the Z51
package stacks five more horsepower on the galley, as well as 5 more pounds per
ft of torque. Launch of the base car itself for starters was very exciting for
him, because it has been more than 60 years since Chevy began to closely study
the physics of shifting the weight of the engine to the rear axle. The outgoing
C7 was a phenomenal car, but had recently reached a tapped out state and had
achieved its maximum performance level on all fronts.
With the engine
in the rear, Piatek detailed how the use of horsepower can be much more
efficient and gives the 2020 Corvette “more bandwidth” right out of the gate.
Taking a close look at the current generation car with 460 hp and the 0-60
time, you can add 300 horsepower to that number, and the 0-60 time does not
improve that drastically. With the new C8, you start with a somewhat lower 0-60
tie, but also sporting 20 percent more of the mass on the rear axle and wider
tires in the rear, so the opportunity to have an astonishingly high powered car
exists.
When asked if he
had any concerns about the potential of the C8 completely maxing out, Piatek
did claim that he felt it was “a long way”, and reminded us that the outgoing
2019 Corvette ZR1 with the LT5 supercharged 6.2-liter V8 is rated at 755
horsepower, and 715 lb-ft of torque. The Eaton supercharger for the 2019 ZR1 is
situated at 2.9 inches taller than the blowers that were in the 2009 ZR1, or
the 2015 Z06.
Don't forget to
ask us here at Chuck Hutton
Chevy of Memphis about extra goodies for the C8 such as the front
suspension lift system, which can hike the nose of the car hastily up when you
reach a low curb or steep embankment. The release this year was so exciting
because it offered up a prime chance for Chevy to innovate while pushing the
envelope and the arrival of the C8 will forever mark 2019 as a game-changing
milestone in auto history! The low entry-level pricing point, onboard arsenal
of available power, and newfound stance with the engine's location have been
key components during this groundbreaking release of a long-awaited champion.
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