Here’s What You Need to Know About the Mid-Engine 2020 Corvette C8
C8 Corvette poised to dethrone Porsche Cayman and 911 concurrently, with $60,000 price and 495 horsepower LT2 V8 engine.
July 18th was a wild day for Chevrolet, as the brand officially revealed the all-new 2020 C8 Corvette. The change from a front-engine to a mid-engine layout, and the inevitable upward swing, from slaying American muscle cars to taking on Porsches and Ferraris, has left Corvette diehards nervous. However, they needn’t be, because with the C8, Chevrolet seems to be walking the tightrope between keeping older customer happy and bringing in new ones.
Here are the headline specs, as we see it. Sitting behind the driver is a 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated, 11.5:1 compression LT2 push rod V8 engine. It produces 495 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque, when paired to the optional performance exhaust system. Otherwise, it produces 490 horses and 465 lb-ft, respectively. It has an advanced dry sump oiling system, which, GM claims, can easily handle sustained periods past 1.0G. No fancy DOHC engines, or turbos, yet. While the engine by is, by Chevrolet’s own admission, the most decorated one ever seen on a Corvette, the engine itself looks really cool. After all, in order to make the packaging work, the headers are flipped.
That engine is only available with an 8-speed dual clutch automatic transaxle, which is rear mounted. We assume it has a slick launch control solution, too. No manual transmission information has been announced. This sole powertrain is rear-wheel drive, as one would expect, though Chevrolet did allude to all-wheel drive concept, and test vehicles that exist.
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While no official curb weight information has been revealed, the collective “we” in attendance at the event feel that the car is going to scale in around 3,400 pounds. All of this would explain the eye-popping sub-three second 0-60 MPH time that Chevrolet is touting for the car.
The optional Z51 performance package was also shown, which offers a larger wheel and tire package, bigger brakes, GM’s eLSD (a clutch-type differential with electronic lock-up controller), a recalibrated suspension system with Magnetic Ride Control and upgraded aerodynamics. The front lip and rear spoiler produce actual downforce, and don’t just zero out high speed lift, which is nice for a 180+ MPH mid-engine super car.
While Chevrolet did not announce pricing specifics, they did confirm that a base model 2020 Corvette Stingray will cost less than $60,000. Deliveries are expected to begin at the end of October, and, naturally, you should probably be calling your dealer, like, yesterday, to get an allocation on one. Chevy is going to build as many as they can sell, but, naturally, we all want one, too, which should make for some wild bidding wars and new hot car sales antics.
For more information on the 2020 Corvette C8, check out our extended coverage on CorvetteForum.com.
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