C8 Corvette

[bp7178]

Lamborghini came about because Ferrari wouldn't sell to him because he saw him as unworthy of his cars.

The version of that story I heard is that Lambo went to Ferrari with an idea to improve the clutch which keep failing on the Ferrari that Lambo owned. Ferrari told him to stick with making tractors, which was Lamborghini's business at the time and an Italian grudge was born.

[JediGuy]

But most people dropping 70k on their daily driver are going to buy an obviously 70k car,
Not a model others are driving around in a 25k version of.

This right here...

[scooter22]

The version of that story I heard is that Lambo went to Ferrari with an idea to improve the clutch which keep failing on the Ferrari that Lambo owned. Ferrari told him to stick with making tractors, which was Lamborghini's business at the time and an Italian grudge was born.

This is accurate.

[ace4059]

Yep.

Mid engine supercars don’t go well with sandals with socks, white hair, and tooling around 10MPH under the posted speed limit. Therefore 95% of current Corvette owners will not like the C8.

So inexpensive a Railroader could afford it. Now if them 400 pounders that call themselves engineers can figure a way to fit between the seat and steering wheel.


I kid, I kid.

[ramairthree]

Actually, the chief engineer on the project would have been a teenager during the peak C2/C3 glory days,
This must be a fantastic journey for him.
He has been GM engineer/B.S. Mech/AeroSpace about 40 plus years.

While I am sure it would have much dry filler,
I would love a detailed biography on him.

Dealing with catalytic converter, smoke hose, worse gas crushing performance, early improvements in carbs, to early fuel injection chip based computers, a whif of return of performance, to a steady increase.

[murphy j]

To buy an Enzo, you had to own an F-40 and another recent model Ferrari to get on the list. For that money I'd far rather have a Veyron. Fortunately, I will never be in danger of owning any of those Snooty McSnooter cars.

Nor will I, likely, ever have that worry. Used Ferrari is "affordable", but I like my convenience and having to send my car out to another city to be fixed wouldn't be convenient for me. We have dozens of Chevrolet dealerships around, so getting a Corvette fixed would be easier.

[murphy j]

The version of that story I heard is that Lambo went to Ferrari with an idea to improve the clutch which keep failing on the Ferrari that Lambo owned. Ferrari told him to stick with making tractors, which was Lamborghini's business at the time and an Italian grudge was born.

You are correct and I must have misremembered what I had heard.

https://www.caranddriver.com/feature...-of-a-tractor/

[Artos]

I have heard this is a problem for top model Challenger, Mustang, and Camaro marketing as well.
There are enthusiasts that admire performance or are model fans that will drop 70k on a top of the line version.
But most people dropping 70k on their daily driver are going to buy an obviously 70k car,
Not a model others are driving around in a 25k version of.

You are seeing a variety of opinions across the spectrum with the release of the C8 in regards to what perspective buyers are rationalizing for a possible future purchase or going another route & kind hard to nail down. One of the more interesting comments I found was here on M4 regarding vette traditionalists not wanting a mid engine platform...I never even considered that angle perhaps because it had been rumored it was coming for so long & I decided to get some feedback & started a thread on Camaro6 asking feedback if members thought a percentage of vette owners may consider the upper end Camaro line & hopefully boost sales & save the Gen7 due to the mid. There are a ton of opinions, but oddly nobody addressed the mid engine as a consideration pro/con?? Pricing, performance & interior room took over the talking points. Again, no absolutes & all the various chatter this car brings is kinda fun to see.

A loaded out SS is going to run $50k with the extra $10k to get into an entry vette being both a hindrance & a golden opportunity to own...to me, the 'entry' ZL1 with the LT4 & MRC is a smarter way to spend your $60k window & a sharper / meaner looking car (subjective). I wouldn't want the C8 without MRC & curious to see what the Z51 will sticker. Many just want a chance to own a vette & tickled with the base model & dig the styling. Others can't justify the extra $10k.

Performance is always going to be in the conversation & hope GM takes these to the Ring' soon...you gotta give GM kudos here & wish they had sticker costs next to the bragging right. When you look at the company surrounding the vette & Camaro on this list, it's pretty amazing what you get for the coin.

https://nurburgringlaptimes.com/lap-times-top-100/

Interior room in a daily driver killed it for some & bunch mention the back seats which are superficial IMO...mine stay folded down & you got quite a bit of cargo. I'm 6' / 200 & felt cramped when I test drove the Z06 & the Recaros in the ZL1 are super cozy. I have a company truck & the last thing I want to do is run errands in the damn thing after lining in it 5 days a week. I can fit several packaged long guns for shipment no problem in the Camaro & thought the trunk of the C8 barely holding a set of clubs was pretty clever marketing. This alone will keep some in the stang, camaro & dodge hot rods.

Die hard vette owners don't care about any this IMO & are going to own a vette for what it is...one of my managers is 6'4" & must be at least 275 is in a C7 & not sure how he does it. Current Dodge owners are content with a big heavy straight-line roomy muscle car & I still want a ride in an AWD Jeep TrackHawk!! Most of your upper end Ford buyers aren't going to consider anything but the blue oval & will always defend the 350 & 500 to the bitter end regardless if the competition has better track times. It's really a good time to be an enthusiast & blessed with a bunch of options. Still cringing at the thought of electric creeping up on me & just no romance with no throaty rumble, but reckon it will be here rather soon.

[Renegade]

Gotta love the younger generation who thinks this car was made for them, yet almost none of them provided any input to GM on it.

On other hand, everyone I know 60 and older, most multi-vette owners, who have been involved in the Vette program for decades (like the build your own engine program), have told me they have been asking GM for this for decade or more. Of the 6 I have talked to, all already have one reserved before announcement.

[murphy j]

I just saw a vid on the bookface with a test driver in a new Vette with no camo. He was speaking to some bystanders and said he's hit 0-60 in 2.8 seconds. That's only tenth of a second off the 2018 911 GT2 RS time of 2.7.