[h=3]By Jonathan Welsh[/h]
Jonathan Welsh2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
Chevrolet unveiled its 2014 Corvette this evening ahead of the official kickoff of press days for the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The car maker said the redesigned two-seater has a 6.2-liter V8 engine that puts out 450 horsepower and can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in three-point-something seconds. But the car will have better fuel economy than the current model, which is rated at 26 mpg on the highway.
The coming seventh-generation Corvette, also known as the C7, is in some ways an homage to earlier Vettes and even resurrects the long-departed Stingray moniker made famous by the second- and third-generation cars of the 1960s and 1970s.
“Like the ’63 Sting Ray, the best Corvettes embodied performance leadership, delivering cutting-edge technologies, breathtaking design and awe-inspiring driving experiences,” said General Motors’ North America boss Mark Reuss.
The new Corvette’s styling is racier than that of its predecessor, but the family resemblance is strong. Indeed, the 2014 model looks much like racing versions of the “C6” that have performed well in international sports car competition for more than a decade.
Perhaps the biggest highlight for traditional sports-car fans who enjoy stirring gears and pushing clutch pedals is that the Corvette will not only keep offering a manual transmission, but will come with a seven-speed gearbox. The transmission will have a new feature called Active Rev Matching “that anticipates gear selections and matches engine speed for perfect shifts every time,” Chevy said.
Chevrolet will build the new model at its Bowling Green, Ky., factory, which recently received upgrades costing $131 million. Changes included installation of a new body shop to manufacture the vehicle’s aluminum frame in-house for the first time. The car goes on sale in the third quarter of this year.
Chevrolet unveiled its 2014 Corvette this evening ahead of the official kickoff of press days for the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
The car maker said the redesigned two-seater has a 6.2-liter V8 engine that puts out 450 horsepower and can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in three-point-something seconds. But the car will have better fuel economy than the current model, which is rated at 26 mpg on the highway.
The coming seventh-generation Corvette, also known as the C7, is in some ways an homage to earlier Vettes and even resurrects the long-departed Stingray moniker made famous by the second- and third-generation cars of the 1960s and 1970s.
“Like the ’63 Sting Ray, the best Corvettes embodied performance leadership, delivering cutting-edge technologies, breathtaking design and awe-inspiring driving experiences,” said General Motors’ North America boss Mark Reuss.
The new Corvette’s styling is racier than that of its predecessor, but the family resemblance is strong. Indeed, the 2014 model looks much like racing versions of the “C6” that have performed well in international sports car competition for more than a decade.
Perhaps the biggest highlight for traditional sports-car fans who enjoy stirring gears and pushing clutch pedals is that the Corvette will not only keep offering a manual transmission, but will come with a seven-speed gearbox. The transmission will have a new feature called Active Rev Matching “that anticipates gear selections and matches engine speed for perfect shifts every time,” Chevy said.
Chevrolet will build the new model at its Bowling Green, Ky., factory, which recently received upgrades costing $131 million. Changes included installation of a new body shop to manufacture the vehicle’s aluminum frame in-house for the first time. The car goes on sale in the third quarter of this year.