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EXCLUSIVE PROOF: The Mid-Engined Chevrolet C8 Corvette Is Happening!

40K views 354 replies 79 participants last post by  Theneil300 
#1 ·
Our exclusive mule sighting confirms that Chevrolet means mid-engine business.










Behold, mid-engine Corvette fans: The car you’ve waited patiently for Chevrolet to build has finally evolved beyond titillating concepts to the engineering mule revealed here. An 82-second strike by our recon op resulted in 15 frames before security narcs dropped the curtain on this black test car—with its two occupants still inside.

Don’t fret over the pointy-pickup camouflage; more attractive attire will follow. Instead take solace in a cabin hugging the front axle, ample space between the cockpit and the rear wheels for the hot parts, and this Corvette’s crouched and ready attitude.

The nose clip is from Holden's Commodore SSV (with even wider flares), while the cabin module, roof, and exterior mirrors are hand-me-downs from today’s Stingray. A Holden SSV ute’s sheetmetal wraps door to door around the heinie. The wing keeps the tail planted during high-speed runs and what could be more practical than the bumper-mounted 2-by-10 for shoving this test sled back to the garage when it breaks down? Other items of note: The fuel-filler located on the driver’s-side B-pillar and the cooling intakes located along the rocker panels.
 
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#2 · (Edited)












Scaling the span between the axles using the wheels as guides (we’re estimating them at 19 inches in diameter) yields a projected wheelbase of 98.9 inches, some eight inches shorter than that of today’s Corvette. That blueprint upgrade comes from bumping the transmission from ahead of to behind the rear axle as God and Dr. Porsche intended. A tighter wheelbase quickens steering response and cinches up the turning circle. It goes without saying that at least 60 percent of this probable Corvette ZR1’s mass will be supported by the rear wheels, enhancing launch traction and balls-out braking. There are rumblings that the engine bay may eventually play host to a small, 3.5- to 4.0-liter V-8 with all the fixin’s—meaning no pushrods.

Thus far GM has issued no denials discrediting our most recent (and highly detailed) mid-engine Corvette forecasts. While there’s no fresh intel regarding launch timing, the fact that experimental hardware has left the laboratory suggests that the C8 Zora sports car is on schedule to roll into showrooms in about 20 months as a 2017 model, at which point it will be sold alongside the front-engined Corvette. Place your orders now or find yourself stuck at the back of a long delivery line.

http://www.caranddriver.com/news/exclusive-mid-engine-c8-chevrolet-corvette-first-photos-news
 
#3 ·
GTR meets, CTS-V meets Konigsegg Agera as far as styling goes
 
#6 ·
Mid-Engine Corvette C8 Zora Prototype Spied?

The rumor about GM developing a mid-ship Corvette is as old as it gets, but this time, it could be real as spies have caught a telling test-mule.

Spy shooter Chris Doane cornered a strange prototype that Car&Driver magazine believes is an engineering mule for a new mid-engine Corvette model.

It's a bizarre looking beast blending parts from Holden's Commodore SSV ute, including the front end and tail section, with the cabin section, roof, and some other elements such as the exterior mirrors from the current C7 Corvette Stingray.

C&D editor Don Sherman says that the appearance of the prototype on the road "suggests that the C8 Zora sports car is on schedule to roll into showrooms in about 20 months as a 2017 model". He adds that the mid-engine supercar won't replace the front-engine Corvette Stingray, but will be sold alongside offering a new-gen V8 with a displacement of around 4.0-liters – possibly, GM's upcoming twin-turbo V8.
http://www.carscoops.com/2015/01/mid-engine-corvette-c8-zora-prototype.html
 
#10 ·
That back doe
 
#33 ·
Looks like the results of when a monkey fucks a football.
 
#34 ·
I know this is supposed to be a C8, but I can see this being the C7 ZR1 replacement. Basically offered along side the normal C7 midway through cycle to test customer reception and later sold as the C8 Z06. Similar to the way they tested out the C4 ZR-1's LT-5 motor, and the C6 Zr-1 LS9 motor before it became a derivative became the C7 Z06 motor. How long before a power train mule like this becomes ready for production?
 
#36 ·
I really kind of doubt that the C6 ZR1's LS9 and the C7 Z06's LT4 have anything to do with one another besides being supercharged Chevy small blocks. The C7 Z06 is likely supercharged because it's easier to squeeze the power out of a slightly smaller FI V8 than it is to try and make the same power N/A (reliably, that is). The LS9 and LSA likely taught them lessons for the future, though. The LT5 did legitimately serve as inspiration for later Northstar V8s, but I don't think that was the intention when they contracted Lotus to design it.

What you're saying about the theoretical mid-engined C8 does mimick what I've read from auto journalists lately though -- that this could be produced at the same time as the current front-engined C7. They're painting it more as the C7 and C8 coexisting for a short time though, rather than this mid-engined car being a top-tier C7. If you think about it, even if it re-used some C7 components, this is basically a whole new car... calling it anything else would be a disservice to the poor people working on it.
 
#35 ·
We are probably 2-3 years away, there's only so much testing they can do with the body in a wind tunnel but then again the GT is supposedly production ready and there wasn't a single spy shot of that in the wild.
 
#38 ·
Cadillac is developing their own line of engines again so it will be interesting if both Chevy and Cadillac have their own mid engine car.
 
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