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Holy Sh** The Next Corvette ZR1 And C8 Could Actually Be Mid-Engined

When General Motors trademarked the “Zora” name for use of “motor land vehicles, namely automobiles,” it was easy to draw a comparison to what Ferrari did with the Enzo, the first name of the company’s founder and what the company named the predecessor to the new LaFerrari. Zora Arkus-Duntov, after all, is largely seen as being the father of the Corvette over 60 years.

If GM is indeed intending to create a “Zora Corvette,” it would indeed need to be a very special vehicle. And according to Motor Trend, that seems to be underway, as the next Corvette ZR1 (if the name doesn’t change to Zora) will be mid-engined. As will be the C8 Corvette.

Repeat: mid-engined. Engine behind the seats and in front of the rear axle. Mid. Engine.

But, we’ve all been burned before. Just how many mid-engine-mounted Corvette rumors have there been before this? It only feels like yesterday when the automotive blogosphere was ablaze with suspicion that the C7 would adopt this layout. And just how many mid-engine Corvette concepts have there been? The CERV II, The Aerovette, The CERV III, to name some, other teasers like the Corvair Monza GT.

Yet, this one seems much more believable, more probable than before. We may actually soon see our first production mid-engine Corvette.

Former staff.

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Comments

  1. Tadge has hinted at this but it takes more than him to approve it.

    Note it is also reported they are testing a engine with over 1,000 HP but are having issues getting it to the ground.

    Tadge said a while back the C7 was going to be a improvement but the C8 was already being looked at and would not be all that far out. He hinted of something special and some speculated mid engine.

    No matter where the engine goes the C8 is not as far out as we are used to C models going and it will be special.

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  2. It is the best choice if search performance to match Ferrari / Porsche

    Another thing is if the tradition and enthusiasts will want it as well.

    Regards from Spain

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  3. Does anyone know if/when the C7 ZR1 is due for release?

    I’m 2nd in line at my local dealer for a Z06 but I’ll wait for a ZR1 if it follows closely behind it.

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    1. IF the next ZR1 is mid-engined, I’d wager 2020 to be about when we would see it on the road. Right now youre in the position of someone buying a phone, you want the Galaxy S5, but the S7 is just two years away. By that I mean, there will always be something ‘better’ in the future, you could spend your whole life waiting.

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      1. I’m not trying to chase technology, but there’s a difference between two trims (be they relative to vehicles, phones, or other technologies) separated by a few years as opposed to a few months. If a C7 ZR1release were imminent, (not in relation to the mid-engine configuration but simply in terms of performance), I find it reasonable that it would influence my decision.

        Thanks for the info.

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  4. Based on what I have heard I would have to guess. 2018 approx.

    Now keep in mind there has been talk of two Corvette models too. One exotic and expensive the C8 could represent and a C7 that remains in production along the C8.

    All of this has been mentioned at different times but it all has come from GM people.

    Note like I said their planning and GM approval are two different things.

    I did hear the C8 was in the works even before we saw the C7 so the two cars has some kind of work being done at the same time.

    I get the feeling GM would like a Super car but they know it would fail at Cadillac. But on the other hand they do not want to give up the Corvette. The present ZR1 is at the limits of what a standard Corvette can do, Now a high end model could go limited production like the Ford GT and use things that are much more expensive like hybrid drive systems etc. All of this could be used and featured and then trickled down to the cheaper Vette over time .

    There is a lot of good info out but each nugget leaves about 5 questions for each nugget. Some of these ideas may have carried on and some may have stalled and been dropped too.

    We will just have to monitor this and see where it goes.

    Going into the future some really crazy things are going to happen as we will have performance but it will evolve in different ways.

    A two Vette program will also help GM for those who what world class and for those who want more traditional. While GM has done wonders with the C7 it is still limited in areas of tradition. Some things had to go like pop up head lamps because the new lighting systems are not friendly toward them. But others have survived and with one radical car it would open the door to changes that some would resist if there is no other option.

    Case in Point Porsche. The new top end Porsche has the ability to do what ever they like while the 911 keeps to the same look and tries to press for as much as it can under the body. They have added water cooling and other things because of emissions but the styling and engine placement are hard to change as it is expected.

    Where the engine is really matters little as for handling as balance is the key and the present car is every balanced. But for aerodynamics you can place the driver and passenger lower and have a lower center of gravity. These are the two main gains. Also a Hybrid system would have more room for placement.

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  7. Mark this is proof the clues I speak of have been there. It also helps kind of explain how the C8 was in the works at the same time the C7 was.

    As for the name I would not put a lot into it now as it could be used for a lot of things. Special edition engine or special model. It could not even be used at al too.

    I had heard that they may work a platform that could be mid engine front and rear too.

    No matter what the C8 should be a dramatic change from what we have seen since the C4.

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  8. Nope. Look for future ‘Vettes to include some form of hybrid assist.

    Not EREV or any other hybrid tech to increase economy – although there
    should be an E-mode for zero emission zones like the ones popping up all over
    Europe. Rather – today’s direction for supercars is e-boost for superior speed for
    short bursts or say, coming out of corners. Look no further than Le Mans where
    the top finishers in the top category are hybrids. Porsche is going battery pack for
    boost vs. Toyota who is going the supercapacitor route. Porsche started out with
    flywheel energy storage and AWD via electric motors on both axles. GM probably
    will go more of a RWD route for costs – and use some form of energy storage to
    accentuate the traditional V-8 or high performance V-6 located in front of
    the driver as usual.

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  9. A mid-engine Vette sounds awesome. I can see the next ZR1 becoming such a vehicle. This way it’ll be further distinguished from the Z06.

    But part of me thinks that such a vehicle should be built as a Cadillac. As many are stating, the Corvette’s global identity is that of a blue-collar, affordable sports car and probably can’t be justified to warrant the price of your average mid-engined exotic. If Cadillac were to invest in a car like this it’ll definitely boost their image, along with providing some healthy competition to the likes of Audi’s R8.

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    1. Here is the issue.

      The Corvette in Europe as Top Gear has said was always seen as a good car for the money. With the C7 it is just seen as a great sports car now. This is what opens the door to bigger and better things.

      As it is now Cadillac is still trying to convince people he builds a great sports sedan and really has little time for a sports car that would be over the top expensive for them and then try to convince people it is not another XLR.

      Even Audi according to some in the industry is not making money on the R8. At Chevy they could pull this off.

      Also there is an established Mid Engine entry in DP sports car racing that the Corvette is leading right now. There has been mention of taking the DP cars to Europe and this would play into it.

      At Lemans the Vette is a Superstar with the crowd as the sound and noise is unlike any other. Also their record there has been growing a bigger and bigger fan base.

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  10. There is a thing called “technological showcase”

    And GM should help him much in his image, making a mid “Supervette” engine

    This Supervette would enlarge the image of GM, especially people with money prefer to go to exotic Ferrari and Lamborghini, who continue to see the Corvette as “bad character that sports and American badass”

    This Supervette, and-V series Cadillac, GM will enter into the minds of Europeans who are now reluctant to American product

    Elegance; quality, performance; and very personal products, is the strategy that GM must follow.

    What I would do is:

    Corvette base engine NA front, 450-470 Hp

    Corvette front same engine but with turbo or compressor 520-540 hp

    A new división “Corvette High Performance Center” with the Z series; mid engines and AWD optional

    It would be wonderful

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  11. I expect the Corvette to remain in the Chevy fold here but overseas it could be marketed on its own. They have talked of it for years but never moved on it.

    This way the Vette can go global no matter if it is Europe , Australia or China.

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  12. I could see a two-Vette program where one moves downmarket (I4, MX5, Solstice) and spurs a XLR twin, whereas one moves upmarket and delivers mid-engine supercar performance.

    It shouldn’t have to happen though. A strong GM doesn’t need to split the Corvette in two. Insert any of my last 15 commentaries on this topic, here.

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    1. I really do not seeing it moving down too much as this creates issues with making money in a relatively low volume car. Yes 25K is high volume but it is a limited segment.

      GM needs to be careful to keep things to the point they do not hurt sales with too many models. We are only a couple years from when GM sold only 12K-13K C6 models.

      They need to do much like Mazda and offer special options and editions, also change models more often than they have in the past. GM too often as have many other large MFG have let sports cars wither on the vine.

      That is why the high end guys can do more with less volume as the money they charge pays for all of this. The high margins help in many ways where a low cost hinders you.

      The high end Vette could trickle down the technology and have it paid for before the low end one gets anything. Might be a good way to help pay the bills for a lower volume cheaper car.

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  13. Earth shaking, and excellent, article Manoli.

    As several commenters have said… A two car Corvette lineup would be the best. Continue with the front engine model, and a new Corvette Spider would shake the foundation of auto land.

    Grawdaddy was right, in that previous front engine corvettes have been called mid engine, but most enthusiasts think mid engine as rear engine, and with the rear hump, called spiders. Better cornering is the payoff, and I’m pretty sure that a rear engine Corvette could run with the best of the big dogs.

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    1. As I understand it, from Porsche and Ferrari alike, the “payoff” of mid-engine is “packaging,” not handling dynamics. Since the mid- and rear-engine cars are both now set up for a modest rearward weight distribution bias, and the rear-engine 911 has equal or greater G-force numbers compared to the Ferrari mid-engine V8 offering (currently that would be Porsche 991 to Ferrari 458, previously 997 to 430) it’s a matter of packaging, not performance. The mid-engine car compromises in terms of cabin (no 2+2 seating) and engine cooling (radiators have to plumb coolant to the front for air-flow) and even induction (getting clean, cold, compressed air to the intakes becomes and issue) and exhaust (routing short exhausts through headers and cats and mufflers becomes a complex and inefficient layout compared to the luxury of the whole underbody for the front-engine cars, or simply “hanging it out the back” for a rear-engine layout. The Corvette will benefit from repackaging the transaxle as a unit with no drive shaft and torque tube to manage. The cabin and occupant survival become more robust designs, the chassis has more space for front suspension geometry, the front can become lower and lighter to further improve aerodynamics and weight-and-balance as all the heavy components in a modern car are now electric and can be positioned for optimal design goals as well as serviceability and practical issues of cabin space, cargo space, fuel tank size and safety, adapting the road car to a race program (eg. adjustable suspension, conventional coil-overs, fuel fillers, fire systems, roll cage … all become more robust and well-understand designs with years of R&D already invested to make these aspects of the car better race-winning machines with better reliability … and at the end of the day, the consumer buys a car more closely connected to the race car instead of something that bares only external resemblance.)
      Subjectively, I think a mid-engine car will challenge Ferrari on the race track, but not in the sales showroom. It will really challenge Porsche on both counts (as did the Ford GT, which is a car Ford should just retool and get going and build the thing again, hardly change a thing except the aesthetics.) A mid-engine car will also give GM a product that can legitimately go up the price ladder above where buyers simply do not pay for a Corvette.

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      1. You are correct on the dynamics.

        Mid Engine too often gets confused with Balance in a car. Today you can have balance but not have to put the engine in back. Even on the race track this is no longer a major issue as we see the Pratt and Miller Corvettes dominate the Ferrari’s in the IMSA series. They would have taken them at LeMans this year if they had not been hooked by a couple cautions.

        The real key is aero dynamics as you can sit the passengers behind a low cowl with no engine to look over. Also the lower center of gravity.

        Corvette if they choose this past is not going to compete with anyone as most makes in this class. Most They may challenge in the magazines but for the most part people buy the car they prize due to their love and the image of the car.

        GM would benefit with this car as a show case and image car. Like the Audi R8 odds are they will make a little money but not a ton of it. Ford may have been lucky to make anything on the GT. The only reason I thing GM will make money is there is a strong group that would not approve this car unless there was some profit.

        This car will have it’s own niche and will do fine but the guy who what’s a Ferrari will buy it anyways. There will always be interested parties in a car like this and GM will sell enough to make it worth while.

        The thing the Corvette has like Ferrari and unlike the Ford is Image. The Corvette has become an icon and we see it in many of the older special editions now selling for more than a Million dollars. While Ferrari does this often I find it more impressive the Corvette is seeing thee prices with a relatively high volume sports car with only a few special engines or other options.

        This Icon status is what Honda has never understood with the NSX. While they built a neat car it has no real status like Ferrari. Same with their V engine bikes. They may make a better V model than Harley but it still is not a Harley. Icon status can not be built, designed or bought it has to be earned and Chevy has earned it with over 60 years of Corvette history.

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  14. Seems inevitable. GM doesn’t have a mid-engine car. The last time Ford revived its mid-engine car, eventually, it became a sold-out success and now a cult car for drivers and collectors.
    But equally inevitable is that GM keep the Corvette as a front engine V8 transaxle car. I’m not even in favor of forced induction, but as someone with a longstanding order for the Z06, I’m okay with adapting to the practical realities of performance engines and modern day concerns about environmental impact as well as cost.
    A new car, by another name, even if it’s as similar as Corvette Zora or just Zora, is fine on all counts. Ending the front engine heritage of the Vette in the C8 would be an absurd, unmitigated disaster.

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