Corvette C8 Will Not Offer A Manual At Any Point
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The Corvette C8 will not offer a manual transmission at any point in time, General Motors confirmed to GM Authority following the vehicle’s debut in Tustin, California last week.
GM’s reasoning for not offering three pedals and a stick in the new mid-engine sports car is simple: the low demand simply did not justify the time and expense required to engineer and certify it.
It wasn’t so much GM that was unwilling to produce a manual Corvette C8, but rather it could not find a supplier who was willing to work with it to develop one that would be sold in such low numbers, Corvette chief engineer Tadge Juechter said.
“We couldn’t find anybody honestly who’d be willing to do it. Because just like the automatic, the DCT, it would have to be a bespoke manual,” he told Motor Authority. “It’s low volume, very expensive. The reason is it’s a low-volume industry. That industry is dying—building manual transmissions.”
Roughly 15 percent of new Corvettes are ordered with a manual and that number is going down rapidly, Juechter added.
The 2020 Corvette Stingray is offered with an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic developed by Tremec. It was developed specifically for the Corvette C8 and its tight rear dimensions, which are made even more compact by the low-mounted dry sump system. Versions of this transmission will likely serve in all coming model variants of the mid-engine sports car, including more powerful Z06 or ZR1 variants.
The majority of mid-engine vehicles on sale today feature automatic or dual-clutch automatic transmissions, including the Ferrari 488, Audi R8, Lamborghini Huracan, Acura NSX and McLaren 570S and 720S. Porsche is one of the only major sports car manufacturers that still offers a manual, with the Cayman, Boxster and 911 all offering one.
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Source: Motor Authority
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Booo, hiss.
Guys,
You have done an awesome job with the interior with the Corvette.
Why is the CT5 interior so bad.
If the CT5 – Performance car doesn’t look this good, Im getting the next M3 Competition.
The clock is ticking. Hope you guys sort the Cadillac out.
If you don’t have three pedals you’re not driving, you’re just going along for the ride.
formula one and indy car all use paddles.
this is like the argument pilots had decades ago between a tri-cycle gear and a tail dragger. i was told real pilots flew tail draggers and the tri-cycle gear was for students.
There’s a growing resurgence of tail draggers, because of their ability to handle off airport landings. Check out YouTube for Oshkosh 2019 or especially Trent Palmer to see the taildragger action.
And NASCAR uses a real manual!
If you are more interested in a manual geared auto; then LOOK INTO AN OLDER MODEL SPORTS CORVETTE! [i for one cannot operate a clutch w/o frying it while shifting gears] i prefer a new car w/a shift-kit to modify the gear ratio! Also i despise using a manual transmission in traffic! >that’s MY opinion<
If you have a synchronized transmission it’s not really driving. If you cannot adjust the spark advance from the dash it’s not really driving. If it has an electric starter it’s not really driving. If it has tubeless tires it’s not really driving. If it has power steering it’s not really driving. If your name is not Bertha Benz it’s not really driving.
Is sitting in the driver’s seat of a self-driving car still driving? After all, the computer can steer and brake faster and better than you can.
Dear GM/Corvette, I have owned several corvette vehicles and all with a manual transmission. I was willing to wait for further developments and/model changes to the C8 in hopes of a manual. However your confirmation now assured me that you have lost a customer. I read your reasoning and understand cost effectiveness but I like what I like.
Tell me what you are buying instead…
Porsche still offers manuals on its Boxster, Cayman, and 911.
And all of those cars that offer M/T are still slower!!!
Yeah,its all about speed. How old are you,15?
Unless you’re flooring it at every light or racing, those fractions of a second don’t matter and cannot be discerned by anything but an electronic timer. By your logic, they should not offer convertibles either, because they are heavier and therefore slower. Maybe they should strip out all sound insulation too, because it adds weight and makes the car slower. Take out the radio and the a/c too- they just add weight and make the car slower, etc.
Like the 1968 L88 Corvette, no a/c and no radio. It was all about performance.
Some people just never learned the joy of shifting. To them, a car is just another way to get from one place to another.
Get yourself a Stutz Bearcat, and you can change your own gears, and after each change, you can squeeze the engine-oil bellows and have a lot of hand-based enjoyment…
Get yourself a self-driving car. Then you don’t have to bother using your hands at all.
The population size of individuals who know how to drive a manual transmission is small, with the number under the age of 40 knowing how to drive a stick even smaller and human interaction will continue to shrink given autonomous systems creeping into production cars.
Richard, you May have never driven a car with a “real paddle shifter” much more fun then Most people think……if you properly learn how!
When you drive a car like this there are so many things that make it fun to drive that you don’t really want to be bothered using a clutch!!
Just from my experience….I’m not at all trying to down anybody that likes to drive a manual…because I have one and enjoy it myself…..however drive a Ferrari with a paddle shifter and and let me know what you think!
Was contemplating trading my Porsche 911 with manual for a manual C8. Not anymore.
I can promise you they will will sell more Corvettes then 911 Porsche’s world wide for the next few years….so no need to add manual to line up.
Excellent, another arrogant Luddite can stay with the Porsche club meetings and leave the Corvette club having all the fun.
I was thinking of trading my MG for a white Chrysler LeBaron…….
Something I have learned in my 60+ yrs of being alive is to never say never!!!!!!!
That’s right! Gm flat said no c7 zr1, and look what happened!
Also over 45 years old playing sports at a younger age my knees sometimes just say no to a clutch pedal…..how old do you think most people are that can actually afford this type of car?
Hint….they are not under 30…I think the manufacturers know the market…
Go find the stats on Ferrari, i think you will be surprised. I heard somewhere a few years back that the bulk of their new customers was under 25 or 30. I could be wrong, but I am pretty sure this is GM’s way of sending every over 45 Corvette buyer to pasture. After all, they have expectations of a vehicle, while the Snapchatters just need something exotic to be seen in!
GM has been complaining about its “old” users since “Art & Science” was introduced in 1999. They just aren’t into you…..swipe left!
That said, I’ve swiped left on most of GM’s products for the last 6 years, and yes, I am over 35 but under 40! I am holding on to my Pontiacs until I have to change, and then….S-Class. What was that they called me when killed Pontiac… Free Agent…..Congrats older Corvette fans you’ve been “freed”!
It must be a pain getting in and out of you Vette with your bum knees. My knees are no longer quite what they used to be, so getting out I have to swivel both out before standing.
I had a dog with bad hips, always in pain until there was something to chase and bark at.
I’m like that dog when I’m in track mode and running through the gears— what pain?
Then you don’t really know pain.
The reason of cost, demand are true. Also the issues of meeting emission with the manual is getting tougher too.
I will miss it but the reality is most of the top performance cars today are duel clutch. Even Ferrari has given up on the gated shifter years ago.
One thing to consider too is the Duel Clutch is fast. In fact faster than anyone here could shift. Also it is not like the flappy paddles we have had in the past on GM cars as they were just selectors not a real duel clutch system.
I think most will be shocked with the new system if they have not driven one before.
But if you want a manual there will be plenty of C7 and C6 models around at great prices where you can still get them. Actually this may just help them keep their value moving forward vs. the slow decline we normally see for about 30 years.
C8 CORVETTE PRICES ALL ON THIS VIDEO: BASE CAR IS $58,990, BASE Z51 IS $63,990
Pretty soon we will all be living in boxes with oxygen being fed to us and entertainment being fed into our brains as our bodies and minds atrophy even more than they already have. PATHETIC!!!!!!
Do you like churning your own butter too?
Dialing a 10-digit phone number?
Milking your own cow?
Hunting your own food and clothing?
Chop down trees for firewood and mill paper?
Refuse modern medicine because it’s the devil’s work?
No? Does this all sound ridiculous to you? Then welcome to the 21st century. Drive a modern transmission.
Do you like being a spectator, or would you rather participate? Go get a self-driving car and you won’t have to do anything.
If you’ve heard of the Fermi paradox, this is one of the proposed reasons. Real life is ugly and violent, virtual life is whatever you want it to be.
If I’m plugged into oxygen and that “entertainment fed into my brain” is simulating me driving a C8 with 3 pedals; I’m fine with that.
Here’s What a C8 Corvette-Based Cadillac Halo Car Might Look Like
https://www.motortrend.com/news/mid-engine-2020-chevrolet-corvette-based-cadillac-render/?wc_mid=4035:17128&wc_rid=4035:499216&_wcsid=EB69556CB43E6BE4087BDB2EF9577EEF7D583DE5719B055E
It looks like they took a generic concept and just added the Cadillac EV face and some Caddy-ish taillights. The shoulder lines, profile shape, greenhouse slopes, etc don’t look Cadillac at all.
That said, I hope they make something. Here’s an “XLR concept” from the CT4-V and the C8:
https://preview.redd.it/2krbhuk8dpb31.jpg?width=856&auto=webp&s=ccb138da8518f7835732983bc718d0e348b19907
2020 Chevy Corvette Stingray buyers can customize VIN–for a price
For $5,000 buyers will be able to customize the last five digits of their C8 Corvette’s VIN
https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1124195_2020-chevrolet-c8-corvette-vin
Last F1 race I watched, the commentators (former drivers) bemoaned the cars were too computerized and eliminated driver ability. Take the wheel and pedals out and take a nap as computer does it all for you. Sad. Boring.
I am surprised at how badly I am distracted by the new 2020 Vette, as I am NOT a “Vette Guy”…but then I found myself asking accounting (the Mrs.) for permission after we pay off the 2019 Diesel Silverado (that also disappointingly hasn’t had a manual option since 2006.)
Some of us REALLY want to shift our own gears. Period. Does the ZR-1 Camero still have a stick? That might have to do, but I was really digging the thought of have an midship American V-8 thundering behind me…
And yes, I still have the last new GM truck I could buy with a stick, a 2006 2500HD Dmax/6speed after 13 years and 277k. It will be in my estate sale at this rate since I can’t buy another manual truck, or much of anything else these days. Whimps.
The manual transmission thing does not matter to me as much as the new engine design. I own a 1990 ZR-1 and enjoy it with the 6 speed but the engine is bad to the bone. There was a 3rd gen LT5 in the works but GM decided to go with the LS platform and the LT5 was discontinued. I figure the dual clutch transmission will be a blast to drive, I’m 57 now and actually enjoy driving a automatic anymore, I would like to drive a C8 someday.
I think it depends on the transmission. The two dct models I have driven are the Ford Focus/Fiesta, ( absolutely horrible) and the F1 in an F430. Ford should be ashamed of their offering, while the F1 was not near as fast shifting as Ferrari would like you to think. I’ll take a wait and see on the C8 dct.
My 68 L71 had a very basic, but bulletproof, 4 speed manual. My 2014 Z51 has a 7 speed manual that was hard shifting when cold until I changed the transmission fluid. I had many missed shifts to 3rd at the track until I changed to a MGW short throw shifter. Too many gates with the seven speed, resulting in a smaller target to hit on that fast shift from second to third.
The manuals were not getting better, maybe the dct will.
They should do a Corvair. Compete with the 718 for the price of an MX-5.
Hey, since most people don’t know how to drive a stick. Can we get a auto theft prevention discount on our insurance rates? Pulled into valet parking with my manual and no one there could drive my car. Times are a changing! Sub 3 sec 0-60 times consistently would be worth the trade!