GM Designer Has No Doubt Mid Engine Corvette C8 Will Be A Hit
20
Sponsored Links
The C7 Corvette could be the last front-engine Corvette ever built and as is usually the case with such a major change, some people aren’t happy about it.
But despite the doom and gloom being spouted by some Corvette purists’, the designer of the mid engine Corvette C8, Tom Peters, is confident the car will be a hit.
Peters retired from General Motors this Spring, with the mid engine Corvette C8 being one of the last projects he ever worked on. He started working for the company in 1980 and has designed numerous Corvettes over the years including the C4 Corvette ZR-1, C6 Corvette and C7 Corvette.
In a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal, Peters said he has “no question whatsoever this dramatic configuration change will be successful,” although he also acknowledged that Chevy may face criticism from some Corvette fans for moving the engine behind the driver.
This won’t be the first time Peters has had to face Corvette customers’ wrath, after all. Peters worked on the design proposal for the C5 Corvette and later received backlash for the car’s lack of pop-up headlights.
“I got a lot of hate mail,” Peters told WSJ. “We were going to these Corvette events and people wanted to get physical with me.”
WSJ managed to track down a few Corvette fans who won’t be buying the mid engine Corvette C8 for its article. One said he did not like the vehicle’s short front end as it makes it feel like you are driving a “bus” while another said he would be turned off if the car did not offer a manual transmission.
No matter what some Corvette fans think, interest around the nameplate seems to be at an all-time high ahead of the car’s reveal this Thursday and some dealers are already racking up lengthy waiting lists of potential buyers. GM is also anticipating high demand for the car, having recently announced plans to add a second shift at the Bowling Green Assembly plant in Kentucky.
Source: Wall Street Journal
Subscribe to GM Authority for more mid-engine Corvette news, Corvette C8 news, Corvette news, Chevrolet news and 24/7 GM news coverage.
- Sweepstakes Of The Month: Win a Corvette Z06 and 2024 Silverado. Details here.
Sponsored Links
History in the making. I can’t wait to see how this plays out initially, and over the course of 3-4 years
after all the bullets are loaded into the BIGGEST C8 (Zora) gun.
I’m anticipating the comments, opinions, and most definitely the reviews and comparison tests.
I hope this Corvette doesn’t disappoint-especially the design. I have no doubt performance will not
be an issue. Those Corvette engineers have already proven themselves with the C7 that they can
indeed kick some ass-paragus.
It’s like Christmas in July.
Let’s hope it’s a hit….
“My interest is in the future because I am going to spend the rest of my life there. ”
–C.F. Kettering
Oh the C model drama.
We see this every time. When they make changes half hate half love and in 6 month 95% love.
Anyone remember the C7 complaint about the Camaro tail lamps? People got over that pretty fast.
This car will win most. Corvette owners and it will draw interest from non traditional owners due to the nature and excitement of the car.
If you don’t have one ordered soon after orders open it may be a while till you can order one. They will move fast.
There will be a lot of excitement with each new version and with the coming C8R. Unlike the Ford GT you will see these all over and not just in some collectors garage.
Really comes down to the price, many speculate a $60K-$70K base MSRP yet that is a huge delta…The ZL1 is a different animal but will most likely beat the base C8 in multiple performance metrics…The ZL1 can easily be had with hefty dealer discounts while the C8 will surely receive a “market adjustment” price adjustment at the dealership level…
I’m not sure why you have so many down votes. Your evaluation seems legit.
If the old guy can beat the new guy with a new body and a cuter girlfriend, he gets the girl. And, at a lower price. (BOO)
Yes, that was in bad taste :/
To put it in a more serious vein; I’m sure the C8 team has thought this through on many sleepless nights.
After all, even though this may well be the second coming, their will be C7 variants that can spank certain lower end C8 models.
That’s a given.
In fact, I can’t wait until those matchups occur!
Good fun!
G/B… If the C8 comes in under 6-Figures, it will be an engineering and production miracle…or heavily subsidized.
* THERE will be
Autocorrect sucks, and, I have to get up in 6 hours…
If anybody knows the history of the Corvette then you know that this is what it was supposed to be years ago. I happy the Corvette is finally becoming what its creators intended it to be. This means the Corvette will not only demolish the 911, but it will also be able to dominate some higher tier exotics i.e. Lamborghini, Ferrari, Pagani, Koenigsegg…….
I don’t know, all Koenigseggs are fast…
Having said that, I expect the go fast variant to be close.
That’s what I was hinting at. The ZO6 version is supposed to make more than the 650HP and it will be turbo charged. With that being said, I’m sure the ZR1 will have more than 900hp. That version should be able to keep up with anything on the street or track. With it finally moving to a mid engine layout the performance limits are much higher.
C5 had pop-ups. C6 did not.
Article wasn’t clear but it does state: “Peters worked on the design proposal for the C5 Corvette”, possibly the article should state C6 or there was at least one “design proposal” that Peters worked on that did not have popup headlights…
Mid engine flat plane crank V8 making 700+ hp Z06 C8. So basically a Ferrari for 1/4 the price.
Definitely a hit en route.
Not as certain about the pushrod version.
Before moving to Corvettes, Tom Peters had a hand in the design and styling of several pre 2019 T1xx GM trucks, ones people actually liked. Looking forward to tomorrow.
“This won’t be the first time Peters has had to face Corvette customers’ wrath, after all. Peters worked on the design proposal for the C5 Corvette and later received backlash for the car’s lack of pop-up headlights.
“I got a lot of hate mail,” Peters told WSJ. “We were going to these Corvette events and people wanted to get physical with me.”
The worst thing about the Corvette are Corvette owners. Angry and bitter old men who fear change and complain incessantly about “kids these days.”
Hopefully the C8 expands the current Corvette buyer demographic.
Just remember…it’s mostly the angry and bitter old men who can afford these.
Porsche owners aren’t all angry and bitter. Far from it. I’ve even heard some are expressing a great deal of interest in the C8.
If GM can pull it off without any major reliability issues, especially with the DCT, then it has the potential to poach Porsche enthusiasts. Porsche’s pricing has been out of control lately and even wealthy folks don’t like to feel ripped off.
Jack, an “old man” is Sixteen year old in a well used body.
And your one who complains Ad nauseaum about ‘Boomers’ and old men driving Corvettes.
It is these now older men who bought Corvettes and kept it alive so the new Stingray could finally go live.
It’s these same older men who have embraced mid-engine cars for decades. Zora died an older man.
So ageist attacks are just sophomoric.
I’m not even old and I can’t stand “kids these days,” give it another generation I’m going to be one grumpy SOB.
Youth is wasted on the young…