The 2020 Corvette Stingray has been named the 2020 Motor Trend Car of the Year – marking only the third time in history the long-running sports car has received the distinction. It previously received the award in 1984 and 1998.
“We have been looking forward to the arrival of the mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette for so long, that you’d think there is no way it could live up to the weight of expectations, but the all-new C8 Corvette epitomizes what it means to be Motor Trend’s 2020 Car of the Year,” explained MotorTrend’s Editor-in-Chief, Edward Loh. “Corvette delivers stunning design and world-class performance, around an exotic mid-ship layout, yet it remains a truly livable grand touring sports car, all at an almost unbelievable price point. Our 2020 Car of the Year is the one that democratizes the supercar – the Chevrolet Corvette.”
In a post dedicated to the 2020 Car of the Year Award, Motor Trend also recognized the effort Chevy put forth in developing it, saying the automaker “did not phone in the first-ever production mid-engine Corvette,” but rather “dialed it, massaged it, honed it, crafted the new Vette to the point of nearly impossible.” The magazine also believes the car “will bring people into dealerships who previously would never have come in,” and says it “is a game changer, an inflection point, and a reminder that when Americans truly set our minds to a task, look out.”
The 2020 Corvette Stingray will officially enter production in February after the 40-day UAW strike against General Motors delayed the production start by about a month and a half. The Bowling Green Assembly plant in Kentucky is currently undergoing downtime to retool the plant and retrain employees to build the radically different mid-engine car.
The 2020 Corvette Stingray and Corvette Convertible are powered by a naturally aspirated 6.2-liter LT2 V8 engine, which is good for 495 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque with the optional performance exhaust. Power is sent to the rear wheels through an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission with paddle shifters. Chevrolet claims it will accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in under three seconds with the Z51 Package and reach a top speed of 184 mph. Prices will start at $59,995 including a $1,095 destination fee.
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Comments
Well deserved. Goes to show when the General makes a Zero Compromise vehicle just what they are capable of doing.
More of this GM…Please
Amen and Amen. If they were willing to lose 20-30% of the quantity in order to make better cars, we wouldd all be happy.
EXTERIOR :
“If the new Corvette has a weakness, it’s the exterior design. The judges’ opinions ranged from harsh (MacKenzie: “Bill Mitchell would be spinning in his grave. “) to damning with faint praise (Walton: “Fine from 100 feet. “).
As you get closer to the vehicle, you see tributaries of pointless lines going off in every direction. This sort of sloppy linework—folds and creases that exist for the sake of existence—first appeared on the previous generation. ”
“Chevy has a real opportunity in a few years with the midcycle refresh. As our guest judge and former Jaguar design boss Ian Callum said, “Great car to drive. Shame about the styling.”
INTERIOR :
“We were also equally surprised at the Corvette’s high-quality cabin. ” … “The interior actually has great build quality. ” … “Not only is the interior clever, and attractive, the ergonomics are very good”
I don’t think there was anyone who did not see this coming. This choice will sell more magazines than about any other car Motor Trend could have put on their cover.
As for the Styling it is all Opinion. I would not be ashamed to be seen it one.
Having been one that has been in this car and seen it in person. They did a nice transition from the C7 to C8 and keeping that instant first sight of knowing it is a Corvette.
It will be interesting to see how they evolve the design from here as they will not be locked in to many of the things that limited them in the past.
GM pulled off an engineering coup with this one. And to make it even better, they surprisingly did well with the interior appointments. Congrats GM! Well deserved.?
Please GM put this engineering into the hands of the masses of Chevy car buyers, otherwise I’ll keep making Vette jokes ?…
Kia Telluride SUV of year and Ram 3500 HD, pickup of the year.
Way to go GM !!!
Great car the C8 !!!!
Could someone do the numbers on these cars for me.
I am trying to understand why GM put forth so much effort on one vehicle.
How many more trucks are sold than Corvettes, year after year ?
How many more midsized SUVs are sold than Corvettes, year after year ?
I have been preached to on this site by all the GM dealership people, GM customer service people, GM performance people and old GM is always making the right decisions boomers, on why GM cant make a better more powerful midsized SUV. Or a better interior in the trucks, yet this !!
For the time and money spent on this project the rewards would have been so, so much greater on the truck or SUV.
Like I have said before, the Corvette will sell great for a year or two but the truck and the midsized SUV will sell great year in and year out.
Please explain ?
Show some sales numbers of the three to show distinction.
i agree. i think the telluride will be the more significant winner in the long run.
the japanese had their turn grabbing market share from the domestics. now it is koreans’ turn. after them in 20 years, the chinese.
and gm seems to be happy with being generally mediocre.
Easy and well deserved choice! I disagree with their comments about the styling as I think it looks great for a base model, but you can’t deny the performance it offers out of a naturally aspirated setup well under $100k.
I reckon it’ll also win NACOTY too.