Repair-It

I need to grab all these little M/T teaser articles...

https://www.motortrend.com/news/exclusi ... E5C7131F30

How did the long-awaited mid-engine Corvette actually perform in the test? That we can't tell you yet, as it's still under embargo. In order to beat the all-time record, it would need to be quicker than the 911 GT2 RS, which did it in just 21.9 seconds, but that car has 690 hp to the C8 Corvette's 495. In order to be the fastest Corvette around the figure eight, it would need to beat a 22.3-second lap time shared between the C7 Z06 and C7 Grand Sport, the latter of which is less powerful than the C8 Z51 in this video but which ran the Z06's suspension, brakes, and tires. Can the mid-engine C8 keep up? Stay tuned to find out.

I'm going to predict that the new Z51 is going to run about even with the 22.3 second lap time quoted that is the current high water mark for Corvette. I'm not going to say it'll smash the record but will probably be about equal. And that will be tremendously impressive. The tires have a lot to do with this but the basic chassis seems pretty optimized for this. I think techically braking AND acceleration traction is improved with mid-engine* (including the ability to begin accelerating sooner out of a corner). That should pay dividends pretty much the entire lap. So, I guess what I'll predict is the lap time will be similar to the C7 Z06 and C7 Grand Sport, but on one step lower tires. That will be amazing.

* The dynamics go something like this: when accelerating, weight transfers rearward. With 2WD, you want as much of the total vehicle weight on the drive axle as possible for max traction. Mid-engine accomplishes this (technically rear engine would be even more). When braking, because all tires brake the vehicle, I think you want something around 50/50 under heavy braking (again, weight shifts frontward) which mid-engine helps with because if the car starts out as 50/50 static, it won't brake that way.

Then, cornering is also better because of a lower polar moment of inertia. With the engine on the steering axle, it has to move laterally a lot more when turning. With the engine behind the driver, the front axle has a lot less weight to push around and thus direct the vehicle in the desired direction. So yeah, mid-engine is most definitely superior from a physics perspective.

Downsides:
- Packaging/cargo
- General cost
- Sometimes maintenance can be trickier
- I guess cooling is a little more complex?

But remember the packaging upsides. More room for DOHC and turbos. In fact, I don't think the Corvette could have seen that under front engine architecture, at least not while looking like a Corvette.

Motor Trend sent a convenient e-mail with 6 C8 articles. The reason for all of this, aside from click bait, is because apparently it is still pre-embargo times.

Exclusive: Testing the C8 Corvette As Seen From the Driver’s Seat (w/ Video)
https://www.motortrend.com/news/exclusi ... ECBB4A57EE

Exclusive: What Can You Fit in the 2020 Corvette C8? We Find Out!
https://www.motortrend.com/cars/chevrol ... ECBB4A57EE

Exclusive: What Are All Those Buttons in the 2020 Corvette C8?
https://www.motortrend.com/news/exclusi ... ECBB4A57EE

The answer is simple: That long strip of buttons running down the raised edge of the center console contains all your climate controls. It includes all the standards, such as fan speed, airflow, recirculation, front and rear defrosters, separate driver and passenger temperature controls, and driver and passenger heated and cooled seat controls.

To keep things logical, the strip is divided into three zones. In the center are the general controls: fan speed in the middle, airflow, automatic mode, and driver/passenger temperature sync above, and power, air conditioning, recirculation, and defrosters below. The driver's controls, including temperature, seat heater, and seat cooler, are farther up the strip and above the general controls, along with a display for the temperature at the top. The same temperature and seat controls for the passenger are at the other end, in the lower zone, in reverse order, with the temperature display screen at the bottom.

Although the layout is unusual, it's the same number of buttons you'd find on the dashboard of any other car, and they're real, physical buttons you can find without looking once you've owned the car a while. Climate functions will also appear on the infotainment screen when you push one of these buttons, but you don't have to go digging in the screen to make changes.

While we're talking buttons, there are a few more you'll want to know about. The drive mode control knob is just to the left of the strip. This cycles through the various powertrain and suspension modes, and in front of it are three useful hard buttons. On the left, the traction and stability control button, which can turn those systems off or, if double-tapped, activate Chevrolet's Performance Traction Management and its sophisticated traction and stability modes. In the center, there's the nose lift button for getting over speed bumps and into steep driveways. Pressing it will also bring up a window on the infotainment screen asking if you'd like to remember this GPS location and have the nose automatically lift in the future when you return to that spot. The button on the right activates the forward-facing cameras in the bumper to help you see if you're about to run over a parking stop or other obstruction.

Exclusive: Hear and Watch the C8 Corvette Start, Rev, and Launch (w/ Video)
https://www.motortrend.com/news/exclusi ... ECBB4A57EE

The C8 Corvette's LT2 engine might look a lot like the C7 Corvette's LT1, but there are a lot of changes you can learn about in our detailed look at the new car. Even still, a Chevy pushrod V-8 ought to sound like a Chevy pushrod V-8, but it's not that simple. Getting the sound right, especially inside the car, was a big challenge for Corvette engineers.

There were challenges to making it sound right for onlookers, too. The exhaust piping in the C8 is significantly different from any previous Corvette as a result of the new engine location. The exhaust tubing is shorter in overall length and has to make different curves to get around the trunk on its way to the tailpipes. The tight packaging leaves no room for crossover pipes, and switching from the central exhaust outlets of the C5, C6, and C7 to corner exits on the C8 means different mufflers with new exhaust gas routing.

How'd the team do? Check out our exclusive video of a C8 Corvette Stingray with the Z51 performance package and two-mode exhaust starting, idling, and revving in Quiet mode, idling and revving in Track mode, and launching in Track mode to hear and see the result.

Also Jonny Lieberman talks about the engine and rear architecture in the next video if you stay on that link.

Exclusive: 6 Cool 2020 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Easter Eggs
https://www.motortrend.com/cars/chevrol ... ECBB4A57EE

How to Use Launch Control and Burnout Mode in the C8 Corvette (w/ Video)
https://www.motortrend.com/news/how-to- ... ECBB4A57EE

As any racer knows, if you want the best grip, whether for launching or cornering, you have to warm your tires. Chevy's got a mode for that, unofficially named "burnout mode." It's even easier to use than launch control because you don't need to get into PTM modes and all that. Just put the car in drive, stand on the brake, pull both steering wheel paddles to temporarily open the clutches, floor the throttle, and release the paddles when you're ready to go. The computer will do a carefully controlled clutch dump and will let the tires spin rather than trying to get the perfect launch. When you're done, just lift off the throttle.

That's interesting. Not sure other cars offer that. Sounds like you can control the clutch release by letting go of both paddles, but you have full control over the throttle, rather than being in some launch mode. Though since it requires WOT, I guess it is intended for the burnout box prior to a 1/4 mile run. Though I don't know why you couldn't launch at WOT and let off to something less to do your own launch without the computer.

The button on the right activates the forward-facing cameras in the bumper to help you see if you're about to run over a parking stop or other obstruction.

I actually want this on my car...

Your Guide to the C8 Corvette’s Digital Gauges
The full-digital instrument cluster gives you a lot of options

https://www.motortrend.com/news/guide-c ... 3DBC496BCF

Convertible pricing.
https://www.motortrend.com/news/2020-ch ... BCDEC9692C
Another one: https://www.motortrend.com/news/2020-ch ... BCDEC9692C

Pretty legit reason for the price increase if you ask me.

You only need $59,995 to get your hands on a new C8 Corvette, if you plan on buying the coupe. But what if you have your heart set on the drop-top? Today, GM revealed that the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette convertible will cost $7,500 more than the base 1LT coupe, bringing its starting price up to $67,495.

The new C8 Corvette convertible is a pretty good deal when you compare it to other convertible sports cars. You'll have to pay $72,650 for a 350-hp Porsche 718 Boxster S, and the 380-hp V-6 Jaguar F-Type will set you back $88,425. If you want an Audi R8 Spyder, you're looking at a price tag of $183,350. Chevrolet hasn't announced full pricing information for the new convertible, so we don't know how expensive it can get with options or higher trims.
Everything you ever wanted to know about the 2020 Corvette Stingray is here.

The 2019 Chevrolet Corvette C7 convertible carried a starting price of $61,495. The price gap between the base 2019 Corvette coupe and convertible was just $4,500.

Expect the big upgrades from the C8 Corvette coupe to make their way to the convertible. That includes the mid-mounted 6.2-liter naturally aspirated V-8 churning out 495 hp and 470 lb-ft of torque when equipped with the performance exhaust. The engine pairs to an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. Chevy says the convertible boasts the same amount of storage space as the coupe.

The new C8 Corvette convertible is the first hardtop Corvette convertible ever. The top is powered by six electric motors, and retracts in a Chevy-estimated 16 seconds. The weight penalty for the power hardtop is less than 80 pounds, according to Chevy, who also says the convertible model offers "nearly the same performance as the coupe" thanks to springs and dampers tuned specifically for the drop-top. We'll need some seat time to verify that, however.

Now a legitimate mid-engine sports car, the C8 Corvette is poised to turn the supercar world on its head. But as much as we love targa-roof coupes, having an easy top-down option in the lineup would help the new 'Vette compete with the big dogs. Enter the new 2020 C8 Corvette convertible, with its two-piece sheet-molded composite top that folds back at the touch of a button.

The hard top stores itself in a heat-shielded compartment directly above the C8 Stingray's newly mid-mounted V-8. The folding mechanism will operate in as little as 16 seconds at up to 30 mph and the folded roof won't encroach on the C8 Corvette's impressive rear cargo area. That's right—even with the top down, the convertible can still fit two golf bags in the back. The downside? No more engine under glass. But in exchange you get a pair of killer-looking speedster fairings on the tonneau cover just behind the headrests, a design feature Chevy says was inspired by fighter jets.

Because the C8 Corvette owes most of its structural rigidity to its central tunnel rather than its roof, the engineering team at Chevy didn't have to add lots of heavy bracing to keep the drop-top properly stiff. We're told the C8 convertible weighs no more than 80 pounds heavier than an equivalent coupe. The C7 convertible was only 64 pounds heavier than its coupe counterpart, but it had a fabric folding roof unlike the hardtop convertible C8.

That top sounds pretty cool. Also this car looks amazing!! The fact that it is only 80 lbs heavier is unbelievable (itself only a 16 lb penalty from the previous FABRIC TOP convertible!).

$67,495 seems like a perfectly reasonable price for this (495 hp mid-engine retractable hardtop convertible). Geez. They definitely fixed the problem of the previous Corvette convertibles being ugly with the top up.

Apparently the C8.R was also revealed.

https://www.motortrend.com/news/2020-ch ... 325912170A

As we mentioned in an exclusive scoop in August, the C8.R race car will have a flat-plane-crank engine design. Why? Find out here: https://www.motortrend.com/news/c8-corv ... turbo-v-8/

We'll have more details on the latest GTLM-class endurance racer then, but this unexpected first look at Chevrolet's first such mid-engine contender reveals the expected Le Mans GT racer bits, including aggressively flared bodywork, a large rear wing, additional front-end aerodynamic elements, and a ground-sucking rear diffuser.

As always with the Corvette GT car, Chevy promises technology transfer between the road and race cars, though we'll have to wait until we're at Road Atlanta next week to get down and dirty with the company's engineers and the Corvette Racing team regarding the competition machine's specifics.

The C8.R will mark a tremendous shift in Corvette Racing history when it makes its race debut, in the Rolex 24 at Daytona in January. Front-engine Corvette racers have been an IMSA stalwart since the modern team's inception in 1999, and have so far scored 107 wins, more than any other sports car team in North America, along with 13 Teams' championships, and 12 Drivers' and Manufacturers' titles. In 2015, Corvette Racing became the first team in 15 years to claim endurance racing's single-season "Triple Crown," with wins in the Rolex 24, 12 Hours of Sebring, and 24 Hours of Le Mans.

That is a very solid racing pedigree.

https://www.cnet.com/roadshow/news/chev ... eo-racing/

Here's the big news: There's no turbocharger under the hood. Nope, it's a naturally breathing V8. Per International Motor Sports Association displacement rules, the engine is no bigger, and no smaller, than the 5.5-liter cap on displacement. The new racing power plant spins out 500 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque. That's 10 hp and lb-ft of torque more than the road-going 2020 Corvette Stingray without the Z51 performance package.

If that's the big news, here's the bigger news: Chevy confirmed with Roadshow this is a flat-plane crank V8 with dual-overhead cams. Yeah, this ain't your father's Corvette race car.

The crankshaft has been the subject of many C8-generation Corvette rumors. We've already dived into how the C8 R sounds almost nothing like the regular Corvette Stingray, and now we know that has a lot to do with a flat-plane crankshaft. It's been widely rumored the eighth-generation Corvette will, at some point, usher in a flat-plane crank V8 engine. With confirmation the C8 R sports such an engine, the evidence continues to mount.

Homologation regulations call for a GT Le Mans race car's engine to come from a series production engine. At least 300 of these engines must be produced for a series production car from the same manufacturer.

The 500hp number doesn't mean much given the restrictor plate/HP limit that comes with the territory here. I'm sure unthrottled the engine is capable of a lot more. But 480 lb-ft from 5.5L seems quite high to me. The LS7 made 475 lb-ft. From 7 liters.

So that's proof that we will see a flat plane crank V8 in some model of C8. There is a revving video also.

And it's kind of a big deal.

The race car starts life with a production Corvette Stingray's chassis before it undergoes modifications for racing purposes to make the car even stiffer. It also sports a lower center of gravity, which helps with weight distribution. Finally, the team worked with Michelin to develop proper rubber for the first mid-engined Corvette race car -- 18-inch Pilot Sport GT competition tires.

Given that this is the first clean-sheet redesign for a Corvette Racing race car since 1999 -- the C7 R still dates back to the C5-generation Corvette -- the team has a lot to prove with its mid-engine pride and joy. Corvette Racing will run a traditional yellow car and one with a handsome silver and yellow livery. The new livery is meant to honor past Corvette concepts.

While we'll have to wait until January at the Rolex 24 at Daytona to see how the C8 R performs on track, Petit Le Mans patrons will get a first look at the race car this weekend. The new race car will complete a parade lap at Road Atlanta this weekend.

Geez, finally the embargo is lifted.

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/chevrol ... 2A3C64DDCC

Chevrolet told us moving the engine back a few feet, adding 35 horsepower (give or take), and employing a dual-clutch transmission would make the 495-hp C8 Corvette Z51 quicker to 60 mph than the 755-hp C7 Corvette ZR1, despite the C8's considerably worse power-to-weight ratio. Plus, they said, it would come within a tenth of a g or two on the skidpad while wearing all-season tires. Oh, and it'll do all that for half the price, give or take.

That's quite a target to aim for. With launch control engaged and 61 percent of the weight on the rear tires, the C8 Corvette Z51 shot to 60 mph in a staggering 2.8 seconds on the way to an 11.1-second quarter mile at 123.2 mph.

Damn, look at it go!

Witness the C8 Z51's 23.3-second figure-eight lap at 0.90 average g

Unfortunately that is way off the 22.3 second target I held up.

As you'd expect, much of the advantage is in the launch, but you'd be surprised just how much. The quickest C7 ZR1 ran a 10.8-second quarter mile at 133.1 mph, just 0.3 second quicker. So great was the C8 Z51's launch advantage that the C7 ZR1 barely got ahead of it by the quarter by running 10 mph faster.
And what of the other big number? Breaking 1.00 average lateral g on the skidpad is an accomplishment, but it's easier when you have summer tires rather than all-seasons, and the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S included in the Z51 package is very much a summer tire. With it, the C8 Z51 pulled 1.04 average lateral g on the skidpad—which is actually less than a C7 Z51, which pulled as much as 1.11 average lateral g on the Pilot Super Sports that preceded the Pilot 4S.

How did that happen? With grinding, infuriating understeer, as testing director Kim Reynolds was bemused to discover. This is the C8's default move at its limits, even as a mid-engine car with the Z51 package. Why do this? Because of what happens if you turn off the excellent stability control and Performance Traction Management computer.

Put simply, the C8 is no drift car. Try to correct the understeer with a nudge of throttle, and you get more understeer. Give it a lot of throttle sans ESC, and you'll likely end up backward. Be extremely patient and roll into the throttle correctly, and the C8 will dig in and push hard off the exit of a corner. Give it too much gas, though, and the rear end is happy to step out. The line between a nice power-on drift and a spin is razor thin.

Which explains the understeer. Moving the engine (and thus the weight balance) to the center decreases the polar moment of inertia, making a vehicle more prone to spinning. Understeer makes it harder for the vehicle to get sideways and reduces the chance of a spin. The Corvette team is more than capable of tuning the car for a more balanced demeanor, which makes us think this was intentional.

Two mechanical downsides are the brake by wire feel (and the brakes themselves are less impressive than they should be I think, though 97 feet from 60 is not exactly a bad performance), as well as terminal understeer. That tuning was done on purpose likely due to the dynamics of a car like this. Not surprisingly it needs to be driven differently with such a fundamentally different chassis setup. This is also a brand new platform and will likely be refined over time to bring back more neutrality but in a safe manner. Hopefully this process goes a lot faster than it did for the rear-engine 911 which seems to have taken decades to master. And people thought the 911 was great the entire time.

Also the car may end up feeling a bit over-refined. For the money the heavier optioned cars will go for, I can't say this was a complete mistake. The people getting a performance bargain (which is basically any C8 customer, but especially on the low end of the price range), I can't imagine they have much to complain about. This seems like a real every day super car, probably at least as disruptive as the original NSX was.

There is a certain feel that front engine RWD provides and this is going to feel different than any muscle car, whereas previous Corvettes could sort of turn on muscle car mode (albeit very low to the ground and still made for handling) at will, though with the stickier tire cars, I think you were already very restricted in street driving already. I mean the C7 Z51 pulled 1.11g, cited above, so you were not exactly drifting that thing around on your way to work. Same goes for the handling/sticky tire versions of the Mustang and Camaro.

Then again, if your muscle car criteria is brutal launches, this thing already checks that box.

Although isolating brakes may be a shortcoming, the C8's isolating ride on long cruises is a highlight. The magnetic dampers, set to Tour mode, ride like a luxury sport sedan. Impacts from expansion joints, crumbling pavement, and railroad crossings are heard far more than they're felt. Even big impacts struggle to rattle the cabin. Twisting the drive mode knob up through Sport and Track settings stiffens the ride and increases the amount of vertical motion for occupants, but even at its most inflexible the ride is never punishing.

It's just one element of an unusually coddling interior for a Corvette. No longer can we chide Chevrolet for cheap materials, mediocre build quality, and unsupportive seats. Our 3LT trim tester was loaded up to nearly $90,000, and you could see and feel where every penny went (except maybe the cupholders). The GT2 seats offered excellent support under hard driving and equal comfort the rest of the time. The leather is the best quality we've seen in a Corvette, and the cabin is quiet enough to whisper across at 80 mph. The steering wheel places your hands in awkward positions during cornering, but we appreciate the clear view of the instrument cluster it affords.

The other side of the coin is a disconnectedness from the raw performance of the car. The engine is rather quiet for a Corvette (though it retains that distinctive small-block roar), and the transmission is so smooth in Tour mode that you don't get a sense of just how fast you're going, at least until you brake.

Similarly, it neither looks nor feels like a sub-3-second 0-60 sprint, but the numbers don't lie. There's never a big shove of torque; the engine's delivery is always exactly the same. You just gain speed, as simple as that. The dual-clutch transmission is exceptional for a first try, a game effort to match Porsche's benchmark PDK. The steering is precise and accurate but could stand to give you more road feel.

Overall, and even with any shortcomings, I think this takes Corvette to the next level for sure.

Some highlights from the spec sheet:
- 3,622 lbs. I was shocked when I saw 3,3xx but later we learned this was dry weight. This is basically exactly what I expected the car to weigh. To be honest if the base price became like $80k to pull 300 lbs out of it, I am not sure I could justify the business case for that if I were GM. So I get it. I am not sure if higher trim models in the 6 figure range will lose the weight, either, due to fundamental chassis decisions/architecture.

- WEIGHT DIST, F/R 39/61%. This will take some getting used to.

- 0-30 1.0 sec. lol

I predict that if this understeer thing becomes an issue for customers, GM will release revised alignment specs for "track use only" and that will mostly address the issue (and it will turnout that these settings may be great for street driving, too, though perhaps with increased tire wear). Covers their ass but also gives enthusiasts the chassis characteristics that they want (which, again, will be a small subset of buyers and GM will be quick to point that out). We'll see how long it takes. And I fully think the adjustability will be enough to cover it - the thing ships with coil overs at all 4 corners, with ride height adjustment.

I will also say that rear end grip is the car's new biggest asset (i.e. putting power down early and often out of a corner) and sliding around the track is probably going to lead to an even larger lap time penalty than it did before. So erring more on the side of understeer makes some sense even from a performance standpoint. That said, I bet there is performance to be unlocked with a revised alignment. Do recall that alignment was the subject of C7 discussions, too. And Bob's Elise came from the factory aligned to have terminal understeer and no one says "Oh, those Elises, they don't handle, they have massive understeer."

I'm not worried.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a2943 ... alflowFBCD

It was about a second faster than a Z51 C7.

Both had additional wheel camber dialed in as recommended in their owner's manuals for track use

But such close lap times don’t remotely convey how much easier it is to go fast in the C8. It cuts more cleanly into turns, and its rear tires are more planted exiting them; the C7’s tail is nervous and twitchy by comparison. Indeed, the C8 feels as approachable on the track as it does on the road. That’s a rare combination, one worthy of respect. The C8 has ours.