mschuyler

This is a review of Schefter’s book. “All Corvettes are Red,” which was first published in 1996 about the development of the C5. I know that this is a C7 thread, but I am placing the review here because this is the most active area and also because the review will cover issues that relate to the C7. The title comes from a quote by John Heinricy, who was a test driver for the Corvette development group. They were discussing paint quality (sound familiar?) and colors when Heinricy said,

The development of the C5 took place during the “Years of Troubles” when GM nearly went bankrupt and got a Federal bail out. The Corvette program was constantly under scrutiny and nearly got the axe a number of times during its unusually long development period. To say they had setbacks is an understatement. At one point the budget was $12 million. They needed a $1 million test car and couldn’t afford to build it, so Chevrolet (as opposed to GM) secretly loaned them the money to make the car off the GM campus in secret. We’re lucky the Corvette survived at all.

The book covers the bureaucracy, the fights between departments for control, management intrigues, and the sheer drudgery the Corvette Group had to endure to get the car to Bowling Green for production. A complete re-do from the ground up, these guys looked at every ounce of weight in the car, re-designed every part while reducing the number by almost 2,000, tested all these parts in temperature extremes in Alaska and Australia, in snow and baking sun. They designed a brand new engine, a completely new frame, put the transmission in the back for the first time, and managed to cram a whole lot of car into a space smaller than the C4, yet lots more comfortable.

We’ve discussed mid-engine spy photos here recently. This is how they disguised the C5. They put Camaro bodies on Corvette frames and took them to the desert. The most successful automotive spies in history walked right by the “Comaros” and never figured it out. Corvette completely fooled the automotive press. Even “Car and Driver” admitted they had been duped and grudgingly gave credit saying that a “car company had to win one once in awhile.”

Some of our friends were there then. Tadge, for example, worked on the C5 as a design engineer, one of dozens with a stake in the car. He features prominently in the story. Most of the people we would not recognize. Some of them are dead.

The thing that amazed me most about this story, though, was the excruciating amount of detail work the engineers worked with. Every stylish line, every piece of detail, every **** and switch was intentional and designed to withstand the rigors a Corvette might face. And even when the engineers got it right, their suppliers would send them test parts that were perfect, then a batch of parts that did not meet specs. When you read the number of times these guys had to “go back to the drawing board,” quite literally, often through no fault of their own, you wind up wondering how any car anywhere actually gets built well enough to sell.

These guys went after every 10th of a mile per gallon, every little squeak that developed after stress testing. The attention to detail is just amazing. And a whole lot of it is done in software. All the tweaking is software. They need to car to have traction up hills in the snow; Software. The same engine run 500 hours at full throttle without breaking: Software. Run in 120 degree heat through the outback: Software. These days, that’s how it works.

So when I hear us on this forum criticizing GM and suggesting “They make crap!” or that they are incapable of designing a new car, I think, no, you’ve got that backwards. They are quite capable of designing a world-class car from an artist’s conception to rolling off the assembly line, but we aren’t, because we really have no idea what it takes to make it all work. We have a few design engineers on board who, I see, have tried to counsel the rest of us that it’s a bit more complex than we think, but people blow them off as they continue to insist that being capable of pushing down the accelerator proves we are competent to know what is best for GM.

I wish we had an equivalent volume on all the generations, but reading this is an eye-opener on how cars are designed and built today, in all its gory detail. Highly recommended. Schefter, James. All corvettes are red. New York: Pocket Books, 1996, 384pp. isbn: 978-0-671-68501-0.

mxk

Yup. The C5 shocked the world. It's what made me start looking at American cars again, and by the time I was finally ready and able to pull the trigger I got a 2006 Z51 in, you guessed it, red. Red has always been a great color for Corvettes, but I do love my Arctic White 2016.

juanvaldez

I like C5s but the book was boring, mostly corporate politics.

Always Red Dave

Ibtl

jma242

That was the entire point of the book. Shedding light on how terribly the company was being run that an entire project was put finished borrowing funds/resources from other projects without the top brass even realizing it.

mschuyler

I hope that doesn't happen because the issue here is not that this is about the C5. It's about designing and building a Corvette. Yes, that version was more political than usual as GM was fighting for its life back then, but the major strength of the book for me was the extent to which the engineers were trying to build a quality car without flaws, and yet those flaws had a way of creeping in no matter what they did. When you look at what they faced, it's a little easier to see how an A8 or a torque converter could wind up causing issues they didn't expect.

It's not because they were lazy. It's not because they didn't care. It's not because they were simply bureaucrats. It's just that when you have something that has millions of decisions, it's not going to be perfect. One of the things that struck me was that even when the engineers had perfected an item and had received perfect parts from their suppliers, ones that passed inspection 100%, then after the fact the suppliers gave them inferior parts, parts they rejected, thus delaying the number of completed cars. Basically the suppliers screwed over GM.

Yet we blithely talk about GM corporate greed and incompetence as if we know exactly what happened. But these suppliers (in these cases) are the ones that caused GM the headaches and suppliers that wound up causing the delays. I'd love to be part of a program like that, but I don't think I could stand the stress.

TyBoo

Had to look that one up!

I think this will pass muster and fade away down the list on its own. But I've been wrong before...

It is doubtful I will read the book, but the OP's summary and thoughts were very interesting. Thanks!

mpuzach

That's unfortunate. The book is superbly written; it's tough for me to imagine any Corvette owner not being interested in reading it. Once I began I had a hard time putting it down.

raylo

Only problem is "red cars are bad luck"! (From the classic movie "Used Cars"). A fact that was proved with my red 1987 IROC Camaro that should have been painted lemon yellow!

B&BVettes

Resale red!

xxaarraa

Very good article, thanks for sharing. It's always enjoyable to read about a car which has a long history and pedigree.

Some of it is clearly not objective or true though. "The thing that amazed me most about this story, though, was the excruciating amount of detail work the engineers worked with....you wind up wondering how any car anywhere actually gets built well enough to sell."

Yeah, you sit in any pre-C7 corvette and attention to detail is not what comes to mind first. Pre-C7 corvettes might have been cool and fun and had a lot of charisma in their own right, every one of them. But they were certainly not well-made or of high quality. Saying anything to the contrary would be like wanting to contradict facts and history, and that would raise questions about the credibility and objectivity of the reviewer.

chiefttp

Mschulyer,
I read that book years ago and I agree, it was very interesting and gave one a true insider view of what went on behind the scenes during The development of the C-5. A must read for all Corvette enthusiasts. Don't be discouraged by folks who aren't interested in the book. I find a lot of people don't read books or enjoy reading, that's why they make "Transformer movies"

roadbike56

Because I read a lot of documents as part of my job, reading a book in my leisure time is not high on my agenda. That said, I did read "All Corvettes Are Red".
The OP makes a good point about how that book is an eye opener. Also the book discloses some drama that all Corvette owners should be aware of such as how close we came (again) to not having Corvette around anymore, or how close we came to having a Northstar engine in the Vette. The book is pertinent now because of all the speculation about the mid-engine Corvette, especially how timelines are delayed for the launch of such a vehicle (C5 delays one after the other!) If you haven't read "All Corvettes Are Red", it's your loss.

SK360

I wish they would come and track down every squeak and rattle in my car

Corgidog1

Sounds like a good read-will check it out. Thanks

purple heart

Easy resale White-

GOLD72

It was the 2001 Z06 that got me interested in modern era vettes. The rest of the story is now history for me.

VNAMVET

I've read it.........several times....

NateDieselF4i

oh no. i've made a horrible mistake

LT1 Z51

I lived part of the C7 development as a supplier resident working on steering. Y1XX was no better, only instead of doing things in secret, you've got a corporate guy running the show (this is why there are a lot of corporate parts on the C7). Tadge is where he is today because he is a part of the GM corporate machine, not because he subverted it. The guys under him however are actually good engineers.

GM isn't known for having the best working environment.