Four-Banger Voltec Powertrain Coming to 2016 Corvette … April Fools

Blame CAFE regulations, blame the EPA, blame Satan. Regardless of whom you choose to blame, your chosen scapegoat will be unable to make this news any easier to digest, so here it goes: the 2016 Corvette is getting the Voltec powertrain added to its options list, and it will be called the Corvette E-REV.

Hold that heart attack — you’ll still be able to get a 2016 Corvette powered by 6.2 liters of American V8 muscle … you’ll just have a greener option added to the order sheet.

Okay, now you can have your heart attack.

It seems GM decided to add this option to future Corvettes in order to amortize the cost of the updated Voltec technology in the slow-selling Cadillac ELR, of which only 99 units have been sold so far this year. For reference the ELR has an extended-range gas/electric powertrain consisting of a 1.4-liter, four-cylinder internal combustion engine and a 154 kW electric motor. All that tech amounts to 207 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque, although those numbers may be slightly higher in the Corvette.

Using the same powerplant as the ELR, the Corvette E-REV will only be available with a single-speed transmission.

So let’s recap: GM is going to drop the ELR’s propulsion tech into the C7 Corvette, which means it will be the first production Corvette with a four-banger, and to add insult to injury, they aren’t offering it in a manual.

Excuse me while I blow my brain matter onto the nearest wall.

April 2nd update: Oh, one more thing: Don’t buy this. I’m not talking about the car. I’m talking about the story. April fools.