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C8 style vs C3

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Old Dec 8, 2020 | 10:06 PM
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Default C8 style vs C3

I love all Corvettes, each one has a unique style. Maybe it’s just me but I was wishing for more on the new C8 . Not in the performance area , it does more than cars costing three times as much. The front end just leaves me wanting more...I know the rear engine cars have greater cooling demands ...but in my opinion it is lacking style/ impact that others have. Our C3s had cooling needs too, being a bottom feeder but GM got it done...40 years ago! My 71 that I had and now the 81 have the look that just makes you stare..if they could put our front end on?? Lol .
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Old Dec 8, 2020 | 10:39 PM
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 12:57 AM
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I agree on performance. Bang for the buck? I wish I could sign up!
And handling must be nuts. I've owned a '94 MR2 for almost 20 years....
It's the back I have a problem with. Camaro anyone?


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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 09:32 AM
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The C8 does not have the sexy curves of the front fenders, Now the C7 has the curves. Love both my 69 and 14.

Jack
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 09:53 AM
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I think it (C8) will evolve over the next 3-5 years and the styling will be improved. From a C3 perspective the 68 (while I love it) is rather plain looking compared to how it evolved thru 82.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 10:13 AM
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They must have designed the front end to cool the future Z06 with a hot running twin turbo V8? Not sure though how Mclaren does it with their TT setup doing the job with a better looking front
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 10:46 AM
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First, I agree that C3s are drop dead gorgeous. I was first drawn to corvettes by the C7 (bought a '15 Z51 and a '17 GS). Then we just happened on a solid '72 roadster for sale in front of a very rural home in south/central Utah while we were traveling. Wife said turn around and look at it. I did, it was super solid, bought it, and picked it up a week later. Then I wanted a bb and found a '68 427/435 in CA. Worked with the owner for about a year (great guy, and a CF member) and we eventually worked a deal. Really like that car a lot and am enjoying going thru most everything - - going through mechanical areas last winter and this winter is a nice covid relief.

On the C8s, we've seen only one - a few weeks ago. I think they are such a huge engineering feat and, for the $, they can't be beat. The side profile of a C8, IMO, is spot on. The front is good. The rear, IMO, not so much - - needs some work and I too think it will evolve. We're waiting on the Z variant of the C8 and we may sell the GS and get one - - if it will hold enough luggage for our long road trips together.

And I also want to say that I'm thankful for all the helpful members of this forum who help me learn the nuances of these cool C3s. Thanks, Paul



Don't we have a great hobby?! GS; CT6-V; and 'The Beast'.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 04:00 PM
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I like the C8 but not enough to buy one. It does a lot of things very well, but it is missing the soul of a classic Corvette. The C8 is objectively a "better" car but I just don't need it.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 05:53 PM
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C3 Corvette is a beautiful and sexy machine.....a C8 is not. Fact.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 06:05 PM
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Nothing like a C3 , that C8 has a lot of catching up to do!
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 06:39 PM
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I always seem to like the older Corvettes better than the new ones. In the 70's I liked the midyears better than the C3s. These days I like the C3s and C6s more than the C7s and C8s. (IMHO '84-'04 was a bit of low point for the Corvette.) While I certainly appreciate the C8 for the technological marvel it is, not to mention how much of a bargain it is, it might be a while before the looks grow on me to the point where I would buy one. Not to mention the fact that it doesn't have enough pedals.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 06:57 PM
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From the rear wheels back the C8 is horrible....i doubt they redesign it, most gens they carry the same pieces through the yrs.
Too bad, rest of it looks dynamite.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 07:19 PM
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The C3's are plain sexy looking . In my opinion the C8 is the second worst body style they have produced ( C4 is worse Looks a lot like Camaros). It may outperform most anything else, but how many people actually track their cars on a regular basis. Hopefully the engineers will realize this .

Another nice thing about C3s is you can actually work on them.
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Old Dec 9, 2020 | 09:02 PM
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Not 3 years ago everyone was bitching about the rear end of the C7! Now it's the C8's turn. The problem that I see is that everyone wants to live in the past and not move on.
Well sorry people, in a few years a lot of us baby boomers will have dropped of the perch and the next gen corvette will be in showrooms and the cycle will continue. The old saying
comes to mind - you can please some of the people some of the time, but you can't please everybody all of the time. GET OVER IT, IT IS WHAT IT IS, LIKE IT OR LUMP IT!
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 07:18 AM
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When l was in high school one of my teachers had a white mid-year that l used to drool over, then in my senior year l had a chance to get a 62, but pop said that l'd kill myself. Then at about 40 l finally got my first vette the 6t8 about the same time my boss got his C4 which was a dream to drive, then the C5s arrived with a lot of styling cues from previous generations and with some slight styling cues it morphed into the C6s that let me down with the elimination of the hideaway headlights. Now comes the all new C7 with its sharp lines and superb performance and all the creature comforts in the world only to be surpassed by the C8 with the rear engine configuration. I haven't seen one up close yet but from the pictures l've seen l'm impressed and for a nicely equipped one at 80k [not that l can afford one]. So the styling isn't as nice as a 458 Italia but it isn't costing 450k either. T
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 08:48 AM
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if the C8 didn't run good it would be a tough sale
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 08:58 AM
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The styling of the C8 is very very disappointing to me.
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 09:44 AM
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My '74 at my local Chebby dealer back in Aug.

Last edited by walleyfisher; Dec 10, 2020 at 10:57 AM.
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 09:53 AM
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Originally Posted by SVASSH
I think it (C8) will evolve over the next 3-5 years and the styling will be improved. From a C3 perspective the 68 (while I love it) is rather plain looking compared to how it evolved thru 82.
I feel the exact opposite. I think the early C3 is much better looking than later ones. However the 80-82 were an improvement over the late 70's models.
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Old Dec 10, 2020 | 10:29 AM
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Look.....we can make jokes about this, like I did, but the reality is, just like food, its an individual taste. There is no right or wrong. I think the C8 works good for modern "Transformer" kid types as well as people having a circle jerk over a "mid-engine". For me, the car is ruined by the mid engine, and the C7 is the last in the line of beautiful cars. The C8 short front end, and long big fat *** all for the sake of the mid engine is not my definition of good looking. I like C3 - C7 Corvette BECAUSE of the long front hood. Plus,.....no manual transmission in the C8 is a deal breaker for me. I will stick with my 77 and 69 Corvettes......! Again....no right or wrong.
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