some tidbits from auto.com
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some tidbits from auto.com
http://www.auto.com/reviews/ubox5_20020905.htm
"Next 'Vette to gain even more power
Changes span tastes of buffs, newcomers
BY LAWRENCE ULRICH
DETROIT FREE PRESS AUTO CRITIC
Creating a new Corvette is a delicate balancing act.
No one knows this better than Dave Hill, the Corvette's chief engineer. Hill must pacify the purists, who want to spot a 'Vette from a mile away, yet make certain the upcoming sixth-generation model is new and contemporary.
The C6 has a tough act to follow. The C5 Corvette has beaten the likes of Porsche, Mercedes and Honda for two straight years in the J. D. Power Initial Quality Study, tops among premium sports cars. The Corvette outsells its next-closest competitor, the Porsche 911, by 2.5 to 1.
The new Corvette is to arrive in mid-2004 as a 2005 model, initially in coupe and soft-top convertible models. The fire-snorting Z06 hardtop will take a breather but should be revived as a 2006 model. This pinnacle of Corvette performance has been a smashing success.
Hill said the Corvette team's goals include tidier exterior proportions, more performance and visual excitement, and more beauty and value in the interior.
Hill is cautious on specifics, but here's what we've pieced together:
The C6 will be slightly shorter and narrower. But the wheelbase is stretched about an inch to nearly 106 inches, meaning shorter body overhangs and wheels pulled even more toward the corners. Some aficionados may gasp over the fixed headlamps, the first Corvette since 1962 without retractable headlamps, which debuted on the original '63 Sting Ray.
The C6 will address owners' never-ending demand for more power, Hill said. Analysts say a fourth-generation LS1 push-rod V8 will deliver roughly 380 horsepower, up from 350 in the C5. Already among the world's most aerodynamic production cars, the Corvette will slice through the air with even greater efficiency, aiding fuel economy. A stiffer hydroformed frame will incorporate the sophisticated magnetic shock absorber system that debuted on the 2003.
The C5's six-speed manual and four-speed automatics should be carried over to the new model, at least initially. A Cadillac five-speed automatic destined for the XLR roadster can't handle the Corvette's massive torque, Hill said.
For the first time in history, the Corvette will share its basic underpinnings with another GM model, the aforementioned XLR, which will beat the C6 to market next year. Both will be built at the Corvette's Bowling Green, Ky., plant. While some members of the Corvette team are said to dislike the arrangement, Hill said it makes economic and strategic sense. Sharing platforms is a fact of life in today's industry, and the roughly $75,000 Cadillac is a different product for a different buyer, he said.
"I don't think the Corvette community will feel that anything bad has happened to their baby," Hill said. "The Corvette and Cadillac will be as dissimilar from each other as a Porsche is from a Jaguar, and now there'll be two valuable flagships for GM instead of one."
September 5, 2002 "
"Next 'Vette to gain even more power
Changes span tastes of buffs, newcomers
BY LAWRENCE ULRICH
DETROIT FREE PRESS AUTO CRITIC
Creating a new Corvette is a delicate balancing act.
No one knows this better than Dave Hill, the Corvette's chief engineer. Hill must pacify the purists, who want to spot a 'Vette from a mile away, yet make certain the upcoming sixth-generation model is new and contemporary.
The C6 has a tough act to follow. The C5 Corvette has beaten the likes of Porsche, Mercedes and Honda for two straight years in the J. D. Power Initial Quality Study, tops among premium sports cars. The Corvette outsells its next-closest competitor, the Porsche 911, by 2.5 to 1.
The new Corvette is to arrive in mid-2004 as a 2005 model, initially in coupe and soft-top convertible models. The fire-snorting Z06 hardtop will take a breather but should be revived as a 2006 model. This pinnacle of Corvette performance has been a smashing success.
Hill said the Corvette team's goals include tidier exterior proportions, more performance and visual excitement, and more beauty and value in the interior.
Hill is cautious on specifics, but here's what we've pieced together:
The C6 will be slightly shorter and narrower. But the wheelbase is stretched about an inch to nearly 106 inches, meaning shorter body overhangs and wheels pulled even more toward the corners. Some aficionados may gasp over the fixed headlamps, the first Corvette since 1962 without retractable headlamps, which debuted on the original '63 Sting Ray.
The C6 will address owners' never-ending demand for more power, Hill said. Analysts say a fourth-generation LS1 push-rod V8 will deliver roughly 380 horsepower, up from 350 in the C5. Already among the world's most aerodynamic production cars, the Corvette will slice through the air with even greater efficiency, aiding fuel economy. A stiffer hydroformed frame will incorporate the sophisticated magnetic shock absorber system that debuted on the 2003.
The C5's six-speed manual and four-speed automatics should be carried over to the new model, at least initially. A Cadillac five-speed automatic destined for the XLR roadster can't handle the Corvette's massive torque, Hill said.
For the first time in history, the Corvette will share its basic underpinnings with another GM model, the aforementioned XLR, which will beat the C6 to market next year. Both will be built at the Corvette's Bowling Green, Ky., plant. While some members of the Corvette team are said to dislike the arrangement, Hill said it makes economic and strategic sense. Sharing platforms is a fact of life in today's industry, and the roughly $75,000 Cadillac is a different product for a different buyer, he said.
"I don't think the Corvette community will feel that anything bad has happened to their baby," Hill said. "The Corvette and Cadillac will be as dissimilar from each other as a Porsche is from a Jaguar, and now there'll be two valuable flagships for GM instead of one."
September 5, 2002 "
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Re: some tidbits from auto.com (vader86)
"
Although the horsepower guess seems a bit lower than others:
"The C6 will address owners' never-ending demand for more power, Hill said. Analysts say a fourth-generation LS1 push-rod V8 will deliver roughly 380 horsepower, up from 350 in the C5.
:rolleyes: :rolleyes: same old news
"The C6 will address owners' never-ending demand for more power, Hill said. Analysts say a fourth-generation LS1 push-rod V8 will deliver roughly 380 horsepower, up from 350 in the C5.
