I have read considerable speculation about engines for the C-7. No one seems to know what GM will do. It does seem logical, however, that a smaller direct injection engine similar to the 5.3 litre employed in race form might be the base engine. This engine is proven, can develop 400 plus hp naturally aspirated, but also can develop considerably more power with some form of forced air induction. It also seems logical that a 6.2 litre in both naturally and forced induction with direct injection will be optional, perhaps in the GS and ZO6. The move toward better fuel economy, and the use of lighter overall materials might also factor. The Corvette chief engineer has said that there probably will not be a 427.

Finally, all vehicle manufacturers are facing increased government pressure to downsize engines and weight. For example, BMW has inserted a four cylinder turbo in the 328i, and Ford has done similarly with the 2013 Escape, while other manufacturers have made similar changes. I might be wrong about all of this, but we are all speculating.
If this has all been said on the Forum, I apologize for the redundancy.

 

I think the race engine you're referring to is 5.5 liters, not 5.3?
And regardless of speculation and car magazine rumor, in an era of 444hp naturally aspirated and 662hp forced induction Mustang engines as well as 640hp 8.4L Vipers and 545hp Nissans do you really think the base Corvette's next engine will be smaller in displacement and make less power than the base engine from the very model year before it?
Let's try and think about all of this logically and rationally, please.

 

Left Lane News has spy shots of a 2014 CTS with a 3.6l twin turbo V6, to include photos of the engine compartment. I would be surprised if that motor is not offered in the C7. There will supposedly be a 3l twin turbo also. I would love for GM to move from superchargers to turbos.

 

True, but I believe those are strictly for the CTS, XTS and ATS (ATS-V?) models.
Maybe a future Camaro model as well?





Me too, I like superchargers but I love turbos more.

 

Turbos make a lot more sense, thermodynamically.

I think even the greenies get behind turbos, espicially if their car has no spunk, otherwise. Nothing can be done to the Corvette to mollify the greenies, unfortunately.

 

My bets are on:

475 Base
600 Mid
715 Top

.or.

500 Base
700 Perf

Looking forward to January...

 

 

If I had to guess I'd go

base 5.5l 440hp
mid 6.xl 525hp (some later year)
top 5.5l forced induction 690hp (may also be a later year)

 

Several points:

A) keep the power up:: >450 HP.
B) keep the displacement down:: where? I don't know.
C) There is a new generation of turbos to go with Hybrids. In this generation, instead of controling peak TQ with a waste gate, there is a ceramic generator between the impeller and the compressor. When the boost pressure reache max, electrical energy is removed from the exhaust stream and can be feed either to a battery (boo) or into the hybrid boost motor (yea) for more power from the same amount of air passing through the engine.
D) it is this electrical power that could be routed to the front wheels of the Vette way more easily than a drive shaft arrangement.

 

I really don't think any special variants of the C7 will be available the first year.

 

DOHC V6 engines are very tall compared to an OHV V8, I don't think it would fit under the hood.

 

I believe this has been stated by GM . . .

 

Corvette racing this past weekend ran the 24hr of Le Mans with the new 5.5L 485hp motor.

The 5.5L is what I keep reading will be in the new C7

 

Small block V8 + hybrid drive sounds like a cool idea. Imagine the possible running modes:
1) Default electric drive for city mode and basic EPA tests; maybe some RWD assistance for inclement conditions
2) 4-cylinder DOD for highway cruising mode; rotational energy from a flywheel (and maybe even the driveshaft too?) could be used to charge up the battery; maybe a system similar to the Volt
3) True "on-demand" defeat of front wheel torque for those who want pure RWD V8 power, possibly an F1-like KERS setup for brief overtaking manuevers.


GM president Mark Reuss was asked about "alternative power" for the C7 Corvette in an interview. He seemed to think it's an option on the table at some point.

 

The only reason I think there MAY be a chance of a top level C7 right from the start is because how adamant GM has been keeping the Vette the top performer ever since the embarrassing year the Trans AMs were faster. And seeing as there are CTSVs and ZL1s I think there may be a first year C7 with forced induction and at least the same HP as the current ZR1.

 

I've mentioned a similar idea hear before and no one ever picked up on it. I like the turbo driving a generator. Solves the packaging problem and you could have a small batter or better an ultra capacitor they are pricey but can accept and dump power almost instantly combine it with a generator to recover braking energy and put a 75+ motor in each front wheel and you have a nice setup.

As for the power from an N/A 5.5 liter V8, 450 hp is no problem at all. I built a 5.5 liter small block years ago. Back when the Edelbrock Victor Jr. heads had just hit the market. Using a small hydraulic roller cam(comp cams XR276HR, 110 degrees, .510 lift). Pretty small cam. The LS3 uses a .550/.525 117 degree cam. More lift, less duration. But it also uses 1.8 rockers, and I was using 1.6 rockers. So the current LS3 gets much better airflow. Anyway, all the experts I talked to said my little .060 over 327 would not make more than 325-350 hp with that cam. Well, it made 406 hp the first pull with a carb that was way oversized and jetted obscenely rich. They switched to a smaller carb, but it was still jetted way too rich and the next pull netted 415 hp. The dyne operator ran the exhaust gas numbers and he said it would peak out at 435 hp if properly jetted. Now the kicker, it peaked at 5800 rpms at which point the heavy hydraulic rollers floated preventing more power from being generated. I had calculated 425 hp at that rpm due to the lifters floating. With no float, possible with lighter lifters and a rev kit, 6800 rpm would be possible which would put the engine at 475+hp. The pro builders were all dumbfounded. And if I changed the cam to a bigger solid roller cam and revved it higher, it would be a 560+ hp engine. Compression was 10.8:1, so nothing crazy it would still run on good pump gas. That was 15+ years ago. Now take the same size engine with DI and better heads and you can make 450+ hp and meet emissions with no problem.

My only question is what is the bore and stroke on the 5.5 liter? My 327 was 5.5 liters and it had a 4.060 bore and 3.25 stroke.

 

If I had to guess I'd say 3.8L V6 turbo diesel

 

I would love to see the ZR1 receive a naturally-aspirated engine. Don't get me wrong, the ZR1 is an animal. But as much respect as people have for it now, I believe they would have even more respect if it were an N/A engine. I believe the SLS GT AMG currently has the most powerful N/A V8 at ~580hp. It would be nice to see the ZR1 take it on.

 

redvette77: I bet that AMG n/a V8 goes away soon.

uxojerry: I bet Cadillac really really really wants an engine they can call their own, and even if Chevy or Buick wanted that turbo V6 they couldn't have it.

Cadillac would rather put a turbo V6 in their car than a Chevy smallblock, even if it costs more, is harder to package, is less robust and reliable, and produces less power. They're funny that way.

 

This sounds the most reasonable to me.