ltomn

Why is it so difficult to believe that GM will make two different cars? They are a company engaged in the effort to create profit by designing and offering creative vehicles. Ones that appeal to the desires of as wide an audience as possible. The effort to create a mid engine car from the historic footings of the Corvette is a natural progression to such a model. That certainly does not preclude it from continuing to offer a front engine model for whatever time it deems appropriate. Particularly when it makes money.

jimmyb

Exactly right. This notion that GM makes the Corvette out of the goodness of it's heart is just silly. There's a business plan, there's a profit requirement, etc. If Corvette doesn't perform financially, it's gone.
Things like the Volt/Bolt can suck wind (from a profitability standpoint) because of they foster a "perception" that big, bad GM CARES about the environment. Corvettes can't really make that claim.

Obviously, trucks/SUV's are THE big profit items for GM. That said, I'm sure GM makes nice coin on Corvette, just not truck/SUV coin.

LowRyter

well.... if I were running GM

C8 = 2021 Stingray
Z1 = 2019 Zora

all are Corvettes and sold at selected GM dealerships

elegant

LowRyter, you could well be one to something. At this point, even my trusted sources are giving me mixed messages, so while there are clearly some you definitively know what is coming, as the old expression goes, “those who know are not talking, and the rest of us are trying to figure out things on the forums.”

tbrenny33

So you think or would propose the 2019 ME to be the high/highest trim level first then a couple years later the start of C8 ME?. I like your thinking!

JerriVette

I don't see c8 shown as a high priced model. I fully expect there will be more extravagant c8 iterations as the previous generations successfully sold.

Mrc100

Building a ME halo over the FE will under cut the appeal of the FE. Suicide for the Corvette.

Mrc100

They may but hopefully they did their homework because that may just dilute sales across the board. Look. Many people buy a Corvette because it is the top performance two seater from Chevy. If it is turned into the JV car it will turn off a portion of the already small group of people that shop these cars. They may look just look elsewhere, why stretch to get into the JV car? Corvette has been successful in part because the price point and performance have been well placed without a lot of competition.

VETTE-NV

I think either one could happen. Perhaps GM is not even sure yet. Sales numbers of both versions may dictate the ultimate outcome which is why I think the base ME will be priced in the $65-68 range.....still the semi-affordable sports car within reach of current buyers.

If the ME tanks, there will be a new FE car in 2022. If the ME becomes the preferred choice and FE sales dwindle, then maybe it becomes the only Corvette....and then there's room to build the Cadillac version at Bowling Green.

Rkreigh

I think it's awesome. The front end is a bit ZR-1 esque" but I agree this is a solid design that looks better than the attrocity posted on the home page don't you think? This is a car I would buy

5.5 dohc 850 hp

8 spd tranny that bangs gears faster than me and offers "no clutch" (bad knees) paddle shifters are fine, make them shift firm and positive at low revs, and snap off a shift with very little slip at higher revs)

modern interior that is enhanced over c7 which is a really good interior

3200 lbs

My c5 TT doesn't have an 8 spd, but it did hook me on high hp with a nice shifting auto. I hope to put a c7 8spd in it someday!

LIStingray

Making two models presents the problem of having to split 30-40,000 units between two models, not just one, which increases the costs for both models. Despite what many on here think, a Corvette supercar model in a two model lineup will mostly cannibalize sales from regular Corvette sales - the supercar market is very small (less than 5,000 units - Porsche 911's aren't supercars) and 95% of their buyers purchase them because they are exotic and expensive - a Corvette supercar isn't going to steal many of their buyers. Where it will do well is with the rich track car crowd, but that isn't going to be more than a couple of hundred buyers per year.
Two different models severely compromises the value and desirability of the cheaper one (as good as a Camaro ZL-1 LE is, no one considers it a halo car, and it sells in far fewer quantities than a Z06), so its sales will drop considerably, which imo, makes the simultaneous sales of the C7 FE and C8 ME a losing proposition for GM. GM's only viable option for selling a ME halo car and FE car was to make the ME a Cadillac - something that now seems unlikely.

NemesisC5

C8 = Continuation of FE Corvette = MSRP in line with generation change; Evolution of C7 platform.

ME = mid engine platform = MSRP $150k+; Revolutionary clean sheet design halo car for GM.

The only business case that makes sense.

Mrc100

Don’t you think this would put a shadow over the C8 that was once the halo car? It clearly can no longer be considered a halo car. Why stretch to get into the JV C8 that is no longer revolutionary. What car will be representing Corvette in IMSA? Probably not the C8.

Shaka

Like Porsche sequential model numbers, the C8 will be the ME and the C9 will be the FE. The overlap in price will be the high end C9 and the low end C8. The C10 will be a rebodied Pontiac Solstice entry level car and the high end C10 with a 310hp st 4 price will overlap the low end C9.
Heck, Porsche does it. All will be Chevrolet Corvettes from $30 to $250 grand. Get new customers when they are young and keep 'em.

Rapid Fred

If the OP is still checking this, please tell us that what C&D put on the May 2018 cover is not what you saw...

Nate@VanBortelChevy

Unfortunately, I cannot comment any further on what I saw. I'm sorry.

z edge

VETTE-NV

So a $150K Corvette would be "supercar" but a 911 Turbo or GT3 is not?

Tossing around adjectives like "supercar" and "halo" are subjective at best, and truly mean nothing. I don't see anything on the sticker of my Corvette that says "halo" car. These are terms that people toss around to fit their own definition of specific cars.

If the ME is priced much higher than the FE, that will not affect the so-called prestige of owning a Corvette. People will buy the Corvette they can afford, just as it is now. If you can't afford the ZR1, you buy the Z06. Can't afford the Z06? Buy the Grand Sport, etc. A potential Corvette buyer does not walk away from a Stingray because they can't afford a ZR1.

Those who can't afford a 911 Turbo buy a 911 S. Same thing will happen with the Corvette ME vs the Corvette FE. This is not an exact science...look what happened with the NSX. GM does not have a crystal ball or some master plan from which they KNOW they will sell a certain amount cars. All they can do offer the best car for the best price and hope that sales figures continue in the same ball park or perhaps even grow.

DickieDoo

Just tell all the posters on this forum how full of **** so many of them are.. but don't say which ones...

ltomn

I've said it many times, I am not in the automotive business but I am a businessman. Two different models of a vehicle is an asset not a detriment. It gives the buying public a choice: basic (and very good) or extravagant (and also very good). The mix of sales will handle itself. GM, who is in the automotive business, is smart enough to make it work.

As for the rendering on C & D, I would suggest, from a design standpoint, that it more resembles a Cadillac then a ageless Corvette.