C7 design info, criteria, pre-production photos, demographics, etc
 

These are my quick pics and notes

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...psff1c803e.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...psea921a58.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...psff0d785a.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...psba13701c.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps424d5b69.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps2d924ce8.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...pse729f27c.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps2ae9be89.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps5e195a63.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps73ac78bb.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...ps870449cb.jpg

http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s...psefeb45ab.jpg



My quick notes

F22 flowing design leads to edge design
Rear too traditional for too long, must make bold change
300 sketches in 2 wks after using all 10gm design studios
5 scale designs in wind tunnel to establish best potential
Lower roof height but same headroom
Lower windshield line for aggressive look
Let plan views dictate length
Compressed all concepts to two themes
Target audience was 4-12 yr old to induce imagination (poster car)
Cohesive design
Did look at split window...tried but wanted to leave that in history, didnt fit in this timeframe
Hungry look, aggressive/beautiful
400hrs wind tunnel
Blade of rear extractors vary in pitch to optimize airflow
As much time on grill structures as on the entire body
Had to fight tadge to get exhaust tips as large as they are due to weight
37 states minimum plate height, 2 front plate bracket options...epa plate center, offset due to laws min height. Center plate mount gives car better gas mileage
Focus on luxury silvers/grays, tans, etc
Stinger stripe (shown)
Night time signature...rounds on too many other manufacturer, no longer unique
Target customer car enthusiast of any age
Square exhaust tips...price, fit, etc too much...they wanted it though


Comments:

F22 very influencial in design process
Transformer car was certainly the initial c7 extreme concept
Chassis rigidity and overall vehicle strength makes the engineers very proud
Michelin amazes everyone involved
Higher performance version (Zxx) confirmed...though we all knew that
Optional sill plates and accessories avail through dealers...not seen yet



P.s. i got the whole story on the blue car wreck...how it happened, damage that resulted, etc.

If you have questions, I have answers maybe.
Keep the drama to a minimum...if you dont have anything nice to say, dont buy it...just dont stress us all out.


And my final comment....one of the most well attended bashes, and 99% of the people love the car, taillights and all!

Super stuff here. Thanks for posting!

As always, thanks RC. Almost as good as being there.

Add on:

Initial design criteria for c7 was

1. New upper graphic
2. New back end
3. New surface/form vocabulary
4. New expressive side cove
5. New bolder front

As a designer myself, I think they succeeded.

Would I do things a little differently? Yes. But overall a terrific job -- which is why I want one. :)

I also agree the split window is best left for history, but the semi-retro front grill was a really nice touch.

Great car and thanks for your efforts to keep the C7 section on task. Great stuff!

:iagree: :thumbs: :thumbs:

Did my best for the community guys. I talked to engineers for hours upon hours. Part of appreciating anything is to fully understand it. I know a ton of things about the chassis, proprietary processes used, things that werent talked about, etc. it wasa great experience, and despite some rude treatment by certain folks, I thoroughly enjoyed the bash as always.

Fun stuff!

Thank you very much RC for all your hard work and reporting here. It really helps those of us who can't be there. :cheers:

Thanks again, very glad you went and shared!:thumbs:

RC,

Any more info on the performance exhaust? That's my only wildcard left...

That is really great. I have a '12 I think I'll wait till '15 and enjoy what I have in the mean time. So what happened to "Blue" was he distracted?

Did GM guys say anything about this 'Bash' information being published elsewhere in more detail?

Still no final hp/torque numbers, huh? Did they say when we might see them?

^by in car data aquisition...yes. Car was on fresh pavement which had a 4" drop on the edge. His attention allowed him to wander and the car pulled toward the barrier. It hit the barrier and rode it, he corrected hard putting it in a slide out into the road, which he then corrected for sending him back off the right side of the road into the rock.

Both rims damaged, lots of body, control arms cracked, frame damage, etc. they said, though they didnt plan for it, it provided valuable information they used and used well. The car is fixed and running around.

:iagree:

Something interesting happened. Powertrain guys said 6600 rpm fuel cutoff, but a design engineer slipped and said he had the car pegged at 7000rpm for a video shoot...then stuttered a lot like he realized he said something wrong...lol. These power figures are still up in the air.

Tadge said the info is around the corner...

7k...that would be scary fun!:D

This is unrelated to your post but I have one question, did gm consider going mid engine?

:cool:

They always quickly dismiss that idea right up front. Its an idea from the 60's/70's man...it aint happenin.