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- C8 General Discussion (https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/c8-general-discussion-175/)

- - Origins of the C8 (https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums/c8-general-discussion/4236859-origins-of-the-c8.html)

Origins of the C8

So you think that car gave Zora the idea for the mid-engined vette?

198mph in a 1963 1450lb rocket... yikes! :)

Yes, I do believe this is a good indication of generations of Corvette engineers' determination to go mid-engine. It wasn't just Mr. Duntov. Many tried and failed many times over the years to try to get a green light from senior GM mgmt.

The question is; why now? The demographics of Corvette's survival may depend on the ME. ie: Corporate finally relenting to sales and marketing.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by sstonebreaker (Post 1598780441)

So you think that car gave Zora the idea for the mid-engined vette?

Nope! He's quoted in the book Zora saying he and Dr. Porsche knew the right place for the engine was in the center where you get low polar moment of inertia! This is my 1938 AutoUnion Grand Prix car (albeit a bit small.) The rules changed to max 3 Liters so Dr. Porsche made his V16 into a supercharged V12!

Zora said the only reason Dr. Porsche made his first sports car a rear engine was money! He had to start with a VW base!

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...0aab076179.jpg

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...3b391609dd.jpg

Quote:

Originally Posted by Skid Row Joe (Post 1598781990)

The question is; why now? The demographics of Corvette's survival may depend on the ME. ie: Corporate finally relenting to sales and marketing.

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Nice post. They may know something we don't or they may no know nothing at all. Seems to me, it's a huge gamble. It may have been a bigger gamble had they had continued with a new FE Corvette. Who knows? The times, they are a changing. Damn glad it wasn't my decision to make. I don't wish for them to fail and pray that it is a successful product. I don't see how a ME Corvette can fulfill the needs of a typical Corvette owner.
I very much doubt that I would buy one, that's why I'm building a FE Vette of my own design. I'll keep my 10 year old track Vette for a while yet and I'm getting too old for my roadster. The trucks are too big anymore. Maybe I am living in the past and thinking like an old fart but I usually can judge trends pretty well. It's a very uncertain climate we live in. History suggests it's not going to end well.
Anyway, Zora is finally getting his wish and there might very well be a GS III version. GP VI??? The Corvette engineers have the best occupation in the world right now and the Zora may be their last project.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...a855470e78.jpg
Did someone mention an electric Zora?

Thank you Shaka. That was a very interesting article.

RE: SHAKA'S last post ^^^^

I'd like to think that I made the right decision in going ahead with my new C7 purchase in 2017, instead of waiting for the C8.

Most of my decision to go ahead with the C7, was; A) I wanted one (a new Corvette) again, and B) I didn't want to gamble on not getting a manual transmission and convertible in the C8.I'd like to add that there was probably an overwhelming desire of Corvette's automotive design engineering to implement the ME. The challenges of creative engineering had to whet the appetite of those divisions. I, like you, (SHAKA) believe this is a big gamble for GM's Corvette Division. .....

You can wait and wait and wait, and then you die. Waiting for the next big thing is a fools errand.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Foosh (Post 1598782784)

You can wait and wait and wait, and then you die. Waiting for the next big thing is a fools errand.

Actually, you were instrumental in goading me into a new C7. It wasn't wise at age 65, to; "keep (all) my powder dry," if I were dead.

Dang, all the fuss about no manual transmission in the C8 - and this thing had a SINGLE SPEED AUTO!

Quote:

Originally Posted by JerryU (Post 1598782395)

Zora said the only reason Dr. Porsche made his first sports car a rear engine was money! He had to start with a VW base!

https://cimg2.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...0aab076179.jpg

I don't think anybody on this forum talks more crap than you.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shaka (Post 1598783584)

I don't think anybody on this forum talks more crap than you.

Crap, read the book! Both Zora and Dr. Porsche knew where the engine should be!

Quoting:Page 247 Zora: “One of Zora’s key beliefs was the engine should be located in the middle of the car ahead of the rear axle.”

Page 148 Zora “He remembered how the German’s dominated motor racing. The Auto Union with its motor mouthed behind the driver made indelible impression on him.”

It's you whos words often come out of your other orifice!

https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.cor...b0cbaa8dc0.jpg

Not unless you want to call the C8 performance model the Winchell. This car, the Corvette GSIIb, was the product of the R&D group at GM lead by Frank Winchell, Shinoda who was at GM at the time stated that this car was in no way related to Zora's four wheel drive CERV II which was a competing design within GM. The car was eventually tested by Hall at the Rattlesnake Raceway under contract to Winchell. Hall evetually adopted to the next gen Chaparral2 the aluminum chassis, automatic gearbox and other features. All this was going on in the early to mid 60s.
Zora's interest in mid rear design predates this by a long time. .