So what are we all going to do to at least keep up with the new stingray base engine with our old antiquated LT2 lump?

Im assuming a nice tune should get you close, probably has to be E85.

Headers/no cats/high flow catback might help.

Air intake?

I feel like we are really in a pickle here, especially for the newer cars still under warranty. I wouldn't want to unlock and tune my 900 mile old 2026. And I sure as heck arent going to trade it in.

Chevy really did it to us this time. The staggered model releases always kill the market for the previous released same gen model, but man they really pulled our pants down now with the 20-26 cars value.

#ThanksGM

And yes Im still bitter.

 

Take the L and buy the new one... LS6 + 5.56 gearing in a Z51 is going to be a rocket.

 

it was one day for me. One day after I signed on the line that they introduced the GS and I was like cool I’m not interested so don’t care. Nobody saw the base stingray getting the LS6 and I wouldn’t have bought mine 100%. Too late now. Sucks very hard.

 

You made a really poor decision. I told all my friends who were in the market to not buy anything until the GS was unveiled. At a minimum it would depress the prices of cars on the lot further.

Your car will never be worth more than it is right now... just order the '27 and trade. It's only money.

 

I guess I don't understand this mentality. How does someone else having a faster car somehow reduce the joy you get from driving yours?

Cars depreciate, some faster than others, influenced by a variety of factors (not just by a newer model or newer features coming out). If you want to mitigate against depreciation, then buy slightly used ... No car manufacturer has an obligation to try and protect the value of aging cars.

 

it’s more of GM sneaking this new engine into the stingray and me having just bought the old one literally the day before the announcement. And we were expecting the GS, not a car I was wanting, but we were not expecting a new engine for the stingray. I would have waited for that seeing as how I didn’t want a gs but would have loved to know that within the c8 generation they’d put a bigger engine and more power on the table. It sucks for sure maybe not for the guy that’s been enjoying his LT2 since 2020 but for the guy that just paid market value just to have the market completely change hours later. Now do you get it?

 

don't race new corvettes....problem solved

 

Stop it!!! If you're gonna insist on using LOGIC like that you're gonna upend an entire market place. Selling new cars is completely relying on the idea of you buying a new car today and thinking you have the best and the one everyone wants what you have. Selling you a new car next year or at least within a short period of time is all about making you feel left behind when the new models come out. The car you love this year has to be the disappointing car for a LOSER in the years that follow. He's right to want to get rid of last year's Corvette........CLEARLY.........it's a complete POS!! Small wonder the dealer will offer so little in trade. It's just not cool anymore.

 

If you dont care about having a warranty the hit you take and msrp price you'll pay? Probably a 20k or more swing. Just invest in a mildly built motor and you'll have 50 more hp than than the LS6. Do a stroker and you'll have the cubes as well. The low end torque on a stroked LS is fantastic. I cant imagine the LT2 is any different?

 

50HP is not nearly enough of an upgrade for me. If I really felt the need to upgrade my 23' to a new one I would be getting the GSX at a minimum. If anything I think the fact the Stingray is getting the same engine as the GS is worse for those that really wanted and have been waiting for a GS which is just a widebody and the potential for better brakes which will be meaningless on the street which is what this GS is going to have as it's primary purpose.

I guess if you really are depressed you can hope the new engine has growing pains like some of the other recent engines GM has launched. It will make you feel a bit better if LS6's start dropping like flies. Bottom line is if 50HP is going to make you hate your 26' (or older) Stingray it was never the car for you in the first place. I don't track mine although I had an excellent time at Spring Mountain and first hand experienced that my car has a bandwidth that I will never explore on roads with posted speed limits. All C8's are fantastic sports cars and those that want to split hairs will always just split hairs.

 

The e ray might just be faster than a new GS but not a GSX which will be imho rare encounters sssssoooo bottom line keep your e and dreadnought

 

I just bought a new 2026 2 weeks ago. I don’t feel like I got screwed or left behind in anyway.
How much will the new car cost.
Im also looking at performance upgrades. Im not waiting 5 years for the power train warranty to run out to do anything to the car.

 

I get your reasoning, I just don't share it or understand how someone allows it to diminish their enjoyment of what they do have. Meaning .. I understand that GM releasing a new engine the day after you signed is why you're bitter ... but I don't understand the mentality it takes to cause that to happen.

If I buy a car, it's because I like the car, not because I think it will be the best option available for any given period of time in the future. There's always something newer and better coming out, regardless if that's one day or one year in the future.



I will say, if the GS had been out when I was shopping (Jan 2026), I would have searched one of those out instead ... But I love the car I bough (or I wouldn't have bought it). Just because something I like better is now available (or will be soon), doesn't decrease my enjoyment of what I have at all

Then again, I don't really care about bragging rights or bench racing either ... I was a road course racer for several years and know I can push this car to 9/10ths when I want to ... and it is a VERY capable platform. 50 more HP with all other equipment being the same isn't really going to change anything. Now 50 more HP, bigger brakes, better down force, etc ... yeah, that will change things ... but I don't compete anymore, so it doesn't really matter to me at this stage.

 

Or you could wait forever r the 2028 or the or the 2030. Or the new model. Or a rebate. Or for interest rates to drop. Or until you are older and insurance is cheaper.
THEN BAM, you get hit by a train and you never have anything.

 

How much did they take off your car. Took $12k off mine, allowing me to get options I otherwise could not have. If $12k meant nothing to me, I’d order a new one and pay full price.

 

What’s it cost to stroke a motor? I’m curious about upgrades.

 

Silly argument... nobody said wait forever, but the GS coming was a horribly kept secret to anyone paying attention and buying a C8 (other than a Z06 or ZR1) late last year through now was silly unless you got one of the left over eRays for $20 off.

 

It’s a perfect argument. Because it’s a horribly kept secret that there will be a new model of C9 coming soon. They are trying to sucker you in with a grand sport to nickel the last dime out of you before they come out with an even better C9. So, how long do you wait?

 

I buy a new one every 2-3 years... bought current Z07 last summer, considering a Grand Sport because I actually like the traditional V8 sound better and am on a couple C9 lists for one of those when the time comes.

These cars aren't nice enough to buy and keep "forever".

 

I just finished full Bolt-ons.....headers, high flow cats, 95 soler performance throttle body, Halltech Cold Air Intake, and Corsa Catback which was the most expensive of all of the others put together. My latest at the dragstrip without the Corsa Catback but with the other bolt-ons, just two runs best 11.06@122.41. I have only ran 11.29@120.98 once but my average was in the 11.30s complete bonestock. The majority of stock C8s at our track average between 11.30s and 11.50 give or take. Having said this, I added the Corsa Catback because it was actually making horsepower gains on the Dynojet and Corsa made their claim of 19hp crank and 17tq crank. An independent dyno was performed at one of our shops in Florida which resulted to 14 rwhp. I will be testing the added Corsa Catback at the dragstrip this fall and hopefully it can better the 11.06@122.31.

So the main question is, with this new engine and expected gear change do we think the 2027 will be 3 tenths quicker than the stock 20-26 C8s, or will a full bolt-on without any fuel enhancement be just as quick?