Mid Engine Corvette coming?
Bob Lutz talks about mid-engine Corvettes in the latest issue of Road & Track
Road & Track
February 2015
Article Quotes - Summation
"I first saw rough plans for a mid-engine Corvette around 2003.
That's when we were starting to think seriously about a replacement for the C6. GM's head of engineering, Jim Queen, came to see me and said, "The next one's got to be mid-engine".
Tadge Juechter had a PowerPoint presentation demonstrating, very credibly, that the C6 ZR1 was at the limit of usable rear-wheel-drive performance. The problem was really the front-mid-engine layout. We couldn't get the engine low enough and far back enough for proper weight transfer to the rear wheels under acceleration.
I didn't want to move out of our price class, but Tadge explained that while the transmission would cost more, the list price would increase by no more than $5000. Imagine an American-built car with the proportions of a Lamborghini at that price point...that's pretty appealing.
Rick wagoner's reaction was the same as mine: "Oh, no, no. We're not going mid-engine". He thought a little more power next time would fill the bill. Problem is, lap times would be no better using the same architecture, even with, say, 750 hp.
We did two full-size mid engine clay models around 2004 - a Corvette and a Cadillac XLR replacement, each with entirely different bodies. They were both gorgeous. We started working on it.
Around 2005, GM started having budget problems, so the mid-engine project got deferred. By 2007 it was obvious that we were not going to have the money. A whole bunch of stuff got canceled. Impala was delayed. XLR was cancelled. Camaro convertible was delayed. The CTS was delayed.
For the C7, the Corvette team didn't get the $900 million. Instead, it got the nominal sum of $250 million and "do the best you can". There's no way we were going to get a production volume mid-engine car for $250 million.
They wound up doing what Tadge said was absolutely necessary, moving the engine back another two, two and a half inches - which wasn't possible with the C6 - and that's why the C7 has an inch more wheelbase.
We also looked (at the time) at a smaller, more youth-oriented Corvette for a lower price point. We actually had Chevrolet versions of the Solstice modeled, and a lot of us were enthusiastic about a European styled car. But, keeping the pickups and sport-utilities modern, to generate cash, is frankly more important than introducing something that enthusiasts will love.
(Regarding a mid-engine C8): I hope GM does it, and I hope they use the name Zora. The name sounds great and would pay homage to one of the most brilliant engineers GM ever had, the father of the Corvette. All things considered, I'd put the chances of a mid-engined Corvette at better than 50%. With Mary (Barra) in charge and Mark Reuss at product development, my guess is that, if work has indeed started on the Zora, it started six months ago."
93 Camaro Z28 (The fast one)
01 Trans Am WS6 (The cute one)
Esla T6 Dog Sled (Not cute, not fast, scary as hell)
Quote
Originally Posted by DonJuan
