= 2013 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Convertible + more =
#1
07-16-2012, 03:47 AM
= 2013 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Convertible + more =
First Drive Review: Source Car & Driver July 2012
<HGROUP>2013 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Convertible
Chevrolet finally builds a Z06 convertible. Almost.
</HGROUP></HEADER>
Never mind that beneath its carbon-fiber Z06 hood and between what look like the Z06’s carbon-fiber fenders sits the Z06’s dry-sump 7.0-liter V-8 spinning the Z06’s six-speed manual—the only transmission available, just as in the Z06—and directing power to the Z06’s rear axle, which is equipped with the Z06’s available magnetorheological shock absorbers. Chevy refuses to call the 427 droptop a Z06 for a much simpler reason: Beneath its carbon-fiber and balsa-wood-sandwich floor panels—same as the Z06’s—are the steel frame rails of the base Corvette rather than the aluminum pieces at the core of the Z06 and ZR1. Also, engineers insist the Z06 was designed from the ground up to be a coupe and that it wouldn’t take kindly to having its magnesium roof panel simply removed.
But if you consider the 427 to be in every other way a Z06, you’re correct. With the exception of those frame rails, most of the stuff that makes a Z06 is here.
Drives Like One, Too
Not surprisingly, all that Z06 equipment makes the 427 drive a lot like the Z06. First of all, it has the same steering. Immediate doesn’t do it justice. It’s almost twitchy and demands absolute attention—as do the car’s tremendous limits. We recorded 1.06 on the skidpad in a Grand Sport convertible, which hangs one rung below the 427 on the topless-Vette ladder. With the Z06’s brakes also aboard, the 427 stops as if it were grabbing an arresting cable. The last Z06 we tested screeched from 70 mph to a stop in 146 feet.
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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Much of the 427 convertible’s equipment is available on the mid-level Grand Sport roadster, but the one thing that defines the Z06—its 428-cubic-inch LS7 V-8—is the 427’s main draw. (Since you can’t use Z06, you may feel free to call this car the 428.) It’s a near;y faultless mill, brutal and ferocious, with a spine-tingling scream that will make anyone pine for a big-inch V-8 of his or her own. The LS7’s 505 hp and 470 lb-ft all seem to manifest at every point in the rev range, and we figure the LS7 will sling the 427 to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds and through the quarter in 12.1. A quarter-mile that quick places any car in elite company, but it puts the 427 is on an even shorter list of convertibles. Chevrolet claims a top speed in excess of 190 mph.
From One Perspective, It’s Basically Free
Chevy quotes a sticker price starting at $76,900—that’s $325 more than a Z06. As typical convertible premiums go, Chevy might as well be paying customers to take the 427 instead of the Z06.
All Corvette convertibles have their faults—seats that, although improved for 2012, still aren’t up to the performance of the car; a structure that isn’t quite as rigid as the coupe’s; scary breakaway behavior—but one thing you’ll never hear us complain about is the LS7. It is a great engine, and we’re still surprised it has taken Chevrolet this long to install it in the convertible body. The next-generation C7 Corvette is just around the corner; hopefully, droptop customers will be able to get more-powerful engines earlier in the model run the next time around. View Photo Gallery
Specifications >
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door roadster
BASE PRICE: $76,900
ENGINE TYPE: pushrod 16-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection
Displacement: 428 cu in, 7008 cc
Power: 505 hp @ 6300 rpm
Torque: 470 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 105.7 in
Length: 175.6 in
Width: 75.9 in Height: 48.7 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 3400 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):
Zero to 60 mph: 3.8 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 8.5 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 12.1 sec
Top speed (drag limited, mfr’s est): 190 mph
FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 15/24 mpg
<HGROUP>2013 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Convertible
Chevrolet finally builds a Z06 convertible. Almost.
</HGROUP></HEADER>
- July 2012
- BY JARED GALL
- MULTIPLE PHOTOGRAPHERS<!-- class="multiple" added when multiple authors or photographers -->
- PATRICK M. HOEY AND
- THE MANUFACTURER
Never mind that beneath its carbon-fiber Z06 hood and between what look like the Z06’s carbon-fiber fenders sits the Z06’s dry-sump 7.0-liter V-8 spinning the Z06’s six-speed manual—the only transmission available, just as in the Z06—and directing power to the Z06’s rear axle, which is equipped with the Z06’s available magnetorheological shock absorbers. Chevy refuses to call the 427 droptop a Z06 for a much simpler reason: Beneath its carbon-fiber and balsa-wood-sandwich floor panels—same as the Z06’s—are the steel frame rails of the base Corvette rather than the aluminum pieces at the core of the Z06 and ZR1. Also, engineers insist the Z06 was designed from the ground up to be a coupe and that it wouldn’t take kindly to having its magnesium roof panel simply removed.
But if you consider the 427 to be in every other way a Z06, you’re correct. With the exception of those frame rails, most of the stuff that makes a Z06 is here.
Drives Like One, Too
Not surprisingly, all that Z06 equipment makes the 427 drive a lot like the Z06. First of all, it has the same steering. Immediate doesn’t do it justice. It’s almost twitchy and demands absolute attention—as do the car’s tremendous limits. We recorded 1.06 on the skidpad in a Grand Sport convertible, which hangs one rung below the 427 on the topless-Vette ladder. With the Z06’s brakes also aboard, the 427 stops as if it were grabbing an arresting cable. The last Z06 we tested screeched from 70 mph to a stop in 146 feet.
<TABLE class=default border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=2 width=429><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
Much of the 427 convertible’s equipment is available on the mid-level Grand Sport roadster, but the one thing that defines the Z06—its 428-cubic-inch LS7 V-8—is the 427’s main draw. (Since you can’t use Z06, you may feel free to call this car the 428.) It’s a near;y faultless mill, brutal and ferocious, with a spine-tingling scream that will make anyone pine for a big-inch V-8 of his or her own. The LS7’s 505 hp and 470 lb-ft all seem to manifest at every point in the rev range, and we figure the LS7 will sling the 427 to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds and through the quarter in 12.1. A quarter-mile that quick places any car in elite company, but it puts the 427 is on an even shorter list of convertibles. Chevrolet claims a top speed in excess of 190 mph.
From One Perspective, It’s Basically Free
Chevy quotes a sticker price starting at $76,900—that’s $325 more than a Z06. As typical convertible premiums go, Chevy might as well be paying customers to take the 427 instead of the Z06.
All Corvette convertibles have their faults—seats that, although improved for 2012, still aren’t up to the performance of the car; a structure that isn’t quite as rigid as the coupe’s; scary breakaway behavior—but one thing you’ll never hear us complain about is the LS7. It is a great engine, and we’re still surprised it has taken Chevrolet this long to install it in the convertible body. The next-generation C7 Corvette is just around the corner; hopefully, droptop customers will be able to get more-powerful engines earlier in the model run the next time around. View Photo Gallery
Specifications >
VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door roadster
BASE PRICE: $76,900
ENGINE TYPE: pushrod 16-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection
Displacement: 428 cu in, 7008 cc
Power: 505 hp @ 6300 rpm
Torque: 470 lb-ft @ 4800 rpm
TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual
DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 105.7 in
Length: 175.6 in
Width: 75.9 in Height: 48.7 in
Curb weight (C/D est): 3400 lb
PERFORMANCE (C/D EST):
Zero to 60 mph: 3.8 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 8.5 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 12.1 sec
Top speed (drag limited, mfr’s est): 190 mph
FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST):
EPA city/highway driving: 15/24 mpg
Last edited by Space; 07-16-2012 at 04:07 AM.
#2
07-16-2012, 04:05 AM
C7 Chevy Corvette Fascias Revealed by Supplier Video
Our first look at the next-generation Vette.+
C7 Chevy Corvette Front and Rear Fascias Revealed by Supplier Video
<SMALL>July 9, 2012 at 6:30pm by David Gluckman</SMALL>
D’oh! Someone at Omega Tool Corporation decided to produce a video (embedded below) extolling the virtues of its plastics tooling technology, likely in an attempt to gain more automaker business. In so doing, however, the Tier-1 supplier may have put a pretty big account in jeopardy: that of GM and, specifically, its new plastic-fantastic 2014 Corvette. It’s a car people have been dying to see, and that’s the way the General likes it. (That said, we know some stuff: Check out spy photos and more information on the C7 here.)
The screen capture above comes to us from Jalopnik, which was the first outlet to report on a Corvette Online post about the video—the latter originally touted the clip as a look at the process behind C6 bumpers, but the site’s commenters quickly noticed otherwise. (Jalopnik also has a full gallery of screen caps.)
2014 Chevrolet Corvette C7 (artist's rendering)
From what we can see, our most recent rendering of the C7 Vette’s front end is pretty true to life. Angular headlamps cut into the fascia, there’s a large rectangular opening below the point of the nose, and it will again be made of molded plastic, at least on base models. This version of the fascia also looks like it will accommodate—need, really—a splitter or curb-defense device. Although it’s hard to tell from the engineering renderings, the front clip appears as a short front overhang, something that we hope accompanies a shorter overall length.
Of equal interest is the look at the rear bumper provided by the video. It’s a little tougher to make out the overall shape versus that of the front piece, but we can see inset portions that will house a pair of lighting elements. Combining this with information we’ve gleaned from a source who should know, it appears the Vette may ditch its four individual circular taillights in favor of the circles-within-a-protruding-bar units seen on recent Chevys. We expect much fury and anger from Vette traditionalists.
There’s also a clue as to the shape of the rear deck; what looks like a bump at the top of the fascia suggests a tapered boat-tail that will continue from the backlight and terminate at the trailing edge of the car. It has been long rumored—and our spy photos corroborate—that the C7 would in some way adopt this C2 design element. So that’s a point in each of the retro and modern columns, keeping things balanced at least on the tail.
<HR noShade>
Oh, there is one more thing we know with certainty: GM will be tightening the leash on its C7 suppliers.
Rendering by Radovan Varicak
Our first look at the next-generation Vette.+
C7 Chevy Corvette Front and Rear Fascias Revealed by Supplier Video
<SMALL>July 9, 2012 at 6:30pm by David Gluckman</SMALL>
D’oh! Someone at Omega Tool Corporation decided to produce a video (embedded below) extolling the virtues of its plastics tooling technology, likely in an attempt to gain more automaker business. In so doing, however, the Tier-1 supplier may have put a pretty big account in jeopardy: that of GM and, specifically, its new plastic-fantastic 2014 Corvette. It’s a car people have been dying to see, and that’s the way the General likes it. (That said, we know some stuff: Check out spy photos and more information on the C7 here.)
The screen capture above comes to us from Jalopnik, which was the first outlet to report on a Corvette Online post about the video—the latter originally touted the clip as a look at the process behind C6 bumpers, but the site’s commenters quickly noticed otherwise. (Jalopnik also has a full gallery of screen caps.)
2014 Chevrolet Corvette C7 (artist's rendering)From what we can see, our most recent rendering of the C7 Vette’s front end is pretty true to life. Angular headlamps cut into the fascia, there’s a large rectangular opening below the point of the nose, and it will again be made of molded plastic, at least on base models. This version of the fascia also looks like it will accommodate—need, really—a splitter or curb-defense device. Although it’s hard to tell from the engineering renderings, the front clip appears as a short front overhang, something that we hope accompanies a shorter overall length.
Of equal interest is the look at the rear bumper provided by the video. It’s a little tougher to make out the overall shape versus that of the front piece, but we can see inset portions that will house a pair of lighting elements. Combining this with information we’ve gleaned from a source who should know, it appears the Vette may ditch its four individual circular taillights in favor of the circles-within-a-protruding-bar units seen on recent Chevys. We expect much fury and anger from Vette traditionalists.
There’s also a clue as to the shape of the rear deck; what looks like a bump at the top of the fascia suggests a tapered boat-tail that will continue from the backlight and terminate at the trailing edge of the car. It has been long rumored—and our spy photos corroborate—that the C7 would in some way adopt this C2 design element. So that’s a point in each of the retro and modern columns, keeping things balanced at least on the tail.
<HR noShade>
- Comparison Test: 2012 Corvette Z06 vs. 2013 Nissan GT-R, 2012 Porsche 911 Carrera S
- Comparison Test: The Best-Handling Car in America for Less Than $100K
- Instrumented Test: 2011 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Convertible
Oh, there is one more thing we know with certainty: GM will be tightening the leash on its C7 suppliers.
Rendering by Radovan Varicak
#3
07-16-2012, 06:12 AM
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Last edited by Space; 07-16-2012 at 06:52 AM.
#4
07-17-2012, 06:16 AM
Yes, someday in my future...It's a great dream 4-Sure
=========================================
2013 Chevrolet Corvette Buying Advice
The 2013 Chevrolet Corvette will offer a split-window model, but it probably won't get the outlandish doors seen on the Corvette Stingray Concept, shown here.
The Corvette remains a premium sporty/performance car that competes against widely divergent alternatives such as the Dodge Viper, Jaguar XK, Mercedes-Benz SL-Class, and Porsche 911. In truth, though, the Corvette has no competition, because there's nothing else quite like it at any price. As always, it sells mainly to faithful Corvette fans on the basis of a unique all-American character and storied history, plus terrific performance and sexy styling, of course. But it also happens to be a good dollar value, one reason it's been a consistent Consumer Guide Best Buy in its class. So the bottom line here is the same as always: If you crave a Corvette, nothing else will do. The only question you need to answer is which model best fits your budget, does the most for your ego, and/or fully satisfies your need for speed.
But is the 2013 Chevrolet Corvette C7 worth waiting for? Based on what we know so far, we'd say yes, assuming it delivers on those rumored promises of better performance with better fuel economy, plus improved handling and workmanship. Too bad we must wait over two years before getting behind the wheel.
2013 Chevrolet Corvette Release Date: The aforementioned April 2012 production start comes from trade weekly Automotive News, a highly reliable source on such matters. Assuming that schedule isn't changed for some unforeseen reason, we'd look for C7s to be in showrooms that September or October.
2013 Chevrolet Corvette First Test Drive: The above timing suggests that media previews would be staged in late spring or early summer of 2012, though we can't rule out a March or April event using late-stage pre-production prototypes.
2013 Chevrolet Corvette Prices: The C7s are bound to cost rather more than C6s, partly because of likely added standard content and partly because GM needs to boost profit margins on everything it sells to get on solid financial footing. Though a number of factors make accurate predictions all but impossible this far out, we'd guess that base sticker prices will rise some $2,500 from 2010 levels. If we're right, the base coupe would start around $51,400, the base convertible at just over $56,000, the next Z06 (when it arrives) at close to $77,000, and the next ZR1 (assuming there is one) at over $109,000.
For more inside information on hundreds of new cars of today and tomorrow, check out:
- 2010 Chevrolet Corvette Review and Prices
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Last edited by Space; 07-17-2012 at 06:35 AM.
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