2011 Chevrolet Corvette Review and Prices
The Corvette; such an iconic GM vehicle. It’s the car that everyone loves, and has a place in the hearts and minds of millions of people around the world. It’s Chevrolet’s equivalent of the 911, and the two vastly different cards are often compared head to head as ideological opposites. The car that can compare with rivals costing far more; that car is the Corvette. And that’s the car we had the task of redesigning, quite possibly the hardest of all the Revitalization in Action cars we have done before. Our hardest vehicle, in the hardest lineup. Efforts in this lineup have culminated with, and in our idea of what the next generation C7 Corvette should be.

In this RIA, our C7 Corvette’s styling follows an more evolutionary, rather than revolutionary path. Overall the car is much more emotional and dramatic, with a more planted stance and low-slung look. Things like a swooping downward character line add drama and excitement to the car, while still retaining that unmistakable Corvette look.

We followed the mantra of “don’t mess with success” in hammering out the details on the C7, especially in regards to price. The corvette is an attainable supercar, and that’s something that shouldn’t be changed. The LT bumps up the horsepower from current C6 levels to 450HP. And, as is the case now, is available in a few different packages, 1LT, 2LT and 3LT. Z06 increase the HP level to 600HP from its 7.0L LS7 V8. A new addition to the model line is the “Super Corvette”, which we have called the Corvette SS. The Corvette SS has a supercharged version of the engine, making 850HP. The SS also adds features like ceramic brakes, something GM has opted out of the current car because of the over $10k cost. The price has been brought down though, however and it’s a feature that certainly should be present on the very best of Corvettes.

Lots of debate on where to take the Corvette, both in RIA and inside GM. Some have said to take the Corvette mid-engine. That’s the worst course of action because it destroys the very essence of the Corvette in that it’s an attainable supercar. In price as well as styling, future Corvettes should stick to the principles that made it what it is. A mid-engine vehicle has its place at Cadillac, but not as a Corvette. Our proposed C7 Corvette arrives around the time of the production vehicle, in 2010 as a 2011 model.

Specification

Vehicle Type: Large 2-Door 2-Passenger Sports Car
Size Comparison: Current Corvette
Competitors: In a Class of its Own
Drive Wheels: RWD
Engines:
LT: 3.2L 450HP LS3 V8
Z06: 7.0L 600HP LS7 V8
SS: 6.2L 750HP Supercharged LS9 V8
Transmissions: 6 Speed Automatic (Optional: LT/Z06/SS), 6 speed manual (Standard: LT/Z06/SS