2012 Petit LeMans

[LSXtasy]

As I sit here watching the closing of another racing season at Road Atlanta and seeing how well the new Viper SRT's are doing. I can't help but wonder(and be a little nervous) as to how competitive the new C7 will be. I guess with all the changes being done(ie) smaller displacement motor) I'm worried that we could potentially be plagued with issues. That being said I guess that's just part of racing and the learning curve that goes with it. Hopefully it's a great competitive season. Either way I''ll be supporting them 100%. Go Corvette Racing!

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[Keith Tedford]

A friend has a 530 hp twin turbo 3.8 litre Nissan GTR. I could see GM going a similar route except with a small displacement LS V8 engine for a base engine then bigger displacements for the serious crowd. All wheel drive is a possibility too if you want to get the power to the ground.

 

[LSXtasy]

I guess I just have a hard time with the formula being broken. When I was at the closing ceremony dinner for Z06Fest, at NCM they talked about how GM is trying to appeal to a younger market. That means high horsepower, smaller displacement motors like the European manufacturers. It's just a hard pill to swallow. I just don't want the Vette to be ruined. Who knows, maybe this will be the best vette yet?

 

[Riley P]

I don't understand the whole "younger crowd" equaling smaller displacement with higher rpm. That's not going to get any younger people into the show room. I think the younger crowd equals cheap and modifiable. So, if they want younger people to buy the Corvette, they have to make it cheap......and have an arms length list of accessories of stuff you can glue onto your car to make it "your own"....opps, maybe that is too young.....
For the "young crowd" personally I think this is the totally wrong way for GM to think. If they want younger people in the show rooms, make the car aggressive looking. Have an interior that rivals the rivals. Make it feel light as it is when driving it. You have to deliver a car that feels more expensive when you sit in it/drive it/ look at it.
My general thought is that younger people as a whole like the idea of what a car can do but that's not the priority on the list. They want to show off how successful they are by buying the most desirable vehicle according to their friends and peers and for people to go Ohhhhh when they sit/look at the car and not have their ego deflated if they are on a drive and there is a "nicer" car beside them. It's not about the sound, performance, legacy but bling and only bling. (All young people on this forum are not included in this crowd).
...I think I might be grumpy this morning.

 

[Keith Tedford]

Come to think of it, the younger crowd never did buy Corvettes unless daddy had deep pockets. The guys I knew had worked a few years before buying one and they all had good paying jobs. It kept me broke just buying musclecars but oh my, was it fun. The bigger the torque numbers, the nicer the car is to drive. No one in their right minds drive around town at 6500 rpm. Race cars are one thing. Something nice for the street is entirely different.

 

[LSXtasy]

Riley, I totally agree with you. The Corvette has always been out of reach for most young adults. To make it cheaper would be worse as it would lose being exclusive to those who already own one. I'm not really sure how GM thinks that this will draw in younger buyers. Not to mention the insurance premiums for a younger driver. I'm just repeating what was said. They also said that the C7 will be a direct injection motor as well.

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[Riley P]

Maybe that's what younger people want to see. A motor with more technology such as direct injection and variable valve lift/cam timing with overhead cams. I would like to blame all the auto industry reporters that harp on the fact that the Corvette still uses a "push rod" V-8. So what, it works well, reduces the number of cams required, probably reduces the weight of the engine and gets great mileage. People are so caught up in catch phrase items and the latest technology that they automatically think that if it's old, it's not good. Somehow, we need ceramic bearing variable vane turbo's and overhead cams with variable valve timing and dual clutch transmissions to impress people. Legacy, sound, fuel economy, torque, reliability, driver interaction and feel no longer impress... and that's sad.

I'm not saying don't put new technology in the Corvette, do it, but do it well and for the right reasons, not just to sell more cars.

 

[LSXtasy]

Totally agree. Stick with what works. People forget all the headaches that can come from new technologies.

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[Keith Tedford]

I definitely think that the 2014 Corvette needs at least 6 pop up tv screens in the dash and a 6000 watt stereo system with the back full of speakers. It needs at least 24" wheels too. Oh yes, and triple overhead cams. After all, number sell and more/bigger is better. Maybe a one litre engine that turns 28,000 rpm. That should satisfy the ricers. Even our 2005 has too many gizmos. You get electric door releases then they add manual releases down beside the seats and in the trunk, just in case the electrics don't work. Just give me door handles in the first place and forget the silly duplication that just adds to the cost and complication. Give me tires to replace the Goodyears that make so much noise that you can't hear the nice Bose system. If I need active handling and traction control, and look at the problems people are having with them, then perhaps I should turn in my license. I prefer the KISS system. Keep It Simple Stupid. Our COPO Chevelle was the epitome of simple. Even I could work on it.

 

[LSXtasy]

Couldn't have said it better myself. Well put.