Next Gen Corvette Coming In MY 2017. If It's NOT Aluminum Mid-Engine, Is It A Deal Breaker For You?

Corvette is finally earning well-deserved kudos. Sales are up. Quality is up. Performance is up.

And then someone wants to go an change its very essence? It might work but it's very risky.

Developing a plan that allows GM to make the shift makes sense but to do it while the going is good doesn't seem reasonable. Keep the card up the sleeve until the current formula shows signs of weakening. IMO.

I think GM will keep the front-engine version while rolling out a more supercar-worthy rear-engine variant. I see no reason to kill the Corvette we all know & love. There will still be enough credible consumer interest in today's Corvette to sell both versions simultaneously.

I didn't know the Batmobile came in silver.

If they are smart they will make Corvette a BRAND with the Stingray having a model below it (Boxster competitor) and one above it (i.e. a "budget" supercar). Yes there were mid-engined rotary Corvette show cars, but a mid-engined Corvette would be as antithetical to a Corvette fan as would be a front engined Porsche 911.

Bulls Eye... create a brand out of it... look what Porsche has accomplished but doing exactly that. Can share a platform or 2 with Cadillac as well...

^ My understanding is that this is what they are doing. The mid-engined car won't replace the Stingray, but will be an additional model priced much higher. Possibly ZR1.

I don't have an interest in a Chevy store so I'm not in the loop.

GM has been hinting at a mid-engine Corvette longer than Audi has promised a new design language.

Absolutely not. It's hard to fault the Corvette as it is performance wise. Normally I would call BS as the C7 was supposed to have a twin turbo V6 as well. Given that both C/D and Motor Trend are both saying mid engine perhaps there is fire when there is smoke. But on the other hand there has probably been a time in the past when both magazines ran the mid engine story in the same month.

I don't get it. Next gen? Already? What was this Stingray for then?

Like mkaresh said above, they are supposedly making the C7 mid-engine the next ZR1 to slot above the current C6's for a while (until 2020)....the C6's will stay in production and eventually the mid-engine design will replace the lower end versions...

That doesn't make any sense. Are you telling me C6 is still being made? When it is already replaced by C7 Stingray?

This is just Car and Driver trying to sell magazines as their circulation continues to implode.

Having an "above the Stingray and Z06" mid-engined hypercar that is part of the Corvette "family" would be a way to start the R&D that will EVENTUALLY trickle down enough that a "base Vette" could be mid-engined and not prohibitively expensive.

The thing about the Corvette is it has to be good at everything. It has to be reliable. It has to be fast on a track. It has to be comfortable as a long-distance cruiser. It has to be practical as a daily driver. It has to be attainable by blue collar folks rather than just the top %.

Doing that with a mid-engined car right now is a total no-go. They considered it for the C7 and it did not make sense. Tadge said it's something that will happen WHEN it is no longer a compromise on any of the above and is the way to make the Vette strictly better rather than just mid-engined for its own sake.

The mid-engined thing is something they've got to be looking at. Same with AWD. Same with hybrid powertrains. Nothing is off the table. But only when they can continue forward with the same all-around-winning formula that's allowed Vettes to HANDILY outsell all competition while preserving the car's pedigree that you'll see something major like that change.

Corvette, still remains to be the car for the middle class families, so the most important thing about it is pricing.

And it has to be good at everything? I don't remember it having an AWD version, so it can't be good in snow.

The title of "The car that is good at everything" only goes to Nissan GT-R.

Obviously by "good at everything" I did not mean "can haul 1.5 tons of dirt" or "can climb rocks" or anything else that is not too relevant to a PERFORMANCE car. The GT-R has AWD but what snow is it exactly good in? Like 1" of snow? If it's snowing out I'm driving my Subaru and the Vette stays inside since it has summer performance tires.

At least the rear end in the picture is prettier than the hideous current C7 butt.

You really think that rear end is prettier? WOW.
Maybe they should consider the mid-engined car for the Caddy brand?

I think any Corvette is a deal-breaker for me...