New Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport and Grand Sport X revealed with a huge 6.7-litre V8
Corvette aims to prove there’s no replacement for displacement with even larger V8
The Chevrolet Corvette lineage has had some great names to accompany it over the years. There’s the Stingray, the Z06, the ZR1 and since the second-generation C2, the Grand Sport, which has now returned on the latest C8 Corvette model.
Corvette fans will instantly recognise the colour scheme of blue body paint with white stripes and red accents, but what’s most important with the new Grand Sport is its engine – a 6.7-litre V8 with 535bhp and 705Nm, more torque than any other naturally-aspirated Vette to date.
The new engine acts as a replacement for the old 495bhp 6.2-litre V8 and will make its way on to the standard Corvette Stingray model, too. To achieve the extra power, alongside the greater displacement there are forged pistons and rods, a wider throttle body, a revised compression ratio and a new intake.
The centrally placed quad-exhaust tips look like the ZR1’s, and will surely provide a fitting soundtrack to the Grand Sport. Power is sent through the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission as before, although we suspect the Stingray’s 0-62mph of 3.5 seconds has been lowered a bit.
Not only has the Corvette gained a Grand Sport variant, but there’s also the new Grand Sport X. This gets the same 160bhp electrified front axle as the new hybrid E-Ray, meaning it also gains all-wheel drive. Instead of the Corvette E-Ray’s 6.2-litre V8, the Grand Sport X has the new 6.7-litre unit, meaning power is upped from the former’s 635bhp to a whopping 721bhp.
The Grand Sport also gets the fourth generation of the Corvette’s Magnetic Ride adaptive suspension, which adjusts firmness every 10 to 15 milliseconds based on road conditions.
If you want to up the ante even more, the Grand Sport also comes with the optional Z52 Sport Performance Package, which replaces Michelin summer tyres with track-focused Pilot Sport 4S tyres along with brakes from the Z06. A Z52 Track Performance package adds carbon-ceramic brakes, Pilot Sport Cup 2R tyres, that quad-exit central exhaust and a carbon fibre aero package (a rear wing, aero flicks and a front splitter).
Further visual tweaks that come as standard include Grand Sport badging, plus a plaque for early Launch Edition models. Both versions get 10-spoke forged aluminium wheels with the fronts measuring 20 inches and the rears 21 inches. There’s also an exclusive interior colourway for both – a very bold and bright Santorini Blue with embossed Corvettes in the headrests.
Corvette confirmed the E-Ray would join the line-up last year from £153,440 and while there’s no pricing announced yet for either Grand Sport model, we expect them to command a premium over the Stingray and E-Ray siblings – if they make their way to the UK.
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