C7 Corvette test video reviews are out!
07-25-2013, 09:03 AM
#12
It's a marginal increase over the C6. Most Corvettes weight about 3,300 lbs and the ZO6 weights about 3,100 lbs.
07-25-2013, 09:46 AM
#13
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I'm just not in love with it as much as I was when the C6 came out. When the C6 hit the roads I was intrigued, impressed, and jealous (that I couldn't have one right then and there). This, like others have said, seems a bit odd.
Styling is subjective as we all know, but to me it just isn't as pretty as the C6 (the rear in particular). There are just too many hard edges. Admittedly, new body styles (in general for most manufacturers) rarely strike me as a move in the right direction at first. A lot of the time these drastic changes take time for me to fall for, and I usually do end up falling for them. I hope that is the case with this car, but right now I don't see the light at the end of that tunnel.
The interior seems like an improvement in look/feel, but have they gone too far with it? Do we need that many driving modes in a Corvette? I thought the appeal of the Corvette was the simplicity of it all. Get in and drive fast. With this you have driving modes, performance readouts, launch controls, rev-matching, etc. 7-speed manual? I thought it was silly in the new Porsche, and I feel the same with this. As mentioned in the video - why on earth would they put the rev-match on/off switch behind the steering wheel like a paddle shifter? That would drive me bonkers! Did they really not have any place to put a button on the dash or next to the shifter? They just tells me the that the auto Corvette will have a paddle shifter mechanism and that Chevrolet didn't want to spend the money to redesign the design of the steering wheel hub for both transmission options. That's actually probably far from the truth, but it's the impression that it gives me.
0-60 in ~4 seconds? At first I thought - is that all? I had to remind myself that this isn't a Z06 variation and that 4 seconds is pretty damn fast. ~12.5 seconds in the 1/4 also had the same reaction from me. That's my own fault for immersing myself with daydreaming of Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, Pagani's, and the like all day. This is a 'budget' car that has enormous performance under it. But I don't think anyone had a doubt that this wouldn't be a fantastic bang-for-buck performance car.
Right now I am not blown away. Hopefully it grows on me. I want to like it ...I just don't right now.
Styling is subjective as we all know, but to me it just isn't as pretty as the C6 (the rear in particular). There are just too many hard edges. Admittedly, new body styles (in general for most manufacturers) rarely strike me as a move in the right direction at first. A lot of the time these drastic changes take time for me to fall for, and I usually do end up falling for them. I hope that is the case with this car, but right now I don't see the light at the end of that tunnel.
The interior seems like an improvement in look/feel, but have they gone too far with it? Do we need that many driving modes in a Corvette? I thought the appeal of the Corvette was the simplicity of it all. Get in and drive fast. With this you have driving modes, performance readouts, launch controls, rev-matching, etc. 7-speed manual? I thought it was silly in the new Porsche, and I feel the same with this. As mentioned in the video - why on earth would they put the rev-match on/off switch behind the steering wheel like a paddle shifter? That would drive me bonkers! Did they really not have any place to put a button on the dash or next to the shifter? They just tells me the that the auto Corvette will have a paddle shifter mechanism and that Chevrolet didn't want to spend the money to redesign the design of the steering wheel hub for both transmission options. That's actually probably far from the truth, but it's the impression that it gives me.
0-60 in ~4 seconds? At first I thought - is that all? I had to remind myself that this isn't a Z06 variation and that 4 seconds is pretty damn fast. ~12.5 seconds in the 1/4 also had the same reaction from me. That's my own fault for immersing myself with daydreaming of Ferrari's, Lamborghini's, Pagani's, and the like all day. This is a 'budget' car that has enormous performance under it. But I don't think anyone had a doubt that this wouldn't be a fantastic bang-for-buck performance car.
Right now I am not blown away. Hopefully it grows on me. I want to like it ...I just don't right now.
07-25-2013, 10:39 AM
#15
Thread Starter
Originally Posted by QUIKAG' timestamp='1374766048' post='22686598
I love everything about the C7, but the rear end is a bit awkward for me. But, I just had a thought. Maybe, it's the Corvette designer's way of giving the middle finger to all the cars the C7 Corvette is going to pass at the streets, tracks, and roadcourses around the world? 
Kind of a "Bye, bye Mr. Porsche, take a look at my ugly ass as I disappear into the horizon."
Kind of a "Bye, bye Mr. Porsche, take a look at my ugly ass as I disappear into the horizon." While I am sure the C7 is a very fine car, I think the term "game changer" does not fit.
I might possibly fit into the target market for this car. Male, can afford one, like sports cars. But to me it is just the evolution of a Corvette, which is a car that never really appealed to me in the first place.
Summary: Don't really like Vettes, prefer Caymans
It is heavier than the C6, but it has a lot more 'crap' in it with the 3LT package. I don't even want to know what the air conditioned/heated seats weigh. All the other gizmos add weight too. The base car itself is lighter than years past with the aluminum frame and some carbon fiber bits, etc. I bet a 1LT package C6 would weigh around 3,300lbs give or take. The C7 Z06 will probably be a hundred lbs lighter than that, maybe a little more. ZR1 with a likely forced induction engine will probably be around the same as a loaded base C7, but will likely have around 700hp, so it won't matter so much.
07-25-2013, 11:24 AM
#16
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It is heavier than the C6, but it has a lot more 'crap' in it with the 3LT package. I don't even want to know what the air conditioned/heated seats weigh. All the other gizmos add weight too. The base car itself is lighter than years past with the aluminum frame and some carbon fiber bits, etc. I bet a 1LT package C6 would weigh around 3,300lbs give or take. The C7 Z06 will probably be a hundred lbs lighter than that, maybe a little more. ZR1 with a likely forced induction engine will probably be around the same as a loaded base C7, but will likely have around 700hp, so it won't matter so much.
(Which, I'll grant, has a chassis that needs deal with only 240 hp... 
)My only personal experience with Corvettes has been with the C4 and C5 generations. "Loose" and "baggy" are probably the best approximations on what the cars felt like to me. I prefer vehicles for which adjectives like "taut" and "tight" apply. I really owe it to myself to check out a C7 one of these days, but reading about 3444 lbs curb weights doesn't fill me with much urgency to do so, when Porsche claims weights like 2976 lbs for a Cayman S...
07-25-2013, 11:33 AM
#17
Thread Starter
Mark, here is some good info on the weight "gain" of the new C7 from CF. It makes sense:
The DI added 35ish pounds of content. Then they had to add a bigger balancer, dual-mass flywheel, and a steel torque-tube to handle driveline harmonics in V4 mode. Then you've got the standard coolers, bigger brakes, and stronger trans/diff to deal with the mid-range torque hit not to mention the e-dif gear. Not hard to see why the car got heaver even with the aluminum chassis and lighter body panels. In one of the articles Tadge said, "It'd be easy to make the car light if we weren't concerned about fuel economy". That seems backward until you look at the numbers the car puts up... it's quite incredible. This is a car that you will be able to daily drive, road trip getting mid 30s, and tear around a track. The new tech has truly widened the performance envelope of these cars.
The DI added 35ish pounds of content. Then they had to add a bigger balancer, dual-mass flywheel, and a steel torque-tube to handle driveline harmonics in V4 mode. Then you've got the standard coolers, bigger brakes, and stronger trans/diff to deal with the mid-range torque hit not to mention the e-dif gear. Not hard to see why the car got heaver even with the aluminum chassis and lighter body panels. In one of the articles Tadge said, "It'd be easy to make the car light if we weren't concerned about fuel economy". That seems backward until you look at the numbers the car puts up... it's quite incredible. This is a car that you will be able to daily drive, road trip getting mid 30s, and tear around a track. The new tech has truly widened the performance envelope of these cars.
07-25-2013, 11:37 AM
#18
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We already know this puts down monster numbers. It will certainly demolish competition on the track too. With the improvements to interior and technology, it's hard to make excuses to write it off. It's a complete package, especially when you consider price and fuel economy.
It's impossible to dispute the price for performance. But as S2k owners, we understand that there is more to a sports car than how fast it can go around a track. Is it able to capture the essense of motoring that people describe when driving a Porsche for example? Does it approach the refinement of a BMW M? That's really the question with this new "Stingray." By departing from past Corvettes and offering such a complete package, does it indeed come full circle and deliver in the driving experience itself? We all know it's fast, but does it give us the sports car feeling that we hunger for? Hopefully these reviews that are now trickling out can say "yes" to this question. To me, so far so good with this video of him sliding around turns.
It's hard to make the car feel special when you see it everywhere. It's a car that's rooted in pleasing the typical American. In 5 years, I see myself picking up a used C7 or a used Cayman S as my next car. It will be intersting to see how that plays out.
It will be so fun to see a shootout of this car against the $100k'ers: Porsche 911, BMW M3, GTR, etc. I'm sure we will see it all soon enough.
It's impossible to dispute the price for performance. But as S2k owners, we understand that there is more to a sports car than how fast it can go around a track. Is it able to capture the essense of motoring that people describe when driving a Porsche for example? Does it approach the refinement of a BMW M? That's really the question with this new "Stingray." By departing from past Corvettes and offering such a complete package, does it indeed come full circle and deliver in the driving experience itself? We all know it's fast, but does it give us the sports car feeling that we hunger for? Hopefully these reviews that are now trickling out can say "yes" to this question. To me, so far so good with this video of him sliding around turns.
It's hard to make the car feel special when you see it everywhere. It's a car that's rooted in pleasing the typical American. In 5 years, I see myself picking up a used C7 or a used Cayman S as my next car. It will be intersting to see how that plays out.
It will be so fun to see a shootout of this car against the $100k'ers: Porsche 911, BMW M3, GTR, etc. I'm sure we will see it all soon enough.
07-25-2013, 12:28 PM
#20
Originally Posted by vader1' timestamp='1374769208' post='22686734
[quote name='QUIKAG' timestamp='1374766048' post='22686598']
I love everything about the C7, but the rear end is a bit awkward for me. But, I just had a thought. Maybe, it's the Corvette designer's way of giving the middle finger to all the cars the C7 Corvette is going to pass at the streets, tracks, and roadcourses around the world? Kind of a "Bye, bye Mr. Porsche, take a look at my ugly ass as I disappear into the horizon."
I love everything about the C7, but the rear end is a bit awkward for me. But, I just had a thought. Maybe, it's the Corvette designer's way of giving the middle finger to all the cars the C7 Corvette is going to pass at the streets, tracks, and roadcourses around the world?
Kind of a "Bye, bye Mr. Porsche, take a look at my ugly ass as I disappear into the horizon." While I am sure the C7 is a very fine car, I think the term "game changer" does not fit.
I might possibly fit into the target market for this car. Male, can afford one, like sports cars. But to me it is just the evolution of a Corvette, which is a car that never really appealed to me in the first place.
Summary: Don't really like Vettes, prefer Caymans
[/quote]
I get it will win over some, but the "bad boy" image has been turned up a big notch and that is an even bigger sticking point for some. I can pull up in a restaurant in a Cayman and it purrs through the parking lot, it is not going GLUG GLUG GLUG RUMBLE! if I give it a squirt of gas in the lot.
It is sort of like asking someone what kind of bike they prefer and some will say "Harley VRod", and others "Ducati". The two have a totally different style. My friend loves his VROD and the booming of the engine at idle that just draws attention that some don't want. The Ducati has the performance but can just glide by unnoticed if you want. The Harley simply can't unless you neuter the exhaust. It will win some over, but even checking more boxes still does not do it if the image is all wrong. For my buddy with a Vrod, this is right up his alley, but he has owned a Vette before.
The C6 was a big V8 ass kicker, and it did not dominate the market. This is an even bigger V8 ass kicker, but same formula with some improvements. I am not sure the major reason people did not buy C6's was just seats and tech. The C6 appealed to you and you bought one, they improved the Cayman but it does not change your preference, you still like the same style and want the new Vette. I like the style of the Cayman, they improved the Vette, and I still want a new Cayman. Our preference in style of car did not change by improvements in the other car.
I was reading the comments on the C&D article, and yeah there are people who like it but was surprised so many have the same reaction as I do. New Vette, nice, not my thing. Usually the comments on a new car first test are all fanboy hype.