It looks like the embargo on reviews of the Corvette C8 E-Ray has finally been lifted, and we’ve pretty much been watching all that we could all day long!
While the consensus among most reviewers is that it is stupidly fast, that was almost a given. It has a front wheel electric motor, and a big 6.2L LT2 V8 powering the rears. Even with just the V8, it’s a plenty fast car!
However, we’ve been combing through all the reviews to pick out 5 things that stand out to us, either as neat, crazy, inventive, or just outright “Huh?”
It Was The Only Way To Make The C8 All-Wheel-Drive
Facing facts, the Corvette C8 is already a tight fit to get all the mechanical and creature comfort bits in. It’s the reason it has a DCT instead of a stick! So, creating a mechanical linkage from the transaxle all the way to the front, and fitting in a transfer case differential to the front axle? It was never going to fit.
Enter hybridization. With the batteries taking up the transmission tunnel area, and the compact but powerful electric motor up front, it allows the C8 E-Ray to be run as front wheel drive only, rear wheel drive only, or all wheel drive. Without needing to create a mechanical link!
It Uses The Z06 Widebody Kit, But Not In The High Downforce Setup
Because of the immense power and absolutely ridiculous acceleration of the E-Ray, GM opted to use the much more aerodynamically active widebody kit that is featured on the Z06 to keep it more stable as the speeds enter into triple digits. However, as mentioned in the header, it uses the low-drag setup of the standard C8 instead of the high downforce solution from the Z06.
This is interesting because you would think that as the speeds get ridiculous, you want more of a hand shoving you down into the road. GM discovered that the widebody kit does that enough for the E-Ray, and instead opted for a higher top speed over more downforce, especially as the E-Ray accelerates like it’s been fired out of a railgun!
The E-Ray Sports An Entirely Redesigned Front Chassis Section
Where the frunk exists on the standard C8, the E-Ray carries its electric motor. Because of the enormous torque the motor gives, it needed to be mounted securely to the chassis, but the normal C8 did not have enough support beams and structures in place for it.
So, in essence, from the front bulkhead to the front splitter, there is an entirely new chassis support structure. The biggest change is that the shock towers needed to be raised so that the half-shafts from the motor could reach either front wheel, and because that compromised the chassis as well, it was simpler to just redesign and reinforce!
The E-Ray Is The First Corvette Designed With Snow & Winter Weather In Mind
If you look closely during the video reviews we’ll be linking below, you’ll see that the Corvette E-Ray comes with Michelin Pilot Sport tires. But, instead of the Cup 2 tires that you’d expect, they’re All Season 4+ ZP tires, meaning that GM is thinking about those who live in the Northern US and Canada that might want to take their Corvette out for a bit of snow drifting!
In all seriousness, seeing as the first official tease of the E-Ray was the front wheel digging into a snowy field and kicking it up to blast off the mudguard, it only makes sense. Much like how Audi and Subaru equip most of their cars with all seasons as standard to take advantage of the AWD, so too has GM. So, for those who’ve wanted to go play in the snow with a V8? GM has heard you!
The E-Ray Uses Blended Regenerative Braking & Brake-By-Wire
Technically called “E-Boost,” the brake pedal is not actually physically attached to the braking system. Instead, it uses brake-by-wire with the brake pedal attached to a load cell. It should also be mentioned that the Z06’s carbon ceramic brake package comes included as standard on the E-Ray.
What happens is that depending on the braking requested, the E-Ray will either invert the polarity of the hybrid, from a power unit to a generator, and use the electromagnetic field to slow the car, or will also apply any one of the four brakes, or all of them if the driver absolutely stands on the pedal with both feet. This keeps the hybrid battery pack charged during regular driving, and if you put the car into track mode, it acts like a Le Mans Hypercar does, by using the brakes in conjunction with regenerative braking at all times, and providing bursts of hybrid boost out of the corners.
While these are just five things that we noticed, there are about a hundred different little changes and tweaks done to make the E-Ray, as they say in the first review video down below, quite simply the fastest Corvette to enter production. Come on, 0 to 60 in 2.2 seconds? That is hypercar fast!
