One of the things we learned with Monday’s big reveal is that the next best Corvette will gain from 260-300 lbs., which means the convertible E-Ray will tip the scales at over 4000 lbs, and the Coupe is not too far behind. So not only do we have the first hybrid all-wheel-drive Corvette, but we also have the heaviest in its 70-year history.
Now the first argument is that this extra weight is well worth it, due to the extra 160 ponies that come with it. Another great point is how effectively it uses that extra hybrid horsepower, routing it entirely to the front wheels for AWD propulsion that enables the E-Ray to blast to a 10.5-second quarter mile.
So after first reflection I thought, well those 300 lbs aren’t so bad after all. Think of it like going to the gym and gaining muscle instead of fat, right? But then I recalled how much the C8 had gained over the C7, a whopping 279 lbs of nearly pure fat. Is this going to be a slippery slope?
If 4000 pounds become acceptable for America’s iconic sports car, what’s next? What happened to the days of the C6, when the engineers were able to put the Vette on a diet and tip the scales at just 3179 lbs., 67 less that the outgoing C5?
So as you can tell, I’m torn. How about you? I remember nearly exactly 2 decades ago when one of my letters got published in Autoweek. I had my brand new C5 Z06 and they had done an article on some heavy high-horsepower AMG model. The gist of my letter was I couldn’t imagine adding ten 100-pound dumbbells to my Z and tossing it around a track. Given how amazing the new E-Ray is this may sound ridiculous, but give me the light and nimble 405 hp C5 Z06, I want to fit in the tux I wore to prom.
I’d love to hear your thoughts, please join us on our Facebook page or scroll down to the comments section below. Douglas B.
