The Chevrolet Corvette has been around us for decades and it is particularly known for providing an exciting driving experience at a relatively affordable price. The car has always been able to satisfy its fanbase due to its innovative features that are a first for any of its kind. The latest generation is commonly called the C8 and it successfully carries on the legacy of surprising everyone with its chiseled exterior and an interior that looks more premium than the price tag would have suggested.
Chevy has made a good number of improvements underneath its skin that makes it a stunning track and road car simultaneously. The C8, on the whole, is by far the best Corvette ever created and its mid-engine layout further solidifies its position as the market leader in North America.
The exterior has all the signature attributes of a Corvette and yet it does not feel as if it has been overdesigned. Anyone can easily recognize it as a Corvette even from afar and the distinctiveness can be witnessed on all four sides. In between the prominent creases of the side profile are the air vents mounted on each side that feed air into the legendary 6.2L V8 engine, in fact, you’ll struggle to find any fake vents as all of them are put in place to serve a purpose.
The rear profile might look a bit small to integrate various design elements, but Chevy has done a great job of putting together each component including the aggressive taillights which in a way further accentuate the whole character of the car.
The same theme continues towards the interior as it has been carved out to suit the overall personality of the car. The sports seats and the entire dashboard wrapping around the driver give the driver the required confidence to explore the car more enthusiastically.
The C8 seriously deserves a big round of applause for the use of high-quality materials such as soft-touch plastics, Alcantara, and carbon fiber. The rich use of sophisticated technology even extends to the doors as they are operated by a button from the inside instead of a traditional door lever.
Now that we have covered the visual aspects, it is high time to discuss the best thing fitted in the C8, which is its mid-mounted 6.2L LT2 V8 powerplant that churns out a respectable 490-hp and 470 lb-ft of torque which in combination with the Z51 package is enough to catapult the car from 0-60 mph in 2.9 seconds.
The mid-mounted engine delivers the best balance and the Z51 package makes the C8 a complete performance package not just on the road but also on the track as well.
The 2021 model adds new exterior colors that include Silver flare metallic and Red mist metallic tintcoat, though both of these are an optional extra. The same is the case for full-length dual racing stripes that can now be optioned in Blue, Orange, Red, and Yellow. The three Stinger stripes come with a carbon contrast including carbon flash/edge Red, carbon flash/edge Yellow, and lastly the carbon flash/midnight Silver.
The changes are not just limited to the exterior, the interior also gets a cool racy Sky cool Gray/strike Yellow color combination that fits really well with the overall ambiance of the interior.
The Magnetic Ride Control system that only came with the Z51 package is now available without the package making C8 an absolute joy on any kind of surface. Last but certainly not the least, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto have been made a standard part of all the 2021 Corvettes.
The C8 Corvette comes both in the coupe and a convertible version, though, if you ask my personal opinion the latter looks much better. The Z51 package adds a vast array of performance add-ons such as performance exhaust, track-focused dampers, ESD, and beefier Brembo brakes at a meager price increase of $5000.
A total of three versions available for the Corvette C8 are 1LT, 2LT & 3LT. The 1LT is a relatively basic version and you'll have to move up the versions if you want more amenities such as heated steering, heads-up display, premium sound system, etc. On the whole, the Chevy Corvette is a complete package, but the only missing feature for some would be a manual transmission which is the go-to choice of any enthusiast.
