Introduced at the 1997 Detroit Motor Show, it was noticeably shorter than its predecessor because General Motors was looking for European sales. So the traditional American look, with substantial overhangs, front and rear was toned down. Reassuringly, under the bonnet is a big V8. It's a pushrod unit but an aluminium one and this small block 5.7 litre Chevrolet engine develops a useful 339bhp endowing the car with top speed of over 170mph (274km/h).
As ever, the chassis is a robust tubular-steel affair with all round independent suspension and unusally, transverse leaf springs. They are made of a composite material rather than metal. This is a well established Corvette feature while the rear-mounted six-speed manual gearbox is inherited from the fith generation predecessor. The configuration gives it a disirable 50/50 balance to the benefit of its roadholdings. |
