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C8 Mid Engine

Mid-Engine C8 On the Way?????
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Mid-Engine C8 On the Way?????

Could Ed Welburn be giving viewers of Velocity’s Americarna show a sneak peak at the 2016 Chevrolet Camaro and the rumored mid-engine Corvette Zora ZR1?Or is it just wishful thinking?

Americarna host Ray Evernham recently toured GM’s design facilities with Welburn, the Global Vice President of Design, and definitely got an eye full of “candy.”On the show, we get a behind-the-scenes look at the inner sanctuary of GM design, where art truly meets science. Welburn tells us that GM was first to use clay to design cars in the 1920s, and they still do today, only now computerized equipment helps carve out the rough design in clay before turning over the fine tuning to talented designers with their hand-held tools.

We meet Christine Park, Lead Designer, Chevrolet Design Studio, who reveals to Evernham that she is currently working on a Chevrolet sports car concept car.Was the Mid-Engine Corvette Zora ZR1 Intentionally Leaked by GM?On the computer screens where she is toiling are images of what could be future Chevrolets that surely were placed there on purpose by management, wouldn’t you think?

On her main screen, we see a car that would be a pretty nice version of the upcoming second generation of the new 2016 Camaro, and in the background is another image of a cool looking car that looks to us like it could well be the mid-engined Corvette rumored for years.Was the Mid-Engine Corvette Zora ZR1 Intentionally Leaked by GM?We’re sure Welburn and his team will get a chuckle out of all this speculation about the images they chose to display. For all we know, they might just be rejects from a stack of hundreds. On the other hand, though, could the designers just be trying to get a clandestine feel for public sentiment without laying all their cards on the table?Only time will tell, but if these images turn out to indeed be future Chevrolet sports cars, we’d sure like to be first in line to buy one!Would the artist that rendered this C8 Corvette Zora ZR1 please set forward!

Because your render of the rumored mid-engine Corvette is one of the best we’ve seen yet. We found this posted on Facebook and seaching BUZZART has led us nowhere, at least when it comes to automotive designs, so if you’re out there, let us know!The rendered C8 Corvette is part of a trio of images, first showing the C7 Corvette Stingray and then evolving into what the next generation Corvette might look like in a mid-engine configuration.There has been talk of Corvette going to a mid-engine design since the 1960s. And while the rumors and concepts have come and gone, for whatever reason, it seems like now is the perfect time to make the jump from concept to production a reality.Related Story:Bob Lutz Recounts Early Work on the Mid Engine Zora ZR1 Corvette ProgramOur hope, should Chevrolet really decide to pull the trigger, is to see the Corvette line evolve into two platforms. The first and still the most popular (at least in terms of sales) would be the traditional front engine/rear wheel drive design that is for the everyman. A car that continues to kick German and Italian ass and yet remains an affordable daily driver. After all, in 62 years the Corvette team has gotten pretty good at delivering such a car and with sales of the C7 back over 30,000 cars/year for the last two years, there is no reason to end that run.The second platform is all about red meat. A mid-engine Corvette platform that allows the team to break free from the the ‘rules’ of traditional Corvette design and take bow-tie performance to the next level. Exotic materials, a different engine platform and the ability to take on all comers – from Europe to Dearborn – without excuses.After the debut of the seventh generation Corvette Stingray back in 2013 along with the Corvette Z06 that bowed a year later, the automotive press has been pretty excited about the prospect that the next generation Corvette may be produced featuring a mid engine layout. Following a sighting of a possible mid-engine mule running at the Milford Proving Grounds, prospects do indeed seem higher for a new kind of Corvette – something that Zora Arkus-Duntov always wanted to pursue but was always foiled by the GM bean counters.But the stars may finally be aligned for the current Chief Engineer of the Corvette Tadge Juechter who has shown a penchent for being able to continually raise the bow-tie’s performance bar. Not only would a top of the line (or King of the Hill) mid-engine Corvette finally get to compete against Europe’s best sports cars, but the announcement that Ford is bringing back the GT sports car should be just the impetus that moves this rumor to reality.Some of the automotive magazines have been more than happy to show off what they think a C8 Corvette may look like. After all, putting a “next generation” Corvette on the cover does sell magazines. Joining the frenzy now is Automobile Magazine which shows a mid-engine Corvette with styling cues that mostly come from the C7 Stingray/Z06.Overall it looks pretty good but we’re not sure why they put the vents on the hood which will become the trunk should the car be built. And as Tadge asks back when he is asked about a mid-engine Corvette – “would you be happy with less trunk space?”The rumored due-date for the C7/C8 mid-engine Corvette has been said to be 2017 which we find to be very aggressive time frame for the development of a brand new sports car with a completely different powertrain layout. However, its been said by several former insiders including “Maximum” Bob Lutz that some of the engineering for a mid-engine prototype was done prior to bankruptcy so perhaps it can be done.In the meantime, we’ll continue to watch the process and debate the prospects of a new mid-engine Corvette that currently carries the well-deserved moniker of the Zora ZR1 Corvette.Check out Automobile Magazine for their two complete renders of the next Corvette and let us know what you think in our comments section below or on Twitter and Facebook.

https://youtu.be/v7SZ4XAuBs@Habsdasedr

The first and still the most popular (at least in terms of sales) would be the traditional front engine/rear wheel drive design that is for the everyman. A car that continues to kick German and Italian ass and yet remains an affordable daily driver. After all, in 62 years the Corvette team has gotten pretty good at delivering such a car and with sales of the C7 back over 30,000 cars/year for the last two years, there is no reason to end that run.The second platform is all about red meat. A mid-engine Corvette platform that allows the team to break free from the the ‘rules’ of traditional Corvette design and take bow-tie performance to the next level. Exotic materials, a different engine platform and the ability to take on all comers – from Europe to Dearborn – without excuses.After the debut of the seventh generation Corvette Stingray back in 2013 along with the Corvette Z06 that bowed a year later, the automotive press has been pretty excited about the prospect that the next generation Corvette may be produced featuring a mid engine layout. Following a sighting of a possible mid-engine mule running at the Milford Proving Grounds, prospects do indeed seem higher for a new kind of Corvette – something that Zora Arkus-Duntov always wanted to pursue but was always foiled by the GM bean counters.But the stars may finally be aligned for the current Chief Engineer of the Corvette Tadge Juechter who has shown a penchent for being able to continually raise the bow-tie’s performance bar. Not only would a top of the line (or King of the Hill) mid-engine Corvette finally get to compete against Europe’s best sports cars, but the announcement that Ford is bringing back the GT sports car should be just the impetus that moves this rumor to reality.Some of the automotive magazines have been more than happy to show off what they think a C8 Corvette may look like. After all, putting a “next generation” Corvette on the cover does sell magazines. Joining the frenzy now is Automobile Magazine which shows a mid-engine Corvette with styling cues that mostly come from the C7 Stingray/Z06.Overall it looks pretty good but we’re not sure why they put the vents on the hood which will become the trunk should the car be built. And as Tadge asks back when he is asked about a mid-engine Corvette – “would you be happy with less trunk space?”The rumored due-date for the C7/C8 mid-engine Corvette has been said to be 2017 which we find to be very aggressive time frame for the development of a brand new sports car with a completely different powertrain layout. However, its been said by several former insiders including “Maximum” Bob Lutz that some of the engineering for a mid-engine prototype was done prior to bankruptcy so perhaps it can be done.In the meantime, we’ll continue to watch the process and debate the prospects of a new mid-engine Corvette that currently carries the well-deserved moniker of the Zora ZR1 Corvette.Check out Automobile Magazine for their two complete renders of the next Corvette and let us know what you think in our comments section below or on Twitter and Facebook.

https://youtu.be/v7SZ4XAuBsQ
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