The Chevrolet Corvette (C7) is the seventh generation of the Corvette sports car manufactured by American automobile manufacturer Chevrolet from 2014 until 2019. The first C7 Corvettes were delivered in the third quarter of 2013.
Development and introduction
GM executives began planning the next-generation (C7) Corvette sports car in 2007. The car was originally planned for the 2011 model year, but was delayed. Mid-engine and rear-engine layouts had been considered, but the Front mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive platform was chosen to keep costs lower.
The lead exterior designer of the C7 Corvette was Hwasup Lee, whose team completed the design between 2010 and 2011. The design director for the C7 was Kirk Bennion and the design was approved by the division's design director, Tom Peters, in 2011.
The 2014 Corvette debuted on Sunday, January 13, 2013, in Detroit at the North American International Auto Show. Chevrolet also showed the new crossed flags logo for the Corvette.
While overall the C7 attempts to provide an evolutionary redesign to an iconic theme, the car's designers incorporated aggressive angular elements. The C7 received criticism for some of the more styled elements of the car. "The rear contains what will surely be the C7's most controversial styling elements. It's all creases and vents back there, with aggressive trapezoidal taillights similar to those found on the current Camaro and quadruple-barreled tailpipes lined up in a neat row in the center of the rear valance", wrote Jason Kavanagh for Edmunds. Functional aerodynamic aids are tacked on or cut into every body panel of the C7, often juxtaposed against sharp creases. This is a radical departure from the prior generations of Corvettes, whose styling had no spoiler, few body panel creases, and only semi-functional gills for front brake cooling. In addition, past Corvette models minimized the size of headlamps or even hid them altogether. The C7 reverses that minimalist styling language with intricately styled headlamps with integrated LED daytime running lights (DRL).
The C7's all-new LT1 6.2L Small Block V-8 engine develops and of torque. This comes with the performance exhaust package, which is already included in the Z51 Performance Package or the level-up model, the Grand Sport, but is very common to see the standalone performance exhaust package being paired up with the base model. Without the performance exhaust, the powertrain produces and of torque. With the performance exhaust, the car can accelerate from 0– in 3.7 seconds when paired with the eight-speed automatic gearbox. The C7's suspension consists of independent unequal-length double wishbones with transverse fiberglass mono-leaf springs and optional magnetorheological dampers, similar to its predecessor.
2014 model year
Production
Production and customer delivery of the 2014 Corvette Stingray Coupe began in September 2013. Corvette assembly plant tours in Bowling Green, Kentucky, began in October 2013. Production of the Stingray Convertible began at the end of 2013. The fifth generation of the small block engine used in the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray was built in GM's Tonawanda Engine Plant.
The first production 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible was sold in 2013 Barrett-Jackson Palm Beach to Hendrick Motorsports owner Rick Hendrick for US$1,000,000 in a Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer institute charity lot.
A month after the first 2014 Corvette Stingray, 485 vehicles had been delivered. Of these early orders, 38% included 7-speed manual transmission, and 75% included the Z51 Performance Package (54% also selected the magnetic ride suspension system).
Equipment
The 2014 Corvette features a carbon fiber hood and removable roof panel. Its fenders, doors, and rear quarter panels remain fiberglass composite. The C7 uses Aerogel, a material developed by NASA, to keep heat from the transmission tunnel from transferring into the cabin. The under-body panels are made of "carbon-nano" composite. The chassis is made of hydro-formed aluminum. The rear tail lights use indirect LED technology.