The new mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette has been one of the most prominent new car releases in the USA in recent years. The “C8” variant is selling really well when compared to other competitors in the same category and price. A corvette just spends around 13.1 days in the dealership before being sold, and this proves the demand for the C8.
In February’s list of best-selling cars, the Chevrolet Corvette took over other coupe or sports cars, and even popular SUVs like the BMW X7. Let’s take a look at the latest news about the best cars and suvs, and why it’s selling so well.
What is the Chevrolet Corvette & How Does it Compare to Other Cars?
The Chevrolet Corvette is a mid-engine sports car and is either available as a coupe or a convertible. It is one of the best-performing cars in this segment and offers 0-60 MPH in just under 3 seconds. It has a V8 engine and a starting price of about $60,000.
Some of the similar cars that compete with the Chevy would be the Porsche 911, Audi R8, or the Chevy Camaro. One of the factors that make this car as popular as it is would be the price to performance ratio it offers. It is also much better equipped than the older Chevrolet cars.
The newer specifications include a few radical design changes and the inclusion of Magnetic Ride Control as an add-on that comes at $1,895. You also get a digital track tachometer display and other seat belt safety devices to get a complete tech upgrade.
Why is The Chevrolet Corvette Selling so Well?
In the past year, automobile manufacturers have been facing severe problems with production and sales because of the ongoing global chip shortage. Amidst all these problems, the Chevrolet Corvette has still pulled through and released one of the best cars in the market at competitive pricing.
The Corvette is one of the most serious performance-oriented cars manufactured in the USA, and it is no secret that people have been loving this combination of design and performance. The Chevrolet Corvette was initially designed to offer a better alternative to the European cars that were becoming popular.
Also, they have moved from the older rear-engine design to a mid-engine setup, which made it even more attractive to customers. There are several other factors as to what makes the Corvette such a great car with some of the key features listed below.
Chevrolet Corvette 2021 Features
Performance
The 2021 Chevrolet Corvette brings an excellent engine and overall power in its $60,000 price range. You get a 5.2-liter V-8 engine with a torque of 465 pound-feet, and 490 horsepower, delivering a top speed of 194 mph.
In terms of braking performance, there are 4 piston Brembo brakes (12.6 inches) on the 19-inch front wheels, with the rear having Brembo brakes (13.6 inches) on the 20-inch wheels. Some models have even larger wheels and brakes, like the Z51.
You get an 8-speed transmission with dual-clutch for optimized power delivery and low-ratio first gears for better torque. Subsequently, the close-ratio gears provide smooth direct shifts.
The Chevrolet Corvette comes with a rear-wheel drive, and has shifted to a 40/60 weight distribution instead of 50/50 to make up for the initial lost grip. You also get magnetic shock dampeners to adjust the firmness or softness of the drive.
Comfort and Reliability
The cockpit of the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette is very snug and well-designed. The seats are made of form-fitting material and offer good comfort on long rides.
The dashboard in the cockpit of the car is fully touchscreen and comes at a display size of 8 inches. There are also climate control buttons that are laid out near the dashboard. This may seem congested at first, but most customers love it after using it a few times.
You can fit up to 2 luggage bags in the front trunk, and an overall 12.6 cubic feet of space for storing your cargo. The same holds for both the coupe and the convertible models of the Corvette.
Safety and Fuel Efficiency
On the safety side, you get the traditional features like seat-belt reminders that can be turned off. Although it does lack some of the safety features found in competitors like standard driver assist and automatic emergency braking.
When the seat belt reminder is turned on, the car cannot be shifted out of park while the driver is unbuckled. For rear and side visibility, you get blind-spot monitors and rear cross-traffic alerts. The included rear camera also helps with the limited rear and side visibility.
Coming to the fuel efficiency, the Chevrolet Corvette offers similar performance to other sports cars with the V-8 engine, and offers about 15 mpg on city roads, 27 mpg on highways, and 19 mpg on combined regular driving. For a high-performance sports car, this is quite appreciable, as fuel efficiency is not the prime concern of this car.
There’s also the front-engine model of the Corvette that helps save fuel by turning off half of the engine cylinders while cruising to save fuel. But the new 2021 Corvette can achieve the same or even better efficiency because of key design differences. Other competitors like the 2020 Porsche 911 get a combined efficiency of about 20 mpg, and the 2020 Nissan GT-R offers a combined efficiency of 18 mpg.
Conclusion
Despite the ongoing issues like the global chip shortage, increase in the sale of second-hand cars, and several other factors, the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette is surpassing the sales amongst other competitors in the USA. Even with the ongoing supply issues, the Chevy has overtaken sales of SUVs while being a sports car, which is quite rare. The increased sales of the Corvette proves the commitment and trust that buyers have in General Motors.
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