The next model of the mid-engine Chevy Corvette is about to break cover. It will break new ground as well.
Chevrolet teased its Corvette E-Ray on Instagram Tuesday ahead of the car’s reveal on Jan. 17. That date marks the 70th anniversary — to the day — that the first Corvette was introduced to the world. The Harley Earl-designed, 1953-model ‘Vette was the first mass-produced, fiberglass-bodied sports car in the U.S.
Clearly GM thinks the E-Ray is a game changer as well. It will be the first electrified Corvette as the iconic supercar moves toward an all-electric future.
“After 70 years, we’re introducing one like none. 01.17.23. #Corvette,” reads the Instagram post. The teaser video shows a blue Corvette drifting on ice, signaling the E-Ray will be all-wheel-drive with an electric motor turning the front wheels and a big V-8 driving the rears. The car lets out a fierce growl in the video signaling its gas-hybrid power. “ONE LIKE NONE,” scrolls at the end of the clip.
GM insiders have told The Detroit News that electrifying the Corvette was one of the reasons that the eight-generation sports car was engineered with a mid-engine layout for the first time in its 70-year history. With the engine amidships, the front is available to house an electric motor.
Chevy’s teaser comes nine months after the brand teased an electrified Corvette winter-testing in camouflage on YouTube. And it confirms a leak of the E-Ray’s configurator from the Chevrolet.com website in December. The leaked web pages showed the E-Ray with a wide-body version of the C8 similar to the 2023 Z06, the first performance model of the C8.
While GM did not confirm the model at the time, it issued a statement to Corvette Blogger (which broke the news) saying that it “looks like the holidays came early for a few astute Corvette fans. Stay tuned for more.”
The E-Ray is one of at least five different models coming from the eighth-gen Corvette.
GM President Mark Reuss has consistently teased new variants. Last April, he teased the E-Ray and a next-generation, fully-electric version of the Corvette on LinkedIn.
“This morning I sat down with Phil LeBeau of CNBC and finally answered the question I’ve been asked countless times,” said Reuss. “Yes, in addition to the amazing new Chevrolet Corvette Z06 and other gas-powered variants coming, we will offer an electrified and a fully electric, Ultium-based Corvette in the future. In fact, we will offer an electrified Corvette as early as next year.”
That time is nearly here for the electrified E-Ray (the Ultium-based ‘Vette will likely be the ninth-gen car), which seems aimed at an all-season customer as a grand touring (not hard-core performance) model. The Instagram teaser shows the driver selecting a STEALTH mode for quiet driving.
But the base Corvette Stingray, Z06, and E-Ray are not the end of the story. As The Detroit News first reported in April 2020, the Corvette also has two more performance variants in the wings: a ZR1 beast as well as an over-the-top, Porsche-roasting, 1,000-horsepower, Zora hypercar.
Reuss confirmed the latter two at last November’s GM Investor Day, though he did not drop model names. While the E-Ray is expected to carry the Stingray’s 6.2-liter LT2 V-8 engine in its hybrid package, the ZR1 and Zora are expected to house an insane twin-turbocharged version of the high-revving, normally-aspirated, 5.5-liter LT6 V-8 found in the Z06. At 670 horsepower, the Z06 is already the highest-output, normally-aspirated engine conceived.
Apparently referring to Zora, Reuss said at Investor Day that “the C8 at the very top of the line (would be) something you won’t be able to imagine from a performance standpoint. . . . We’ll put the world on notice with this car, it’s our platform of excellence.”
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.