{"id":27040,"date":"2021-03-18T09:48:43","date_gmt":"2021-03-18T13:48:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=27040"},"modified":"2021-03-18T09:48:43","modified_gmt":"2021-03-18T13:48:43","slug":"still-a-steal-mid-engine-corvette-price-rises-over-60000","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/03\/still-a-steal-mid-engine-corvette-price-rises-over-60000","title":{"rendered":"Still a steal: Mid-engine Corvette price rises over $60,000"},"content":{"rendered":"

Well, that didn\u2019t take long.<\/p>\n

Chevy has raised the mid-engine Corvette C8\u2019s price to over $60,000 for its second, 2021 model year. In keeping with Corvette\u2019s tradition as the world\u2019s most affordable supercar, the badge\u2019s first mid-engine effort debuted in 2020 at $59,995.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the 2020 Corvette Stingray goes on sale in the US, it will start at less than $60,000,\u201d said General Motors Co. President Mark Reuss at the July\u00a02019 unveiling of the first \u2018Vette with the engine behind the driver. The announcement was met by gasps from an audience of media, customers and Chevy dealers.<\/p>\n

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Even with the $1,000 bump, the C8 is a heckuva’ deal. Its closest peers in pricing are the 532-horsepower Audi R8 which starts at $145,895 \u2014 more than double the Corvette. The 573-horse Acura NSX boasts a hybrid V-6 powertrain and a starting price tag of $159,300. The cheapest mid-engine Ferrari, the 710-horsepower F8, starts at $275 grand.<\/p>\n

Even the cheapest mid-engine European offering \u2014 the smaller, $61,250 Porsche Cayman \u2014 is priced north of the C8. It\u2019s powered by a 300-horse, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine with half the cylinders (and thrills) of the \u2018Vette\u2019s ground-shaking V8. Comparably equipped with dual-clutch automatic transmission (the Corvette does not offer a manual), the Cayman starts at $66,130.<\/p>\n

The new base, 1LT price includes shipping fees. It\u00a0offers owners the most powerful base engine (495 horsepower) ever, leather interior, digital instrument and console displays, and a 0-60 mph time of just 2.9 seconds \u2014\u00a0on par with a $600,000 Lamborghini Aventador. Pound for dollar, the C8 is the best exotic car value on the planet.<\/p>\n

\u201cClearly, GM wanted bragging rights with a super car that delivered on performance and pricing. They got what they wanted,\u201d said ISeeCars executive auto analyst Karl Brauer, who owns a $500,000 Ford GT, the Blue Oval\u2019s mid-engine supercar. \u201cNow that the C8\u2019s established as a car that delivers bang for the buck they can get on with making a tidy profit, which is the goal of every automaker.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2020 model sold out in December, 2019 \u2014\u00a0before production began in February, 2020. Delayed by a United Auto Workers strike on GM, the C8 still delivered 21,626 units in the US \u2014\u00a0an increase over 2019 sales of 17,988 unites for the last-gen, front-engine Corvette. The price was a $3,000 hike over the C7.<\/p>\n

The C8’s exotic, mid-engine design was meant, in part, to appeal to a new generation of buyers with exotic, European supercars on their walls. Early indications are that plan is working: C8 has more than doubled Corvette’s growth with Gen X buyers (born after 1977), and two-thirds of buyers are new to Chevrolet.<\/p>\n

Given the C8\u2019s exotic technology, styling and performance \u2014\u00a0on par with European supercars costing many times more \u2014\u00a0the price was expected to climb over the $60k number.<\/p>\n

The $1,000 price hike also applies to the hard-top convertible version of the Corvette which now starts at $68,495. The\u00a0drop-top accounts for about\u00a040% of C8\u00a0sales.<\/p>\n

Most C8s sold over the past year included the Z51 performance package which adds $5,995 to the bottom line.<\/p>\n

The $60,995 base model, The Detroit News has reported, is just the beginning of a slew of expected C8 performance trims. Like past \u2018Vettes, expect Grand Sport, Z06, and ZR1 models \u2014\u00a0the latter priced north of $100,000. Also in the wings is an insane, range-topping, 1,000-horspower, hybrid model named Zora after the legendary\u00a01960s Corvette product manager, Zora Arkus-Duntov.<\/p>\n

Despite the Vette\u2019s relative affordability, its price today (adjusted for inflation) is nearly double that of the $4,252 1968 model, the first Corvette introduced with the Stingray badge.<\/p>\n

\u201cCars in general are more expensive today due to the increased costs of safety regulations, chassis materials, and electronic technologies,\u201d said Brauer. \u201cIn truth the new C8 is more than twice as advanced as the 1963 Stingray.\u201d<\/p>\n

The production supercar benefited from Corvette\u2019s racing team that developed the C8.R race car in parallel with the C8. The C8.R won the IMSA Weathertech championship in its maiden, 2020 campaign.<\/p>\n

The C8 will be sold on the other side of the pond for the first time this fall. And it won\u2019t be nearly as affordable as in the States. The starting price of the European Stingray will be $117,873 (\u20ac99,000 Euro) with cars reportedly available only in a range-topping 3LT trim with Z51 track package.<\/p>\n