Several alleged reveal dates for the eighth-generation “C8” Chevrolet Corvette have come and gone, and a new report claims that this has been due to design problems delaying the new model’s launch. These complications have apparently been so major, in fact, they’re causing damage to the car’s frame and glass engine cover due to too much power for the chassis.
Rumors claimed that the C8 was scheduled for launch at Detroit’s North American International Auto Show in January, then the Geneva Motor Show in March, both of which have come to pass without a new Corvette. Citing “well-placed sources,” Hagerty alleges that General Motors missed these deadlines due to shortcomings with a new standardized, global GM electrical system, one in which engineers are reportedly still refining. This system is said to incorporate more than 100 interlinked computers on its Computer Area Network (CAN) bus. Hagerty‘s report corroborates rumors from December that alleged the C8 would be delayed six months due to electrical gremlins.
Problems are allegedly not limited to those digital, but also those mechanical. Prototypes fitted with twin-turbo V-8s producing between 900 and 1,000 horsepower have reportedly suffered from structural distortion so severe that the engine compartment’s glass hatch was breaking. These are in line with previous rumors which claimed that the C8 will use a twin-turbo V-8 to achieve hypercar-like performance, with acceleration so “frightening” that GM has supposedly consulted with lawyers about the potential risk of selling something so fast.
One last nondescript problem remained, described only as a butting of heads between the design and engineering teams, though details were unspecified. With multiple sources now reporting similar reasons for why we have yet to see the C8 Corvette, the other claims made in each of these rumors are looking more credible, especially the one that outlined the Corvette becoming a standalone brand, similar to how Volkswagen spun off the Jetta name into its own brand in China. Maybe GM thinks the same strategy will work on sports car-buying Americans.
Source: Read Full Article