So we’ve already seen the new Corvette Stingray and we have already given you our take on what we think the Corvette Stingray Convertible will offer, so what’s left? Well, we still have yet to see or hear anything about the Corvette Stingray Z06. As we told you before, we highly doubt that GM would simply skip the Z06 this year. Rather, it is holding this release as its “Ace in the hole.”
We honestly think we’re in for something big and we’ve released a rendering of what we think it’ll look like. As for styling, we’ll see the usual additions, including staggered wheels to allow for more meat on the back end, front lower-lip spoiler, a set of ground effects down the side and brake-cooling ducts just aft of the rear wheels. On top of that, we’re willing to bet that GM chooses to black out the silver strikethrough in front grille, giving the front end a sportier look and less of a Jan-Brady-headgear look.
All of the aesthetics are well and good, but what’s under that hood? To be perfectly honest, we really have no idea. GM could totally ruin our Corvette high by dropping the same old 7.0-liter V-8 with 505 horsepower on tap. Sure, that is still a stout engine, but the C7 generation is all about change, right?
We’re leaning toward seeing the long-rumored 5.5-liter V-8 engine with a touch of boost via a supercharger or a pair of turbochargers. We would expect to see somewhere in the neighborhood of 525 to 550 horsepower from this type of engine.
Delivering the power to the rear wheel – car gods forbid Chevy from slapping AWD on a `Vette – will likely be a retuned version of the six-speed automated manual transmission found in the base model. Given the 2012 Z06 hits 60 mph in 3.9 seconds, GM is likely shooting for the 3.5-second mark with the Z06.
For now, however, this is all speculation, and we’ll bring you more official info as it is released. Stay tuned!
Image Note: The above image is a TopSpeed rendering of the Corvette Stingray Z06, not an official image
The upcoming Mercedes C63 AMG sedan has been caught testing many times, but the prototypes were heavily camouflaged and it was pretty difficult to imagine how the real car will look.
Today, based on those spy shots and with design elements inspired by the new E63 AMG, we have created a rendering that will help you get a pretty good idea of the C63 AMG’s final look.
The AMG version will be distinguished by bigger brakes, wider fenders, and a front bumper with bigger air intakes and, of course, the AMG quad exhaust pipes.
The future C63 AMG will be powered by the same engine as the previously announced AMG models. This engine will deliver a total of 550 horsepower at 5,500 rpm and a peak torque of 531 pound-feet delivered between 1,750 and 5,250 rpm. The engine will be mated to an AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT seven-speed sports transmission and we expect to see the same high-performance 4MATIC all-wheel-drive system as seen in the previous AMG models.
When Shelby announced that they were bringing two models to the 2013 Detroit Auto Show, a lot of us already penciled in that one of those models would be a custom-tuned Ford Mustang. The other one, however, was still subject to speculation with the front runner being some sort of derivative for Ford’s mighty sports hatch, the Focus ST.
True enough, those who thought it was the Focus ST were proven right when Shelby unveiled the Shelby Focus ST, a "budget-minded" performance vehicle for those who can’t afford the bigger and meaner Shelby Mustang.
Limited to only 500 units, the Shelby Focus ST is, as its name suggests, a souped-up Ford Focus ST that comes with a plethora of aesthetic and performance upgrades that’ll turn your already awesome sports hatch into one that has the stamp of approval from Shelby themselves.
Is the Shelby Focus ST all that it’s hyped up to be? Find out if it is - or isn’t - after the jump.
Okay, folks, the C7 Corvette is out and we have all had a good chance to see what it is all about. With its launch, the Corvette takes yet another turn in its iconic lifetime. This makes two significant shifts in its lifespan in just two generations, as the C6 generation brought about the first time the Corvette donned fixed headlights since the C1 generation, and now the C7 generation is arguably the first time the Corvette actually looks the part of a supercar.
Regardless of how cool a car is – trust us, the Corvette Stingray is dang cool – they all have their peaks and valleys, and since the Corvette Stingray is so important, its highs and lows can be rather dramatic. Well, we are going to have a quick look at our favorite and least favorite parts of the C7 Corvette in a pair of Top-5 lists.
What would land on your Top-5 favorite and least favorite on the Corvette Stingray?
So, we have seen the 2014 Corvette Stingray in all of its glory and learned all about how freaking awesome it’s going to be. One thing that Chevy is still keeping under wraps is a higher-performance variant of the `Vette Stingray, sans the Z51 Performance Package. What we’re talking about is the Z06 variant.
We all know that GM isn’t going to roll out the most powerful standard Corvette ever without rolling out a Z06 model. The silence, however, is rather eerie. GM made not even a mention of this model in any of its press releases or at the official debut. We are optimistic that this silence means that big things are in store for the Z06 package.
There is still one previously rumored engine that was that was originally pegged as the new Corvette engine, and that is the 5.5-liter V-8 engine. Chances are that this, plus a supercharger, could be the eventual engine to grace the engine compartment of the Corvette Stingray Z06. This is, of course, just us thinking and hoping out loud.
We’ll keep a close eye on everything Corvette related to see if any new leaks come out regarding a potential Z06 model. For now we can only speculate…
We all know that GM has a long-running issue with creativity in its lineups. Through the 1980s we saw some of the most uncreative vehicles and that continued through the 1990s and into the early-2000s. We also saw other issues that really showed the GM was running out of creative steam, like the use of the “Lumina” moniker simultaneously on two vehicles that were vastly different – sedan and minivan – and the changing of the Sunbird to the Sunfire.
Now we have the resurrection of a famous word in Corvette history, the “Stingray” moniker. The Original Sting Ray and Stingray monikers were and still are some of the most sought after models and to bring it to the modern era seems a bit of a disservice. Sure, this is the most modern and advanced Corvette ever, but it should be, given it is the newest model. That is not a good enough reason to exhume the Stingray name and slap in on the C7 generation.
Don’t get us wrong, the new Corvette has renewed our fading love affair with the Corvette model, but to slap an iconic name on it just seems a bit of a slight to the Corvette’s history. That would be like Chevy making a higher-output Caprice and slapping an “Impala SS” badge on it. We all know they would never… oh wait… never mind.
All Right, here we are just two days before the much-anticipated unveiling of the 2014 Corvette! We are about as excited as a 6-year-old kid on Christmas Eve, even though we are nearly certain that the leaked images we have seen are what the car looks like. Even if that’s the case, getting to learn all of the ins and outs of the car is enough to excite us.
So, as you know, we are checking out the top-25 Corvettes of all time and we already let you in on the bottom fifth of the list. Now we are set to let you in on numbers 19 through 15. Just like the bottom-fifth of the list, this one includes a few pace cars and we also get to see an extremely desirable model that also had a major design flaw that likely resulted in it being discontinued after only one year.
To find out which models landed on our list, click past the jump.
With the C7 Corvette release coming in just five days, we are going to take a look at the history of the Corvette and outline the top-25 of the six previous generations.
A little history on the Corvette… It debuted in 1953 with quite a whimper, as it came with an underpowered 235-cubic-inch six-cylinder engine that pumped out just 150 horsepower. It wasn’t just the lack of power that the original `Vette took lumps for, as it was dinged for its sloth-like 11.5-second 0-to-60 crawl, two-speed automatic transmission and astronomical-at-the-time $3,498 price tag.
It did, however, get high marks for its ability to handle the twist and its overall design.
Fortunately, the Corvette quickly gained momentum and turned into a model that every American sports car strived to be. The Ford Thunderbird is one model that was a direct result of the Corvette’s success, though Ford will never admit it. Another thing Ford will never admit is that its inability to adequately compete with the Corvette was the reasoning for the T-Bird slowly expanding into a massive coupe as it aged.
So, without further delay, click past the jump have a look at numbers 25 through 20 on our list.
Yesterday we saw the latest addition to the Dodge Dart lineup in the form of the new GT version and today we get to see what appears to be the first leaked image of the most awaited version — the SRT4. This version has been rumored ever since Dodge unveiled the standard Dart at the 2011 Detroit Auto Show.
All we had until now were rumors, but it appears that this is the final rendering of the SRT4 model that was posted online by a Chrysler employer. He also announced that the SRT4 model will be unveiled in March or April.
The upcoming Dart SRT4 is rumored to feature a turbocharged version of the 2.0-liter engine with its output raised to the 285-horsepower range. Additionally, the SRT4 will be distinguished from the rest of the lineup by a meaner and sportier appearance.
The Dodge Dart SRT4 is rumored to be priced at under $30k.
The next-generation 911 GT3 and 911 Turbo are waiting for their official unveiling, but unfortunately this won’t happen until March when the GT3 will be unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show, while the Turbo version will arrive a little bit later.
Fortunately for us, the two models were caught testing very hard on the Nürburgring track and, as you can hear in the video, both models sound pretty sweet. They both seem to take their beating pretty well, as they remain glued to the `Ring’s surface like true racecars.
As a reminder, the 911 GT3 is powered by a normally aspirated 3.8-liter flat-six engine with an output of 450 horsepower — a 15-horsepower bump over the current model. On the other hand in the 911 Turbo model’s engine delivers a total of 550 horsepower.
With the extra 100 horsepower, the 911 Turbo will be a little bit faster than the GT3, so for sure this is the most awaited model in the new 991 generation.
