Grand Sport option available two other times in the Corvette's history. The original Grand Sport was a track-only special with a 550 hp V8, and the 1996 version was the only Corvette to use the LT4 engine. So our biggest concern when we heard rumors of the return of the Corvette Grand Sport was that Chevrolet was not going to be able to deliver a car that lived up to the historic name. For the third edition Chevrolet reached into the Corvette part's bin and pulled out sort of a “best of” package for the standard Corvette.

This iteration of America’s favorite sports car becomes even more desirable by combining styling cues from the much more expensive Z06 and ZR-1 super cars with the availability of creature comforts like an automatic transmission or even a drop top convertible Corvette. The body is one of the main differences between the Grand Sport and the standard C6 is the car’s wide stance and flared fenders as well as a larger wheel and tire package and a set of 6 piston brake calipers up front and a pair of 4 piston clampers out back. The body incorporates an air intake in the hood, gills in the front fender and a small scoop in the rear quarter all in an affordable package. Join General Motors employees Harlan Charles, the Corvette Product Marketing Manager and Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter as they tell you a little more about their latest creation.

Continued after the jump with Launch Control video.

Launch control

A new feature for the Corvette lineup that is being introduced with the Grand Sport and will be available on all manual transmission equipped vehicles is launch control. The system determines the desired launch RPM and all the driver has to do is sidestep the clutch and the computer will then modulate torque 100 times per second in order to produce the most grip possible and improve acceleration. This allows the new C6s to go from 0 to 60 MPH in under 4 seconds and because the Corvette is a well balanced all around sports car it can still get and EPA estimated 26 MPG on the highway.