Launched in April 2019, the eighth-generation Corvette is now due to go hybrid. The name "E-Ray" was trademarked back in 2015, but it took the company more than six years to start testing the real deal. Starting October 2021 we spotted all kind of E-Ray prototypes both on the streets and outside the famous Nurburgring track. Of course, this intense testing is not uneventful: just recently an E-Ray prototype testing somewhere in Spain burnt to the ground after the engine bay caught fire. It seems that Chevrolet forgotten about this misfortune, as it took not one, but three Corvette E-Ray prototypes for some testing at the Nurburgring track.

Hybrid Corvette E-Ray on the Track

While the three E-Ray cars are doing what they were built to do, go fast, we also got to hear how loud the V-8 engine actually is. For sure its competitors from Lamborghini and Ferrari will have many reasons to worry, especially since the E-Ray will be sold for a much cheaper price.

The next E-Ray will be powered by the same 6.2-liter V-8 engine as the regular C8 Corvette but assisted by a couple of electric motors mounted on the front axle. Just like in the standard Vette the V-8 will deliver a total of 495 horsepower, while the electric motor will add another 115 horsepower. With a combined output of 600 horsepower, the E-Ray will sit in between the C8 Stingray - 495 horsepower - and the high-performance Z06 rated at 670 horsepower. This system will not only help the E-Ray to be very fast - with the sprint from 0 to 60 mph rumored to happen in about 2.6 seconds - but it will also make the model the first Corvette in the name’s history with an all-wheel drive system.

The E-Ray is not the only surprise Chevrolet is preparing for us. We are also waiting for the ZR1, which should arrive in 2024 with about 850 horsepower under the hood and a more powerful model rumored to be called "Zora." It should deliver around 1,000 horsepower and will arrive in 2025. Until then, the E-Ray should be unveiled sometime in 2023, with sales to begin later in 2024 in both two-door coupe (with a removable hard top panel) and hard-top convertible body styles. Judging by how the Corvette E-Ray sounds, we can only imagine how loud the future ZR1 and Zora will be!