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Thursday, January 17, 2013

STINGRAY RETURNS TO CORVETTE LINE-UP

2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
 
By Charles Renny, Autonet - An icon is set to become an icon.  The latest Corvette from Chevrolet (codenamed C7 to designate the seventh generation) delves back to the Halcyon days of Corvettes when Chevrolet wasn't in racing, but built America's only sports car.  The 1963 Stingray taught men of every age the meaning of lust, just as the 2014 Stingray has men of all ages fighting to get a photo of the car at the 2013 North American International Auto show in Detroit.

In its new form, the Stingray uses styling cues from previous generations so effectively that it may be all new yet hauntingly familiar.  The frame is an aluminum/magnesium mixture that provides superior strength as well as being lighter.  Carbon fibre panels and aluminum suspension components help keep the weight down. 

The result to the weight loss details and the installation of an all new 6.2 litre V8 that puts out 450 horsepower and 450 ft.-lb. of torque means that the "Ray" will get from 0 to 100 km/h in a touch under four seconds and pull lateral G forces of more than 1 G.  In addition, Chevrolet claims this is the most fuel efficient Corvette ever built.

If cruising isn't your thing and you want a track capable car instead of a boulevard cruiser, the Ferrari fighter version of the Stingray is known as the Z-51.

While the ordinary Stingray is full of advanced technologies, the Z-51 pushes the technologies to their limits.  The power steering is electric, as is the limited slip rear differential.

Part of the package is being able to adjust items such as these to provide better performance.

The Stingray will be built at the Corvette assembly plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky.  The plant has just under-gone a $131 million upgrade including approximately $52 million for a new body shop to manufacture the new aluminum frame "in house" for the first time.


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