Chevrolet News:An Electrified and All-Wheel Drive Corvette Appears for Corvette's 70th Birthday

[Drew Dowdell]

  

70 years ago today, the first Corvette debuted at Motorama in New York City, so for the 70th birthday of the Corvette, Chevy unveiled the 2024 Corvette E-Ray, an all-wheel drive hybrid capable of 0-60 in just 2.5 seconds.

The E-Ray is billed as an all-season Corvette, so naturally, it is available in a removable roof coupe or hardtop convertible configuration.  The eAWD is two separate power trains in one car, naturally aspirated V8 in the rear and electric driving the front, a first for the sports car segment.  The small block V-8 produces 495 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque for the rear wheels, while the electric motor up front contributes an additional 160 horsepower and 125 lb-ft of torque. When called for, the combined powertrains produce 655 horsepower, making the E-Ray the fastest production Corvette ever made, clocking through the quarter-mile at 10.5 seconds.  Power is stored in a small 1.9 kWh battery pack sandwiched between the seats. (For reference, the original 1997 Prius had a 1.78 kWh battery.)

The two power systems are entirely independent. All battery charging comes from the regenerative energy from coasting and braking during normal driving.
In making the Corvette a hybrid, Chevy has leaned heavily more on the performance improvement side of the spectrum over fuel economy. The Corvette can maintain electric driving up to 45 mph when placed in “Stealth Mode”, though the range for that only 5 miles. Additionally, the car can lean on the electric motors to keep the active-fuel-management V8 in 4-cylinder mode for more extended periods.

There are six available driver modes, Tour, Sport, Track, Weather, My Mode, and Z-Mode.  Additionally, there is a Charge+ feature to tell the car to focus on recharging the battery.
Coming in with a base MSRP of $104,295, the E-Ray gains some additional features above and beyond the eAWD hybrid system. These features include:

• New lightweight lithium-ion 12-volt battery that supports the LT2 V-8 engine’s stop/start functionality
• Standard Brembo Carbon Ceramic brake system for optimal braking performance
• Standard Magnetic Ride Control 4.0 with three distinct suspension settings
• Staggered 20- and 21-inch wheels with Michelin Pilot Sport all-season tires. Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer tires2 are available with an optional performance package
• Low, wide stance with crafted body styling that is 3.6 inches wider overall than Stingray
• Visceral sound experience that embodies the car’s dominating presence. The electric front motor works in harmony with the LT2 engine to create an invigorating sound
• Enhanced roster of driver assistance technologies (shared with all 2024 Corvette models), including Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning3, Forward Collision Alert and Automatic Emergency Braking.
• Four aluminum wheel finishes
• Fourteen exterior color choices — including new for 2024 Riptide Blue, Seawolf Gray and Cacti
• An E-Ray-exclusive body-length stripe package in Electric Blue
• Standard carbon flash badging
• Available black exhaust tips and bright badging
• Available carbon fiber ground effects
• Optional carbon fiber wheels in carbon flash, visible carbon fiber finish or visible carbon fiber with a red stripe

The E-Ray offers seven interior colors, including an all-new Artemis Dipped interior with deep green tones, debuting on the E-Ray, but available on all 2024 Corvettes.

The 2024 Corvette E-Ray goes on sale in late 2023 and is being produced at Corvette’s traditional home in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Performance and Specifications on Page 2

 

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PERFORMANCE

0-60 mph:	2.5 seconds (approx.)
Quarter-mile:	10.5 @ 130 mph (209 km/h) (approx.)
Max Lateral G Force:	1.1g

ENGINE

Type:	LT2 6.2L V-8 VVT with direct injection and Active Fuel Management (cylinder deactivation) and Stop/Start
Bore & stroke (in. / mm):	4.06 x 3.62 / 103.25 x 92
Block Material:	A319-T7 cast aluminum with cast-in iron cylinder liners and nodular main bearing caps
Oiling System:	Dry sump-type (7.5-qt. capacity); includes oil-spray piston cooling
Oil Type:	Dexos 2 0W40 synthetic
Cylinder Head Material:	319-T7 cast aluminum
Combustion Chamber Volume:	59cc
Compression Ratio:	11.5:1
Valvetrain:	Overhead valve, two valves per cylinder; dual-equal variable valve timing
Valve Size (in. / mm):	2.13 / 54 hollow (intake) & 1.59 / 40.4 sodium filled (exhaust)
Fuel Delivery:	Direct injection with Active Fuel Management: Max pressure: 2,900 psi (20 Mpa / 200 bar)
Firing Order:	1-8-7-2-6-5-4-3 (all cylinders); 1-7-6-4 (with deactivation)
Throttle Body:	87mm single bore (electronic)
ECU:	GM E99 (32-bit processing)
Horsepower (hp / kW):	495 / 369 @ 6450 rpm
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm):	470 / 637 @ 5150 rpm

 

TRANSMISSION & AXLE

Type:

MLH 8-speed dual clutch (DCT)

 

ELECTRIFICATION SYSTEM

Type:	Single motor and gearset
Motor:	Permanent magnetic drive motor
Power:	160 hp / 120 kW
Torque (lb.-ft. / Nm):	125 / 165 @ motor
Battery Type:	Lithium-ion
Energy:	1.9 kWh
Combined Power (with engine):	655 hp / 481 kW

 

CHASSIS & SUSPENSION

Front Suspension:	FE5 Short/long arm (SLA) double wishbone, forged aluminum upper and cast aluminum L-shape lower control arms; monotube shock absorbers; Magnetic Selective Ride Control 4.0. Adjustable front lift with memory is available
Rear Suspension:	FE5 Short/long arm (SLA) double wishbone, forged aluminum upper and cast aluminum L-shape lower control arms; direct-acting stabilizer bar; monotube shock absorbers; Magnetic Selective Ride Control 4.0
Steering Type:	Variable-ratio rack-and-pinion with electric power assist; includes Active Steer Stops with Magnetic Ride Control 4.0
Steering ratio:	15.7:1
Turning Circle (ft. / m):	36.4 / 11.1
Brake Type:	Front and rear eBoost-assisted carbon ceramic discs with Brembo six-piston/monobloc front calipers and four-piston/monobloc rear calipers
Brake Rotor Size (in. / mm):	Front: 15.7 x 1.5  / 398 x 38 Rear: 15.4 x 1.3 / 391 x 34
Wheel Size:	Front: 20-inch x 10-inch (w/5 x 120mm bolt pattern) Rear: 21-inch x 13-inch (w/5 x 120mm bolt pattern)
Tire Size:	Front: 275/30ZR20 Rear: 345/25ZR21

 

EXTERIOR DIMENSIONS

Wheelbase (in. / mm):	107.2 / 2722
Overall Length (in. / mm):	184.6 / 4699
Overall Width (in. / mm):	79.7 / 2025
Overall Height (in. / mm):	48.6 / 1235
Track (in. / mm):	Front: 66.3 / 1685 Rear: 66.1 / 1678

 

INTERIOR DIMENSIONS

Headroom (in. / mm):	37.9 / 962
Legroom (in. / mm):	42.8 / 1087
Shoulder Room (in. / mm):	54.4 / 1382
Hip Room (in. / mm):	52 / 1321

 

WEIGHTS & CAPACITIES

Dry Weight (lb. / kg):	3774 / 1712 (coupe) 3856 / 1749 (convertible)
Cargo Volume (cu. ft. / L):	12.5 / 355

 

FUEL TANK CAPACITY (approx.)

18.5 gal. / 70 liters

 

 

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[David]

Love the Green they chose for the Convertible Vet. Be cool to play with an actual configurator once it is up and online to see what all the options are.

[surreal1272]

Well hell. The next step words an EV only Vette is finally here. Adding AWD to this setup is going to make it a beat on the track! I want to see some raw numbers on this one.

[surreal1272]

44 minutes ago, surreal1272 said:

Well hell. The next step words an EV only Vette is finally here. Adding AWD to this setup is going to make it a beat on the track! I want to see some raw numbers on this one.

Correction: That should read "Well hell. The next step towards an EV only Vette is finally here."

[Drew Dowdell]

Updated the article to show that the range in Stealth Mode is 5 miles.

[David]

@surreal1272 Going to be a hoot to see how this does against the Italian cars and on the German Track as well as other tracks. I expect this to be class leading compared to all others. 

Course we already know that someone will say that other brands cars are RWD so you cannot compare it to them since it is AWD. LOL future goal post moving predicted. 😝

[David]

Cool, it will have a reduced size, lite weight Lithium-ion battery to handle start/stop functionality.

For those that fit in the car, it should be a hoot to drive! 

[regfootball]

finally, an all wheel drive Corvette.

Now, can we get an All wheel drive Camaro?  (I'd prefer the CT4 blackwing V6 + all wheel drive for that package)

[smk4565]

I only read the main details but I like this.  AWD hybrid is always a plus.  And I wonder if they wouldn’t be well served to make all Corvettes hybrid in the coming years maybe post 2025 and you could do a turbo 4 in back with this electric motor up front and that would still make the power of the current V8 but get them much more mpg and help on the CAFE and emissions side.

[surreal1272]

31 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

I only read the main details but I like this.  AWD hybrid is always a plus.  And I wonder if they wouldn’t be well served to make all Corvettes hybrid in the coming years maybe post 2025 and you could do a turbo 4 in back with this electric motor up front and that would still make the power of the current V8 but get them much more mpg and help on the CAFE and emissions side.

You were doing fine until you mentioned "turbo 4". Full stop on that silliness. I want you to pay special attention to the following statement made by an actual Corvette engineer.

 

"Why isn't there an electric motor somewhere in the rear of the car? There simply isn't enough room between the engine and transmission, and the team wasn't about to go down to a V-6, says chief engineer Josh Holder."

 

 

 

Edited January 18 by surreal1272

[smk4565]

57 minutes ago, surreal1272 said:

You were doing fine until you mentioned "turbo 4". Full stop on that silliness. I want you to pay special attention to the following statement made by an actual Corvette engineer.

 

"Why isn't there an electric motor somewhere in the rear of the car? There simply isn't enough room between the engine and transmission, and the team wasn't about to go down to a V-6, says chief engineer Josh Holder."

 

 

 

I assume they are just going to stick with the V8 until ICE is killed off, maybe GM can make up their CAFE and emissions requirements elsewhere and doesn't care what the Corvette does.  But it is possible to make a 4-cylinder hybrid that makes more horsepower and torque than this V8 hybrid, because it is has already been done.  But if they need to get higher MPG out of the Corvette, or want to sell in other countries that have displacement taxes, they could easily replace the base 6.2 V8 with a 2.7T they have in house, add the same electric motor and end up with  around 500 hp/500 lb-ft.  Then you get AWD hybrids on every model, add it to the Z06 even.

[oldshurst442]

1 hour ago, smk4565 said:

maybe post 2025 and you could do a turbo 4 in back with this electric motor up front and that would still

 

That is such a Mercedes thing to do.  Not saying its right or wrong. Just saying Mercedes has done this before. 

Howevere, àwhat I find humurous is...if Corvette actually done something like this, the haters of American cars, much like yourself, would  non-stop denounce such a move.   

I would like to know, why on earth would Corvette do such a move?   General Motors already said that they will  go all electric by 2030.   For EPA purposes?   Corvette is a low volume seller by GM standards and its a sports car therefore iuts a niche vehicle. The few V8s sold as compared to the amount of EVs sold by GM will not affect EPA numbers for GM.   There is absolutely no reason to eliminate the V8 from the Corvette before the Corvette becomes fully electric.  

And a little detail you have missed which makes your 4 cylinder route kinda moot...because the electric motor fills in when the ICE is put into 4 cylinder cut-off mode... 

Technology being put to good use to keep on V8ing along until the internal combustion engine is completely gone...

  I guess it was more important for Mercedes to toot that they have the most powerful 4 cylinder?   I guess that is one way of doing it.   I guess you will tell me that Mercedes' way is better because its your favorite brand going in that direction...   Whatever...  THIS is GM's way.    You either accept it or you dont.   But the thing is, GM doesnt need to sacrifice their V8 in the Corvette.  Its a solution that they favour...   Mercedes had its reasons to drop the V8s in their AMGs and go 4 cylinder.  Its a solution THEY favoured.   

https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a42524902/corvette-e-ray/

The hybrid system also works in tandem with Active Fuel Management by torque-filling in four-cylinder mode, which limits full-engine startups. GM’s suite of driver assistance technologies is shared across the Corvette lineup.

 

[smk4565]

32 minutes ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

That is such a Mercedes thing to do.  Not saying its right or wrong. Just saying Mercedes has done this before. 

Howevere, àwhat I find humurous is...if Corvette actually done something like this, the haters of American cars, much like yourself, would  non-stop denounce such a move.   

I would like to know, why on earth would Corvette do such a move?   General Motors already said that they will  go all electric by 2030.   For EPA purposes?   Corvette is a low volume seller by GM standards and its a sports car therefore iuts a niche vehicle. The few V8s sold as compared to the amount of EVs sold by GM will not affect EPA numbers for GM.   There is absolutely no reason to eliminate the V8 from the Corvette before the Corvette becomes fully electric.  

And a little detail you have missed which makes your 4 cylinder route kinda moot...because the electric motor fills in when the ICE is put into 4 cylinder cut-off mode... 

Technology being put to good use to keep on V8ing along until the internal combustion engine is completely gone...

  I guess it was more important for Mercedes to toot that they have the most powerful 4 cylinder?   I guess that is one way of doing it.   I guess you will tell me that Mercedes' way is better because its your favorite brand going in that direction...   Whatever...  THIS is GM's way.    You either accept it or you dont.   But the thing is, GM doesnt need to sacrifice their V8 in the Corvette.  Its a solution that they favour...   Mercedes had its reasons to drop the V8s in their AMGs and go 4 cylinder.  Its a solution THEY favoured.   

https://www.roadandtrack.com/news/a42524902/corvette-e-ray/

The hybrid system also works in tandem with Active Fuel Management by torque-filling in four-cylinder mode, which limits full-engine startups. GM’s suite of driver assistance technologies is shared across the Corvette lineup.

 

If the C8 is the last Corvette with an ICE power plant then they might as well just continue on with the V8.  And I never said get rid of the V8, I said do a 4 cylinder hybrid in the base car, and still do the V8 Z06 and V8 E-ray.  

Although in thinking about it, while I like the V8 hybrid idea, this is like a $30k price premium to add the hybrid, which seems like a lot.

[oldshurst442]

34 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

this is like a $30k price premium to add the hybrid, which seems like a lot.

 

I wholeheartedly agree with this.  Not because the E-Ray is too much per se.   Its the tech that eats the affordability.  There is too  much of a gap bewteen the base C8 and not enough gap from the Z06.   Base price for the Stingray is $60 000.   The Z06 starts at $106 000.  The E-Ray starts at $104 000.    

[surreal1272]

2 hours ago, smk4565 said:

I assume they are just going to stick with the V8 until ICE is killed off, maybe GM can make up their CAFE and emissions requirements elsewhere and doesn't care what the Corvette does.  But it is possible to make a 4-cylinder hybrid that makes more horsepower and torque than this V8 hybrid, because it is has already been done.  But if they need to get higher MPG out of the Corvette, or want to sell in other countries that have displacement taxes, they could easily replace the base 6.2 V8 with a 2.7T they have in house, add the same electric motor and end up with  around 500 hp/500 lb-ft.  Then you get AWD hybrids on every model, add it to the Z06 even.

And again see above statement, by an actual Corvette engineer, as to why you really need to stop beating this dead four banger horse where the Vette is concerned. Not even as an option. 

Edited January 18 by surreal1272

[smk4565]

1 hour ago, oldshurst442 said:

 

I wholeheartedly agree with this.  Not because the E-Ray is too much per se.   It’s the tech that eats the affordability.  There is too  much of a gap bewteen the base C8 and not enough gap from the Z06.   Base price for the Stingray is $60 000.   The Z06 starts at $106 000.  The E-Ray starts at $104 000.    

The E-ray has some stuff standard that a Stingray doesn’t, but you could equip a Stingray for $70-75k and get what the E-Ray has at $105k.  Toyota puts an electric motor on the rear axel of the Venza, Sienna and Highlander and I think it is standard on all of them.  Throwing an electric motor on an axle doesn’t cost that much.  If it was a $15-20k gap I could see that being reasonable.

[surreal1272]

8 hours ago, smk4565 said:

The E-ray has some stuff standard that a Stingray doesn’t, but you could equip a Stingray for $70-75k and get what the E-Ray has at $105k

Really? You can get an extra 155HP and AWD on a $70-75K Vette? That must be news to me…and Chevrolet. 
 

Sorry but you can’t cherry pick your way through this one. 
 

I personally seem zero issue with the E-Ray pricing here. Think about it. The E-Ray opens up the Vette to a new batch of buyers who might not want to roll in a RWD only Z-06. It’s called “options” and by keeping them at similar price points, they can appeal to both buyers without the uptick in price for the “privilege” of electric. 

Edited January 18 by surreal1272

[surreal1272]

8 hours ago, smk4565 said:

Throwing an electric motor on an axle doesn’t cost that much.  If it was a $15-20k gap I could see that being reasonable.

Okay, civility is done here. Are you out of your damn mind? Did you really equate the E-Ray with what Toyota does? Just stop commenting if you're going to do nothing but make troll statements like that because it is not grounded in reality in any way. You clearly HAVE NOT read all the details of this particular hybrid and it shows. A lot of folks give your fanboy remarks here a wide birth here but not when you say completely asinine stuff like the above remarks. If this were a Benz, you wouldn't have $h! to say here because you spend far less time on threads about your favorite brand than you with anything NOT Mercedes. Think about that for more than a minute.

 

Okay, back to civility lol. 

Edited January 18 by surreal1272

[ccap41]

11 hours ago, smk4565 said:

Although in thinking about it, while I like the V8 hybrid idea, this is like a $30k price premium to add the hybrid, which seems like a lot.

It is a lot but it's also running with the Z06 in a straight line and likely pretty dang comparable around a track adding AWD. 

Didn't the AMGs/Ms skyrocket once they added AWD to the E63/M5?

[surreal1272]

43 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

It is a lot but it's also running with the Z06 in a straight line and likely pretty dang comparable around a track adding AWD. 

Didn't the AMGs/Ms skyrocket once they added AWD to the E63/M5?

Yes they did skyrocket but again, crickets chirping on those subjects. Also, given the numbers the E-Ray is going to be put out, by all accounts it should cost MORE than the Z06 but as I said earlier, it was smart of GM to NOT do that because now you have equal choices for the old school crowd AND the new school crowd. There is literally nothing wrong with the E-Ray price being $30K higher than the base Vette. It's that simple and not one person here needs to explain to the Mercedes fan why that is so since he clearly is not interested in any actual facts, only that Chevrolet just slapped an electric motor to the rear wheels and called it a day. 

Edited January 18 by surreal1272

[ccap41]

Also, with what people are willing to pay for Corvettes right now and with demand exceeding production, there's no reason to make it cheaper, even if they could. They may be able to price this at 90k but know they can't produce enough as it is so they'll create less demand and still profit as much as possible. 

There will always be early adaptors and people that want the newest thing. I'll be more curious how this sells in it's 3rd model year. I think it'll do just fine but it is an interesting change for the Vette. 

[smk4565]

I think the $104k is a fine price, but you can get a Stingray way cheaper.  If the Stingray base price goes up a bit more then the E-Ray looks like a better deal.

[ccap41]

3 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

I think the $104k is a fine price, but you can get a Stingray way cheaper.

Correct, you can get a less equipped car with less performance for less money. That is how things work. 

Edited January 18 by ccap41

[David]

E-Ray is an awesome way to start getting both old and new fans to look at what is coming as GM moves to EVs for everything. 

Yes, I expect the ICE V8 Corvettes to go a long time being I do not expect the Corvette to end ICE production till GM phases out all ICE possibly as early as 2035.

This Hybrid will help pay for the R&D of both cheaper and more expensive versions of EV Corvette.

[surreal1272]

2 hours ago, smk4565 said:

I think the $104k is a fine price, but you can get a Stingray way cheaper.  If the Stingray base price goes up a bit more then the E-Ray looks like a better deal.

And I can get any base Mercedes far cheaper than their AMG versions (with larger price gaps in some cases) yet...

 

In other words, what is your point? That literally applies to ALL cars with multiple hi-po versions of it.

2 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Correct, you can get a less equipped car with less performance for less money. That is how things work. 

Be careful saying things that make sense. He is prepping that bar for movement as we speak.