The long-awaited mid-engined C8-generation Chevrolet Corvette may be offered exclusively with a dual-clutch seven-speed and not a stick shift.
Car and Driver asserts that drive for the new Corvette will come courtesy of Tremec’s latest TR-9007 dual-clutch seven-speed automatic transmission, believed to have already been installed into C8 Corvette prototypes.
While enthusiasts may cry fowl at Chevrolet for pulling the pin on a manual Corvette, such a decision is thought to have been made in the name of cost savings. Considering how much money the automaker is investing to completely redesign and re-engineer the American supercar to be mid-engined, something had to give. Unfortunately, it was a manual ‘box.
Sad but not surprising. The 2017 Ford GT will be offered exclusively with a dual-clutch automatic gearbox and none of the the C8 Corvette’s European rivals give customers to opportunity to row their own gears.
When the C8 Corvette arrives, we suspect a manual won’t be missed too much. After all, the new car should provide driving dynamics unlike any Corvette before it and like always, be offered in a range of specifications including one with a plug-in hybrid system.
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