With the 2020 Corvette Stingray out in the open, you’d think Chevrolet would relax with the camouflage on its upcoming Vette versions.
As you can see in these latest spy shots, that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Our photographers snapped a Corvette C8 prototype completely covered with camouflaging material. We can’t even see the design of the wheels in these photos as they are also covered by black caps.
While some may be inclined to believe this is the Corvette Z06 performance model seeing as the tires are larger and wider, it can also be on of the rumored AWD hybrids. Are the wheels covered so we can’t see the four electric motors residing in each wheel? Or did GM do that for aerodynamic reasons?
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We don’t really know but the wheel covers do not necessarily mean there are electric motors behind them as we’ve seen a fair share of prototypes over the years with similar wheels that were not hybrids.
Still, this prototype could indeed preview the first-ever all-wheel-drive production Corvette combining the Stingray’s 6.2-liter LT2 V8 engine with a front-mounted electric motor for a system output of around 600 hp. The electric motor would drive the front wheels while the V8 would be connected to the rear wheels for AWD capability and superior performance. The Corvette C8 hybrid is likely to wear the E-Ray designation which GM trademarked in 2015.
Whatever variant of the mid-engine Corvette this is, it’s clear that it will bring massive changes over the standard model – otherwise Chevrolet wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of camouflaging every body panel.
As for the Corvette Z06, rumor has it it will arrive in late 2021 as a 2022 model with around 800 horsepower from a 5.5-liter flat-plane crank V8 engine based on the power plant in the C8.R race car.