2005 Corvette Illustrated Series No.121

Nothing stokes Corvette enthusiast like the prospect of an all-new Vette. Considering that the C4 generation lasted 13 years, early talk of a new generation Corvette in ‘99 seemed premature. Chief designer Tom Peters began sketching the new C6 shape in the fall of ’99 with an intended C6 launch date of ‘03 to coincide with the 50th anniversary. But a few things happened along the way.

When Peters was working out his early sketches, it seemed that the Dot.com bubble would go on forever. But the bubble indeed did burst and then 9-11 helped tank the economy. Meanwhile, Corvette designers found themselves with an interesting dilemma. The C5 was so good and was selling so well, some may have opted to leave the car alone. Why mess with success?

But it didn’t take long before the designers had fixed nearly everything they weren’t happy with on the C5. To check off everything on their wish list, the car would have to have a major redesign. The projected release date for the C6 was pushed ahead to ’05. While this may have disappointed the design team, it gave them more time to refine the car. Dave Hill, Chief of Corvette Engineering said, “We’re not inventing, we’re perfecting.”

The design team had several objectives - make the car tighter and more trim, raise the base power up to the Z06 level of at least 400-horsepower, reduce interior noise, and improve ride comfort. Hill summed it up by saying, “You drive a C5 500 miles and you still feel good; you drive a C6 600 miles and feel great.”

Designing the shape of every new generation Corvette is one of the most challenging jobs in Detroit. Peters said, “Basic aesthetic attributes that form the foundation of the Corvette design were best exemplified by the mid-year Corvettes from 1963 to 1967.” This clearly shows up when you look at the fender bulges. The rear glass hatch picks up the C2 Sting Ray coupe shape. There’s also a slight bit of coke bottle shape on the side rocker panels, reminiscent of the C3 Vettes. While the overall look is somewhat similar to the C5, it is crisper with more surface details.

The new C6 had some dimension changes that helped create its new look. The length was shortened 5.1-inches to 174.6-inches and the wheelbase lengthened to 105.7-inches. The width was reduced 1.1-inches to 72.6 and the height increased to 49.1-inches. The overall look tighter and lighter. The most striking new feature was the exposed headlights, not seen since ‘62. The new headlights helped keep weight down and keep the car aerodynamic when the lights are turned on. The roof section has a more pronounced double-bubble shape and the tail lights went back to the traditional round designs of the C2, C3, and C4 Vettes.

Wheels and tires were increased 1-inch to 18 x 8.5-inchs on the front and 19 x 10-inches on the rear. Tires were the latest run-flat Goodyear Eagle F1 EMT measuring P245/40 ZR-18 on the front and P285/35 ZR-19 on the rear. The front and rear suspension was similar to the C5, but incorporated lessons learned from the Cadillac XLR.

Under the hood the new LS2, 4th generation small-block engine squeezed 400-horsepower and 400 lb-ft of torque from 364 cubic-inches. The power increase came from an improved intake manifold, larger valves, higher 10.9:1 compression, improved thin-wall cast iron exhaust manifolds, and less restrictive exhaust. Buyer could order either the 6-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission at no additional charge.

The new interior was an improved version of the C5 with materials, fit, finish, switches and controls that don’t look like parts from a Monte Carlo. The only thing that wasn’t standard was the Bose stereo, XM Radio, and OnStar.

Performance of the new C6 was astounding; 0-60-mph in just 4.1-second, quarter-mile in 12.5-seconds and a fastest ever stock Corvette top speed of 186-mph. All that for just $44,245 for the coupe ($290 less than the ‘04) and $52,245 for the convertible ($140 less than the ’04). What’a bargain!