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lllustrated Corvette Series No. 86 1990 Sting Ray III Concept Car
"California-Style Corvette"
Designing the "next Corvette"
is a never-ending job for the elite Corvette Design Department. It's
also one of the most challenging design tasks in Detroit. Between the
egos and budget concerns, it's amazing it ever gets completed.
The late
'80s and early '90s were some of the worst economic times GM had ever
experienced. The management chess game was mind-boggeling. Dave
McLellan was unsuccessful in fulfilling Duntov's vision of a mid-engine
Corvette and retired in '92. GM's new president, Bob Stemple put the C5
project on hold while the GM cash-crunch was solved. No one was sure of
when the next Corvette would hit the road, despite many attempts to
define the new design.
The
task-master for the new Corvette was Chuck Jordan, know as the "Chrome
Cobra." Jordan secretly staged a 3-way C5 internal competition between
John Schinella's Advanced Concepts Center, Tom Peters' Advanced 4
Studio, and John Cafaro's Chevy 3 group. The designs were unique and
the competition was fierce. Schinella's California-based studio
concept, the "Sting Ray III" was the first design completed and was
well received at the '92 Detroit International Auto Show. However, the
Detroit-based design groups were less than thrilled with the car.
After the
structure and drive-train placements were determined, a series of
styling sketches were made, presented, debated, and finalized. Next a
full-size clay model was built to work out the styling details. The
completed shape had to look "new," yet had to have traditional Corvette
styling elements. The curves and fender budges were reminiscent of the
Mako Shark II cars of the mid-'60s. Once the shape was completed, a
running prototype was built.
The
backbone chassis and the engine-transaxle placement determined the
proportions of the car. With the heavy side rails gone, interior access
was much improved. The wheelbase was a 6.8-inches longer, the length
increased by 2-inches, the width grew by .9-inches, and the height was
.8-inches taller than a stock Corvette. Most notable was the long,
slopped windshield, the narrow fixed headlights and the roadster-only
roof design. Unfortunately, there was a V6 under the hood.
The Sting
Ray III never came close to production, although the new C6 now has
fixed headlights. But a good design is never wasted. The basic shape
became the Cavalier convertible. I'm sure that's not what Schinella had
in mind.
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