As the first Chevrolet Corvette with a central production engine, the C8 broke new ground for sports cars. But does the C8 really look like a Corvette? Hot rodder Chip Foose doesn’t think so, and he offered his opinion on how to improve the design in a video posted on YouTube.
Foose said that one of the things he liked most about the Corvette was the clear evolution of its design over the first seven generations. This ended abruptly with the C8, as the proportions were completely changed to accommodate an engine behind the driver.
A mid-engine layout brings significant performance benefits, which helped the C8 win Motor Authority’s The Best Car to Buy award, but it also erased the Corvette’s heritage, according to Foose, who believes the C8 looks very generic and easily confused with other mid-engined cars like the Acura NSX.
Chip Foose designs the Chevrolet Corvette C8
Foose’s solution, as shown in a sketch, takes more styling tips from the previous generation Corvette C7. Foose used the C7’s front fender openings, turning them to serve as air intakes for the center engine. The Foose version also has more pronounced rear hips and a longer hood, connecting it more closely to the C7 and continuing this evolutionary line.
This design DNA may soon reach its limit if reports that Chevy is thinking of an electric SUV with the Corvette emblem prove to be true. That would take advantage of General Motors’ new Ultium battery system and give Chevy a competitor for the Ford Mustang Mach-E, but as far as we know, the plan has not been approved.
The traditional Corvette could also eventually be electric, as part of GM’s “aspiration” to eliminate exhaust from its passenger car line by 2035. This would certainly open up many design possibilities.