Corvette C7 coming in 2012

If you like Corvettes, this is going to make you smile. Fresh out of bankruptcy court, General Motors announced its two-year product plans for Chevy, Caddy, Buick and GMC. Included are go codes for the new C7 Corvette. The plan is to introduce the C7 in April of 2012 as a 2013 model — a big improvement over the old plan to not reinvent the Corvette until 2014. Let’s just state this up front — almost nothing at all is known about the new Corvette. It appears as if plans for a mid-engine Corvette have been put aside. Like all Corvettes before it, the C7 will feature an engine up front driving the wheels out back. Other than that…

The rumors are that the C7 will be smaller and lighter than the current welterweight C6. There’s talk of using more advanced materials like carbon fiber, aluminum and magnesium as well as smaller engines. Calm down, calm down — as the ZR1 showed us, less displacement doesn’t always mean less power. Especially when a positive-displacement Roots-type supercharger’s in the mix. There’s chatter that the C7′s design might be based on the Stingray Concept from the 2009 Chicago Auto Show, but we’re hoping it’s not. More details as they become available.

Corvette C7 delayed until 2014

First rumors said the new Corvette C7 would be revealed sometime in 2011, but now it seems there will be a longer wait for the next generation of the gas-hungry American icon. General Motors has delayed the next generation Covette C7 until the 2014 model year.

This delay comes with some good news for Corvette purists. The idea to go mid-engined looks like its been scrapped due to budget concerns of creating a totally new car. Other possible good news is that by the time the new Corvette hits the streets we may have sorted out the gas crisis, and the rumors of a V6 base version (a sin in Corvette circles) may have time to die out.

Both pieces of news are nothing new to Corvette. The C6 was introduced in 2005, and by the time its replaced, the nine-year life cycle is almost average for the sports car (the C3 lasted for fourteen years and the C4 was around for twelve). As far as a V6 under the hood, the Corvette’s first engine was a V6, the V8 wasn’t available until two years later.

Next-Generation C7 Corvette on Hold – Indefinitely

It was just two weeks ago that Motor Trend reported the next generation Corvette would be pushed back to 2014. With turbulent economic crises threatening the very existence of the Big 3 automakers, word comes from AutoWeek that GM has put plans for the C7 Corvette on indefinite hold with no official word or set timetable.

Luckily, none of the sources are suggesting that the Corvette will go away. Corvette Vehicle-Line Executive Tom Wallace told AutoWeek “No one is saying we’re not doing Corvettes. We’re still bullish on Corvettes.” When asked directly if there was any chance the Corvette would die, Wallace stated emphatically “No way.”

Talk is now about the how the C6 Corvette’s run can be extended. One version of the story is that the C6 could be upgraded significantly in 2012 as a ’13 model. Wallace says we’ll see changes sooner than that. “There are changes, some neat stuff, coming for 2010 that I can’t talk about yet.”