Happily surprised, I soon found out that the engineers knew exactly what they were doing. Time and time again the rear end would
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| Time and time again the rear end would step out sideways, exactly as it had the first time, and then catch itself with the help of the lifesaving stability control system. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
step out sideways, exactly as it had the first time, and then catch itself with the help of the lifesaving stability control system. This was fun, and I proceeded to power up the mountain at a velocity I wouldn't have otherwise dared. Of course, I've had enough close calls in my life not to allow things to get too out of hand, backing off in tight turns where unfathomable drop-offs loomed below and still maintaining the smoothness on and off the throttle and brakes that I've worked so hard to develop over the years, but this new Corvette is an entirely different animal than previous cars,
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| The new V8, which makes a maximum of 400-horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 400 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm, can hit 100 km/h in an almost overwhelming 4.2 seconds. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
and a much more controllable one on the street than if equipped with that performance upgrade package mentioned previously.
And while some will knock the new 'Vette for including stability control, it was a wise choice on Chevy's part. The new V8, which makes a maximum of 400-horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 400 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm, can hit 100 km/h in an almost overwhelming 4.2 seconds. The quarter mile arrives in a mere 12.6 seconds at 183 km/h (114 mph), just before maxxing out at a supercar-like 300 km/h (186 mph). Incidentally, that's faster than any production Corvette ever built, including the famed ZR1 or C5 Z06!
