DRIVING WITH DAN 2020 Chevrolet Corvette DAN WIESE This all-new eighth-generation 'Vette is important, cool and radical At -- admittedly -- a less intense level, I suspect my recent experience with the 2020 Chevy Corvette must be what it's like to have Publishers Clearing House knock on your door to hand over a million bucks and you're out to lunch. Last month, GM unveiled the all-new C8 Corvette Stingray -- and I was on vacation! I9<6PME .=?M =)H.!BP8 ,!,>J6 &+6 ?M memo to hold the announcement until I got back.) So . . . I may be playing catch-up as far as enthusiasts are concerned -- this all-new Stingray debuted three weeks ago, fer cryin' out loud -- but this 'Vette is too cool to overlook, too radical to ignore and too important to skip. So here we go, better late than never . . . The car is, indeed, important -- America's only supercar that can credibly be mentioned in the same breath as a Ferrari F8 or a McLaren 720S. It's cool, too. Just look at it -- low, wide, angular, sharp. Hey, it's a Corvette. And, oh, boy, is it radical! Among other 5=:3+66+ H:868E 6#+ 5U !8 6#+ H:86 J1+66+ 6= <46 6#+ +>&!>+ @+#!>, !68 6O= @4.R+6 8+B68E 6#+ H:86 J1+66+ I!>,++,E 6#+ H:86 5#+3:=P+6F 6= )+B64:+ B> eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, 6#+ H:86 J1+66+ 6= @+ =))+:+, !> @=6# P+)6D B>,D :!D#B>, ,:!3+ 3+:8!=>8E 6#+ H:86 J1+66+ 6= :!,+ a suspension that's totally devoid of leaf springs !> B>M !6+:B6!=>E B>, 6#+ H:86 J1+66+ 8!>.+ /S(* not to offer a manual transmission. That's a lot to ponder. The most radical aspect, of course, is the mid-engine design. Planted behind this pop-top targa coupe's twin buckets is a 6.2-liter small-block V-8 that's free =) B:6!H.!BP :+8C 2#B6 >B64:BPPM B8, *"A P@CD)6C =) 6=:;4+E @=6#E =) course, sent to the rear wheels. The only transmission in C8 is the eight-speed dual-clutch automatic. It seems the recent takerate for a manual in the outgoing C7 has been B@=46 -A <+:.+>6C 0!6# T486 =>+ .486=?+: !> H3+ opting to shake hands with his or her Corvette, engineers apparently decided the addition of a manual in C8, with all the additional complexity it represents in engineering, manufacturing and )+,+:BP 8B)+6M .+:6!H.B6!=>E T486 OB8>J6 O=:6# the effort. Performance Package -- electronic limitedslip differential, larger brake rotors, front splitter and rear spoiler, both providing more downforce and improved cornering grip, sticky summer tires, and more. Regarding accommodations, the stiffer mid- Brand Ave. Studios Contributing Writer drivingwithdan@gmail.com O!P,PM :B,!.BP 86++:!>& O#++PC L6J8 8=:6 =) 8;4B:+ I'F 6= +>B@P+ $B> 4>=@8.4:+, 3!+O =) 6#+ /-D !>.# :+.=>H&4:B@P+ .P486+: ,!8 >+3+:' Next week we'll investigate Studebaker's decision to move production to Canada. (Hey, better late . . . oh, never mind.) That said, do-it-yourself shifts will be possible via the C8 automatic's paddle-shift manual mode. NK H&4:+8 6#+ <=O+:6:B!> !> 6#!8 >+OE aluminum-intensive, mid-engine 'Vette will launch the car to 60 mph in under 3 seconds !> ?=,+P8 +;4!<<+, O!6# 6#+ =<6!=>BP G(/ 4 PHOTOS PROVIDED BY CHEVROLET engine architecture allowed the cockpit to be ?=3+, )=:OB:, /%C( !>.#+8C 2#B6 >=6 =>PM #+P<8 optimize weight distribution, but positions the car's center of gravity "close to the driver's inside hip," Chevy says, "so the car literally turns around the driver." Speaking of turns, those are initiated via a RIDES MAGAZINE | ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH | AUGUST 8, 2019 stltoday.com/RIDES This content was produced by Brand Ave. Studios. The news and editorial departments of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch had no role in its creation or display. For more information about Brand Ave. Studios, &-.(,&( (#+!$/.'*(1(-%,")&-0)