Month: May 2009

Now is a great time to buy a cool classic car. With the economy being soft, prices for many cars haven’t been this low in years.

GM’s Bob Lutz says despite the uncertainty surrounding GM as the automaker leans toward bankruptcy, popular models including the Chevrolet Camaro and Chevrolet Corvette remain safe.

Today we got the first word on the starting prices of the new 2010 Corvette Grand Sport.

• The Grand Sport Coupe will start at $55,720 (including DFC)
• The Grand Sport Convertible will start at $59,530 (including DFC)

That’s all we know right now.  No detailed pricing on trim levels and options just yet.  Stay tuned!

 

We got word today from Dave Salvatore of Kerbeck Corvette that pricing for the 2010 Corvette Grand Sport has been released. When the Grand Sport was introduced at the National Corvette Museum in April, Team Corvette members Harlan Charles and Tadge Juechter both said that people will be pleased when the final price is announced. Having seen the numbers, we see again why Corvette beats all sports cars in the performance per dollar category. [More]

We got word today from Dave Salvatore of Kerbeck Corvette that pricing for the 2010 Corvette Grand Sport has been released. When the Grand Sport was introduced at the National Corvette Museum in April, Team Corvette members Harlan Charles and Tadge Juechter both said that people will be pleased when the final price is announced. Having seen the numbers, we see again why Corvette beats all sports cars in the performance per dollar category. [More]

Chris and Josh wrap up the 2009 Indy 500 with the Indy blogging elite – Bill from PressDog.com and Jeff from MyNameIsIRL.com. We talk about the good, the bad, and the ugly from Indy including the Maro wreck, Danica’s excellent run, Tony and Vitor’s HARD crashes, and the poo …

Couldn’t resist posting this gorgeous photo of a classic 1958 Corvette. Too bad General Motors no longer has the sense of style and adventure and risk-taking embodied in the release of the Corvette line of cars.

The GT1 Championship Edition is a style package that’s available for the Corvette coupe, convertible and Z06 models.

The hottest topic on CorvetteBlog right now is the 2010 Corvette, and rightfully so.  The specific interest has been in the 2010 Corvette Grand Sport.  We have all the details you need about the hottest addition to the Corvette family.

Let’s go over some of what we know.  First of all, the Grand Sport will be available in both coupe and convertible, in every trim level (1LT, 2LT, 3LT, and 4LT). The most defining aspect of the Grand Sport has to be it’s aggressive look and wider track than the current C6.  It will have a unique fender design and the Grand Sport badge will appear in the cove.  There will be a front splitter and tall rear spoiler.

The Grand Sport offers a Heritage package with fender hash mark stripes (4 stripe colors) and special two-tone seats with "Grand Sport" embroidery as an available option.  Every exterior and interior color will be available to order. 

Technically speaking, the Grand Sport will have functional brake ducts and additional cooling.  It has larger 6-piston 14" front and 4-piston 13.4" rear brakes, both with silver painted calipers.  The manual Coupe version will have a Z52 dry sump package with a rear battery.

Now a little bit about the wheels and tires.  There will be three Grand Sport specific wheels:  Silver, Competition Gray and Chrome.  It will come with the wider sized Goodyear F1 supercar tires (275/35-18×9.5 and 325/30-19×12)

There are many benefits to the 2010 Corvette Grand Sport.  First, there is a greater lateral acceleration.  The standard is .92 g, the previous Z51 offered .98 g and the Grand Sport comes in at 1.0 g.  It gains 0.2 seconds in the 0-60 test versus standard Corvettes  (4.0 vs 4.2).  All of this and even 26 mpg highway rating vs 24 mpg for Z06.

Pricing has not been yet released, but when we have the details, we will immediately post it for you.  See the complete list of specifications after the jump.

If you are interested in custom ordering a 2010 Corvette Grand Sport, contact us at CorvetteBlog.  You can leave a comment, which will be kept private, or give us a call at (888) 875-0728.  We’re here to help you with an easy online purchase experience and many delivery options.

SPECIFICATIONS OF THE 2010 CORVETTE GRAND SPORT

Overview
Models:	Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Coupe and Convertible
Body styles / driveline:	two-door hatchback coupe with removable roof; rear-wheel drive (Coupe and Convertible)
Construction:	composite body panels, hydroformed steel frame with aluminum and magnesium structural and chassis components
Manufacturing location:	Bowling Green, Ky.

Engines

	6.2L V-8 LS3
Displacement (cu in / cc):	376 / 6162
Bore & stroke (in / mm):	4.06 x 3.62 / 103.25 x 92
Block material:	cast aluminum
Cylinder head material:	cast aluminum
Valvetrain:	overhead valve, two valves per cylinder
Fuel delivery:	SFI (sequential fuel injection)
Compression ratio:	10.7:1
Horsepower (hp / kW @ rpm):	430 / 321 @ 5900* w/ std. exhaust 436 / 325 @ 5900* w/ opt. exhaust
Torque (lb-ft / Nm @ rpm):	424 / 575 @ 4600* w/ std. exhaust 428 / 580 @ 4600* w/ opt. exhaust
Recommended fuel:	premium recommended not required
EPA estimated fuel economy (city / hwy):	15 / 25 (automatic) 16 / 26 (manual)

Transmissions

	six-speed manual	six-speed paddle-shift automatic
Application:	std.	opt.
Gear ratios (:1)
First:	2.97	4.03
Second:	2.07	2.36
Third:	1.43	1.53
Fourth:	1.00	1.15
Fifth:	0.71	0.85
Sixth:	0.56	0.67
Reverse:	3.28	3.06
Final drive ratio:	3.42	2.73

Chassis / Suspension

Front:	short/long arm ( SLA) double wishbone, cast aluminum upper & lower control arms, transverse-mounted composite leaf spring, monotube shock absorber
Rear:	short/long arm ( SLA) double wishbone, cast aluminum upper & lower control arms, transverse-mounted composite leaf spring, monotube shock absorber
Traction control:	electronic traction control; Active Handling

Brakes

Type:	front and rear power-assisted disc with ABS with six-piston front and four-piston rear calipers, cross-drilled rotors
Rotor diameter x thickness (in / mm):	front: 14 x 1.3 / 355 x 32 rear: 13.4 x 1 / 340 x 26
Brake swept area (sq in / mm):	front: 309 / 1994 rear: 269 / 1735
Wheels & Tires
Wheel size:	front: 18-inch x 9.5-inch rear: 19-inch x 12-inch
Tires:	front: P275/35ZR18 rear: P325/30ZR19

Dimensions

Wheelbase (in / mm):	105.7 / 2685
Overall length (in / mm):	175.6 / 4460
Overall width (in / mm):	75.9 / 1928
Overall height (in / mm):	48.7 / 1236
Curb weight (lb / kg):	3311 / 1502 (Grand Sport Coupe) 3289 / 1492 (Grand Sport Convertible)
Weight distribution (% front / rear):	51 / 49
Interior
Seating capacity	2
Interior volume (cu ft / L):	52 / 1475
Headr oom (in / mm):	38 / 962
Legroom (in / mm):	43 / 1092
Shoulder room (in / mm):	55 / 1397
Hip room (in / mm):	54 / 1371
Capacities
Cargo volume (cu ft / L):	Coupe: 22 / 634 Convertible: 11 / 295 (top up); 7.5 / 212 (top down)
Fuel tank (gal / L):	18 / 68.1
Engine oil (qt / L):	5.5 / 5.2 (automatic transmission) 10.5 / 9.9 (manual transmission)

* SAE certified.
Note: Information shown is current at time of publication.

These specifications come directly from GM.

As the battle for German carmaker Opel effectively narrowed to a two-way race between Fiat and Magna, overnight talks to shield Opel from parent General Motors’ looming bankruptcy ended with no deal.