http://www.leftlanenews.com/2007/01/...gine-corvette/

Obviously this has come up before. What do you all think of a mid-engine Corvette? Personally, I would say its ok as long as the car is true to Corvette heritage. Corvette to me has always been the top Chevrolet with exotic 2 seat sports car performance that the average guy can afford to buy and maintain. Likewise to me, Camaro should basically be an affordable Corvette with a back seat.

I am not as concerned with how they deliver it. If it has world class handling, brakes, acceleration, AND is still affordable, has no unreasonable service requirements, and has an attractive appearance (does not necessarily have to look like previous Vettes) I would probably support it wearing the "Corvette" badge.

I don't like the idea of Corvette and a separate higher level model. Corvette has always been and always should be top dog. That is one point where I would like to continue the historical precedent.

 

Thing is, even if no one objects to a V10, AWD, hybrid power, or a ME configuration on principle.

All of those things take a nice bite out of affordability, which is paramount...

 

And mid-engine cars are much more difficult to toss through corners I hear?

 

Depends what you mean by "difficult". They're more difficult to catch if you start to spin. Good ones change direction REAL quick, which can be fun or hairy depending on skill.

I would buy a mid-engined C7, assuming it was close in price to a C6. I love the idea. I don't want to see the Vette become an $80k car, though.

 

That'd be like an AWD Camaro, which is to really say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

Isn't the Corvette is almost mid engined sine its weight distibution close to 50/50?


Now, it would be interesting to see a healthy small block powered mid-rear engine car RWD, maybe even with a slight bias of weight towards the rear.. On paper, under braking the weight transfer will would shift the balance of the car closer to 50/50 dynamically, possibly mkaing the car easier to handle under trailbraking into turns.... then when you get on the gas again, the extra weight towards the rear will help get the tires to hook.. Theoreticaly at least.

A really well designed midengined car could have most of its mass in the center of the car, reducing rotation inertia (turning the car through transitions)

 

The guys on the Corvette boards like to say that, and to go on at great length about how the Corvette is "already mid-engined". I suspect most of those guys have never driven a real mid-engined-behind-the-driver hi-po car like an Esprit or a V8 Ferrari. It's not just about weight distribution -- the closer you get the mass to the center of the car, the lower the polar moment of inertia is and the livelier it is, and it's very different from the essentially front-engined Vette even if the weight distribution is similar.

(Full disclosure, just so we're clear: I love Vettes, I've owned two, I'm a founding member of the NCM, and I'm kind of looking for a good Z51 C5 right now. I'm not knocking what's out there.)

 

Incorrect. A REAR engined car can be "tail happy". It has more of a tendency to oversteer. A front engined car has more of a tendency to understeer.

The main benefit of a mid engined car is that it places more mass towards the center of the car. This is called the moment of inertia. It is independent of weight distribution. You want to keep the moment of inertia as low as possible. Basically it is the "resistance to turn". The farther the weight is from the center of the car, the harder it is to get it to turn.

One visible example of this is figure skaters. You know how they spin on one skate? If they stick their arms and legs out, they spin slowly. But if they bring their arms and legs in tightly to their body, they spin much faster. The only thing they are changing is their moment of inertia.

 

Um, dunno where you get "Incorrect" out of what I said. I didn't say "tail happy", and I wasn't suggesting oversteer per se. I said they're harder to catch if you lose it and they change direction quickly. How is that inconsistent with the idea of a low polar moment of inertia?

 

Granted, my exposure to working on mid-engined cars is very limited in person, however I always seem to hear that working on most/all of the mid-engined cars out there right now is quite the PITA. Not sure if that's inherent to a mid-engine car's design or just the ones that are out there now suck to work on?

 

I've owned both Corvettes (C2, C3, C4, C5) and Loti (Esprit, Elise), and I'll take the predictability of a front mid-engined car anyday over the wacky stuff that happens when you have 60% of your weight over the rear wheels, thanks.

Yeah, it's a different feeling. But that doesn't mean it is good.

 

The current "engine in front, tranny in back" drivetrain configuration works so well in the C5 and C6. Why change it? I don't prefer a separate mid-engined Corvette either. If they want to make a statement they can do so with it as a Pontiac or Cadillac.

I do, however, like the idea of having engines with different personalities available for the Corvette. Offer the next LSx engine, a rev-happy small displacement DOHC V8, and maybe even a V10.

 

Mid engined cars also throw practicality out the window. One of the nice things about the current Vette is its trunk and its usability as a daily driver. But with a mid-engined car there's very little room for a trunk in the back because the engine is there, and there's very little room in the front because the brakes, steering, rad, etc. are there. And you need a really long wheelbase or there's not much room for tall drivers.

My only experience driving one is with pre-1988 Fieros, and they were plenty hairy (although that can probably be attributed to their suspension as much as the drivetrain layout).

I'm not necessarily one to be hidebound to tradition when there's a better idea out there, but I truly believe that this is a case where the benefits provided by such a radical change would not be worth it.

 

Zora always wanted a mid engine Vette. Wonder if they would keep using a
V8 or if they would go with somerthing smaller to keep the price down.

 

This is their best quality, the ability to corner at high speeds. I have owned a 1988 Pontiac Fiero GT since new, they are a blast to drive on windy roads.

A mid-engine Corvette is doable on even the current c6 chassis. Jay Leno took a zo6 chassis and came up with the mid engine racer for the SEMA show in Las Vegas last fall. The tranny on the vette is already in the rear. A mid engine can launch quicker than a front engine and I have seen it mentioned by GM's own engineers that a mid engine can handle almost unlimited hp. Eventually a front engine, superhigh hp vette would have problems launching.

If it happens, I would expect 2 cars, the Cien and the Vette to help spread development costs. Of course, the Vette would have to have at least 5 more hp than Cien. Wasnt the Cien just featured on the movie, The Island recently?