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C8 Corvette To Debut In Detroit? Spy Shots Show Production-Ready Car

C8 Corvette [1]

Images via Corvette Forum. For more visit www.corvetteforum.com

With all these CAD renderings [2] of the C8 Corvette floating around, it’s nice to see something in the flesh, or rather fiberglass/carbon fiber—even if it is smothered in shape-concealing camouflage. The latest spy shots, from the guys over at Corvette Forum, of Chevrolet’s newest flagship are officially in and they are as stunning as ever. While it’s hard to imagine what the car will officially look like at this point (though the rendering helps), this looks gives us a few more clues as to the final form of the ultimate ‘Vette.

Right away you’ll notice that we finally have a matching set of wheels that differ from the snow-flake style we’ve seen on previous test mules. This is the first time we’ve seen a set of shoes on the mid-engine Corvette that actually look as if they could make it to the production car and, if you ask us, we’re seeing the final wheel design for the first time.

While we’re not sure why the mid-engine car always seems to be testing in the snow, we assume it’s because GM is busy with validation testing on the new Gen VI LT platform [3] which motivates the new car. The twin-turbo, dual-overhead cam 4.2-liter V8, and the naturally-aspirated, dual-overhead cam 5.5-liter V8, need to be tested in all conditions and what better way to do that than in the frozen tundra that is currently the northern U.S.?

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Another new facet of the car we get a good look at is the rear valance and exhaust tips. This is the first time we’ve seen the valance show its face and it’s very reminiscent of other mid-engined exotics—though we thing the exhaust tip shape is very Corvette.

Moving to the front of the car, we can see three LEDs on each side peeking through the heavy front camouflage. We’re not sure if these will act as the car’s full time headlights or simply as running lights, but they give you only a slight indication as to what the final headlight configuration will look like. One thing that is for certain, however, is that the front grille you can see through the mesh looks strikingly similar to the ZR1 grille.

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The rest of the car is still covered in pretty heavy camo, aside from the roof and mirrors, and make it hard to get a feel for what the rest of the car my look like. It seems like there are plenty of red herring vents and bumps built into the camo to throw off even the keenest eye.

One thing that isn’t covered up though are the brakes. They seems to be standard six-piston calipers and are obviously not carbon ceramic. We expected a more capable brake system, though this may not be the car’s final configuration and could eventually get the ZR1’s massive carbon ceramic brakes.

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Back at the rear, it appears that the car will feature LED tail lights, though whether or not they will retain the C7’s shape is yet to be seen. We also hope that the new LT7 mill is visible through the rear glass, though that seems like it would be obvious. We only have one more week until the North American Auto Show where the car has the most likelihood of debuting. But if we had to put a bet on it, we’d guess we won’t see the car in the fiberglass until next year—but here’s hoping.