[1]In the modern day, instant gratification way of life, one industry known for long development cycles is the automotive industry. While some consumer goods may have a one to three year development cycle, it’s not unheard of that some vehicles will have five to seven year development cycles because of their complexity. For example, say you purchased a C6 Corvette (that was produced from 2005-2013) in 2008, even though it was new and exciting to you right then in 2008, the powers at GM were likely full steam ahead developing their C7.
Now before readers get angry with their current car because it was designed years ago even though it’s new to them, keep in mind that this is the industry standard for new car development. GM can’t just envision a new Impala this year and have it ready for sale next year, these things take time and patience. Accordingly, there is a lot riding on companies when developing a new car in order to avoid costly recalls or inferior products that can hurt customers and/or the reputation of the company.
According to a recent article [2], even though the C7 buzz is at full tilt, the C8 Corvette is already in development. While this is not surprising considering development cycles, what is rather surprising is that there are rumors of the possibility of either being electric or using hybrid technology. A full electric Corvette would likely alienate a lot of die-hard Vette enthusiasts, but there are numerous hybrid sports cars (Porsche 918 Spyder, Ferrari LaFerrari, McLaren P1, etc) that are proving the technology can be beneficial even in high-performance applications. We will have more information as it becomes available.
Let us know if you would like a Corvette hybrid or what features you would like to see on the C8!