Today is the big day. Today, Zora Arkus-Duntov’s vision of a rear-mid engine, rear drive super car finally becomes reality. I think anyone who loves automobiles has a least had passing interest in the C8 Corvette. Growing up, I collected every Hot Wheels I could get my hands on which depicted the latest and greatest Mid-Engine Corvette Concept. There have been many teases from GM over the years, but this one is real.   It is really happening.  The LIVE unveil is viewable at the bottom of this page, starting at 7:50 pm Pacific, July 18, 2019

Ferrari, Lamborghini, heck everyone had already committed to this layout by the late 1960’s. Zora was left to the whims of GM brass and at the mercy of GM bean-counters. From the Cerv I to the Cerv III, nine iterations of mid-engine Corvettes rolled out of Corvette design studios. (Automobile Magazine did a great recap of the history of these models,check it out.) Meanwhile, GM kept the production Corvette model front engine rear wheel drive. So, this prompts many questions.

First, is the new C8 Corvette going to live up to this long-awaited vision, worthy of Duntov’s legacy? Time will tell. Ford managed to reach back in time and pull a legitimate supercar out of the history books and back onto the road. So, it’s possible. That said, they are going after a much larger market segment (and a lower price point), which may undermine the mid-engine supercar mystique.

Will the Corvette brand faithful be brought along with the ride, or hold onto the front-engine-rear-drive roots? Heck, people are still pissed that Dodge put the Charger name on a four door, I can only imagine what some Corvette acolytes think about the C8. Some on the forums are calling it a Fiero/Sixth Gen Camaro love child. One thing is certain, GM won’t please everybody. Just who are they trying to please? Is it the Wall Street and Rodeo Drive crowd, hoping to take market share from Ferrari and Porsche? Is it the Mid-Western Millennials who just don’t see themselves driving “their father’s Corvette”? It will be interesting to see who ends up with a 2020 Stingray in their driveway.

Time will tell if the C8 will redefine Corvette, rendering all previous generations obsolete, or if is another ill-timed curiosity, relegated to the dustbin of “what it could have been”. Finally and more importantly, what does this do to the collectability of the previous generation(s)?

One theory- C7’s will hold their value as Corvette Collectors will view them as the last “true” Corvettes, looking at the C8 as something else. It could also go the other way, a deluge of low-mile C7’s could flood the market as owner’s clamber to get behind the well and in front of the engine of a new Stingray. It all kicks off later today with the official unveil. Tell us your perspective on this momentous occasion.  WATCH THE UNVEIL LIVE BELOW.

~Patrick Krook, RevMuscleCars.com