motor

General Motors Co. has several major revisions planned for the next-generation Chevrolet Corvette. GM is hoping to appeal to buyers that are attracted to European sports cars such as Porsche, Ferrari and Lamborghini. The Chevy two-seater will get a high-revving, small-displacement powertrain instead of the big V8 engines that typically power the Corvette. According to TheDetroitBureau.com, GM gave its approval to use a European-style V8 that will have a displacement slightly bigger than three liters.

Instead of the conventional overhead-valve design, the engine will be an overhead-cam and will feature a dry sump oil system that’s appropriate for high-performance road courses instead of straight-line acceleration. It’s likely that the engine will get a narrow 80.5 mm bore and a long stroke, more comparable to a Ferrari or Lamborghini powertrain instead of the traditional Motor City metal approach. A senior GM executive said that the new engine will be turbocharged and this will help yield a broad torque curve and maximum performance in various driving conditions.

The engine will deliver more than 400hp, which means that there’s a specific output in the range of 125hp for each liter. With these figures, there’s no doubting that the next-gen Corvette could be competitive against models like Porsche 911 or Lamborghini Gallardo. A source said that this engine will probably be extremely high-revving and could go up to a near-Formula One-class 10,000 RPMs. General Motors’ North American President Mark Reuss recently said that the C7 Corvette, which is expected to arrive in the market in less than two years, would be “completely different” from its usual range of American sports cars. The philosophy that the Corvette has stuck to since it was launched in 1953 is: “There’s no replacement for displacement.” [via - 4wheelsnews]