2020 Chevy Corvette C8 Stingray is America’s newest mid-engined sports car

Chevrolet has officially taken the wraps off the 2020 Corvette C8 – the hotly anticipated mid-engine version.

While the engine has swapped places, the car has a familiar Corvette face with a pointy nose. The new headlamp clusters house projectors and LED daytime running lights. Large side vents channel air to the engine that resides behind the passenger compartment. It is visible through the raked rear window. There are quad-LED tail lights and quad exhaust tips at the rear.

The cockpit of the new Corvette is 16.5 inches further forward. It comes with a new square-ish steering wheel with paddle shifters and a 12-inch digital instrument cluster. The infotainment screen is angled towards the driver, while the centre console splits the cabin in two compartments. There are 3 seat options – GT1, GT2 and Competition Sport Seats. The latter two come with carbon fibre trim, while door trim plates can be ordered in carbon or aluminium.

The 2020 Corvette is powered by a mid-mounted 6.2-litre V8 engine that develops 490 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque. The optional Z51 Performance Package bumps the output to 495 hp and 470 lb-ft. The engine is mated to an 8-speed dual-clutch and that’s the only choice of transmission you get. No manual, sadly. Chevy is claiming a 0-60 mph time of under 3 seconds.

The Z51 Performance Package also includes performance suspension, larger brake rotors with front brake cooling inlets, enhanced cooling, specific axle ratio and a performance exhaust.

The 2020 Corvette C8 will be available in 12 exterior shades – Torch Red, Arctic White, Black, Blade Silver Metallic, Shadow Gray, Ceramic Matrix Gray, Long Beach Red, Elkhart Lake Blue and Sebring Orange – and three all-new colors: Rapid Blue, Zeus Bronze and Accelerate Yellow. There are 6 interior colors to choose from with two optional stitching packages and 6 seat belt color options.

In the US, the new C8 Corvette Stingray will be priced from around $60,000. Moreover, Chevrolet will also build a right-hand drive version, much to the relief of those on the other side of the Atlantic. Production will commence later this year at GM’s Bowling Green plant in Kentucky.