The new ZR1X has been called the “ultimate” Corvette. But is it really, at only 1,250 horsepower? Chevrolet is showing off two exotic prototypes during Monterey Car Week that could take things up to 2,000 hp. And while the Corvette CX and CX.R Concepts might have been designed for the Gran Turismo videogame, they also provide some clues as to where Chevy might go with the next-generation sports car. Headlight.News has more.
The Chevrolet Corvette CX and CX.R Vison Gran Turismo Concepts debut during Monterey Car Week.
Its never easy finding a replacement for an icon, and Chevrolet certainly kicked off a loud debate with the launch of the “C8” Corvette, the eighth-generation sports car adopting a radically new look to house its first-ever mid-mounted powertrain.
In the auto industry, though, the real and ever-present question is: what comes next. And while Chevy isn’t ready to talk about a next-gen Corvette, it’s been teasing us with possibilities in the form of a series of concept vehicles.
The newest two are making their debut during Monterey Car Week and while the CX and CX.R Concepts are primarily exercises in videogame design – set to return as part of the popular Gran Turismo race series – they hint at “the design direction for Corvette moving forward,” suggested Phil Zak, the executive design director for the bowtie brand.
Corvette CX Concept
The Corvette CX Concept is designed for maximum performance on and off track.
Asked when we might see an all-electric version of “America’s sports car” last month, Corvette Chief Engineer Josh Holder simply responded, “not soon.” That said, he made it clear there’s likely to be one in the Corvette’s future. And the CX hints at what could eventually show up.
The concept is lower, wider and more curvaceous than today’s production model. The roofline, for one thing, is just 41 inches high. You’ll, nonetheless, see some familiar design cues, such as the double-element taillights. But CX adopts a far more exotic, sci-fi design language. It’s as cab-forward as you can get, and the entire upper front half swings up and then lunges forward to allow occupants to climb in and out.
Aerodynamics have become essential in modern sports car design, all the more so when it’s an EV. CX features a series of aero “channels” flowing through the body and a Vacuum Fan System” sucks air through those open channels to control airflow over the rear diffuser and further enhance downforce. Both the rear wing and front diffuser actively adjust to control airflow, as needed at any moment. Even the suspension’s front A-arms have been given a wing shape to help reduce high-speed lift.
High-tech cabin
A cockpit equally suited in a fighter jet.
Once you figure out how to climb into the CX and then close it up again you’ll discover some intriguing new solutions to the challenge of helping a driver keep their eyes on the road.
The majority of controls have been relocated into the center of the steering wheel. And the windshield uses new digital technology, explains Chevy, to provide “an immersive surround display with real-time performance data.
The seats are heavily bolstered to keep driver and passenger firmly planted. They’re finished in Inferno Red ballistic textile, while other cabin surfaces use silicone leather, low-gloss carbon fiber and milled aluminum.
More Corvette News
- Is the ZR1X the “Ultimate” Corvette?
- GM’s UK Design Team Rethinks Corvette as a Split-Window Hypercar
- Why Has GM Dumped So Many Senior Corvette Team Members
Corvette CX.R Vision Gran Turismo Concept
The Corvette CX.R Concept.
The CX.R is, as the name suggests, a vision of what the next-generation C8.R race car might be. By “embod(ying) Corvette’s history while looking to the future of automotive performance (it) imagines the future of Corvette GT racing,” Chevy explained.
CX.R sits even closer to the ground than the already low CX Concept, and adds even more aerodynamic design elements to further reduce wind drag, while adding “racetrack-dominating downforce and grip.”
As the legendary racer and Lotus founder Colin Chapman was fond of saying, “weight is the enemy” when you head for the track, so cutting out mass was a high priority for the CX.R project. Sometimes, it’s the little things that help. For one thing, the prototype’s instrument panel is made of a lightweight carbon-fiber weave. The seats, meanwhile, are larger and even grippier, with more aggressive shoulder and headrest padding.
Hybrid or all-electric
The two concepts each are expected to produce 2,000 hp, though they take different approaches to getting there.
CX and CX.R offer insight into where future Corvette powertrain technology might be heading.
The CX opts for an all-electric drivetrain which relies on the massive torque provided by four individual electric motors, one on each wheel, delivering “ultimate straight line performance.” That approach also gives precise torque vectoring. A 90-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery sits under the load floor to provide an incredibly low center of gravity. Chevy claims the system is capable of delivering as much as 2,000 horsepower, about 60% more than the new Corvette ZR1X hybrid.
For all the instant torque benefits of a battery-electric drivetrain, today’s lithium-ion chemistry just can’t store enough electrons to handle extended races. So, the CX.R Vision gets a hybrid alternative pairing three electric motors with a high-revving, mid-mounted 2.0-liter DOHC twin-turbo V-8. There are two motors up front, one for each wheel, a third integrated into the 8-speed gearbox. The V-8 itself can rev up to 15,000 RPMs and delivers a peak 900 hp.
The combined powertrain package takes that up to 2,000 ponies – the same as the CX. But it can keep running a full race without having to wait for its smaller battery pack to recharge. It picks up power through a regenerative braking system.
Is this the C9 Corvette?
The CX Concept picks up on some familiar Corvette cues, including the twin-element rear lighting.
With each new concept model, fans ask whether we’re getting a glimpse of the ninth-generation Corvette. For his part, Chevy design chief Zak sidesteps the question, responding that, “The CX and CX.R Vision Gran Turismo demonstrate our design teams stepping away from the constraints of production vehicles and unleashing their creativity. Through this exercise, we’ve added to Corvette and defined the design direction for Corvette moving forward.”
As chief engineer Holder told us, we won’t see an all-electric Corvette anytime soon. But there are now two hybrid packages: the E-Ray and ZR1X. And the ‘Vette team has already signaled they’re working up plans to take the latter model to still more exotic levels of performance, with some form of gas-electric drivetrain essential to meeting expectations.
In the meantime, if you’re lucky enough to attend Monterey Car Week, you’ll find the Corvette CX and CX.R concepts debuting Friday, August 15 at The Quail, a Motorsports Gathering. Even if you can’t make the event you’ll be able to check out – and virtually drive – these concepts when they’re digitally lined up on the starting grid in Sony Interactive’s Grand Turismo 7 release later this month.
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