The Performance Build Center inside the Corvette Assembly Plant in Bowling Green will soon be producing a new hand-built V8 engine, but don’t go thinking that it’s for the next generation Mid-Engine C8 Corvette just yet.
This week Cadillac announced their CT6 V-Sport Sedan which will feature the brand’s first-ever twin-turbo V8 engine. The engine will come with two different power options: a 550 horsepower version with 627 lb-ft of torque and an optional 500 horsepower V8 with 553 lb-ft of torque for non V-Sport models. At the heart of the design is a “hot V” configuration which transposes the conventional layout of the cylinder heads’ intake and exhaust system and sees the turbochargers mounted at the top of the engine within the valley between the heads. The “hot V” design is said to virtually eliminate turbo lag and reduce the engine’s size for better packaging.
The rumors about the mid-engine C8 Corvette over the last few months have included various engine options that specify a 4.2 liter V8 as well as the LT1 6.2 liter naturally aspirated engine found in the current Stingrays and Grand Sports. A third engine, sized at 5.5 liters and producing as much as 850 hp was also listed in a market analysis document from IHS Markit (and discussed at the Corvette Forum) which details manufacturer engine production through 2024.
Further “evidence” that this new engine from Cadillac will be shared with the C8 program is the fact that they will be hand assembled at the Performance Build Center in Bowling Green, with the number of hand-built engines estimated to be around 3,000 per year. However, this contradicts the IHS Markit study which listed the 4.2 liter twin turbo as being assembled at the Tonawanda Powertrain Plant outside of Buffalo.
One of the biggest reasons to doubt that this particular engine will find its way to the C8 are those CAD drawings which were posted on the Corvette Forum late last year. The CAD drawings seem to contradict a hot V configuration as well with images that show an naturally aspirated 6.2 liter and a twin-turbo design where the turbos are located low and outside of the engine block.
The new engines from Cadillac are said to be a “brand-exclusive” but that doesn’t mean that a motor from this new “family” could be made available for the ME Corvette. Make the changes required for performance and packaging into a mid-engine configuration and there’s your “exclusive” 4.2 liter engine for the Corvette.
I do want to sound off though on one of the “features” of the new Cadillac engine that I absolutely despise: Start/Stop Technology. Tadge has surveyed an audience a time or two while I’ve been in attendance and nobody wants that on a Corvette. There is something disconcerting about sitting at a red light and the car just shuts off leaving the occupants in an unnatural silence. Tadge never said never (so there is still a chance as engineers rarely have the final say when it comes to MPG ratings), but I think he knows how Corvette owners feel about Start/Stop Technology.
I would love to hear your thoughts on this new engine from Cadillac and if you think we are looking at a new V8 for the Corvette. Sound off in the comments below!
Source:
Cadillac and Corvette Forum
Related:
[SPIED] CAD Images of the Mid-Engine C8 Corvette Leaked to the Web
Additional Leaked C8 Corvette CAD Drawings Point to a Turbocharged Engine Called the LT7
[VIDEO] Mid-Engine C8 Corvettes Driving in Colorado
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Not believing this for a second. Knew the mid engine would be a Cadillac. Corvette enthusiasts waited too long. Very disappointing. Cadillac engine in BG KY. Paleeeze.
No one wants start/stop technology on a Vette! CAGS is annoying enough!
And don’t forget AFM. I’m not sure how well it’s working on the Corvette but it certainly destroyed engines in the Tahoes.
There have been rumors of a “new product” for the Corvette assembly plant. The “zerv” aka mid-engine is real as the tooling is installed in the plant and is in the testing process. The “new product” would be built on the rumored 2nd shift at Corvette and could just be a mid-engine Cadillac. Built to compete with the big names in sport/luxury.
Absolutely hate strat/stop technology, have it on my girlfriends ATS and it drives me nuts
Of course this “Caddy” engine is the basis for the DOHC V8 slated for the C8. In an era of increasing MPG requirements and decreasing engine sizes, GM can’t possibly afford to make more than one basic V8 like this. Details like displacement and where the turbos are located, etc. are irrelevant. You’re looking at the new LT5 we already know shows up on internal GM documents. The only question is when it will break cover.
Don’t fret over stop/start. There will be a switch to disable it. The afm will be indetectable.
It was undetectable on the GMT 900s until the engine started eating lifters and oil.
Automatic shutoff could be included in the ECO mode so those who want MPG can have it and others can just use more gas. As an owner of 2 hybrids and 3 Corvettes I do not feel threatened like other Vette owners. I can just depress the accelerator on my Hybrid to keep the engine running for the occasional Hybrid Drag Race, LOL
When can it be ordered? Apps. Price? HP ? Colors? Can’t wait let’s get it available sooner than later!
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