Chevrolet Officially Reveals the Electrifying New 2024 Corvette E-Ray

Jan 17, 2023

24278

Chevrolet Officially Reveals the Electrifying New 2024 Corvette E-Ray

Photo Credits: Chevrolet

655-hp Corvette E-Ray is the Quickest Corvette of Them All

Seventy years to the date of the 1953 Corvette’s public debut at the GM Motorama in New York City, Chevrolet is once again electrifying enthusiasts with the official reveal of the 2024 Corvette E-Ray. Chevy’s press release says “For its 70th birthday, Chevrolet gives the World an electrified AWD Corvette,” and it’s a gift that will be available to buyers later in 2023.

First off, here are the specs and what we think E-Ray fans will really want to know.

• A single motor capable of 160 horsepower and 125 lb.ft of torque powers the front wheels via a 1.9 kWh battery pack which is located centrally in the car between the seats.

• It’s not a plug-in. The batteries are recharged by normal driving, coasting, and braking.

• When combined with the LT2 V8’s 495-hp/470 lb.ft of torque, the E-Ray makes a combined 655 horsepower.

• Stealth Mode gives you up to 45 mph on electric power.

• No frunk space is lost with the addition of the compact electric motor.

• Chevrolet is claiming 2.5 seconds 0-60 mph and 10.5 seconds @ 130 mph in the quarter-mile.

• E-Ray Coupe has a dry weight of 3,744 pounds and Convertible is 3,856 pounds.

• The starting MSRP is $104,295.

The First All-Wheel-Drive Corvette

The performance numbers are eye-opening with Chevrolet claiming the E-Ray is the quickest production Corvette in history. Additionally, the E-Ray is also capable of 1.1g on the skid pad. That’s what all-wheel-drive can do for the platform. The amount of electric assist is tailored for each of the Corvette’s six Driver Modes (Tour, Sport, Track, Weather, My Mode and Z-Mode.) Drivers can also select the Charge+ feature for maximizing the battery’s state of charge.

The eAWD system monitors road conditions and adapts to provide traction. During spirited driving or low traction environments, the eAWD system provides additional power to the front wheels for enhancing the vehicle’s stability. On the race track, the eAWD system provides additional torque to the front axle as needed. The E-Ray’s custom-designed Performance Traction Management (PTM) is also optimized to work in harmony with the eAWD system.

“Corvettes must provide an exhilarating driving experience on backroads and tracks, and E-Ray nails it,” said Tadge Juechter, executive chief engineer, Corvette. “The electrification technology enhances the feeling of control in all conditions, adding an unexpected degree of composure.”

We saw a preview of Stealth Mode on last week’s video teaser, and it’s everything we hoped it would be. Selecting Stealth Mode on start up enables all electric driving before the engine turns on for normal driving. You can drive at a maximum speed of 45 mph on electric-only power and Chevy says it’s designed for quietly leaving the neighborhood. Once the E-Ray’s battery pack is depleted, or you exceed 45 mph, the LT2 V8 motor will automatically turn on.

With the new propulsion system in place, Chevy also provides a number of new data points to the driver on the dash cluster and a special E-Ray Performance App that runs on the infotainment screen. The app provides the driver with all the details ranging from dynamic power output from the electric motor and the V8, a graph of power/torque, and monitoring electrical performance and efficiency.

Corvette E-Ray Design and Featured Options

The Corvette E-Ray shares the Z06’s widebody design that is 3.6 inches wider overall than the Stingray, and as the visualizer has shown, it’s available only in body color trim. Chevrolet says the front electric motor that resides over the front axle is compact, “preserving space in the front storage compartment,” so you won’t have to compromise losing any storage space with the E-Ray.

Standard options on the E-Ray include Brembo’s Carbon Ceramic brake system which provides optimal braking performance for the car, and Magnetic Ride Control that offers three district suspension settings. Michelin’s Pilot Sport all-season tires are also standard equipment and you can upgrade to the Pilot Sport 4S summer performance tires as part of the ZER Performance Package.

The E-Rays will have their own specific staggered 20/21-inch forged aluminum wheels in four distinct finishes, and the Z06’s three designs of carbon fiber wheels can be ordered with the optional Performance Package. Visible carbon fiber ground effects are also offered as an option.

“There’s never been a Corvette like E-Ray and its sophisticated design reflects that,” said Phil Zak, executive design director, Global Chevrolet. “It starts with the body color trim which draws your full attention to the exotic proportions of the E-Ray. The interiors allow customers to reflect their individual personalities with their choice of color executions that provide a refined or dynamic sport look and feel.”

E-Ray buyers will have fourteen exterior colors which include three new hues for 2024: Riptide Blue, Seawolf Gray, and Cacti. As the visualizer leak only showed 13 colors, we are surprised to see on the new 2024 Corvette E-Ray Visualizer that Ceramic Matrix Gray is back for another model year. A new dipped interior called Artemis offers deep green tones on nearly every interior surface and Chevrolet says it’s only going to be around for the 2024 model year. Buyers can also select an exclusive body stripe for the E-Ray in Electric Blue and the E-Ray badges are available as Bright or Black. The E-Ray also has a modified Stingray badge on its rear deck, which we believe is there as a nod to the Stingray’s LT2 V8. However, the E-Ray’s Stingray badge is a slightly different design as it appears to have “evil eyes” as one Corvette enthusiast put it.

We made a lot of hay about the E-Ray’s exhaust tips and it appears we were wrong on the E-Ray only utilizing the LT2-style tips. The various photos released by Chevrolet appear to show both versions of exhaust tips in play which explains the confusion over the spy photos from last month. The standard tips appear to be the regular bright LT2 exhaust tips with the black tips being optional.

One area where we were right in our pre-reveal reporting was on the 2024 Corvette receiving additional driver assistance technologies. All 2024 Corvette models will now have Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, Forward Collision Alert, and Following Distance Indicator. These are in addition to the current safety features available on Level 2 and 3 trim packages that include Side Blind Zone Alert, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and Rear Park Assist.

Finally, Chevrolet tells us that the 2024 Corvette E-Ray “goes on sale in 2023 with an MSRP of $104,295 for the 1LZ Coupe,” and the new model will be produced by the Bowling Green Assembly Plant in Kentucky. That’s a little different than the “Available Summer of 2023” that was on the E-Ray’s visualizer leak, and perhaps it’s because Chevrolet didn’t want to commit to a specific time frame as they did with the Z06.

Our Take

Wow, what a car! It’s great to finally see the specs of the 2024 Corvette E-Ray and how electrification takes the performance of the Stingray’s LT2 V8 to the next level. While it’s Chevrolet first big step into the electrification of an American Icon, you only get one chance to make a good first impression, and so far, we think it’s a good one. We knew the car would be heavier with its battery and new electric drive motor, and yet it was still able to best the 2023 Z06 in the 0-60 mph and quarter mile stats, even if only by a tenth of a second.

This new Corvette comes with a strong price, most likely reflective of demand and the development costs of electrification. We were hoping the price would come in lower with our previous guess being in the mid-80s to help spur greater appreciation for the EV hybrid concept, especially as many traditional enthusiasts have yet to be swayed by the promise of EV Corvettes. Instead of the price slotting nicely between the Stingray’s $66K and the Z06s $106K ($109K with gas guzzler tax), buyers will be shelling out a premium money for the opportunity to have the first Corvette hybrid EV.

Looking beyond the performance justification, those who live in climates with challenging weather conditions finally will have a Corvette that can be driven confidently year-round. The combination of the eAWD system and Michelin’s Pilot Sport All-Season Tires will bring much needed traction to the car during extreme weather events, and there is even the possibility of Michelin snow tires arriving in E-Ray/Z06 sizes on the horizon.

We are somewhat surprised that Chevrolet decided to do a “soft reveal” for the next C8 Corvette model instead of hosting a proper live reveal with a live audience. We believe that has to do with the optics of the Z06’s limited quantities produced to date. With General Motors planning to go fully electric with the Corvette, this first step to electrifying America’s Favorite Sports Car should have been given a proper launch.

2024 Corvette E-Ray Video/Image Gallery