Jay Leno & the new Vette

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/24/2014-chevrolet-c7-corvette-wastes-no-time-zooming-into-jay-leno/

It is, admittedly, a love-fest for the American sports car now featuring 450 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque, but one that also features admissions about previous Corvette seats like "they were kinda rough," and the explanation that labeling the coupe "Stingray" means not having to call it "the base Corvette." On top of that, Welburn also explains the proper application of the term "dashboard." You can watch it all in the video below.

first Vette body I've liked in 40 years

I don't care for it in red with the red accents inside, but I like the looks of the car. Jay seemed either like he was really tired or he was just doing the story because GM was paying him to do it. No real excitement conveyed, but I'm not holding that against the car.

In reply to T.J.:

Jay only gets excited when he gets to test the cars out. He doesn't get super into the details unless the car is vintage.

The first pics of the styling, I was not sure. It seemed kind of busy. Seeing the car walked around...

I'm really really impressed. There is a lot going on, but it seems more active than busy. As they pointed out, the styling is not superfluous. Nothing is just there to look cool. It all has a function. It's not the physique a bulked body builder wearing gold chains; it's the taught muscles of an olympic athlete.

I like the red car much more than the gray/silver car.

The red accents inside highlight it better than all black.

Not sure I'd like yellow accents on a yellow car tho.

Never considered myself much of a 'vette guy. Appreciated what they are but didn't really want one except the ones from the 50's. I considered those sports cars. I've driven C3 through C6, the C5 & C6 Idrove were Z06 editions and they were impressive but still didn't sway me. But the new C7 is interesting. Can see myself driving and perhaps owning one of these. Make mine blue please.

Wow I just became a Vette fan...

I think the red inside will be an option. Saw one at the Detroit show that was all black. Glad they opened the hatch, I've been trying to figure out where the seams were!

Beer Baron wrote: The first pics of the styling, I was not sure. It seemed kind of busy. Seeing the car walked around... I'm really really impressed. There is a lot going on, but it seems more active than busy. As they pointed out, the styling is not superfluous. Nothing is just there to look cool. It all has a function. It's not the physique a bulked body builder wearing gold chains; it's the taught muscles of an olympic athlete.

so the fugly taillights add downforce or reduce the turbulence behind the car or something?

a couple of things from someone that will likely never be able to afford one of these unless my powerball investment plan finally pays off:

can you get it with the air inlets and outlets painted body color to make them not stand out so much? same with the brake calipers- paint them suckers semi gloss black so they don't stick out..

Jay made a big point about the ground clearance of the car, then bottomed it out at the end when he drove it off the turntable. granted, you probably won't be driving your Corvette off too many turntables, but some driveways might still be an issue..

how well is that gauge cluster going to hold up over a decade or so of regular daily driver usage?

the storage behind the nav screen was kind of cool- that's the kind of thing that will likely start turning up in slammed custom Subarus and Hondas now..

novaderrik wrote: so the fugly taillights add downforce or reduce the turbulence behind the car or something?

Oh noez! It has a feature that is kind of ugly! Let us pick out the one feature we don't like instead of the styling package as a whole.

I don't mind the tail lights. They're not great, but not bad.

Did people freak out with the switch to squares on the original ZR1?

Appleseed wrote: Did people freak out with the switch to squares on the original ZR1?

kinda.. but they were still kinda rounded off. people were more offended by the complicated DOHC monstrosity under the hood.

I'm not a Corvette guy, but I certainly do appreciate them but I love the look of the C7. Can't wait to see how it performs.

ah, yeah, watched the video for awhile then fast forwarded to find the part where they are actually driving then the video ends...yawn

plance1 wrote: ah, yeah, watched the video for awhile then fast forwarded to find the part where they are actually driving then the video ends...yawn

That's like reading the headlines and thinking you know the story.

I like it, but I think they were trying to hard with the styling. The C5 was boooooring, the C6 was a bit better, I think they tried to make up for it with the C7. Look at the Viper. With the exception of the hood (I prefer the two vents to the 6 vents) it is a very good looking car. Very clean lines and will still look good and contemporary 15 years on. Heck, look at the 97 GTS Coup, still looks great. The 'vette will be just like the Camaro. It'll be over-hyped and tired in no time.

I can see the storage behind the sat nav being the perfect place for important documents.. stuff you do not have to get to very often

I had lunch with Jay last Sunday at his shop and he told me that he was pretty impressed with the new Corvette. He was even more excited about the barn find E-type Jag he just bought. We went for a spin and I have to tell you that car got me thinking E types again.

E Type vs Vette? Gotta be the Jag just on charisma alone. I like Vettes right up until the 70s when they got all fat, heavy, male menapause like.

I am impressed with the new Vette, but my house costs less.

Dan

novaderrik wrote:

Appleseed wrote: Did people freak out with the switch to squares on the original ZR1?

kinda.. but they were still kinda rounded off. people were more offended by the complicated DOHC monstrosity under the hood.

I wouldn't call the lt-5 a monstrosity........they're definitely good engines.