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With all the hype surrounding the recently released Corvette C8, many admirers are thinking back to the best and worst of the brand.
The Chevrolet Corvette has gone from strength to strength in recent years, graduating from a powerful sports-car to a true supercar. Looking back through the years there have been many great cars, and some not so great, but only one version Chevy sports car really sticks out as a true lemon. Although you could argue for the C3 Corvette being one of the best versions, without doubt, the longest running version, the 1975 Corvette is easily the worst.
Chevrolet had to react to the stricter emissions standards and decided to make it work the cheap, quick way. The result was a V8 Corvette that could only muster a lethargic 165 horsepower!
In many ways the sweeping design speaks for itself, it is quite simply iconic. The Zora Arkus-Duntov and Bill Mitchell designed car was initially visioned as what would have been the first mid-engined Corvette. The usual budgetary constraints hit the design team, and the engine made its way back to the front; the final result may not have been what they planned, but it was still quite beautiful. It somehow managed to span three decades after debuting in 1968, it made it all the way through the hugely difficult 70s, and the last, most modern versions finally left the factory in 1982.
As far as driving dynamics are concerned there is something of a divide, it got independent suspension which improved the handling but it was never an out and out sports car. It was a GT car, now becoming more and more affordable, and it was a fantastic GT car in the early production years. As the emissions standards improved the power gradually went down, and one thing any good GT car desperately needs is a powerful engine.
Related: Here’s Why The C2 Corvette Is One Of The Greatest Automotive Designs Ever
Instead of developing a more fuel-efficient V8 or even an inline 6 that could yield better emissions, GM took the shortcut of just slapping on a catalytic converter and dropping the compression of the existing engine. As a result, the 1975 base model was launched with all of 165 horsepower. For a big car like the Chevy, this results in an awful power to weight ratio, and although it returned a respectable 7.7 seconds 0-60 time it would be shown a clean pair of heels by almost ANY other older Corvette. Even the original inline 6 released in 1953 had 150 horsepower, only 15 shy of the big, burly V8 produced more than 20 years later!
This was the low point in the Corvette history,
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By: Luke Zietsman
Title: This Chevrolet Corvette Deserved A Better Engine | HotCars
Sourced From: www.hotcars.com/this-chevrolet-corvette-deserved-a-better-engine/
Published Date: Wed, 12 Aug 2020 15:45:47 GMT
The post This Chevrolet Corvette Deserved A Better Engine | HotCars appeared first on tizBIG.
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