Blue Angel

The mightly mid-engined corvette stingray is only a year away from oz, but we couldn't resist driving it first in California

- Jethro Bovingdon

Hype swirls around the new Corvette Stingray like few other cars in recent memory. In the US there have been rumours of a mid-engined ’Vette for decades and people are drooling at the prospect, or outraged that more than 65 years of front-engine heritage has been betrayed. It seems to offer the most outrageous value and yet packs a 6.2-litre V8 with 369kW and 637Nm, and an 8-speed dual-clutch gearbox.

US magazines have already recorded sub-three-second runs to 60mph (97km/h) and 0-100mph (0-160km/h) in the low 7s. This from a car that starts at just $59,995 in its home market, or $10K less than a Cayman S. No wonder there’s so much hype. It looks like Corvette has democratised the supercar.

Let’s not spend too long worrying about what went before and whether placing the engine behind the driver is sacrilege or simply progress. Holden has announced that the Stingray will come to Australia in right-hand-drive form, so what we really need to know is whether this thing is any good. If Chevrolet has finally built a car to take on and beat the rest of the world and it’s available to buy here through your local Holden dealership... well, who cares about talk of legacy and heritage and all that nonsense? Dont tell anyone I said this, but most of the older Corvettes sucked anyway.

Sadly, the stylists weren't as keen as the engineers to cut the baggage loose. The inescapable truth is that the C8’s styling is rather conservative, slightly clumsy and very definitely weighed-down with all that history. There's drama in the shape, but park it beside something from McLaren or Ferrari and it looks heavy-handed and rather dated already. Even in the context of a 718 Cayman, the Stingray looks like it’s trying way too hard. A shame but maybe not a deal-breaker, as there’s so much good stuff going on beneath the fussy lines.