You could argue that the V8 engine saved the Corvette. After two years with an inline six, the Vette made eight cylinders an option and its buyers never looked back. Now, as the era of the combustion engine wanes and V8 performance cars are dying on the vine, it seems Chevrolet once again wants a new powertrain to keep the Corvette going — this time, one powered by batteries.
We’ve known for a while that Chevrolet was working on a hybrid Corvette, but GM has never confirmed the nameplate would see the age of electrification. Now, the secret is out: A hybrid Corvette next year, and a fully electric one coming down the line.
The hybrid’s teaser, complete with snowy burnouts, tells half the story. It shows what appears to be cold weather testing for the new powertrain, if “incredibly long powerslides” fit any standard testing procedure. Of course, it makes sense to test your cars under real-world conditions — who would buy an AWD Corvette without plans to snow drift it?
But the video, entertaining as it is, is light on details. For those, there’s another source — a LinkedIn post from GM President Mark Reuss, discussing future plans for both gas and hybrid variants of the current Corvette. There’s even mention of a fully electric version of Chevy’s two-seater, to come sometime in the future.
The post focuses on GM’s Ultium Platform for electrification, something we’ve previously only seen in trucks and crossovers. Reuss’s line about “developing a ground-up EV platform” to do things that are “not easily done with a retrofit” begs the question — what form will a fully electric Corvette take? Was the C8 built with an EV in mind, or will the all-electric Vette be something else entirely?