GM has no plans for mid-engine Corvette

It's official: There's no mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette on the horizon. That's the word from General Motors top global engineer. A Corvette with a hybrid powertrain? That's a possibility.

Karl-Friedrich Stracke, GM's vice president of global vehicle engineering, met with Automotive News and AutoWeek editors on Tuesday to discuss a wide range of topics, including the next-generation Corvette.

Over the past two years or so, numerous stories in print and on the Internet have been written about the upcoming redesigned Chevy Corvette, and nearly all have speculated that GM was developing a mid-engine model. Speculation for the timing for the mid-engine car was anywhere from the 2014 model year to several years later. Stracke said he was familiar with those stories: “I don't know who made this public. I think it is wrong.”

Today, when asked for clarification about Stracke's comments, Dan Flores, a GM spokesman, said Stracke “is quashing those rumors.” He added: “The rumors and speculation about the Corvette are just that. There is no mid-engine in the plans." He also said there is no plan for a wet dual-clutch transmission.

Talk about a mid-engine Corvette has been a hot topic in chat rooms. But not everyone is in favor of that engine configuration, which puts the engine behind the driver and passenger seats instead of under the hood. On the subject of eight cylinders vs. six -- another hot online topic -- Stracke said GM is not testing a V-6 Corvette. But asked if a hybrid powertrain ever will be offered in a Corvette, Stracke said: “That is an interesting idea.”

He added: “The customer always wants power. That will not go away.” That means automakers must continue to offer better performance while improving fuel economy, he said. Stracke said GM and other automakers could decide on a strategy that limits the number of conventional powertrains in their sports cars. Said Stracke: “You could keep a normal powertain configuration for a small amount of very excited car enthusiasts and turn 80 to 90 percent of your sports car portfolio to hybridization.”

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Corvette Buyers Build the Engine for Their Cars

Chevrolet Corvette buyers can already take delivery of their car at the National Corvette Museum, get professional driver training and watch their cars being built. Now, General Motors Co. will let them build the engine.

GM is offering buyers of the 2011 Corvette ZR1 and Z06 models the chance to build the engines for their cars. For a suggested retail price of $5,800, plus the cost of getting to Detroit, a Corvette buyer is welcome to GM's Performance Build Center in Wixom, Mich., where engines for the ZR1 and the Z06 are built by hand.

The Engine Build Experience package includes a concierge service that will set up most of the arrangements.

Buyers who select the option will work side-by-side with professionals at the Performance Build Center. Together they will build up an engine, starting with a bare block and moving through a series of assembly stations. Virtually all of the work is done by hand, with minimal automated assistance.

At the end of the line, the engine is test run on a dynamometer and the builder adds a personalized nameplate. Then the engine is sent to the Corvette assembly plant in Bowling Green, Ky., for installation in the car.

Another perk: Whether built by the customer or by the professional technician, the engine from the Performance Build Center is covered by a five-year/100,000-mile warranty.

Phillips Chevrolet has Illinois' Largest Chevy Inventory! We have an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, and are one of the Largest Chevy Dealers in the United States. Visit us at www.phillipschevy.com. View our specials!