Styling
All C8 Corvettes have the dramatic cab-forward stance with angular body styling, which is a bit of shock to traditionalists weaned on the C1-C7 generations (the 1963 C2 is one of the most beautiful cars ever put into production, incidentally). However, the new cars have masses of presence, especially the E-Ray and Z06 which use the 90mm-wider bodyshell, complete with more aggressive air intakes just behind the doors, to accommodate fatter tyres at all corners, rubber which specifically measures in at a whopping 345-section on the rear axle.
You might think the slimmer Stingray, then, offers considerably less kerbside clout, but that's not the case at all. It's still a car that draws masses of attention, all positive, out on the roads, and as this one is a Convertible then it has a folding hard-top that can be raised and lowered on the move at speeds of up to 30mph; impressive. Also, luscious Rapid Blue paint (£1,040) helps the Stingray's case no end.
Interior
The cabin of the C8 Corvette is fabulous, because that sweeping transmission tunnel construct is a proper piece of supercar theatre - even if it results in a madly long strip of buttons for the climate controls and similar that takes some getting used to. But the material quality is thoroughly excellent and all the switchgear feels bespoke, rather than shared with something more prosaic; one of the benefits of lesser Chevrolets no longer being widely on sale across Europe.
There is a criticism in that the seats on all C8 models are set too high, although that's less of an issue on this Convertible variant when you can drop the top and enjoy miles of sky as your headroom. Aside from that, major kudos to the 12-inch digital instrument cluster, which presents information clearly, is graphically interesting, and which responds quickly to various control inputs too.
Practicality
A two-seat supercar with a honking great 6.2-litre V8 engine in its midriff is never going to be the height of practicality, and so the Corvette proves. The cabin, headroom aside, does provide plenty of space for two people, while the combined front and rear boots tot up 355 litres of capacity between them in the E-Ray hybrid. However, both this Stingray and the Z06 up that number ever so slightly, to a weirdly specific 356.8 litres. Will you inevitably miss that last, er, 200ml of space one day, when you've got 357 litres' worth of clobber to carry? Probably not, no.
Performance
The 5.5-litre, flat-plane-crank, racecar-derived V8 in the range-topping, 646hp Corvette Z06 has to be experienced to be believed. The hollowed-out, bellowing noise it makes as it revs to 8,500rpm and more, the razor-sharp throttle response, the sheer pace of it - it's all utterly mesmerising.
Further, the new E-Ray, which uses an electrically augmented version of the Stingray's LT2 motor to deliver a Z06-rivalling 644hp, is also astonishing. It's the fastest-accelerating production 'Vette yet seen, thanks to its four-wheel-drive system propelling it to an eye-widening 2.9-second 0-62mph run.
But don't discount this Stingray. The 6.2-litre V8 might be your typical old-school Yank motor - does all its best work at low revs because it tops out at 6,450rpm, has pushrods for its overhead valves, makes a properly muscle-car-esque rumble all through its operating zones - but it's a thoroughly modern acceleration experience. The power builds in a beautifully linear fashion, along with the noise (even so, we could do with a bit more of it, please, Chevrolet), and with the eight-speed DCT proving itself every bit the match of a similar system you'd find in a European rival, this is one seriously, addictively quick car.
And just as quick to drink its fuel. It achieved a mere 14.8mpg on our test drive. Ah well; if that's the price of that glorious soundtrack, it's well worth it.
Ride & Handling
Both the Z06, which is a supremely talented track-focused car, and the E-Ray are great things to steer. But we found it was 'just' the Stingray which stuck in our minds the longest after driving this trio of C8s. It has brilliant steering, exquisite front-to-rear balance, mighty brakes and seemingly no real traction issues at all, which makes it a great thing to hurl down a country lane, its marginally narrower body also helping to make it less intimidating to thread along such B-roads than its broader siblings.
Yet it's the magnificent ride and refinement it can deliver in Tour mode which makes it our favourite current Corvette. No doubt about it, the Z06 is the superior car for driving thrills, but the minor sacrifices the Stingray makes in outright kinematic ability at the limit are more than paid off by its sumptuous ride quality when you've got it in Tour. Seriously, as mid-engined supercars go, it has almost all the same ease-of-use and GT-apeing qualities on the move as either the original
Honda NSX or the
Audi R8. And we can't pay the Corvette a much higher compliment than that.
Value
The 2020 transition from FR to MR has pushed the Corvette a long way from its former rivals, such as its traditional compatriotic nemesis
the Ford Mustang, and into the realm of much more exotic machines; not just supercars of the same format, but also the most obvious contender in the form of the Porsche 911
Cabriolet and its retrotastic
Targa spin-off.
With the exception of the base-spec 2LT Stingray Coupe, every C8 Corvette is now a six-figure car these days. Some more startlingly so than others: the E-Ray and Z06 we tested on the same day as this blue Convertible were, respectively, £174,690 and £208,984 with options. So forgive us for being borderline flippant when we say the 3LT (a higher trim grade than 2LT) Stingray Convertible, with a few sundry extras, felt like something of a bargain at £110,103, considering the spectacular car you'd end up with as a result.
Verdict
Driving any C8 Corvette is an eye-opening and truly special experience, because they are all tremendous things to steer. The Z06 is fantastic if a little extreme for road use at times, while the E-Ray is a technically brilliant accomplishment - even if its limited electric-only driving capabilities (up to five miles max) show that the hybrid treatment here was a performance-boosting exercise rather than one designed to save the planet from tailpipe emissions.
Which is why we'd keep it simple when it comes to a new Corvette. Get yourself into this Stingray, in either body format, and what you'll have is a deceptively charming, deeply likeable and relatively rare (on this side of the Atlantic, at least) machine that'll keep delivering the great driving memories time and time again. A genuinely sensational thing all round.
