C7 Chevy Corvette Coming With 7-Speed Manual, DI, Variable Lift

A 7 speed? Will it be like the old 4+3 from the Eighties? Because that was so great.

It should have a dogleg first gear (imagine THAT 1-4 skip shift), and keep 6th and 7th all the way over to the right of the double-H pattern.

Excellent: DI, variable lift. doing a little math, lets say we get 10% improvement out of doing this over current LS3, that would mean 426HP X 1.1 = 468HP. Let's hope they don't increase curb weight to negate this.

My initial take on the 7 speed was that the engine would be smaller and more modern (yeah, OHC). But the post and posters seem to think it will be almost business as usual. I can't undrstand the puropose of seven gears when a motor of this size and power hardly even needs 4.

Really, does the Corvette still have skip-shift?

Ed, the engine may not need more than four gears to get decent drivability, but you *do* get better fuel economy with more gears. But you know that already.

And just a general comment on the pushrod. GM seems to be able to make this "old" technology competitive. I give them kudos.

If 7 is a good number then how about 10 or 13? It is getting rather silly.

"It should have a dogleg first gear (imagine THAT 1-4 skip shift)"

NICE!

Yeah 7 strikes me as a bit much, but the 911 is a direct competitor. I'm just happy they're keeping up and keeping a true manual.

I'd like to see a 5.0L displacement to strengthen the connection with the race car, unless the C7R changes the displacement.

GM's use of pushrods is like the SRA in the Mustang. Yes it has drawbacks, like everything else, but they've still made it thoroughly modern, work very well, and a defining characteristic of the car. Keep in mind OHC is older technology than OHV.

I'm sure all of the DI yuppies here will automatically assume that the proposed increased performance, increased power and increased efficiency is all because of the implementation of direct injection.

In reality, VVT tuning, better engine design, dual intake runners, friction reducing methods and other technologies have proven to deliver better real world performance/efficiency, cheaper cost of implementation, higher level of reliability and less complexity in regards to normally aspirated engines. Do some research, it may surprise you!

another corvette rumor! these are invariably accurate and useful!

"I'm sure all of the DI yuppies here will automatically assume ....."

ha4: I assume you are not a fan of DI? LOL.....can I ask you why you are so against it? Honestly I have not heard much about it......I understand how it works and there are rumors of carbon build up but if it was as bad as rumored then I think we would have heard more......but of course I could be wrong.....what is your take?

Soooo to add to the rumor mill. I am in software sales and ran into an individual who is responsible for safety at GM and he stated that when he left last year they had set the strategy as a good, better, best strategy for the engine... Twin Turbo V6 (350HP) is what he said the base would be then moving into the V8 for the higer range cars.... Very similiar to the Porsche strategy...

Just a rumor but this guy was pretty knowledgable about the program...of course I asked about rear engine...NO he said... and Split Window... He said possibly...but it had not been confirmed yet.....

Enjoy...

nothing surprising here, except maybe the 7 speed tranny.

Im sure DI will be just one sort of improvement that will improve specific output of the vette's OHV engines.

I dunno if 7th as an OD gear sounds like good rationale. The LS has so much torque over a wide range for a comparatively light car, I would think just making 6th taller would work better.

Those of you lamenting that GM stick with the existing pushrod engine, remember that with GM's track record on all new engines, if they decided to do a brand new engine with DOHC and all the bells and whistles of today's modern engines, it would be riddled with design defects. It would be at least a decade before that engine is what it should have been when it first came out.

That's just too much work. At some point all the time lost shifting gears will overcome any performance benefits that are gained by the number of gears (I'm not talking about mpg's and top gear, because top gear can be set to whatever no matter how many gears there are).

Shifting will become a full-time job.

No problem with a realible pushrod V8 in my book. I am still in search of a G8 GT with low miles.

Any news on the seats?

I would say leave the manual at 6 speeds and also provide a automated manual dual clutch unit---- dont care how many speeds, maybe 7. The high performance European cars are claiming .1 sec. shift times. The transmission would have full manual control and rev. match. A 7 speed manual would push more people to the existing automatic--- not me but most people.

after 7 years Im pretty sure the seats and interior will be considerably better. Id have to think the designers read the corvette reviews. It should be narrower, have better steering and have an upgraded interior including sport seats.

The only time you would shift more when you're merging onto a highway/freeway. GM already takes away two gears for you when driving slowly (skip-shift).

Lions208487.........I know what you mean. I just test drove one last Saturday.
Also the 7 speed manual is nice, but the Vette needs a really good DSG trans to compete with the best of em.

Is no one going to mention the variable valve lift?? That's the part the intrigues me the most. In earlier posts it had been speculated that "advanced combustion technologies" would be employed. I had figured that meant a cam-in-cam system similar to what the Viper uses, thus allowing independent timing between the intake and exhaust valves. But now I'm thinking they're implementing a BMW Valvetronic type system and leaving the cam a tradational one piece design.

Thoughts?

Oh wow!! This is great news! DI, 7spd, variable valve...sweet, can't wait. By the time it comes out, I should be able to buy one!! Yes!

I think the vette is starting to get too high tech. Its going to lose some of that "old school" flavor that some people love. Oh well, as long as it keeps a pushrod engine I think everything will be ok. Although, how big can that V8 get before they have to add more cylinders or forced induction? After direct injection and variable valve timing, what else is there to improve?

Everyone talks about the evolution of the 911. I like the evolution of the LS engines. They are relatively cheap, have great power curves, not too heavy are efficient.

If only ///M made their chassis, Audi the interior and exterior by Aston Martin.

The more important question is, will there be an AWD variant of the Corvette C7, like there is at Porsche. It would probably run 0-60 in 2 seconds flat? Like a bat from an oven.

Excellent! They're implementing 2 of the 3 technologies I hoped they would (the 3rd is cylinder shutoff). If they're smart about it, they'll tune the DI for better fuel economy. Say, add a couple MPGs on the highway, as well as 20 - 25 more HP. The VVT can take care of the other 20 - 25 HP and another MPG or two.

Wahooo! Just what I was looking for, More Gears to row through on the 405! Yeaaaa...
Yes L.A. life has destroyed my car sole...

DI and VVT i get, and is quite frankly awesome, but is 7 speeds really necessary? I've never found 5 and 6 speeds to be inadequate as long as their properly spaced

This all well and good but it's the interior that really needs updating. It's not like there's no talent at GM; Caddy interiors are pretty nice.

hope the rumored sting-ray inspiration brings with it the accompanying upright driving position. the ultra reclined ergos from the past 3 generations are tough to live with (ingress/egress, limited visibility, cave-like feeling, car feels bigger than it is).

best thing about commuting in a 911 is the visibility and upright seats.

I think this engine will be 5.5L, unless that rumor has been dispelled. But it could easily be 6.0 or 6.2, still.

When you consider what GM had accomplished with port injection and old fashioned cam timing (non-adjustable), with regard to drivability, fuel efficiency and durability, this will be really interesting. Gen V, here we come.

Now...please put that Duramax 4.5L into a civilian Caprice.

@ Bodyblue, I'm not against the technology but in regards to normally aspirated applications, I just don't see the point as the supposed added performance/efficiency doesn't outweigh the potential bad reliability (carbon buildup/injector-fuel pump failures), the added complexity or the significant costs associated.

It's somewhat proven itself in regards to boosted applications as they can run significantly higher compression ratios yet the added complexity, associated costs and potential reliability issues remain.

Sweet! I hope they still use a US supplier for the tranny though...

With typical V-8 torque and a tall 7th, you really won't need to shift any more than the current car for most driving.

Variable lift on a pushrod motor can be implemented with something as simple as an oil pressure manipulated collapsible lifter arrangement (similar to Fiat's multiair implementation in technology required, but not the same), although this would be best for a binary, "VTEC" style variation.

Alternatively, depending on the valve layout, a variable rocker ratio using a rotating cam as the pivot point would provide a finer resolution of lift changes without requiring complex engine management strategies. In fact, GM's ubiquitous E67 ECU already has the ability to phase camshafts which would be all that is required to implement a variable rocker arrangement.

church123, have you ever heard of Pattakon? He's made + patented infinitely variable valve lift mechanisms for pretty much every kind of valvetrain based on the theories you mentioned. Basic principle- remove the throttle, control airflow by varying the component of lift that the valves actually see. Some of his solutions are brilliantly simple. Hopefully GM takes this approach.

Such a long way to go from R to 1st... The new Corvette is going to be the slowest car on the planet to go from reverse, to forward.

I'm curious. When the car is in neutral, which gear is going to be directly above it? 3rd? 5th? Neither?

I predict many failed 1st to 4ths - instead you'll be going 1st to 6th. Or downshifting from 7th to 6th will accidentally land you in either 4th or 2nd.

TOO MANY GEARS!

Not fond of 6 and 7 speeds .....prefer the standard 5. Maybe Corvette should go to a 5 speed pattern and a range switch......Eaton-Fuller could take care of that for them up to 15 speeds..

Pattakon has done some interesting things with few resources, but he's quite obstinate about the limitations of what he has done and has a persecution complex about why no one has bought his ideas. I've tangled with him on numerous occasions.

7 speed manual in a sports car, hmm, not really needed if you have torque, and at 3300 lbs? sounds a little strange, how about something a little more exotic than a large displacement push-rod motor? Chevy small blocks, cheap and simple, well I guess you are what you drive.

i can only imagine what advancements will be made to the next gen small block. Im sure the vette will get tech not available on the trucks. And I'm not sure why people think there should be any concern about the interior. If they can put a nice interior in the Cruze and Malibu I see no reason to doubt that the vette interior will be worlds better than what we have today.

sohcammer... STHU The pushrod engine is very light and powerful! Who said it was going to be large displacment? I didn't know they released the specs yet. I am not sure about 7 speeds but when porsche does it, it's "Exotic"... The Flat 6 has been around LONGER than a pushrod design does that mean the Flat 6 is cheap and simple or old tech?

"the new engine which is likely to still be a pushrod V8, but with direct-injection and variable lift. Anyone who thinks that the Vette's engine (especially the LS7) is a dog or outdated because it's still a pushrod is wildly misinformed" Weird sounds he is talking about people like you!! SOHC lmao what a joke! The Vette's engine is more advanced than a SOHC engine like you're Sig says you're fan of!

6 or 7....DOESN'T MATTER! Not an american supplier? Nope! Still gonna be built in the U.S. with so-so finishes? Yup! Chevy can win the 24hr race but can not get the quality UP!! Build smaller engines,lighter cars,better mpg,horse power,quality....then I would buy from GM. The Porsche will have a lighter car,7 speeds plus push the envelope on what a performance car can be.

all of the speculation of what type of motor will go into the c7 all comes down to something seemingly unrelated: trucks and suvs. whatever motor goes into the c7, a variation of it will be the base powerplant for tahoes, suburbans, etc...and i don't think you will be seeing anything "radical" (relative term in this case) like ohc or turbos...a return to a displacement close to the magical 327 from the glory days of the vette will be the next vete motor and not to worry; the weight will be lean.

what to worry about is the price: because of the overwhelming success of the camaro ss, the vette needs to reinvent itself and go up market into uncharted territory...that's the biggest gamble for gm.....no matter how good the car is, will it sell at the increased (big time, possibly) price point.

jackg
06 sts6

@spqr309:

You're kidding, right? The heaviest (non-convertible) Corvette, the ZR1, weighs 3333 lbs. The lightest Z06, 3175 lbs. A base 911 Carrera 3075 lbs. 911 Turbo? 3400 lbs. All 175 inches in length. EPA for the Corvette 16/26, 911 18/25 (RWD). Pretty similar. I agree on "quality", but the Vette is also $20K less. Reliability - likely the same.

And there are other ways to measure engine size, other than displacement. How about how compact the engine is (aka power density), or how much the engine weighs? I would be willing to bet that the LS engine is more compact, has more power density, and weighs less than the DOHC flat-6 of the 911.

I own 2 Corvettes. A 14,000 original mile 1996 LT-4 6-speed SUPERCHARGED Collector Edition loaded, and a Custom 1975 Stingray small block 427cid, fuel injected with NOS AND a Nash 5-speed loaded. Not to forget my 1997 Porsche 911 6-speed SUPERCHARGED Carrera Coupe! I LOVE driving sticks. I DESPISE weenie-matic in anything! No question about my personal Preference! But really, 7-speeds? What are they thinking? As much as I love shifting manually, with a 7-speed, the driver will be constantly shifting instead of enjoying the drive! Not to forget the higher price that will ensue with the extra gear that is absolutely totally unnecessary. I think that 6 speeds is more than enough! If Chevy thinks they must copy Porsche (I also think Porsche is also being ridiculous as well putting a
7 speed in the 911 instead of a 6-speed, and I have a 911) they are sadly mistaken. Just another example of a bad decision being made by inept stupid GM executives. I have a long list of those!
RKP