The 2017 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport unveiled Tuesday is a track-ready Corvette that pays tribute to 50 years of racing, General Motors said.
DETROIT, MI - The 2017 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport unveiled Tuesday is a track-ready Corvette that pays tribute to 50 years of racing, General Motors said.
With the Z07 package, the new Corvette is just one second off the track record for the previous-generation Corvette ZR1 on the road course at General Motors' Milford Proving Ground.
Shown for the first time at the 2016 Geneva International Motor Show, it has Michelin tires with the Grand Sport wheel design, as well as Brembo brakes, magnetic ride control and electronic limited-slip differential.
Under the hood is an LT1 V-8 rated at 460 horsepower. The naturally-aspirated engine is mated to a seven-speed manual transmission or an eight-speed automatic with paddle shifters.
The Grand Sport title was first launched in 1963, and the 2017 Corvette Grand Sport pays homage to the legacy with a series of design cues.
"Racing has been part of Corvette's essence for more than 50 years and that track experience has helped us build better, more capable cars," Mark Reuss, GM's executive vice president of global product development and global purchasing and supply chain, said in a release. "The global acclaim for the seventh-generation Corvette validates that direct link and the 2017 Grand Sport takes its track-bred technology to a new, exciting threshold."
Both coupe and convertible models will go on sale this summer in the U.S. and next fall in Europe. Pricing has not been announced.
David Muller is the automotive and business reporter for MLive Media Group in Detroit. Email him at dmuller@mlive.com, follow him on Twitter or find him on Facebook.