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By Mitch McCullough
We'll take one in Atomic Orange, please.
Introduction
Accolades heaped on the Chevrolet Corvette are well earned. Even a short test drive is convincing.
Driving a Corvette should be an emotional experience, and the standard coupe and convertible deliver in spades. The 400-horspower LS2 V8 rumbles wonderfully, and the Vette intoxicates with its acceleration. With either the manual or automatic transmission, the coupe thrills. And the convertible is plain wonderful. Drop the top on a nice day, blare the stereo and you'll have what psychologists call a peak experience. It's a fantastic feeling and at those moments the Corvette more than justifies its price, which is a bargain compared to other truly capable high-performance sports cars.
Yet probably the best thing about the 2007 Corvette is that you don't have to suspend right-brain rationality to enjoy it. Chevrolet has eliminated nearly all the cruder, less desirable traits that characterized Corvettes of yore, and its performance does not exact a painful toll on driver or passenger. The Corvette could be a reasonably comfortable daily driver in most locales, for at least three of the four seasons. Driven sanely, it can deliver pretty good mileage, too, up to 28 mpg highway by the EPA's formula, better than most SUVs.
Now in its third year of production, the current Corvette is known to sports car enthusiasts as the C6 (for sixth generation). What makes it better than the previous generation is everything: performance, refinement, ease of operation. It's more comfortable and easier to drive, not only on the road, but also on a race track. It quickly infuses a driver with confidence. Its brakes are fantastic and, yes, it's faster. And to its credit, Chevrolet has not rested on its laurels with the Vette.
A year after launch, Chevrolet introduced a six-speed automatic transmission, which works great and lives up to the advanced technology in the rest of the car.
Even more significant was the introduction of the latest-generation, ultra-high-performance Z06 model. The Corvette Z06 is a true supercar for a price that's merely expensive, as opposed to insanely expensive. The Z06 gets the 505-hp LS7 V8, high-tech, weight trimming chassis features and upgraded brakes. If any $66,000 car can be called a bargain, this is the one, at least in terms of raw performance. The Corvette Z06 accelerates faster, grips better and stops shorter than European sports cars that cost twice as much. And we find it much easier to drive than a Viper.
For 2007, the Corvette gets a bigger glove box, redundant steering-wheel controls for the high-end Bose stereo, and OnStar tele-aid service for the Z06 model.
Bottom line: In either standard or Z06 trim, the 2007 Chevrolet Corvette remains the best high-performance value in America. Corvette delivers supercar performance for the price of a midsize luxury sedan, and it's easy to live with.
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