Corvette C6 Coupe full 9 point review
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Performance
With 6.2 litres, eight cylinders, 436bhp and 425lb ft of pulling power, you can show the ’Vette any custard and it’ll rip the skin right off it. Acceleration is rapid at any speed in five of the six forward gears, sixth being a cruising gear only. The gearshift itself is merely adequate, and can require a hefty shove to engage.
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Ride & Handling
No longer is the Corvette just a straightline dragster, with a pathological hatred of corners. Now it’s grippy, agile and well behaved – to a point. Introduce bumps into the equation and progress can become unruly. The steering is sharp and accurate and offers some feedback.
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Refinement
With the roof panel in place, cruising is a hushed affair, with only road noise making its presence heard. Put your foot down and the rumble from that V8 engine comes to the fore, which is to its credit. Take the hard-top roof panel off and wind noise is too prevalent at speed, but reduce your pace and calmness returns. There's also a folding-roof convertible.
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Buying & Owning
Given the enormous performance and neck-twisting style the Corvette offers, a list price of less than £46k could be seen as a bit of a bargain. You’ll pay more heavily when it comes to running costs, though – you’ll struggle to hit the average fuel economy figure of 21.7mpg. The ’Vette needs a service every 10,000 miles, too.
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Quality & Reliability
The good thing about the Corvette is that it’s a fairly simple beast, with tried and trusted mechanical bits, so reliability should be a given. In 2008, an upgraded cabin with lots of leather raised quality perceptions, but there are a few nasty items, such as the seat adjusters and sun visors.
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Safety & Security
All Corvettes come with traction control, stability control and twin front and side airbags as standard. Each car also has an alarm and immobiliser, although deadlocks are absent from the equipment list.
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Behind The Wheel
The two leather seats are electrically adjustable, and there’s plenty of space for the driver and passenger. The dashboard is simple and clear. All cars come with keyless entry and push-button starting. An optional head-up display that projects speedo information onto the windscreen is brilliant but part of an expensive options pack.
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Space & Practicality
The Corvette Coupe is basically a two-seat hatchback. Space is decent for the two occupants, and the boot is reasonable unless you use it to stow the roof panel. Even then, luggage still fits underneath the panel. Cabin storage space is on the sparse side.
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Equipment
Leather upholstery, climate control, a CD player, alloy wheels (18-inch on the front; 19 on the rear) and electrically adjustable seats are all fitted as standard. However, Chevrolet charges an astronomical £3550 if you want satellite-navigation, although the package comes complete with the funky head-up display that projects vital information onto the windscreen.
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