Yahoo Finance Ain’t Misbehavin’: Our Long-Term Corvette Grand Sport Crosses 20K
WHAT WE LIKE: We might risk sounding like a broken record, but the everyday livability of this 460-hp sports car astonishes time and time again. Few sports cars can deliver on so many fronts-curb appeal, sound quality, road-trip ability, acceleration, you name it-as well as the seventh-generation Corvette. The ride quality is particularly impressive. The Grand Sport’s chassis feels sophisticated, and it is both more supple and better isolated than cars costing far more. The Corvette Grand Sport is one of the best values on the market today, sports car or not.
WHAT WE DON’T LIKE: Several editors have complained about the infotainment interface, particularly how slow it is to respond to inputs, which is particularly frustrating when quickly trying to find the submenu to change the steering effort before the light turns green. Road roar, mostly brought to you by the good folks at Michelin (the GS’s rear tires are meaty 335/25ZR-20s that generate a lot of noise), can make for troublesome Bluetooth calls when driving on the highway, and we’ve had those on the other end of the line question whether the Vette’s removable roof panel was in place. (It was.) And there is the occasional gripe about accidentally getting seventh gear when trying for fifth, but that is something that muscle memory gained through more regular exposure moving the shift lever through the Corvette’s four vertical shift planes-as an owner, say-likely would remedy.
WHAT WENT WRONG: Aside from a few bent wheels that were covered in the previous update: not a thing. Considering this is basically a mulligan on our last long-term Corvette test, let’s hope it continues that way. On one bleak winter morning, technical director Eric Tingwall emerged from slumber to find the Grand Sport covered in a thin film of ice. So much ice that the indexing windows couldn’t move (to clear the seals, they drop about 0.5 inch as the doors are opened). This meant that the doors would not open. The hatch wouldn’t open, either. Tingwall did not leave for work on time that day.
WHERE WE WENT: Despite our fitting a set of Michelin Pilot Alpin PA4 winter tires ($1515) that were developed specifically for the Corvette, winter’s snowy grip kept the GS close to home. Don’t misinterpret-the Michelins are great winter tires and did their job of keeping the Vette out of the ditch. As we predicted in our previous update, the road-trip hesitation was rooted in the knowledge that, while the Corvette normally wears run-flat tires, the winters are not of this type; since there is no spare tire, a flat would leave one at the mercy of roadside assistance. The Grand Sport did make drives down to Virginia International Raceway and to eastern Pennsylvania, but we have to get on the horse and accumulate some miles so this doesn’t turn into an extra-long-term test.
Months in Fleet: 11 months Current Mileage: 22,476 miles Average Fuel Economy: 19 mpg Fuel Tank Size: 18.5 gal Fuel Range: 350 miles Service: $136 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0 Damage and Destruction: $1119
You Might Also Like
