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Concept Corvettes 1959 to 1992

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Cameron 77C3:

Part 6
1992 Sting Ray III



The active suspension's optical sensors shine four beams of white light down from the undercarriage, and four-wheel steering allowed us to hang a U-turn on the two-lane road in front of the GM design office. The seating position, rakish windshield, and accelerative force would all feel familiar to a Lamborghini or mid-engine Ferrari owner. The car was considered for production, but the $300,000-plus price tag was deemed prohibitive for a Chevy--even a 225-mph one.

In 1989, design honcho Chuck Jordan staged an internal competition between three studios to style the C5 Corvette. His favourite was that penned by the newly established Advanced Concept Centre in Southern California. This roadster explored a radical rethink of the Corvette's proportions, stretching the wheelbase 6.7 inches and the width 3.3 inches, bobbing the tail by some four inches, and pulling the steeply raked windshield way forward.


1992 Sting Ray III

The original running prototype proposed fitting a high-output V-6 engine (which may have influenced the odd three-spoke, three-lug wheels), but by its 1992 Detroit show debut it was packing 300 horses' worth of LT-1 V-8 muscle.

Climbing into the fixed seats is made easier by low side sills and an instrument-panel pod that articulates up when the door opens for improved knee clearance. The seatbacks are raked to a nearly recumbent position, and the hybrid analogue/digital gauges are visible over the top of the small, fat steering wheel. Organic dash forms and featureless door panels surround occupants without crowding them.



In the end, the Sting Ray III's design was deemed too similar to that of the Camaro (also penned in California), and elements of the three proposals were blended into the final design of the C5. If he were here, Bill Mitchell would probably counsel his successors that this amalgamated committee approach was responsible for the lukewarm reception the 1997 Corvette's styling received. And he'd probably coach current design chief Ed Welburn to take just one more stab at a mid-engine, fixed-seat Corvette dream car.

Magazine covers the world over are waiting.










Part 7
Cool Mules



Our focus here has been on full-blown concepts and prototypes, but along the way there have been some cool mules wearing civilian Corvette duds over wondrous hardware that never made production. The ZR-2 was a GM aftermarket proposal to sell kits for adapting a 454 marine engine to fit a C4 Corvette, generating ZR-1 performance on the cheap (MT, February 1991). The ZR-1 SS, aka "Snake Skinner," massaged a stock ZR-1 engine to 450 horses (hotter cam, better breathing) and lightened the body by 500 pounds with a Kevlar hood, Plexiglas hatch, and an aluminium-intensive chassis. Chevy claimed a 4.0-second 0-to-60-mph time (MT, May 1992). Most outrageous of all was the ZR-12, a C4 stretched eight inches to accommodate a Falconer V-12--the all-aluminium small-block-derived 90-degree pushrod engine used in marine, aircraft, and hot-rod applications. The ZR-12 weighed 100 pounds more than a stock Corvette and packed a claimed 686 horses, earning our moniker "Conan the Corvette." (MT, May 1992).



If You would like a full printable Microsoft Word transcript of this including the pics, CLICK ME.  Depending on your connection speed, this may take a while.

Information provided :-

By Frank Markus
Photography by David Freers
At http://motortrend.com

THE END
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69 DIRTY RAT:
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