Will the c8 coupe still have a manual targa roof and if so where will it be stored?

[JB]

Just wondering what your take on the c8 coupe will be.....will it have a manual targa roof like the c7,c6,c5 etc....?

if so where will the roof store?

in the front trunck?

in the rear trunk above the engine?

behind the seats?

i get a kick out of the automated retractible hardtops yet if we can get a manual targa no charge....that might be the way to for many of us...

got to have open air motoring capability.....

just curious what you guys think...

will the standard coupe still have a targa roof or will it be a solid roof?

[John]

We have definitive information that the ME’s coupe top will be removable. There are several reasons why, including one critical one (the last one).

1) That the HT convertible will cost many, many thousands more than a removable couple, and many Corvette owners for several generations have bought/wanted a Corvette coupe with a removable top (yet do not have the financial resources to buy a HT convertible)’
2) Under current Fed law, if your have a removable coupe top, you no longer are required to have side air bags (which cost money to manufacture, take up valuable/scare space within a sports car, and thirdly, a pair of side air bags cost “weight,” the kind of weight that is by necessity up high (which is another “disaster” for a sports car ‘s car handling, for it is the opposite of having a low center of gravity which is best for cornering handling), but most importantly;
3) the information that the ME’s top was removable was shared by a person who knows this as a 100% fact as a result of his/her work.

Sorry, but further amplification can be provided about reason # 3.

So with all the above, it is absolute that the ME will have a removable roof coupe.

I personally doubt that it would a two piece roof, and think it would again be standard carbon fiber (again for lower CG), as it is on the no-option/entry C7.

As to where it would be stored, that will come out at the reveal, or if we are fortunate, before then.

[Frenzy36]

Does #1 above mean that there is definitely going to be a HT convertible? I was surely hoping for one. Don't mind paying the additional $$ That would be sweet !!

[JB]

I was laughing as i approach 60 next year that my better half says jokingly the other day that in a few years i might be getting too old to be manually taking off a targa roof...then all of a sudden i was like I dont need no stinking power retractable top...lol

The targa does get hot when the car is in the sun sometimes.,to manually take off...but for seven grand.....i can do this..(just slap on a pair of workout gloves if the roof is toasty hot...) i think passerby's get a kick out of how easy we make it look to take off and stow the trunk)

Fwiw.,,its not always a question of not having the money as so politely stated above...

its often an old school mentality that says is it worth spending the moeny on..?.

im sure that concept gets lost in todays world but for many of us millionaires it still rings true.

thanks for the detailed answer...i just love open air motoring. All summer long for the most part i leave the roof off everyday and everywhere i go..

[John]

Does #1 above mean that there is definitely going to be a HT convertible? I was surely hoping for one. Don't mind paying the additional $$ That would be sweet !!

Nothing is ever set in stone until GM officially announces it, but based on extensive analysis of “spy pictures,” lead by fvs, the chances of the ME having a HT convertible, or “Spyder” as many ME exotics refer to it, are probably 95+%. Could well be approaching 99.99%. Price estimates are much less precise, but many as guestimating in the $6,000-$7,500 range for it on the 2020 Corvette ME. If in that range, that would be a literal steal as Ferrari charges approx $30K extra for it — though some other enhancements are included in their Spyder versions.

[Mobius]

I think the removable top will be stored in the frunk, and the frunk will also have "conventional" hinge placement adjacent to the base of the windshield (to facilitate easy storage of the roof).

[JB]

I was wondering if the targa top could just have a manual lift of the b pillar and the. Storage back into the same nesting place as the power top...

id be surprised of the front trunk is large enough to accomodate the targa top...but its hard to tell from the photos..

i guess you are right that seven grand is a “steal”

recently on one of the automotive podcasts where they modify mclarens....the spiders are the only ones that are a ***** to work on because of the tight confines of the stored roof...even when not stored..

i will mention that mclaren offers up the ability to lift the cover for the rear panel that allows access for the stored roof...to be opened without lowering the roof and is a great weekend getaway storage area...

of course you cant store soft luggage in that area and put the roof down...but when going on road trips....often times having the roof up is preferred...

i thought the mazda RF was an interesting design that is bith low cost and lightweight...

i bet the c8 spider offers the ability to just drop the rear window like the mclaren as well..

anybody remember the early c3 s had a pop out rear window in the coupe?

[Manta Ray]

I really think part of the reason the spy photos of the test mules appear to show tall rear fenders (especially from the top of the wheel well to the top of the fender and high rear deck (compared to other mid-engine cars) is because they have designed/engineered in a storage compartment/area above the engine specifically to store the targa panel. I also feel there may be a little padding under the camo that makes that rear deck look a little taller, but I really do think it's still taller than most other mid-engine cars specifically to provide some additional storage above the engine (and a place for the roof panel). I just don't think the frunk will be wide enough to store the panel based on the available spy photos of the exterior and the CAD images of the frunk itself.

[JB]

I really think part of the reason the spy photos of the test mules appear to show tall rear fenders (especially from the top of the wheel well to the top of the fender and high rear deck (compared to other mid-engine cars) is because they have designed/engineered in a storage compartment/area above the engine specifically to store the targa panel. I also feel there may be a little padding under the camo that makes that rear deck look a little taller, but I really do think it's still taller than most other mid-engine cars specifically to provide some additional storage above the engine (and a place for the roof panel). I just don't think the frunk will be wide enough to store the panel based on the available spy photos of the exterior and the CAD images of the frunk itself.

I agree ..i dont think the front trunk is large enough to hold the roof.

above the engine is plausable.

I also dont see where it would fit...

maybe the new targa roof is split in two?

[73shark]

maybe the new targa roof is split in two?

Then we can call it T-tops again.

[TtiME]

I agree ..i dont think the front trunk is large enough to hold the roof.

above the engine is plausable.

I also dont see where it would fit...

maybe the new targa roof is split in two?

The key is the hood wide enough, which I think the answer will be yes. I think it’ll be designed with a deeper middle area for groceries, bags, etc then a flat area specifically designed for the roof to latch into.