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After 15 months, 2 weeks and 3 days (who’s counting) my wait was finally over this past Monday when I picked my car up at Criswell from Mike Furman. I am sure I could have been in and out of the dealership inside of an hour if Mike wasn’t gracious enough to visit, answer any and all my questions, and talk Corvette’s as long as I wanted.
The 240-mile drive home was amazing! Don’t believe all the accolades you have read about this car. It is so much, much better you won’t believe it. When “they” say the wait is worth it, do believe that! The trip home was so much more comfortable than the ride up in my base C7 with mag ride. The C8 Z51 with mag ride in Tour mode made the C7 seem like a buckboard wagon by comparison. Bumps and pavement seams that were jarring with crashing suspension sounds in the C7 were absorbed smoothly with hardly a whimper in the C8. And yet, the car was still planted and flat through the twisties. I spent the trip concentrating on getting accustomed to the sensory environment of the new car and didn’t mess with the different modes and settings in highway traffic keeping almost exclusively in Tour mode.
Now, three days later, I am just 40 miles short of completing the initial break-in and can offer my initial impressions of some of the features. My impressions come from a background that includes 9 years with ’87 “slushbox” (swore I would never have another automatic Corvette), 14 years with two M6 C5’s, and 5 years with an A8 C7 (a pending shoulder replacement forced me to break my “swear” for my “last” Corvette). For suspensions, my ’87 was a Z52 (basically a Z51 but with an automatic), one base C5/one Z51, and a base C7 with mag ride.
The 240-mile drive home was amazing! Don’t believe all the accolades you have read about this car. It is so much, much better you won’t believe it. When “they” say the wait is worth it, do believe that! The trip home was so much more comfortable than the ride up in my base C7 with mag ride. The C8 Z51 with mag ride in Tour mode made the C7 seem like a buckboard wagon by comparison. Bumps and pavement seams that were jarring with crashing suspension sounds in the C7 were absorbed smoothly with hardly a whimper in the C8. And yet, the car was still planted and flat through the twisties. I spent the trip concentrating on getting accustomed to the sensory environment of the new car and didn’t mess with the different modes and settings in highway traffic keeping almost exclusively in Tour mode.
Now, three days later, I am just 40 miles short of completing the initial break-in and can offer my initial impressions of some of the features. My impressions come from a background that includes 9 years with ’87 “slushbox” (swore I would never have another automatic Corvette), 14 years with two M6 C5’s, and 5 years with an A8 C7 (a pending shoulder replacement forced me to break my “swear” for my “last” Corvette). For suspensions, my ’87 was a Z52 (basically a Z51 but with an automatic), one base C5/one Z51, and a base C7 with mag ride.
- Ride quality is incredible and while not quite luxury car like, it is very smooth while maintaining a taunt, flat attitude. In Sport mode, it rides better than my C7 in Tour. The cabin noise is noticeable less than in the C7. Not quite quiet, but quiet enough my wife and I can now easily carry on a conversation. As others have noted, you don’t get a lot of engine sound unless you really get on the gas. This was one of the major things I was hoping to get from the upgrade and am not at all disappointed.
- The dual clutch transmission is fabulous! This was THE major thing I was looking forward to with the C8. I don’t have any Porsche experience but cannot imagine a PDK being any better, or for that matter even needing it to be. It is a quantum leap over the A8 and no comparison to earlier slushboxes. It can probably make all but the most rabid “manual only” die hards change their mind. Automatic changes are extremely intuitive, manual paddle changes are instantaneous, and all are smooth as butter. The one thing I noticed immediately was that unlike the A8, the car did not necessarily start rolling as soon as you take your foot off the brake. Your frequently have to apply a little gas – like you would with a true manual with three pedals?
- The driver modes make a lot more difference in the daily driving feel of the car, I can’t comment on how they effect the “nannies” as I have not challenged any of them. Even in Tour, the DCT is more aggressive in gear selection than the A8, holding gears longer in temporary manual mode, and downshifting more frequently at cruise speeds. Unlike my sense of the A8, the DCT personality really changes going from Tour to Sport. It seems to hold gears longer and shifts are firmer but still with the same smoothness. It seems like Tour is programmed to get you to the highest possible gear as quick as possible while Sport is programmed to keep the RPMs in a higher range unless you are cruising at a constant speed. From the very little time I have spent in Track, it seems that under 65 mph or so, the transmission is not inclined to upshift beyond sixth unless you force it.
- I was a little concerned about visibility in this car before my first drive. I can easily say I was more uncomfortable initially in the C7 than in this car. I tried the camera mirror and you can really see a lot more with it, but as others have mentioned, it is a little hard to focus bifocals on it to see clearly. I found I was very comfortable with the standard mirror and properly adjusted side mirrors. The blind spot detectors are helpful but probably not essential. I still have not entered a road angled slightly left and having to check on-coming traffic to the right – that might prove to be a problem.
- I like the tech and ergonomics in this car. The “squircle” steering wheel was not as odd feeling as the flat bottom C7 wheel initially. I am still getting used to the new DIC screens but think I will eventually like them more. My Mode and Z Mode are great but I miss being able to decouple the DIC and HUD display from the other modes. I also miss the compartment behind the infotainment screen in the C7. That was a convenient place to keep my wallet when on long trips.
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