[imagesource: Gabe Ramirez/CNN]

I’ve yet to meet a car fan who didn’t like a Chevrolet, and it looks like the carmaker is upping its game.

More specifically, it has given the original Corvette Stingray a makeover, especially where the engine is concerned, but we’ll get into that in a minute.

The new Chevrolet Corvette Stingray 2020 has been getting a fair amount of press. Not only is it stylish, fast and road-trip ready, but it also seems to be coming in at a lower price than its predecessors.

CNN reckons the design bodes well for the future of the model.

It’s not as if the last-generation Corvette was a poor excuse for a sports car. The base model — the Corvette Stingray — had a 455-horsepower V8 engine mounted under the hood. It was frequently cited as one of the world’s great sports car bargains, providing performance on par with a Porsche 911 — but for $30,000 less. Added to that, the Corvette was eminently practical for a two-seat sports car. It even got decent fuel economy considering its power output.

The new Corvette maintains all those benefits while adding 50 horsepower. There’s ample storage space both behind the engine and up front under the hood. With a base price just under $60,000, it’s not a cheap car, but it’s still a spectacular value.

Let’s get on to the biggest change to the Stingray, a mid-engine design that effects its output significantly.

The new mid-engined design, with more weight over the back wheels, will help to draw more performance — and sheer enjoyment — from future higher horsepower engines and, possibly, electric motors. (A high-performance hybrid is widely rumored to be in the works but, as with all future Corvettes, GM has not confirmed this.)

The one thing that the Corvette no longer offers is manual transmission, but I doubt anyone will miss it. The new transmission is quick, responsive, and incredibly smooth, so there isn’t much to complain about on that front.

A knob with a comfortable hand rest above it is used to change driving modes. You can select from modes like Tour, for comfortable cruising, to Sport and Track for quick aggressive driving. Turning the knob changes things like steering responsiveness, gear shifting and, if the car has optional adjustable suspension, how firm the ride is. (The firmer ride translates into more control in curves.)

Cars.com reviewed the new Chevy back in March, and it looks pretty sweet:

The long and short of it is that the Stingray is responsive, provides a smooth ride, and corners quickly, and that’s all you really need from a sports car, right?

Read CNN’s full article here.

[source:cnn]