CHEVROLET CORVETTE C8 / Aussie Review of an epic car. We were really surprised how good it is.

Our full road review of the current Chevrolet Corvette C8 in the beautiful autumn sunshine south of Sydney.
We admit it - our expections weren't high but we were wrong. Over the decades we weren't super impressed with Corvettes, particularly the fibreglassy and rattly ones from the 1970s and 1980s.
But wow - we underestimated this car. It's a gem and truly worthy of comparison with the European competition. Particularly the Audi R8
Special thanks to Frazer and Jane for the use of their lovely car.
If you enjoy our videos, please leave a like and consider subscribing. And we love to read your comments and suggestions.
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[@pjcornell9691]

I agree! I have never been a Corvette guy or GM guy.. I bought a C8 Corvette 3 years ago and still can find anything to dislike.... I live in Arizona and the car does not overheat!

[@markwilliamson3185]

Really impressive car

[@pjcornell9691]

Keep in mind in the USA there is a Z06 version of the car available also.... It has a 5.5L Flat Plane DOHC naturally aspirated V8. 670HP 8600rpm redline!

[@inCARnationAustralia]

Also in theory available here. One for sale in Aus on carsales but I think it's probably on order and not actually here. Asking about $360k which seems a bit over the top.

[@norwegianblue2017]

@@inCARnationAustralia The E-Ray only really makes any sense to buy over the Z06 if you live somewhere that gets a lot of rain and snow and need that AWD functionality. BTW, the Z06 was modeled after the Ferrari 458. It may not have that extra level of Ferrari nimbleness and luxury, but it is actually quite a bit faster in a straight line. Saw a video racing the Z06 vs. 458 vs. Lambo EVO. They figured out that they needed to give the Ferrari a 15 car length head start to make it a fair race. The Lambo needed 3 car lengths. The Z06 is an absolute beast, especially considering it still has a NA engine.

[@daniellesoulard5215]

I drove this car last weekend (a mates), adapted to it very quickly and enjoyed the cocoon-like cockpit. Unlike most reviews I also like the steering wheel. When mine arrives end of year i will probably have it lowered a touch, but thats just me always tinkering. Im looking forward to a few runs through the Royal National Park south of Sydney! Nice video guys 👍

[@MrSdmckenna]

With the AU$ at US$.67 your prices are not obnoxiously high, though US is cheaper. That car is 3LT Z51 Mag ride and lift. Caffeine is $1,000. I ordered a 2024 Mist Red 2LT otherwise the same. US$89,000. Love that the key wall, info display as well as right drive are done spot on. Have toured Bowling Green, was not able to see one. They were building about 1/2 convertibles! Lovely car, fabulous roads. The car is most fun in the curves. Thank You for the video!

[@Pyranite1]

What a great spot to drive! You should do a video of your favourite drives in NSW!

[@inCARnationAustralia]

We should!

[@benpenagonzales6014]

It should translate to about £60k but they’re more like £100k in the UK. Still good value but too much for a toy given 2 seats. Hence I went with a 911… I did look at a 928!

[@timscherfner849]

You maybe the only Caffeine Metallic in Australia. I own 2023 Caffeine Metallic 2lt and I know there's less than 600 of the 70th anniversary year built in Caffeine. Congratulations and great video.

[@markwilliamson3185]

Yes I think it’s probably the only one, it’s an amazing colour and well done on securing one yourself. I’m told they may be stopping production in this colour, so they will be special

[@timscherfner849]

@markwilliamson3185 They stopped taking orders them as of March 2023. There is 914 combined 2022 and 2023 that includes 13 Z06's

[@spectralopticalvision]

This is a car. 🔥

[@callistosghost4817]

Very nice and informative review. I have a 2021 Black C8 3LT Z51 HTC. Waited 2 years for it and it was well worth the wait. Absolutely Love It! The Corvette Team created a beautiful work of art. The C8 handles and drives just as one would expect from a true performance 'street legal' track car. Aggressive and Fun... always glued to the road. BTW... The C8 isn't fond of stop and go traffic. However, it handles this kind of burden and boredom quite well. I had a C7 previously and loved that car. But... I have to say, The C8 outperforms the C7 hands down. It's a completely different driving experience.

[@GTOHawg]

I am glad this came across my feed. As an owner of a 2004 Pontiac GTO/Holden Monaro it’s nice to see a good review of an American car. Also. My GTO has a LS3 418 Stroker. Put down 563rwhp through a built/stalled trans. Great video guys, coming from the 55 year old who is craving a Vette so bad.

[@pjcornell9691]

I'm like You. I have a 2006 GTO since new... I enjoy my GTO more than my 2021 C8.

[@volkswagenhawk7094]

I have a base 1LT with a few performance options. 70k USD and 15k miles in 1 year last week. Love to see it in your amazing countryside.

[@markwilliamson3185]

That’s a great spec car you’ve chosen there. Thanks for your thoughts and I’m glad you enjoyed our review

[@fredeb67]

The C6 and C7 in ZO6 and ZR1 spec set times in the top 5 production cars on many European tracks. They handled great and could set lap times quicker than their expensive many European competitors.

[@Andoniscars]

a bit scary to watch you driving on the other side of the road, but the video is great. best wishes from Hungary

[@markwilliamson3185]

Thanks we’re glad you enjoyed it, not many people are used to seeing right hand drive Vette’s ! Good to have viewers in Hungary

[@Andoniscars]

@@markwilliamson3185 This is the first time I see a RHD Corvette I guess. I like your style, so I subscribed.

[@vettehottie]

Great review enjoyed the ride along!

[@norwegianblue2017]

Now imagine that this is the entry level Corvette, the bottom of what will eventually be FIVE trim levels: Stingray, Z06, E-Ray, ZR1 and Zora. Also, I wouldn't sleep on the C6 and C7 generations. They are both excellent driver's cars and the C7 interior isn't half bad. The C6 Z06 has become highly sought after in the US for being a tremendous value and having an iconic engine.

[@Silentprofessional1]

If you think this car is good you should try the new Z06.

[@markedwards4879]

Looks like a great car. It’d be really interesting to see how GM price the servicing and parts compared to other GM products. Still not completely sold on automatic transmissions in sports cars. Yes they may be faster but there is something about 3 pedals etc

[@inCARnationAustralia]

One might ask who's going to service it now Holden has been deceased for 8 years, and dealerships closing or flipping. The answer is GM Speciality vehicles, who also service the Silverado.

[@markedwards4879]

@@inCARnationAustralia Yeah, I suspect that prices will be more in line with the $250-350k price range than for a Commodore... From what I've seen of the Corvette they have definitely made a cheaper version of a Ferrari, taking a different route for the power pant. Who needs quad cams anyway right? lol. Not going to run out and buy one personally but it does demonstrate that GM can produce something interesting if they try.

[@josephmccausland7175]

The digital rear view mirror can takes a couple months to get use to for some.

[@inCARnationAustralia]

We've seen them a bit now in Genesis cars, as side rear view mirrors. We're not fans. Apart from the focus adjustment that gets harder for our tired old eyes, the other issue is a loss of perspective that comes from normal stereoscopic vision. Makes it hard to judge closing distances, something a pair of eyes does incredibly well.

[@lukeywalsh]

The Holden Ute was used as a secret test vehicle for the C8 platform. Wish we got Utes in the USA.

[@markwilliamson3185]

Interesting! I didn’t know that, thanks

[@Trapper50cal]

Yes, I was looking at the Land Cruiser but I'm biased...I've owned five. But I have to admit, I thought it was a 200 Series (Lexus LX570).

[@inCARnationAustralia]

To be honest, I wouldn't know the difference between a 200 series, a 300 series, or my left armpit. I just went for the gag. Sorry.

[@inCARnationAustralia]

Just for the record $200+k is expensive in almost anybody's language. To put it in perspective, compared to a lot of equivalent performance Euro competition it's an absolute bargain. Compared to a regular person's good sports car like a Supra GTS or Boxster or even a MX5 or i20N hot hatch for example, it's crazy expensive. To each their own according to their needs and ability to pay. In Australia the Luxury Car tax at 33% still remains to 'protect the local car industry' despite the fact that we no longer have any mass market car manufacturing here since 2016. That is wrong. High dealer margins also contribute. So that's a major reason the bulk of us can't have nice things. Like this better-than-expected Corvette.

[@johnbambo9036]

Really interesting review gents. I currently have a MY14 Boxster s (PDK) and am trading up to a MY24 Boxster GTS (Manual). Delivery expected July 24. In no way am I regretting my decision to buy the Porsche. Last of the ICE Boxster/Cayman Cars and the manual should make it even more of a rarity (so good for resale). But considering they ask similar dollars (New), how would you rate this Corvette against the 4.0l Boxster?

[@inCARnationAustralia]

I suspect Mark will agree with me. We do both like a good PDK/DSG gearbox but both Mark and I still own and love our old manual gearbox cars. So I like your logic. Chev don't make a manual C8 anyway, so it has to be the Boxster GTS manual. If you're a Porsche fan and clearly you are John, it has to be the Porsche. On the road it will feel smaller and more precise. No doubt a Chev fan will have the same brand allegiance the other way, so to speak.

[@johnbambo9036]

Thanks, I will say the Corvette's I have seen, a few here on the Gold Coast, do nail the look, Just got on the Porsche Tracker and my GTS build was completed yesterday. Now it's just shipping, to Porsche Gold Coast. What could go wrong!

[@benpenagonzales6014]

Cossie!

[@nyc863]

there are so many C8s listed for sale on carsales. I'm surprised to see the quantity given how few you see on the road.

[@inCARnationAustralia]

Yes as I said in the video, we were both surprised too. And they are such good drivers cars. Anyone got a theory on why so many people bought them and are afraid to put miles on them? CoVid investments? They have a great cylinder deactivation feature when cruising so they're reasonably economical running in "V4" mode. We don't see them at track days here either. What's going on peeps? If you're an Aussie who owns one, let us know!

[@norwegianblue2017]

@@inCARnationAustralia Funny to hear people are turning their C8 Corvette Stingrays into garage queens in Australia. They are so common in the US, about 135k sold in the US alone from 2020-2023. The C8 Corvette has 60% of the premium sports car market in the US with 3x the sales of the Porsche 911.

[@anthonygordon14]

A driver's car should have minimal driver aids. I feel that too many driver aids are simply dumbing down our driver population. Too many cars and especially in this and higher categopries are offering way to much stuff and configurability that is unnecessary, I'm sure, for 99% of drivers. Those drivers who think they need all this stuff probably shouldn't be driving LOL. Good review and it appears that GM has thought significantly about this and build quality looks to be quiet good. A lot of car even for $160k.

[@inCARnationAustralia]

GM clearly do want to target 'track day' owners by providing as much configurability as possible. No to mention the track-aware PDR data and video recorder.

[@GTOHawg]

Cars today are so much faster and have much higher capabilities. People always overestimate their capabilities themselves.

[@norwegianblue2017]

@@GTOHawg Good point. I watch some of these Nurburgring runs and can't comprehend how fast the driver's reactions are when driving some of these supercars.

[@nova-oy4qy]

who is this car for?

[@theaustralianconundrum]

This reply was removed? inCARnation Australia replied: "Yes I hear you. At 200k it's still a rich boy's toy. Compared to a R8 or GT3 it's cheap. Compared to an i30N, it's crazy expensive."

[@Leonardo555ZZZZ]

Most people will never get used to electrification. They don't want it .

[@inCARnationAustralia]

*Most people* haven't been in a decent electric car. Or any electric car. We've reviewed dozens and some are awesome in every way. Still love car like this Corvette, but 10 million full battery EVs sold around the world last year, and continuing to increase at 30% per year worldwide (despite what some people want you to think). So want it or not, like it or not, 10,000,000 is a freaking lot. So I think a lot of folks will change their mind once they get their backside in one. Especially the 650hp AWD one we're reviewing next week that's half the price of this excellent 'Vette.

[@Leonardo555ZZZ]

@@inCARnationAustralia 2023 EV 's took 18 % market share globally , and only 7.5% in Australia and USA. High performance sports cars are one thing , but for electrification to take over , the average car has to succeed . We have seen Ford lose $4 Billion in the last year alone due to EV's , that cannot continue. Many other makers including GM and MB are scaling back previously announced plans to increase EV's due to poor demand from consumers. Government subsidies are gradually being wound back. NIO lost $2.9 Billion in the last quarter. VW are being sued for a fire on a ship in Feb 2022 , started by an EV. In China , a land of 20million EV's , an average of 8 EV's are self igniting every day. 1Q24 USA vehicle sales increased by 5% , but not EV's. German EV sales in March fell almost 30%. Global Tesla deliveries 1Q24 went down 8% year on year , and down 20% vs the prior qtr. They are now laying off 10,000 workers. Consumers are rightly concerned about range anxiety , charging difficulty , high prices , fire risk , reducing range in cold temperatures, high insurance costs due to higher accident rates ,repair costs and write off frequencies , and poor re - sale values. They may be nice to drive , but there are many other reasons why many people will never own an EV , the % of people who say they will not buy one is increasing and forecasts of continued massive growth in battery powered car sales may well turn out to be completely wrong.

[@Leonardo555ZZZZ]

@@inCARnationAustralia 10,000,000 is around 15 to 18% of total vehicle sales . In Australia and the USA , Ev's accounted for only 7.5% of the market. EV sales are stagnating globally , for many different reasons. Car makers are scaling back plans to make EV's due to poor demand , so forecasts of increasing sales may turn out to be wrong.

[@inCARnationAustralia]

@@Leonardo555ZZZZ We shall see won't we. If ever there was a cult, it's the coal-rolling diehards who refuse to grow up, not the EV peeps. (I'm not suggesting you're one of those Leonardo). Every day we see total BS articles like "BMW turns its back on EVs", "Porsche CEO says no more EVs" and so on. When the complete opposite is true. For example : Porsche's best selling car - the Macan - from this year no more petrol or diesel at all. Only BEV. And they're not a stupid company. And they're not alone. I wouldn't be betting the farm against EVs just now. At around 28-30% of global light vehicle sales as I said (just let that sink in for a second), annual BEV growth across all markets far exceeded ICE growth at around 5%. But you're right - here in Australia we are a big slow to catch on, thanks to a mountain of disinformation and a decade of head in the sand political decisions made by lobbyists. USA remains strong demand though (although slowing) not sure where you got your figure for USA. Yes the rate of increase has eased in the last two quarters. And it will probably continue to ease as supply has caught with demand, and other geopolitical factors have a strong influence. I agree the rate of increase will slow considerably, but the terms "stagnate" and "poor demand" don't fit the reality at all. Growth and demand are still huge, and thankfully the proportion of energy coming from cheaper renewable sources is increasing even faster, so hopefully public infrastructure that was and still lags, can catch up. At this point somebody usually pipes up and says "I'm waiting for Hydrogen or Biofuels", or belly button lint, or anything that might help distract people's attention from what's actually happening. Anyway, why not go for a drive in an AWD EV and try not to be impressed. And then go for a drive in a Corvette. Also very impressive.

[@Leonardo555ZZZ]

@@inCARnationAustralia Yes , we shall see. We shall also see what happens to Porsche Macan sales in 2024. 28 to 30% growth is easy when you are coming from such a low base of only 7 million cars in a market of 65 million. but the number you should focus on is the total market share ,which is 15 to 18 %.ie , over eight out of every ten buyers did not choose an EV. Just let that sink in for a second. I am just going by the data and info I find... Ford USA are now slashing prices on F150 lightnings and Mustang Mach E 's , and dealerships have more cars than they can sell. Well over 100 days supply . Ford lost $4 Billion in the last year on EV's. Polestar are in serious financial trouble. MB have pushed out their 2025 EV targets to 2030. NIO is losing almost $1B per month. Tesla , the biggest EV seller outside of China , have produced more cars than they sold in 7 of the last 8 qtrs. Deliveries in 1Q24 are down 20% vs the prior qtr, and are down 8% year on year. They are now cutting production ,,,they are not doing that because of 'strong demand'. If consumers don't buy the cars , car makers will change their plans very quickly. There is no guarantee that EV's will increase their market share significantly beyond the present 18% , as most of those who want an EV may already have one, and governments are winding back subsidies. The driving experience is only one factor amongst many , that determine what type of cars people buy. Purchase cost , running costs , depreciation , reliability , insurance costs , convenience of charging/filling are all very important factors , most of which weigh heavily against battery powered cars. I would love to drive a C8 Corvette , a 4wd battery powered car ?,,, not so much.

[@James_Sovereign]

God these are ugly. To me, it looks like a 12 year old designed it.

[@James_Sovereign]

It gets worse on the inside!