How the Corvette E-Ray's Hybrid Power and AWD Make it a Great Sports Car. Also, Spaceship Noises

The Corvette E-Ray is significant in a lot of ways. It’s the first hybrid Corvette, the first all-wheel-drive Corvette, and it’s the most Corvette of Corvettes. Wait, what?
Corvettes are built of an ethos: take what the fancy Europeans are doing, and democratize it. Simplify the formula until you get to a point that regular folks could possibly, one day, attain one. Sure, Corvette was late to the game when it came time to move the engine from the front to the rear-middle, but once it did, there was no ignoring the progress. The C8 Z06, last year’s Performance Car of the Year, took what was perhaps the best mid-engined Ferrari of all time, the 458 Speciale, reverse-engineered and improved it, resulting in the most American of Italian-style supercars. With the E-Ray, the Corvette team tackles what Ferrari and McLaren are doing now rather than six years ago.

[@corystansbury]

I remember when, while reviewing the regular C8, Matt said something to the effect of "You know what I'm not excited to drive? The AWD hybrid one."

[@AWDCorvetteERay]

And yet, it impressed him and won him over... because it's such a great car! 👍

[@krismc2476]

Still not a Corvette. Change the name and it costs over 100k

[@MichaelNiteRealEstate]

@@krismc2476 having owned C4, plenty of C5s and C6s and currently a C7, the C8 is VERY much so a corvette. The Eray starts at $100k+

[@vinniecorleone62]

Good to see a passionate & non-jaded profile on this Vette in action, well done Matt!

[@Snoogins22]

Another banger from Matt. 🔥

[@ELEVENNE1978]

Cant wait to own this car 🎉

[@rondail5675]

Congrat's. I would pick it over the Z06. I can't afford either but and very happy with my Stingray HTC, non-Z51. The ERay is amazing. I suspect it will be more reliable than a Z06. It is much better on the street than a Z06.

[@AWDCorvetteERay]

I hope you can get one soon too! Mine will be built in January.

[@AWDCorvetteERay]

Great review, Matt! Thanks. I'm getting excited, and my garage is ready!

[@RobertMacCready]

That's the car I'm on a list for. Can't wait to drive it. AND Carbon Ceramic Brakes are STANDARD Equipment. Such a deal! I never thought I'd be able to ever order an All-Wheel Drive Corvette...that comes with Carbon Ceramic Brakes as "standard" equipment. And it's less expensive than the Z06.

[@rondail5675]

Good review Matt. Do another with both a Z06 and ERay. I suspect the ERay is better for street/canyon driving and the Z06 is better for extended track use.

[@twoweeledsoto6072]

It appears some people are changing their minds on this car. I'm not surprised.

[@thiosemicarbizidebenzoylal2921]

Best GT sports car in the world today regardless of price, and its GMs Y chassis that is the star of the show OVER carbon tub designs.

[@swordmonkey6635]

Depends on the intent of the car. Carbon and Kevlar tubs are better for racing due to rigidity and lightweight. Plus carbon tends to shatter/splinter during impact, making it a better displacer of kinetic energy during a crash. If GM could afford to make the C8 with a carbon monocoque, believe me, they would. A hydroformed aluminum frame is them trying to squeeze the most out of non-exotic materials to keep the Corvette affordable.

[@rondail5675]

I agree it is a amazing GT car. Wish I could afford it!

[@jameswillard1]

Hilarious comment, would love to hear you attempt to explain how you’ve come to the conclusion that this is superior to a carbon tub design 🤔

[@thiosemicarbizidebenzoylal2921]

Fastest laps

[@gregorycaldwell3721]

I'm curious to see how these batteries last and what the degradation is on cars that are used heavily on track. What's the warranty on the battery / hybrid powertrain?

[@Trendyflute]

For 25 years now, battery degradation in all sorts of chemistries and applications has been shown to be less than estimated/feared. Most batteries keep 90+% of their initial capacity for a long, long time, and 80+% for more than the reasonable lifespan of just about any car. I wish people would realize we're nearly a quarter of the way into the 21st century, and these questions have been answered already, repeatedly, by now. Not to be particularly frustrated with you but with the state of the standard level of knowledge on things...things do actually change, and the lessons from decades ago have been updated!

[@Big_Black_Dick]

​@@Trendyflute🙄 nonsense

[@AWDCorvetteERay]

It has an eight-year / 100,000-mile warranty. Battery degradation is something I plan to test regularly and report on over the course of several years.

[@corystansbury]

I'm more worried about what tire wear will be relative to a non "through the road hybrid." Not saying I know it will be a problem, merely that I'm intrigued.

[@joem7755]

Do you still suggest to skip the CF wheels like you did in your other review? Something about some other GM race where a guy had 2-3 of the CF wheels crack and he hit nothing.. I still cant get the weight # of the Stock E-ray wheels. I just the same stat over and over about 40 lbs difference they used for the z06. (nothing about the weight of the front and back) The E-ray wheels look like it would be lighter. Same with info on what difference it would make. No one can say it makes a difference in the 0-60 or 1/4mi.. So many of them out there now and no ones done a before and after quick race. For $12K I want to know exactly what they will do. Telling me it can save 1-2 sec on a race track means nothing much.

[@GT_Racer347]

💯💯💯

[@CarsBikesBoats7]

It's literally two tons of car for the money...

[@jfjaksgf]

That electric whine is so annoying. C8Z06 all day long.

[@NiceterCoolster]

It sounds cool like a spaceship

[@aixpert291]

Do we just not care about weight in sports cars any more?

[@CadillaccJ]

Manufacturers don't care anymore, because of the advanced computing processing technology is able to 'Mask' the extra weight of performance cars and make them 'feel' lighter than they actually are. Making performance cars today is about how much computing engineering technology you can put into them to make them faster, it's no longer about mechanical engineering. People actually think Porches are quick on the track and drive well on the street is due to Mechanical engineering , but it's really the sheer amount of computing they put into those cars that make them drive well. Anyone that actually was a fan of Porsche before the 991 Generation 911 came out(which is not alot of people), the 911 used to both understeer and oversteer alot through corners, pretty much unpredictable handling. It wasnt until the 991 generation and the advancement of computing technology they were able to correct that problem.

[@danieldickerson4838]

Most consumers couldn’t care less about weight/lightness. They want features and technology, and performance cars aren’t immune to that. Unless you’re a bespoke, multi million dollar performance car, 3200lbs is the new “light” for sports cars now.

[@rondail5675]

The Miata is the lightweight, cheap sports car. My previous Corvettes seemed heavy but the C8 does not. I agree with the reasons others listed why the weight is over looked. My HTC, non-Z51, rides so damn nice. I will add another reason. The majority of people never, ever, drive on a track or have access to canyon roads.

[@krismc2476]

Not a Corvette.

[@Trendyflute]

The people with the rights to the name disagree bruh

[@backnu]

What happened to real driver's, with real skills? What happened to Randy Probst? Can you guys not hire someone that isn't pretentious and narcissistic? He hates anything that drives like a sports car.

[@TypeVertigo]

Wrong channel. Pobst is a Motor Trend contributor. And you greatly discount Farah's skills. Driving on track while talking to a camera is harder than it looks and he pulls it off naturally. If you hate Farah so much don't watch. We will not miss you.

[@backnu]

@@TypeVertigo although it may be a different channel, can they not afford anyone more than an "influencer" that is just given a paid opinion? This is a joke of a review. Totally paid!

[@weize9807]

@@TypeVertigo wait he has any skill in driving?

[@Big_Black_Dick]

putting batteries in this car was such a pointless move lol

[@Luke-cb3ly]

pointless? the 0-60 went from 2.9 to 2.5 seconds, the 1/4 mile improved from 11.2 to 10.4 seconds. can now deliver performance even in poor weather conditions. You can drive with the electric motor for about 4 miles, and still keep both trunks. It still has the V8 sound and performance is more consistent than the Stingray and Z06. Furthermore, it still corners better than the Stingray, as it is wider and has much larger tires.

[@Big_Black_Dick]

@@Luke-cb3ly 🙄 yeah completely pointless, but let me guess 🤔 ur a leftist democrat kuk aren't u? only a leftist kuk would defend electric cars lol anyways normal guys we don't want 1000 pounds of batteries and electric motors in our cars 😒

[@Trendyflute]

Electric powertrains waste 1/6th (or less) as much energy to useless heat as internal combustion engines. Anytime you put electric motors into a car, you're putting more energy into performance instead of billowing it away uselessly into the atmosphere. You need to update your understanding of the word "pointless"