New Corvette finally coming to OZ

The iconic Chevrolet Corvette is coming to Australian showrooms for the first time in its 60 year history.

After promising for decades, General Motors will finally build a right-hand-drive version of its all-new 2013 Vette, unveiled in Detroit today.

But don’t break out your cheque books just yet. The new car, which GM has adorned with the iconic ‘Stingray’ badge, won’t be on Australian roads for “a few years” according to GM CEO Dan Akerson.

Still, the new car looks like it’s worth the wait. A new Corvette appears once every 10 years, with GM keen to make this new model a truly global car. Revealed to the press at the Detroit Motor Show, the 2013 Corvette is the seventh generation of the famous sportscar.

Faster, lighter and longer than its predecessors, the new Corvette packs a huge, all-new 6.2-litre V8 engine which now features direct injection and variable valve timing, plus a new seven-speed gearbox that pre-empts the correct revs for quicker changes.

As always, power is huge, with the Vette’s 335kW making it the most powerful standard Corvette in history. 0-100km/h is dealt with in less than 4.0 seconds. It’s not all big engine and big power, though. A carbonfibre roof reduces weight while an active fuel management system provides improved fuel economy by shutting off four cylinders in certain situations. The steering too has changed, with the new rack said to be 500 percent stiffer.

And as for money? GM hasn’t revealed pricing of the new car, but said it would be in the range of the current Corvette, which retails at $50,000 USD for the base model. Expect to pay at least double that in Australia.