2014 Corvette Stings with 460 Horsepower

2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray / Photo courtesy of General Motors

Lead-footed drivers have yet another car to add to their wish list. On Tuesday, Chevrolet announced the official power figures for the 2014 Corvette Stingray in a press release. The Corvette’s 6.2-liter V8, called LT1, produces 455 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. An optional performance exhaust system raises output to 460 horsepower and 465 pound-feet of torque.
By comparison, the 2013 Corvette produces 430 horsepower (436 with the optional performance exhaust) and 424 pound-feet of torque (428 with performance exhaust). Some publications, including Autoblog, are impressed with the LT1’s output, noting that the new engine is down only five pound-feet of torque from the 2013 Z06 model, which produces 505 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque.
The new Stingray should hit 60 mph in less than four seconds, according to Chevrolet. Chevy also predicts that highway fuel economy will be rated at 26 mpg or more, though that has yet to be validated by the EPA. For reference, the 2013 Corvette is EPA-rated at 16/26 mpg city/highway, while the Z06 model is rated at 15/24 mpg.

2014 Corvette Stingray's LT1 V8 / Photo courtesy of General Motors

Chevrolet partially attributes its fuel economy prediction to the use of cylinder deactivation, which General Motors calls Active Fuel Management by GM. In more easy-going driving situations such as cruising at a steady speed on the highway, half of the engine’s cylinders shut down, requiring less fuel to operate the car. While no publications have yet had any time behind the wheel of the new Corvette, Car and Driver expects the system to operate smoothly, based on a recent test drive of the redesigned Chevrolet Silverado.
The 2014 Corvette Stingray has a starting price of $51,995. Due to its performance capabilities and price compared with other luxury sports cars, the Corvette is often billed by auto journalists as one of the best-value sports cars available. The redesigned 2013 Porsche Boxster starts at $50,400 and has a 265-horsepower flat-six engine. The 2014 Audi R8 starts at $114,900 and features a 430-horsepower V8. The Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 starts at $54,800 and has a supercharged V8 with 662 horsepower. While the prices and power figures for each of these cars vary widely, reviewers say that each of these models excel in some performance arenas more than others, so deciding which one is best based only on price and output is difficult to do.
Chevrolet says the Corvette Stingray coupe goes on sale this fall, and the convertible will hit dealerships by the end of the year.