2021 Chevrolet Corvette Reviews, Pricing & Specs

Look at a photo of the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette Convertible with its massive flying buttresses behind each seat, compare it to the Corvette Coupe with its targa roof panel removed, and you might rightly wonder if the convertible is worth the $9,000 Canadian extra that it costs.

We can’t make that determination for you. All we can tell you is that the power retractable hardtop drops in 18 seconds and raises, including the windows, in 22 seconds. You never need to leave the driver’s seat.

Also, with the top down, the Corvette Convertible feels more open than it looks. And the sounds of the revving engine and snapping exhaust ricocheting off of canyon walls as you paddle-shift down a writhing mountain road is amplified to a nirvanic degree.

Plus, by choosing to make your new car the convertible instead of the coupe, you need not worry about accidentally scraping or dropping your coupe’s targa panel on the ground, or damaging the surrounding finish while removing or installing it, or accidentally scraping the paint around the trunk while storing or retrieving it, or having it loose in the trunk while you’re running hard down a curvy road, or finding somewhere to put it when you’ve already got travel provisions aboard.

There is value in avoiding such things.

However, selecting the Corvette Convertible means you do lose a few necessary and endearing traits of the Corvette Coupe. When the convertible’s top is down it is impossible to scan the traffic behind the car for the tell-tale lighting signatures of a highway patrol Dodge Charger or Ford Explorer because the tall rear deck blocks the view. And top-down travel renders the handy standard rear camera mirror inoperable, so it can’t help solve this problem or assist when reversing.

Additionally, when you exit the Corvette Convertible and walk around the back of the car, you can’t see the engine framed under glass. That detail, especially at night with the illuminated engine bay, is a surprise-and-delight treat that never, ever gets old.

Otherwise, the two cars are equally rewarding and, when you consider the price tags, downright flabbergasting considering the level of performance and the exotic proportions only a mid-engined sports car can possess.

If you go shopping for a 2021 Corvette Convertible, expect to pay a minimum of $78,398 Canadian MSRP for the base 1LT trim level. Pricing on the 2LT version runs another $9,900. At the top of the lineup, the 3LT starts at $93,898. Yes, we agree that the Corvette deserves better trim-level names than the same ones you’d find on a Chevy Spark.

Our Torch Red 2LT test car garnered an awful lot of attention and made my fourth-grader an instant star at her elementary school. To its $88,298 Canadian base price, it had the absolutely necessary front suspension lift with memory system, the desirable Z51 Performance Package, and a bunch of things you can do without such as GT2 sport seats, Carbon Flash paint on the nacelles and roof, red brake calipers, and red seat belts. The window sticker tallied up to $103,528 (Canadian, estimated).

Unsurprisingly, the car looked terrific. You might quibble with some of the details, especially when it comes to the rear-end, which is anything but alluring. But it certainly makes a statement.

Inside, our 2LT test vehicle lacked some of the premium finishes we’ve experienced in the 3LT model, but the car’s genuine quality remains intact. The Corvette’s cabin looks wildly futuristic and highly technical, but it’s just as easy to use the controls and the technology as it is to drive the car on the daily commute.

Thanks to its optional Z51 Performance Package and the performance exhaust system that comes with it, our test car puts 495 horsepower to the rear wheels at 6,450 rpm and 470 pound-feet of torque at 5,150 rpm, up from the standard car's 490 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque. They’re good for bragging rights, and not much else.

By now, you’ve probably heard that modern 'Vettes are fast. That’s true. Put one on an arrow-straight road in the middle of nowhere—say, at dusk following a photoshoot—and the 6.2-litre V8 engine will pin you to the back of the seat as the surroundings blur past the edges of the windshield.

What you might not realize, given its low-slung, cab-forward, ground-missile styling is that a C8 Corvette is also nearly as easy to daily drive as a typical family sedan or SUV. We say nearly as easy because there are a few driving situations that require special care.

Reversing with the top down can prove an exercise in blind faith. The high-definition reversing camera definitely helps, but when exiting a driveway and trying to look down the road for approaching vehicles, you need to lean well forward so that the seat and flying buttress don’t block your view.

Also, it's really important to remember to use the front suspension lift function. Otherwise, you’ll regularly scrape the car’s nose. Gratefully, this option includes a memory function that stores up to 1,000 GPS-recalled locations. That way, if your driveway poses a problem for the car, you can set it as a location and the Corvette will automatically raise each time you arrive home.

The Corvette also has a fantastic eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission (DCT). Some people don’t like dual-clutch transmissions due to their occasional bouts of hesitation as the gearbox automatically applies and releases the clutch. While this behavior could irritate some people, it sure does give the Corvette a big dose of character.

Multiple driving modes are available, including My Mode and Z Mode settings that allow you to create two different custom configurations. We mainly used Tour around town and on the highway, and changed between Sport and Track while driving in the mountains.

The Z51 Package preps the Corvette for maximum driving enjoyment. In addition to its performance exhaust, it comes with a performance-tuned Magnetic Ride Control adaptive dampers, performance brakes, a performance rear-axle ratio, and an electronic limited-slip rear differential. A heavy-duty cooling system is also along for the ride, as well as high-performance run-flat tires.

There is more capability baked into this car than a typical driver will ever use. And it is impossible to safely explore a Corvette’s high limits on public roads. But that doesn’t mean the car isn’t a sheer delight to drive, and the mid-engine layout contributes significantly to its gratifying dynamic character.

An unobstructed forward view, framed by the Corvette’s trademark fender swells, adds an intimacy with the road missing from the previous front-engine, rear-wheel-drive models. During this test, it may have prevented contact with road debris, too.

Exiting a tunnel on California Highway 33 north of Ojai, plastic tubing that had fallen off of a truck littered my lane. The low hood helped me to see the mess immediately upon exiting the tunnel, and the stout brakes brought the car to a near-instantaneous halt. In part, I credit the easy visibility for preventing possible damage, or an accident, in this situation.

This outstanding forward visibility, coupled with the car’s newfound rotational handling talents in corners and curves, delivers an intensely satisfying driving character. Switch the car into Sport or Track mode, and it comes alive in your hands, the steering firming up, the suspension tightening up, the transmission delivering gear changes with more punch, and the exhaust system adding a proper soundtrack.

So calibrated, when you take a Corvette Z51 down a road you know better than the lines on your own face, a transcendent experience awaits.

We understand that the new mid-engined Corvette isn’t to everyone’s preferences. But to know and love this car is to drive it. And the dramatic changes to its engineering philosophy, exterior styling and interior layout, and driving dynamics have the power to win Chevrolet new customers who may not have wanted a previous-generation Corvette.

Rumour has it that Chevrolet is thinking about giving the Corvette’s interior a redesign and getting rid of the wall separating the car’s cockpit from the front passenger’s seating area. While we can understand the thinking behind this possible future change, especially considering that couples often travel in Corvettes, we can’t help but worry the cabin will lose some of its character.

And there is plenty of character. An impressive digital instrumentation panel and Chevrolet’s useful infotainment technology dominate the cockpit, while a squarish steering wheel is a perfectly meaty tool for people who prefer to shuffle steer. The climate controls run in a long, dramatic strip atop the dividing wall’s ridge, and the transmission buttons and other switchgear are largely exclusive to the Corvette. The result is a unique and bespoke interior full of quality materials.

Unless you’re young and limber, getting into and out of this car is somewhat of a challenge. Especially in tight parking situations, grace proves elusive. But once you’re settled in, who cares?

The test car’s GT2 seats featured premium Nappa leather upholstery, heating, and ventilation. The steering wheel was heated, too, and with the top down but the windows up, we remained toasty warm on a cool California night.

Chevrolet provides good-sized cupholders, and storage space is more generous than you might expect, but don’t plan to bring much into the car with you. The wireless smartphone charger resides on the wall between the seats, where it is impossible to easily reach.

Cargo space measures a generous 357 litres. That’s the total for the full-width rear trunk and the deep well under the hood. Together, they accommodate three roll-aboard suitcases while leaving a little extra room for other items. The rear liftover is quite high, though, so be careful with heavy or unwieldy items.

Every Corvette includes a configurable 12-inch digital instrumentation display that changes its appearance and data depending on which driving mode you select. With 2LT trim, a head-up display (HUD) is also standard. Similar to the instrumentation, it changes depending on whether the car is in Tour, Sport, or Track driving modes, delivering and emphasizing the information you’re most likely to require in each.

An 8-inch touchscreen infotainment system is sharply angled toward the driver, residing under a flush piece of glass and providing both a volume knob and a home button. This is the same Chevrolet Infotainment System 3 technology you’ll find in the automaker's other vehicles, and it’s terrific.

Highlights include new-for-2021 wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, as well as the ability to pair two smartphones to the Near Field Communication Bluetooth connection at the same time. Chevrolet Connected Services with an available 4G LTE WiFi hotspot and SiriusXM All Access satellite radio are also standard.

An upgraded version of the infotainment system has navigation and an enhanced voice recognition system that makes issuing voice commands an exercise in utility rather than futility. A 14-speaker Bose Performance Series audio system is also available, equipping the car with stainless steel speaker grilles and remarkably good sound quality.

Chevrolet also provides a Performance Data Recorder for the Corvette. Think of it as an embedded GoPro that records 1080p video with a performance data overlay. You can also use it as a dash-cam recorder, and there is a valet mode that lets you capture video of the car’s use when it’s not in your possession. Shhhh. Don’t tell the teenagers.

Between the dual digital displays, the long list of infotainment functions, the HUD, the car’s unusual transmission controls and various driving modes, the Performance Data Recorder, and other variables, the Corvette seems like it would be dauntingly high-tech. But it’s not. Each of these systems offers intuitive operation and a satisfying user experience.

So if you’re the typical Corvette buyer, don’t worry. If you know how to use a smartphone, you’ll know how to use this car.

Nobody buys a Chevrolet Corvette because it is safe. After all, this car is the very definition of temptation on four wheels. But, if you do exceed the ceiling of your driving talent and the Corvette is unable to compensate for the error of your ways, you’ll be glad for the following features.

Let’s start with the standard Teen Driver technology. When you have a Corvette, your children, nieces, and nephews are going to want to drive it. And you’re going to be tempted to let them. Maybe.

As long as the key fob they use is paired to the Teen Driver technology, it will monitor their driving and provide you with a report card detailing where they went, how they drove, and whether they activated any safety systems. And then you’ll decide if they’ll ever get another chance to get behind the wheel.

Chevrolet Connected Services requires an active subscription. Pay for it, and you’ll benefit from automatic collision notification and emergency calling.

Additionally, Chevrolet offers several visibility enhancements for the Corvette, in addition to the standard rearview camera mirror, high-definition reversing camera, and rear parking sensors. Unfortunately, the company restricts them to the 2LT and 3LT trim levels. They include a front-facing camera, a blind-spot monitoring system, and a rear cross-traffic alert system. You’re going to want these.

You might notice that modern advanced driving assistance systems (ADAS) are missing from the 2021 Corvette. It doesn’t offer adaptive cruise control, or forward collision warning, or automatic emergency braking, or lane-keeping assistance, or Super Cruise hands-free cruise control. You know why? Because a Corvette is meant to be driven, under all circumstances.

Compared to other mid-engined sports cars offering similar levels of power and performance, the 2021 Chevy Corvette is an absolute bargain. For just over $71,000 Canadian including destination charges, you get a brilliantly engineered machine that makes almost 500 horsepower, can accelerate to 100 km/h in an estimated 3.5 seconds, and can reach a top speed in excess of 310 kilometres per hour.

You cannot beat that.

A new Corvette Coupe LT1 costs about the same as an Audi TTS, and less than a BMW Z4 M40i, Jaguar F Type P300, or (discontinued) Mercedes-AMG SLC 43. Compare it to other mid-engine supercars—like the Audi R8 or McLaren 570S—and the Corvette is at least half the price, if not more. And there is no good reason for it other than Chevrolet knows it can sell this world-class exotic at volumes the other sports car purveyors cannot match.

Bravo, Chevrolet.

Note: Images show a US model.