Few vehicles have the brand recognition and staying power of the Chevrolet Corvette, one of the world’s leading luxury sports cars. The reasons are clearer than ever in 2019 as the final iteration of the Corvette’s seventh generation releases with the addition of the ZR1 trim.

 

Trims

  • Grand Sport: $65,900
  • Z06: $80,900
  • ZR1: $120,900

While the Z06 was known as the performance trim in the past, the ZR1 pushes the standards of performance vehicles to new heights. All trims are available in both coupe and convertible formats.

Performance Specs

To no one’s surprise, this is where the Corvette really excels. The standard powertrain comes equipped with a 455-horsepower V8 paired with a seven-speed manual transmission, formidable enough to make the sleek body styling feel like a speeding bullet. The Z06 trim upgrades that fiery powertrain with almost two hundred additional horsepower, leaving the former performance trim with 650-horsepower underneath the hood. Finally, the ZR1 carries a 750-horsepower V8 that puts forth so much power it’s almost unnecessary and features an available eight-speed automatic transmission.

Of course, the speed and raw power in the Corvette’s selection of engines is paired with handling that doesn’t disappoint. Even the standard trim’s tires get a formidable amount of traction, allowing you to nimbly navigate between vehicles on the highway or on crowded city streets without sliding or slipping. The Corvette is definitely meant for pavement driving as off-road travel can be perilous. That said, it’s quieter in the cabin than you’d expect, the ride reasonably smooth, and comfortable even at high speeds.

The major flaw to these high-octane components comes from gas mileage, where the 2019 Corvette suffers hugely. The standard engine tops out at 16 mpg in the city and 25 on the highway — and it’s only downhill from there as horsepower increases and efficiency suffers.

Styling

The seventh generation of the Corvette lineup has been based around sleekness and features an aerodynamic styling without sacrificing the widebody left over from the Corvette’s muscle car days. The shark-like features that characterize 21st-century sports cars are present here in the eye-like headlights and swooping spoiler. One of the nice things about Corvettes is that they’re absolutely unique in styling, making them easily identifiable by anyone who wants to talk about how nice your car is. This is partially due to the Corvette was originally named after and based on a type of small maneuverable warship.

The 2019 Corvette seats two and does so comfortably, the interior cabin equipped with reasonably high-end leather and clearly designed with care and efficiency in mind. The controls are centrally located and make it easy to drive from any seat position. Plus, with how wide the front windshield is, you’ll have a full view of the road ahead at any time. Convertible models come with a soft top while the coupe uses a detachable sunroof panel to allow airflow on hot days.

The front seats are power-adjustable and split-zone climate control is standard, but more expensive trims carry upgrades like additional suede upholstery sections and higher quality leather. Vented and heated seats provide relief for all kinds of inclement weather if the climate control isn’t cutting it.

All in all, the interior of the 2019 Corvette is reasonably well-designed for the price it comes at.

Safety and Infotainment Features

As you’d expect from a vehicle that can move in excess of a hundred miles an hour without straining, Chevy designed the Corvette to withstand collisions with a combination of dynamic construction and high-end materials. Unfortunately, luxury vehicles are almost never crash tested, so it’s unclear exactly how effective the Corvette would be in a high-speed collision.

Available safety features are sparse. A rear-view camera is the only standard feature. Also, the additional curbside camera and heads-up display don’t quite meet the exacting and demanding standards of the automotive industry.

There’s more to be pleased about on the Infotainment side of things. The comfortable cabin is outfitted with a standard array of features like Bluetooth and a 4G Wi-Fi hotspot. A nine-speaker sound system goes a long way towards ensuring you’re always riding in style — made even easier with the help of an eight-inch touchscreen paired to Chevrolet’s MyLink system. Additional available features include an upgraded array of 10 speakers and in-built navigation systems that work easily and effectively with the touchscreen set-up.

Auto-dimming mirrors and voice-operated systems are just a few of the ways that Chevy managed to push the envelope on the 2019 Corvette. If you’re really interested in seeing how hard you push your Corvette to the limit, you can upgrade your model with an analytics system that charts your performance and gives you up-to-date reports.

Final Thoughts

Taking all of this into account, it’s easy to see how Chevrolet has turned the Corvette into a titan of the automotive world. Dynamic performance and bold styling make the 2019 Chevrolet Corvette a suitable swan song for the beloved seventh generation of Corvettes.

Autoversed

This article was worked on by a variety of people from the Autoversed team, including freelancers, editors, and/or other full-time employees.