Let’s get this out of the way up front: The litany of breakdowns suffered by our long-term 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51 (C7) was simply appalling. Yes, we know a car is a machine made up of thousands of components, and that despite massive leaps in technology and manufacturing that make cars far more reliable today than they were just a couple of product cycles ago, things can and do go wrong. But sheesh.
Things were fine at first, starting with our coupe’s base price of $51,995, which is nearly 30 grand less than the base price of another popular way to go fast, the Porsche 911. Among the C7’s standard features are its rigid aluminum space frame and lightweight Batman bodywork that always grabs attention, even in our test car’s reserved Blade Silver Metallic. Contrasting black wheels ($495) and “carbon flash” exterior accents ($100) surely helped. The suspension still uses composite (fiberglass) transverse leaf springs, but the Stingray is altogether more high-tech and engaging to operate than before.
The C7’s interior is vastly improved from the C6’s. Nicely equipped to start, our test car also included the mid-level 2LT equipment group ($4210), which added heated and ventilated seats, a color head-up display, and other luxuries. We also opted for carbon-fiber interior trim ($995) and Chevy’s MyLink navigation ($795). The “Car and Driver” identification plaque on the console ($200) flattered our already-inflated egos. As tested, including other options to be cited shortly, the car’s price was $66,575. Little did we know how special it really was.
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