Chevrolet could stick the name “Zora” somewhere on the upcoming mid-engine Corvette, according to internet speculation based on the revelation the company was trademarking the nameplate in several different markets, including the U.S., U.K., China and Australia.
The name refers to GM engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov, who’s known as the “father of the Corvette,” largely for his impassioned plea to upper management to keep the sports car program alive when they almost killed it a few years after its 1953 debut.
Duntov was a part of the Corvette development program from that year through to his retirement in 1975, and was a huge proponent of the concept of a mid-engined version. He went so far as to have a prototype, the XP-819, built in 1964.
Users on a mid-engined Corvette forum recently uncovered the fact GM’s registering the “Zora” name via a search of worldwide patent databases. It’s not a guarantee it will show up on the C8-generation car, but it’s more than likely.
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