🤢 - Corvette *ahem* "Pickup" ? Noooooooooooo

This worries me a lot more!
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This was the original c8 test car
The original C8 Corvette test car prototype, nicknamed “BlackJack,” was the first earnest development platform for the mid-engine Corvette design that eventually led to the production 2020 C8 model. It was built over about eight months, starting with a large aluminum structure that was heavily machined down to represent the final car’s structural integrity. The prototype used a mix of components, including a C7 interior and a C7 LT1 engine paired with a unique ZF PDK transmission from Porsche, along with custom electrical systems to integrate everything. The body was a hand-laid fiberglass shell designed to conceal the prototype’s true shape, resembling a Holden ute with only a few shared parts. This test mule was used by a very small group of people during development to validate the platform’s architecture, suspension geometry, and overall drivability, which was about 95-98% representative of the final production car.
Earlier mid-engine Corvette prototypes date back decades, with various engineering and design concepts like the CERV I and XP-882/895 developed from the late 1950s through the 1970s, but none reached production until the C8. The C8 represents the culmination of over 50 years of mid-engine experimentation by Chevrolet, finally bringing the concept to market with a new aluminum architecture and a rear mid-engine layout that shifted the passenger cell forward by 16.5 inches compared to previous generations.
In summary, the “BlackJack” prototype was the critical first test car that proved the feasibility and character of the C8 mid-engine Corvette before the program moved into full production development.
 

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