Good news: Nobody at GM is talking mid-engine C7 Corvette anymore. Bad news: The C7 is on hold and now unlikely to launch earlier than the 2014 model year. Mid-engine boosters, including Bob Lutz, believed it would be easier to achieve gas-saving cylinder shutoff with a mid-mounted LS3 V-8, as it's hard to deactivate cylinders in the current front engine/rear transaxle setup without adding a clutch to deactivate the driveshaft.
The question no one asked was, would the extra weight of a mid-engine layout, with its heavy rear cowl, offset the fuel-economy savings of cylinder shutoff? And it's tough to get the proper engine note with cylinder shutoff, anyway.
In the end, the higher cost of doing essentially the whole car from scratch took the idea off the drawing boards. Now the question is, will chief engineer Tom Wallace consider a 3.6-liter direct-injection V-6 for the base C7? With 2011-2015 CAFE looming, don't count it out...
The question no one asked was, would the extra weight of a mid-engine layout, with its heavy rear cowl, offset the fuel-economy savings of cylinder shutoff? And it's tough to get the proper engine note with cylinder shutoff, anyway.
In the end, the higher cost of doing essentially the whole car from scratch took the idea off the drawing boards. Now the question is, will chief engineer Tom Wallace consider a 3.6-liter direct-injection V-6 for the base C7? With 2011-2015 CAFE looming, don't count it out...
