Chevrolet announces the return of the Grand Sport model to the Corvette lineup for 2010.
Something to talk about
There hasn’t been a lot of good news coming out of General Motors’ Renaissance Center headquarters lately. Just yesterday, the company announced that it would extend the normal two week summer closing of thirteen of its plants for up to nine weeks to help clear a backlog of unsold new cars from its dealers. So it has to be with a certain sense of relief that the marketing folks at Chevy have finally got something to talk about that has nothing to do with layoffs, plant closures and bankruptcy.
Grand Sport
Today, GM’s Chevy division announced that the Grand Sport is returning to the Corvette lineup. The announcement, made at the annual Corvette Birthday Bash held in Bowling Green, Kentucky, heralds the return of one of the most storied names in the history of the Corvette.
Back in 1962, Corvette chief engineer Zora Arkus-Duntov began a semi-secret program within General Motors’ Chevrolet division to produce as many as 125 lightweight prototype Corvettes based on the new 1963 Stingray in response to what Ford was doing with the Shelby Cobra. After assembling five of the prototypes and racing (Grand Sport #004 won an SCCA race at Watkins Glen in August) as well as testing them at Sebring in the fall of 1963, plans called for a debut at the 12-hour race in 1964.
1996 Grand Sport
Before that could happen, GM brass announced that the company would follow the 1957 AMA anti-racing resolution to the letter and the company’s involvement with NASCAR, along with everything else (including the Grand Sport) would cease. The company also ordered that the prototypes (which included three coupes as well as two convertibles – coupes whose tops were removed) be destroyed.
Fortunately, all five were hidden away at Chevrolet engineering and the three coupes were eventually campaigned by “privateer” racers such as Roger Penske and Jim Hall.
2010 Corvette Grand Sport
Although the Grand Sport moniker made a brief appearance in 1996 when a total of 1,000 were produced (810 coupes and 190 convertibles) with the LT4 engine, the latest iteration will replace the current Z51 package and promises to push the current standard Vette closer to the performance of the Z06 model.
The new Grand Sport will be available in either coupe or convertible body styles and will be offered with the current LS-3 powertrain with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. The engine will be rated at 430 horsepower and 424 lb-ft. of torque with the standard exhaust system or 436 horsepower and 428 lb.-ft. of torque with an optional two-mode exhaust system.
The list of Grand Sport features includes:
• Wider front and rear fenders – including specific front fenders with integrated Grand Sport badges
• Z06-style front splitter and tall rear spoiler
• Functional brake ducts and extra cooling
• Unique 18-inch front and 19-inch rear wheels; painted finish standard and chrome finish optional
• Large 275/35ZR18 tires in front and 325/30ZR19 tires in the rear
• Z06-size brakes, including 14-inch (355 mm) front rotors with six-piston calipers and 13.4-inch (340 mm) rear rotors with four-piston calipers
• Specific manual transmission gear ratios
• Specific rear axle ratio on automatic-equipped models
The Grand Sport can be ordered with the 1LT, 2LT, 3LT and 4LT trim packages and the coupe option also includes a removable roof. All of the Corvette’s exterior colors are offered and an available “Heritage” package, offered in four colors, adds front fender hash marks as well as two-tone seats with “Grand Sport” embroidery.
Tags: 2010 corvette grand sport, chevy, corvette, corvette birthday bash, corvette grand sport, Ford, general motors, gm, grand sport, jim hall, roger penske, shelby cobra, stingray, zora arkus-duntov
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