Using a revered nameplate on a car that goes completely against the grain of the original model isn’t exactly new to the automotive industry. For instance, the Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross may bear the name of the automaker’s JDM icon from the ‘90s, but it’s about as far from a sporty coupe as it gets.
There’s also Chevrolet's recent revival of the Trailblazer and Blazer nameplates. But instead of delivering off-road-ready, rough-and-tumble SUVs, the new Trailblazer is a subcompact crossover far more at home in the grocery store parking lot than on a wilderness trail. And the Blazer, while sporty for its segment, isn’t exactly the all-terrain hero of its predecessor.
Among the most respected nameplates in the entirety of the American automotive landscape is the Corvette, and there are some murmurings that the Corvette moniker could soon find its way onto an SUV or a four-door coupe sedan. TopSpeed has already given a preview of what a Corvette SUV could look like, and now we’ve turned our attention to showcasing how a four-door Corvette could appear if GM follows through on its proposal.
Just like the SUV, our exclusive renderings from Bimble Design show that applying the Corvette’s styling cues to any segment will make for an intriguing look, but like the Eclipse Cross, Trailblazer, and other models that use a nameplate on a completely different type of model than the original, a four-door Corvette is certainly a case of love it or hate it.
The Corvette Sedan Sports Classic Styling Cues, But A New Overall Look
Bimble Design has illustrated that a C8 Corvette can still look like, well, a Corvette, even if you add two doors. The unmistakable, aggressive, and angular front fascia remains with its sizeable intakes, razor-thin headlights, and front skirt. At the rear, the four-door model is still distinctly Corvette with its boomerang taillights, angular spoiler, angled rectangular intake inlays and a USB-port like exhaust.
Unsurprisingly though, in profile, the sedan ‘Vette separates itself from its supercar sibling. There is still a sloping roofline, but the greenhouse extends down above the rear wheels, creating a hard kink behind the C-pillar and rear quarter-window. The character line in profile is also more pronounced with its extended footprint, and the door handles are completely recessed instead of being hidden in the side intake.
And that brings us to the most notable difference between the sedan Corvette and its sports car sibling. The Corvette sedan is missing the sports car’s side intake to make way for the rear doors, a sure-fire indicator that though the C8 ‘Vette has gone mid-engine, the sedan version puts its powerplant back to where it resided the Corvette for the better part of a century.
That fact is also showcased by the front hood, which slopes far less aggressively forward than the sports car C8. However, the sedan version still shows its sporty intentions with super-slick rubber on sizeable wheels ahead of ventilated brakes and dark red calipers.
There’s Still A V-8 Under The Hood
While even the stalwarts of V-8 power, including the Corvette, are slowly transitioning to electrification with the recently debuted Corvette E-Ray, this is no electric sedan. The video above showcases there is still a burbling V-8 under the hood of the four-door Vette. We hope it’s fair to assume GM will still want a Corvette sedan to be powered by eight cylinders, so if this model were to enter production, which V-8 would it have?
The 6.2-liter unit in the Stingray is no slouch, pumping out 490 horsepower, but with the added size and weight of four doors, would Chevy slot in the 5.5-liter naturally aspirated V-8 from the Z06 that cranks out an eye-popping 670 horsepower that zips the new ultra-sporty ‘Vette from 0-60 mph in 2.6 seconds?
Well, with the E-Ray, there’s also another option to counter the sedan’s added hulk. The new, all-wheel drive, hybrid E-Ray combines the 6.2-liter V-8 with an electric motor driving the front wheels for a sizeable increase in grunt to 655 horsepower and 595 pound-feet of torque. With the E-Ray rocketing from 0-60 mph in 2.5 seconds, we feel it’s fairly safe to assume the same engine in a sedan version would still crack a sub-four-second time.
To Love Or Hate The C8 Corvette Sedan?
While purists may bemoan the thought of a ‘Vette with four doors — and it’s fairly understandable given what Chevy has done to the Trailblazer and Blazer nameplates — we at TopSpeed are all on board with the thought of a sedan Corvette, so long as it’s presented along the lines of our exclusive renderings. Namely, that it’s still powered by a V-8, has sporty intentions and pedigree, and presents a new take on iconic Corvette styling.
After all, there are plenty of four-door cars with some supercar pedigree out there — and many of them even come from within GM’s ranks, like the CT4-V Blackwing and CT5-V Blackwing. And we would love for a Corvette sedan to represent America against some of the best four-door supercars from the other side of the Atlantic, like the BMW M5, Mercedes-AMG E63 S, Porsche Panamera Turbo S, Audi S6 and the like.
Additionally, a Corvette sedan is likely to be the blue-collar hero of that bunch considering the fantastic, traditional C8 has supercar-like performance for the price of a luxury mid-sized SUV. We imagine the ‘Vette sedan would only continue this tradition and be priced five figures below any of its European competitors.
Finally, as much as we like sports cars, there is also the question of practicality when a model can only offer two doors and limited cargo space. The Corvette sedan, in theory could provide (nearly) all the thrills of the C8 while getting the entire family where it needs to go — quickly. There’s no telling where Chevy will take the Corvette if it follows through on the rumors a four-door model is coming, but if it’s like these renderings, we’re excited to see the outcome.