The Corvette CX making its debut at this weekend’s The Quail, a Motorsports Gathering, generates more than 2,000 combined hp from its four, individually controlled and torque-vectoring electric motors. It’s staggering power, draped in beautiful bodywork, at a point in time when Corvette is rapidly climbing through the supercar ranks. There’s only one problem with this latest rendition of America’s motorsports icon: China’s has 1,000 more hp.

The specs for the Yangwang U9 Track Edition that leaked last week in BYD filings with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) read like something out a middle schooler’s journal. 3,000 hp. 0-60 in one second. An electric motor for each wheel. A top speed approaching 300 mph. If it’s real (and there is absolutely zero reason to believe that it isn’t), the BYD will be the performance car benchmark against which all others are measured, like the Ferrari F40 of the 1980s, McLaren F1 of the 1990s, or Bugattis of the twenty-first century.

And that 3,000 hp BYD? That’s a production car, if limited. Meanwhile, the latest no production intent, pie-in-the-sky, no-holds-barred, you can just say shit and no one will ever question it electric hypercar concept from GM falls more than 1,000 hp short, at “just” 2,000 hp.

But don’t count the Corvette out.

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More grease, bigger hammer

Whatever you may think of poster-era supercars like the Lamborghini Diablo, Porsche Carerra GT, or Pagani Huayra – or even modern electric hypercars like the Tesla Model S Plaid and Xiaomi SU7 – the one thing they all have in common is that they are all objectively slower than the 255 mph Callaway Corvette Sledgehammer from 1988, above.

I won’t go into the specs of that car (this isn’t that kind of car blog), but the point is that while the Corvette is often overlooked, there is a reason GM’s top-shelf sporty car carries that “King of the Hill” nickname – and the new Corvette CX concept is similarly, undoubtedly, more than just a list of specs in a magazine.

And those specs are seriously impressive. The new Corvette CX concept packs four independent electric motors putting out a combined 2,000 hp and some ungoldy amount of Earth-moving torque under advanced software controls that enable four-wheel torque vectoring for maximum grip and cornering performance, as well as precise steering control under even the heaviest of braking.

Power to those motors comes from the Corvette CX’ 90 kWh lithium-ion battery that’s centrally mounted low in the chassis, giving the car a low center of gravity and, crucially, ideal 50/50 front-rear weight distribution.

Plus: it’s gorgeous

The Corvette team says the CX concept draws from more more than seventy (!) years of Corvette heritage while being a forward looking concept, not a retro piece. Stylistically, the concept seems more visually mature and subdued than its in-production C8 cousin, and seems to promise a return to the C3-5 eras’ cleaner, less busy aesthetics.

Phil Zak, executive design director for Chevrolet, is very rightly proud of the CX’ design. “While the shape of a Corvette has always been expressive and forward-looking, each crease and line has its roots in the generations that came before it. It is aspirational, it is cultural, it is the reason people want to come and work at Chevrolet,” says, Zak. “The CX … demonstrate(s) our design teams stepping away from the constraints of production vehicles and unleashing their creativity. Through this exercise, we’ve added to Corvette and defined the design direction for Corvette moving forward.”

The rest of the official GM press release copy highlights the aviation-inspired canopy, jet-age interior, and an underbody fan system not entirely unlike the system leaked in Tesla patent filings earlier this week. You can see that here:

Aggressively futuristic, yet unquestionably a Corvette, the CX concept shows what an uncompromised future sports car can be. The athletic exterior design, highlighted by the fighter-jet-inspired cockpit canopy, isn’t just about looking powerful – it was shaped in collaboration with the GM Motorsports Aero Group. Every angle was designed with ultimate performance in mind.

On the inside, every aspect of the CX concept was designed to provide an unmatched driving experience. The forward-opening fighter-jet-style canopy automatically raises as you approach. Driver and passenger settle into seating finished in Inferno Red ballistic textile, bolstered to help hold occupants in place during high-g cornering maneuvers. Premium silicone leather, milled aluminum, and low-gloss forged carbon fiber accents give an elevated feel to the driver-focused cabin.

The digital windscreen transforms the windshield into an immersive surround display with real-time performance data. Every major control is elegantly integrated into the steering wheel, keeping the driver’s focus on the road ahead.

The innovations continue underneath the skin with the Vacuum Fan System. Built-in fans draw air through the open-channel bodywork, generating massive downforce and adjusting the airflow over the rear diffuser to refine aerodynamic balance in real-time. The front diffuser and rear wing are both active, adjusting automatically in response to the driver’s inputs to generate maximum grip. The integrated understructure of the CX concept is visible through the aero channels in the bodywork, and the suspension A-arms are wing-shaped to enhance airflow and reduce front-end lift.

CHEVROLET

All in all, the new Corvette CX concept is an impressive piece of engineering and rolling art. It’s also a statement from GM that, while the Corvette may very well be going all-electric in its next iteration, it won’t be going any slower. In fact, the first electric Corvette might even be the best one ever – but don’t say that one too loud (you’ll upset the New Balance crowd).

That said, as a pure concept that almost no one will ever drive and which might never get publicly strapped on to a dyno, it is absolutely baffling that Chevy wouldn’t have just claimed 3,000 hp. Even if it was just to match BYD’s claims and continue to build on a century of hype for American exceptionalism, you know?

That’s my take, anyway – what’s yours? Watch the Corvette CX Concept hype video from Chevrolet, below, then let us know what you think of the latest GM concept in the comments.

Electric Corvette CX concept

SOURCE | IMAGES: GM, Mecum.

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Tesla has raised Model S and Model X prices by $10,000, but it decided to include its ‘Full Self-Driving’ package, free Supercharging for life, ‘Premium Connectivity’, and a new ‘Premium Service’ for 4 years.

For the last few years, Model S and Model X have been in a free fall, and the latest mild update to the two flagship vehicles doesn’t appear to be helping much.

The automaker is now updating pricing and included features to try to shake things up.

Tesla is now making a new ‘Luxe Package’ standard on all Model S and Model X vehicles:

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Full Self-Driving (FSD), previously priced at $8,000, is now included in all Model S and Model X vehicles. The automaker claims that FSD will eventually result in unsupervised autonomous driving, but for the meantime, it is a level 2 driver assistance system.

Tesla is also introducing a new “Four-year Premium Service”:

Includes tire and windshield protection plan plus maintenance. Covers scheduled services including wheel alignment, tire rotations, front camera cleaning and replacement of HEPA filter, cabin filter and wiper blades.

The automaker is also bringing back included Supercharging for life.

Tesla used to offer free Supercharging for life as a perk on Model S and Model X vehicles.

In 2018, Tesla discontinued the perk after claiming it was unsustainable – although it temporarily reinstated it as a sales incentive at times. For example, it was offered as recently as December as an end-of-year incentive.

In the new terms, Tesla mentioned that it can’t be used for commercial purposes, such as if you use the vehicle as an Uber, and it is not transferable to a new owner if you sell the vehicle:

Charge for free at 70,000+ Superchargers worldwide. You are still responsible for Supercharger fees, like idle and congestion fees, when applicable. May only be redeemed at Tesla-owned Superchargers. Cannot be used for commercial purposes (e.g., taxi, rideshare or delivery services). If Tesla determines in good faith at its sole discretion that the vehicle is being used for commercial purposes, Tesla may remove the free Supercharging from the vehicle. The vehicle will then default to Pay Per Use Supercharging. Not transferable to subsequent vehicle owners or to another vehicle.

Initially, free Supercharging was tied to the vehicle rather than the owner, but this was later changed.

Finally, Tesla is also including ‘Premium Connectivity’, which enables Tesla owners to use some features that require more bandwidth, such as live traffic visualization, satellite-view maps, and video streaming, amongst other things.

It usually is $10 per month or $100 per year.

All of that comes with a significant price increase. The Model S now starts at $94,990 and $109,990 for the Plaid version.

Model X now starts at $99,990 and goes up to $114,990 if you want the quicker Plaid version.

Electrek’s Take

As the name implies, this looks like Tesla is trying to position Model S and Model X more as luxury vehicles.

A $10,000 price increase is significant, but the added features offer considerable potential value, depending on whether you plan to utilize them.

FSD sells for $8,000, but it only has an impact if you want FSD. If you don’t, Model S and Model X likely became a bad deal for you.

Free Supercharging is hard to value because it depends on how often you need to fast charge on the road.

Personally, I do it a couple of times a month, a little more when I go on road trips. It can take a while to accumulate $1,000 in Supercharger costs like that, but if you are someone who relies more on Supercharger, you can make it worth it fairly quickly.

However, you should take into account that this doesn’t add any resell value to your vehicle as you can transfer the inlcuded Supercharging.