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2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray: The Authorized Biography

Autobytel Reviews 'Corvette Stingray The Seventh Generation of America's Sports Car'

Charles Krome
by Charles Krome
February 4, 2014
2 min. Reading Time
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Sure, the brand-new 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray is plenty fast, but I'd like to think I moved even faster when I got the chance to review "Corvette Stingray The Seventh Generation of America's Sports Car." Graciously provided by the auto-oriented publishing house Motorbooks, and written by long-time automotive journalist Larry Edsall, the book itself is a nicely made work that's packed with great photography and is currently available via www.Motorbooks.com with an MSRP of $40. But along with the kind of graphics one would expect from a "coffee-table book," Motorbooks also had promised to deliver an in-depth look at the development of the 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray, complete with exclusive interviews from all the major players, and I was eager to find out more about what's become an instant icon for General Motors. And I did.

For example, Edsall starts off with the traditional tale of the Corvette's birth as a "Eurostyle two-seater," covers its evolution into a true sports car under the direction of Zora Arkus-Duntov—known as "the father of the Corvette," and explains how the decision to form Corvette Racing in 1999 set the tone for the generations that followed, including the 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray. That's all pretty standard fare for Corvette books, but this one includes an interesting nugget about the classic 1963 split-window Corvette Sting Ray: The noticeable ridge that runs right down the center of the car and through its dual rear glass is, in fact, called the "stinger."

Similarly, Edsall provides a behind-the-scenes account of how important the previous-generation Corvette was to GM's very survival. Politicos were apparently quite impressed with engineers' ability to combine in excess of 400 hp with an EPA mark of 26 mpg highway, taking it as a sign of GM's ability to provide relatively strong fuel-economy marks in a car that people still look at as desirable. (Note: The 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray is up to 29 mpg highway, backed by 455 hp.)

The meat of the book, however, is a detailed examination of just about every facet of the development of the 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray. Edsall explores everything from the car's advanced direct injection system to the role of marketing in the vehicle's launch, and perhaps even goes a little too deep for more casual readers.

Which brings us to the picking of the nits.

(Images from GM Archive; Featured in Corvette Stingray by Larry Edsall.)

2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray Book Review

Yes, there's a lot to like in the "Corvette Stingray" book, and even with it being an officially licensed GM product, I never got the feeling that it was merely a PR effort for the 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray. Edsall hit all of the expected stops on the new Vette's journey to the marketplace, sprinkling candid discussions about the need to improve the interior with talk about Chevy's program allowing Corvette customers to literally assemble their own engines. So, I honestly can recommend it to fans of the Corvette, even those who already know a thing or two about the car.

But one's ultimate opinion of the "Corvette Stingray" comes down to a single word that can be found on page 119 of the book. That word is "Nürburgring." Most gearheads will likely recognize that as the German racetrack that has become the auto industry's ultimate proving ground, but here's the thing: In reporting on the 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray’s testing at the track, this new book leaves off the umlaut, not only there, but in both the other places it's used, too.

Unfortunately, that typifies a somewhat loose approach to editing that will mar the reading experience here for some folks. For instance, there are a number of places where editors allow Edsall to repeat himself unnecessarily—and unclearly—with the problem really standing out around the important topic of whether GM would have to pull the plug on the entire Corvette program in return for financial aid from the government.

The bottom line: Although the actual 2014 Chevy Corvette Stingray shows incredible attention to detail and seems to have ironed out the flaws that held back past generations, the "Corvette Stingray" book remains closer in spirit to those previous cars, which provided their share of incredible thrills and inspired countless memories, but always remained a bit rough around the edges.   

(Images from GM Archive; Featured in Corvette Stingray by Larry Edsall.)

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