2008 Corvette: Entry Level Excitement With Quirks

We already know a lot about the 2008 Corvette:  it is bold and flashy; the base model is now faster than the previous generation Z06; the quality of interior materials has been vastly improved; the steering has been recalibrated for better feel; the 6-speed stick is now slicker than ever; etc.  The list goes on and on.  Automotive scribes have compared and contrasted this car to the Porsche Boxster and Cayman, the BMW Z4, the Dodge Viper, the Nissan 350Z, and every other sports car under the sun.  It has been road tested extensively, picked apart feature by feature, analyzed, and analyzed again.  Indeed, a small closet could be filled with all the information available regarding this American icon from General Motors.

The focus of this article will stray from what is customarily covered in a car review.  My intent is to delve a little deeper into the actual experience of owning a 2008 Corvette from the perspective of someone who has never driven any of the cars commonly compared to Corvettes.  To be honest, the only other cars I have driven in the last five years are a 2004 Honda Accord Sedan V-6 and a 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe 2-Door.  For what it's worth, I think that puts me in the unique position of being totally objective in discussing the finer points of Corvette ownership.

Before I could take the mandatory test drive I discovered the inescapable fact that I first had to be sitting in the driver's seat.  Through trial and error I quickly mastered this task.  After opening the door as far as it will go, swivel into position with the backbone about 12" from the roof, then slowly bend at the knees until the posterior makes contact with the seat.  (Repeat this ten times and you will have concluded your low-impact aerobic exercise regimen for the day.)  At this point, with both feet flat on the ground, reach around and adjust the steering wheel to its highest position while slowly lifting both feet.  Then swing both legs into the car without bumping your knees on the steering wheel.  Any departure from this method will result in your shoes scraping the bottom of the interior door panel, leaving indelible marks that you will soon grow fond of.

Any discussion about the doors on a 2008 Corvette is not complete without an explanation of the key fob system.  Resembling a 1970's style butane cigarette lighter, the "Keyless Access Transmitter" is programmed to operate the doors, trunk lid/hatchback door, and push-button ignition.  Just put it in your pocket or purse and, providing it is within three feet of the door, pressing a conveniently located soft-touch button will magically cause the door or trunk to pop open!  Adding to the coolness is a feature called "window indexing" which automatically lowers the door window a fraction of an inch as the door is opened.  This permits air to escape the cockpit while closing the door and thus eliminates any resistance in the process.  Once the door is closed, the window automatically returns to the "up" position.  I think this will greatly improve the integrity of the door seal over time.

The dealership where I purchased this car was 253 miles from my home.  I was looking for a base model with few options, which necessitated a search through the Chevrolet website.  I settled on a red coupe with only two options, the Competition Gray Wheels ($395) and Dual-Mode Exhaust ($1195).  The latter option bumps the horsepower from 430 to 436, and the torque increases from 424 lb-ft to 428.  And who can't use 6 extra horsepower in a Vette?  Also, when the exhaust opens up at around 3500 rpm it really does sound cool.  Still, I was kind of surprised at how quiet this car is.........yes, I said quiet.  Maybe I was expecting it to sound like a Harley Davidson or something.  Oh, you can hear it alright, but the noise level is not in the least intrusive.

Since I had 250 miles of interstate highway in my immediate future, after signing the papers it was a no-brainer to zero out the mpg display and run a highway gas mileage test.  Bear in mind that it was August, meaning 90 degree temperatures and air conditioning.  If this caused an increase in gas consumption it sure didn't show, because when I reached the end of the exit ramp for the final three miles home the display was sitting on 26.9 mpg.  That figure could have easily topped the 27 mpg mark if I had kept it at the 70 mph speed limit.

One of the most common complaints on previous Corvettes had to do with the imprecise/clunky feel of the manual shifter, but very little has been written about an annoying feature known as "skip-shift".  For some reason this topic has remained a mystery, but I will unravel it for you.  All manual shifters in recent Corvettes (and possibly Camaros) are computer-mandated to force the driver to skip 2nd and 3rd gear under certain low throttle conditions.  Let's say you are stopped and the car is in 1st gear.  When you start to accelerate, if (1) the engine coolant temperature is above 169 F, (2) the car is going 15 to 19 mph, and (3) the throttle is at 21% or less, an indicator light on the dash will come on and the transmission must be shifted to 4th gear.  The computer will "lock out" 2nd and 3rd gear, and forcing it into one of these gears can damage the transmission.  I guess GM uses this feature as evidence to the EPA that it is actively involved in keeping the price of oil down, while the rumor mill has it that the feature allows GM to avoid charging the Gas Guzzler Tax.  Okay, I get that.  What's impressive is that the car can actually pull from 15 mph in 4th gear as long as you keep off the gas; treating it like a regular upshift causes the car to lurch a bit.  That being said, it still does not explain why the salesman never heard of it and the shop manager at the dealership claimed the lock out occurs under hard acceleration.

A final observation on the 6-speed stick:  the faster you shift it, the smoother it is.  The shifter feels a little notchy when moved slowly from point A to point B, and extremely slow shifts can almost feel like the gears are going to grind even though they never have.  The lesson to be learned is simple.  Hit the gas hard in 1st to avoid the skip-shift parameters, and don't monkey around when changing gears.

This car has a very large turning circle for a small car, so getting into and out of tight parking spots can be a challenge.  This often results in the use of a three-point maneuver usually reserved for large pickup trucks and Hummers.  Trying to back out of a tight spot is harder yet.  And caution must be used when pulling forward into a spot with a curb, because if you misjudge the distance the bottom of the front bumper will rub.  On abrupt elevation changes like a steep driveway it is inevitable that the chin spoiler will kiss the pavement as well, but the owner's manual says this is normal. 

I will also confirm reports that the view out the rear-view mirror is distorted by the glass on the hatchback door.  This happens because the angle of the glass is such that it causes the view to go through a much thicker portion of glass than is usually the case.  That's my theory, and I'm sticking to it!

Equipped with the base suspension, highway cruising is at least as smooth as it is in a 2004 Honda Accord Sedan, and bumpy city streets cause the ride to be only slightly more firm than the Accord's. 

After ten months and 2500 miles my 2008 Corvette is getting 19 mpg overall with mostly city driving.  This is much better than the 14.86 mpg posted by my 1999 Chevrolet Tahoe 2-Door.  Of course, I will probably not scrape the Tahoe's front bumper on a curb, and both it and the Honda are easier to get into and out of, but neither vehicle can compete with the Vette's fun factor in between those times.  Did I mention the extensive list of standard features Chevrolet offers with the Corvette?  Sure, the base model lacks the "Porsche-like" interior accommodations of a fully loaded version, but the price can quickly go north of the $60,000 mark when these options start piling up.  Hey, if you have the juice, go for it!  My point is that you can have one of these things sitting in your driveway for a much more reasonable hit to your wallet.  There is nothing wrong with a stripped down Corvette, as a close look at the included equipment will have you wondering if it is a misprint.  And according to my research, the 2009 model includes the automatic transmission in that list after a slight bump in the base price.

Everything about the 2008 Corvette screams performance, and if you can live with the inherent quirks you will find it to be a truly amazing vehicle.