Chevrolet’s Electric Corvette: What You Need to Know

General Motors has announced ambitious plans to go all-electric by 2035. That will require some major changes. Some of the company’s most iconic vehicles — currently powered by potent V8 combustion engines — will need to reinvent themselves. One of the most iconic of these, of course, is the Chevrolet Corvette.

The new C8-generation Corvette model enacted some of the boldest changes in Corvette history, switching to a mid-engine layout and abandoning the manual transmission. But even those changes may be just a foretaste of wilder things to come.

Here’s what we know about how and when the Corvette will go electric.

An electrified — not electric — Corvette should arrive in 2023

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We’ve met two internal combustion-powered C8 ‘Vettes so far: the Stingray and the naturally-aspirated Z06. Next up, reportedly, will be the Corvette E-Ray, arriving next year. It will reportedly add an electric motor to the Stingray’s V8 to put out about 650 horsepower and will become the first hybrid and first all-wheel-drive Corvette. (An electric motor will also be in the powertrain mix for the eventual halo Corvette, reportedly named Zora, as well.)

GM has confirmed an electric Corvette vehicle is coming

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GM president Mark Reuss has announced on LinkedIn that the company would produce a Corvette EV based on the Ultium platform eventually. But he did not offer any timeframe for the vehicle’s release.

But that Corvette EV may not be what you’re expecting

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Ford’s first electric Mustang was the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover, a vehicle that permitted them to keep the classic Mustang more or less intact for the new generation. Muscle Cars & Trucks reported that GM may take a similar strategy with the Corvette.

They report that GM is prepping two Corvette EVs. A four-door sedan to take on the Porsche Taycan will arrive first, followed by an SUV version — technically heeding Bob Lutz’s Corvette SUV suggestion. The sedan may share a platform with the Cadillac Celestiq.

Okay fine. But when will there be a proper Corvette that’s an EV?

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The picture is unclear. Muscle Cars & Trucks and Hagerty both say we won’t see an all-electric version of the C8 Corvette. We don’t know how long the C8 product cycle will last, but we can presume a C9-generation model would arrive sometime in the late 2020s. It’s conceivable that the C9 could offer an electric option or a standalone vehicle.

One could also see GM deciding two strong-selling Corvette-branded EVs in showrooms is enough and punting, leaving it to reimagine the two-door Corvette as an EV until after the 2035 deadline. Only time will tell.

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