Check Out the 3-Mode Exhaust of the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette

Now, before you rush off to watch the video of the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Coupe roaring along the highway with 460 horsepower announcing itself through the high performance exhaust system, we should warn you that this video only shows the Corvette at idle. There is not even a blip of the throttle in this 43 second video but we do get to hear the C7 Corvette’s LT1 engine make three distinctly different tones. This is important because until now, we have expected that the performance exhaust package would be a dual mode setup but the three different sounds emitted by the 2014 Corvette in this video contradicts those expectations.

At the beginning of the video, there is enough unassociated noise around the camera that it is almost hard to tell if the 2014 Corvette is running but around 7 seconds in, you can clearly hear the incredibly quiet murmur of the LT1 V8. However, right around the 10 second mark, the exhaust mode changes and at that point – we can hear the LT1 V8 much more clearly. This second exhaust tone (albeit at idle) is much deeper and raspier along with also letting us better hear the camshaft at work as the engine grumbles at idle. Finally, around the 29 second mark the exhaust tone changes once again and this time, the LT1 actually has a slightly higher pitch although the basic volume of the exhaust doesn’t seem to change any.

With the official details on the performance exhaust package for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray being fairly limited shy of the fact that these tubes allow the LT1 to make 5 more horsepower and 5 more lb-ft of torque, we really arent sure what these three modes could be. Some have speculated that it is still a dual mode system and the third set of sounds is actually what the C7 Corvette sounds like when it has 4 of the 8 cylinders shut down for better fuel economy but why would it go into fuel saving mode sitting at idle? It is possible since this was at a company event but it doesn’t seem very likely.

If I had to guess, the first exhaust tone for the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette is the “regular” mode that prevents drone during cruising and also prevents the car from amplifying the sound of the LT1 when only 4 cylinders are active. The second and third tones are something like a “performance” and “track” mode which allow for more sound and less muffling – which would increase exhaust flow and power for high performance situations. Also, one of those louder tones could be designed to offer more sound while still stifling the deactivated cylinders where the other louder exhaust tone could be a mode that doesn’t work with the cylinder deactivation. If the Corvette just had a wide open exhaust mode that would function at the same time as the 4-cylinder mode, the C7 would risk sounding like a loudly piped 4-cylinder engine and that is something that no Corvette owner wants. Of course, those are just my guesses and I could be completely wrong but with the 2014 C7 expected to hit showrooms soon – it shouldn’t be long before General Motors rolls out every last bit of information on the new American supercar.