Mid-Engine C8 Corvette Twin Turbo V8 Reportedly Revealed in New CAD Image

Another computer-aided design (CAD) image showing what is reportedly the LT7 engine that will power the mid-engine C8 Chevrolet Corvette has arrived online, giving us what might be out best look at GM’s new twin turbocharged supercar engine.

I don’t think that there has been a car more shrouded in rumors and questions than the mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette. We have been talking about the possibility of a mid-ship Corvette for generations, but these discussions have been energized in the past year by spy shots and videos showing what many people believe reveal the first Corvette with an engine mounted behind the driver.

Adding to the expectations that the mid-engine Corvette could be getting closer to its grand debut is a series of CAD images posted by an unknown user on the enthusiast website CorvetteForum.com. A person going by the new “ZERV” has posted a handful of images showing what we all believe is the mid-engine Corvette in colorful computer design images. In every case, those images were removed from the original hosting site, but as soon as they were shared to CorvetteForum, they were saved and reposted by other members of the forum.

Word on the street is that GM legal people are working on get these images off of the internet, so in an effort to avoid an angry email from the automaker, we won’t repost them. Instead, you can see them all on CorvetteForum by clicking here. This link takes you to the newest and most interesting image shared by ZERV and reshared by another member – showing what is reportedly the LT7 V8 that will power the mid-engine Corvette.

A Twin Turbo V8 – Maybe the LT7
The image posted to CorvetteForum might or might not be the powerplant for the mid-engine Corvette, but a few things are clear. It is a V8 engine with turbochargers mounted just off of the exhaust manifolds. The compressed air from those turbochargers heads to a set of massive intercoolers before heading into the engine and, oddly, those intercoolers are positioned in the CAD image just above a set of quad exhaust tips. Also, it appears to have a similar design to the current GM twin turbo V6 engine, making it seem more likely that this image shows a GM engine design.

In other words, this engine is definitely a mid-mounted engine and that is clear due to the location of the exhaust tips in relationship to the engine. It appears to be a GM layout, so it might not be the mid-engine Corvette engine, but if it is real, it is going to be mounted towards the rear of some performance vehicle.

Maybe this is the new mid-engine Corvette powerplant and maybe it will be called the LT7. Maybe it will power the long-rumored Cadillac flagship that might have a mid-ship design. Maybe it is fake and we are all getting worked for nothing.

I prefer to remain optimistic that GM is working on a mid-engine supercar that will take down the world’s greatest performance cars. If such a project exists, it is very possible that it will have a twin turbo V8 and this might be that engine.