C8-R & 5.5L Engine Details

Chevrolet's mid-engined racing machine has landed. While the Corvette C8 R made a surprise pit stop at the 2020 Corvette Stingray Convertible's debut last week, Chevy dished out the details in an official announcement on Thursday.

Here's the big news: There's no turbocharger under the hood. Nope, it's a naturally breathing V8. Per International Motor Sports Association displacement rules, the engine is no bigger, and no smaller, than the 5.5-liter cap on displacement. The new racing power plant spins out 500 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque. That's 10 hp and lb-ft of torque more than the road-going 2020 Corvette Stingray without the Z51 performance package.

If that's the big news, here's the bigger news: Chevy confirmed with Roadshow this is a flat-plane crank V8 with dual-overhead cams. Yeah, this ain't your father's Corvette race car.

The crankshaft has been the subject of many C8-generation Corvette rumors. We've already dived into how the C8 R sounds almost nothing like the regular Corvette Stingray, and now we know that has a lot to do with a flat-plane crankshaft. It's been widely rumored the eighth-generation Corvette will, at some point, usher in a flat-plane crank V8 engine. With confirmation the C8 R sports such an engine, the evidence continues to mount.

Homologation regulations call for a GT Le Mans race car's engine to come from a series production engine. At least 300 of these engines must be produced for a series production car from the same manufacturer.

Have a listen to the C8 R revving. That's not the deep Corvette thunder we're accustomed to. That kind of exotic noise often comes from a flat-plane crank kind of V8.

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Source: Sean Szymkowski - Road/Show (cnet.com)

Posted 10/11/19