Does The Base Model Chevrolet Corvette Still Make Sense In 2025?

It's easy to gawk over the four-digit power numbers that the ZR1 boasts, or speculate about a possible future that includes an even-more-powerful Zora model, but the real meat and potatoes of the Chevrolet Corvette lineup is the Stingray. Chevy's fastest and most illustrious sports car is now available with four unique powertrain setups (Stingray, E-Ray, Z06, and ZR1) with a fifth likely on the way soon, making it pretty easy to get distracted by the newest, hottest version of the 'Vette. But if you gloss over the standard Corvette, you're making a big mistake.

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After a few days behind the wheel of a 2025 Corvette Stingray Convertible, I was reminded just how strong its performance is at the bottom of the lineup, even if the base model isn't getting all the headlines these days. Remarkable straight-line acceleration, precise steering, extraordinary handling capabilities, and a price tag that undercuts pretty much every direct rival: even without a flat-plane crank V8, some front electric motors, a big damn supercharger, or massive BorgWarner turbos, the standard Chevrolet Corvette still has a lot to offer.

Under the hood of the standard Corvette is Chevy's 6.2-liter V8. The staunch supplier of power in standard versions of the Corvette, it produces 490 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque. Go with the Z51 Performance exhaust (which my test vehicle was equipped with) and the horsepower number goes up to 495. Chevy claims a zero-to-60 time of just 2.9 seconds, and while my butt-dyno isn't finely tuned enough to test that claim, I tend to believe it – especially since some testing publications have made the sprint even faster.

The sort of straight-line speed that's created from the Corvette's V8 is impressive in just about every scenario. Set out from a standing start and it shoves your head back into the headrest. Roll into the throttle while you're already underway and in a very big hurry, the Corvette has dashed towards the horizon in virtually no time at all. Upshifts from the 8-speed dual-clutch transmission snap the Corvette forward quickly, but without much violence and downshifts are dealt with remarkably fast as well. 

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If I have one gripe about the Corvette's V8, it's the sound: I wish the exhaust were a bit more lively. The Z51 Performance exhaust, even in its loudest modes, sounds very far away. When I remote started the Corvette in my garage, I'm sure it woke my neighbors, but out on the open highway it wasn't as guttural or exciting to listen to as I would've liked.

When the C8 was first released, I was eager to get my hands on one. I'd done long road trips, hard-charging mountain miles, and lots of city driving in the C7 so I wanted to see if the new model could live up to the same standard. I took the 2020 C8 on a three-state road trip, enjoying the sites and sounds of the Pacific coast, and along the way, I stopped to give my father a ride. He's a life-long Chevy guy just like his father before him, so it was a treat to share the C8's impressive performance with dad. 

At some point between the launches and high-speed corners I was using to show off the barely-broken-in C8, my father proclaimed his shock at the 'Vette's ability to take corners. This 2025 model is no different.

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For something as large as the C8 is — it measures 182.3 inches from pointy nose to tail — it changes direction exceptionally well. The steering wheel feels like it maintains a direct connection with the front wheels. Up in the winding mountain roads above Los Angeles, I felt like I could easily manipulate the 'Vette's lane position with a slight movement of my hands. It doesn't exactly drive small, but it does feel smaller behind the wheel than its significant dimensions would suggest. Through long, high-speed corners, the Corvette was stable and confident too. Even big, mid-corner bumps didn't upset the handling.

I'm not much of a convertible person. I barely even open up the sunroof on my car. Maybe it's because I'm prone to a quick sunburn, but I've never been super keen on dropping the top. With the Corvette, though, I found myself embracing the open sky above me on a pretty regular basis. 

One of the big things that nudged me to put the top down was how much I enjoyed the looks of the Corvette convertible with the top down, especially when you compare it to the top-removed look of a standard Corvette coupe. The roofline somehow interrupts the flow of the Corvette's design to my eye, but with the retractable hard top stowed away in the trunk, it's an entirely different vibe.

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With the windows down and the top stored away, the Corvette didn't let too much wind in either. Sure, if I wasn't wearing a hat my hair would be pretty disheveled, but exterior temps stayed mostly outside while the strong A/C kept me cool on the inside. On cold mornings, the heated seats and the heated steering wheel got toasty quickly, and the retractable top had a similarly swift approach to performance. It drops in 30 seconds according to Chevy's numbers. I might just be a convertible convert. 

A base 1LT Corvette Coupe has an MSRP of $70,195 (including $1,895 destination fee) and for that, it's a performance bargain. Its affordable pricing, however, can balloon up pretty quickly. The Corvette Convertible has a base price of $78,190 and the 3LT that I was driving had a sticker price of $106,340; that's about as high as you can go with the standard model. 

That included the Z51 Performance Package, Z51 Performance Suspension with magnetic ride control, and competition sport bucket seats. The sport bucket seats were a bit too tight for my frame so I'd axe those immediately. A lot of other small options were selected as well, like black exhaust tips and a microfiber-wrapped steering wheel which could be left off the options sheet as well without losing any panache or swagger.

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With the pointy nose of the Corvette, it's probably worth spending the extra cash on Chevy's front lift system. It costs an extra $2,595 but it gives you the ability to raise the nose of the Corvette when you come to a steep driveway or a big speed bump. The system jacks the snout by two inches and it can be programmed to remember over 1,000 locations where the nose needs to be lifted. Over 24 miles per hour, the nose lowers again and you're on your way with a regular-height Corvette.

Standard on 2LT trim and above is a 14-speaker Bose stereo from their Performance Series. If you're wondering where they could possibly fit 14 speakers in a two-door convertible, the answer is, everywhere. There are two 10-inch subwoofers – one in each door — along with four additional speakers in each door. That's ten, and then there are three more speakers in the dashboard and another speaker mounted right between the headrests of the driver and passenger seats. 

The combination of all these speakers results in a stereo that's properly loud, but it also has excellent audio quality. Even with the top down at freeway speeds, there's no need to max out the volume. It's rare that I drive a vehicle where maximum volume is actually too loud for my needs, but with the Corvette, it's there.

Audio awesomeness aside, there were some issues I had with the Corvette's tech. The 8-inch center touchscreen, for example, is small enough that it shrinks Apple CarPlay icons to the point that they're difficult to read. The forward collision monitor was also a bit over-sensitive and engaged more than once when nothing was in front of me to run into. The driver display and the head-up display, though, were excellent. Both offered high-definition graphics and high levels of contrast so they could be easily seen in bright sunlight (and the HUD was still visible while I was wearing polarized sunglasses).

One of the best tricks that the standard mid-engine Corvette pulls off is the storage. On E-Ray models, there are electric bits up front that take up the storage space, but with the standard Corvette there's a large front trunk. That's on top of offering a large rear trunk behind the engine as well, deep enough to swallow a couple of large duffle bags. The storage-space mentality doesn't really translate to the cabin, though, where the cupholders are relatively average and the door pockets leave a bit to be desired.

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Finally, there's the issue of materials quality and construction. Most of the Corvette's materials are acceptable when you consider the combination of impressive performance and approachable price. There are, however, some buttons and switchgear that feel underwhelming to the touch. Some of the stitching on the Corvette's dash was especially troubling too. It was uneven and poorly spaced, which was made all the more evident by the fact that it was in a contrasting color with the dash material.

Sure, I found some flaws during my time with the 2025 Corvette, but none of them were extreme enough to scare me away. The price of my test car was a bit high for my liking, the exhaust only seemed entertaining if you were standing outside the car, there were some extraneous options on the sheet, and I'd probably pick a different color, but those are all problems that can be easily solved.

Living with a car that's as comprehensively good as the Corvette is easy. Options like the nose lift, the comfortable-and-capable magnetic ride control suspension, the intensely impressive stereo, and the quick-folding convertible top make life with the 'Vette even easier. The performance provided by the standard 6.2-liter V8 should be more than enough for most shoppers, but if that doesn't fit your fancy, ultra-high performance models like the Z06 and ZR1 are available, too.