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Illustrated Corvette Series No. 68 - 1984 Corvette - "Finally... A New Corvette"

Anticipation couldn't have been higher. The C3 Corvette had lasted an amazing 15 model years that took the Corvette through extreme highs and lows. Designing a new Corvette is said to be one of the most challenging tasks in the car business. It has to look new, but still look like a Corvette. On top of that, everyone has their own idea of what the car should be and look like. And to stoke expectation even higher, because completion was late, there was no '83 model. Fuzzy spy photos captured prototypes and mule cars that kept everyone guessing.

When the new Corvette was officially shown to the public, many were let down saying that it looked too tame and too much like the '82 Camaro and Firebird designs. However, once the magazine testers drove the car, minds were blown and socks went up and down!

Everyone got warm because the new Corvette handled like no street production car ever dreamed of. On the General Motors test track, a new Corvette with the optional Z51 suspension maxed out on the skidpad with a 0.95! That's race car territory. Between the 320-pound weight reduction, a slight increase in power and the new suspension, this was the Vette that performance enthusiasts had been waiting for. The new Corvette had arrived.

The new design mandate was that the car have increased ground clearance, a larger interior, and less height. The only carry over from the '82 model was the Cross Fire injection 350 engine. Transmission choices were a four-speed automatic or the new Doug Nash 4+3 manual with overdrive in the top three gears. The all-new suspension included a five-link rear suspension, a rear stabilized bar, monoleaf fiberglass front and rear springs, and forged aluminum suspension components. It all looked very race car-like. The Girlock four-wheel disc brakes had aluminum calipers and semi-metallic brake linings. New turbine 16-inch wheels helped pull air through the wheels to cool the brakes.

The new body was designed so that there were no seams on any of the exposed panels. Seams were at the black rub strip that surrounds the car. A new clam shell design hood tipped forward allowing maximum accessibility to the engine. The lift-out roof panels were now one piece and the a rear hatch was standard. The new interior had cloth, aircraft-style seats and full digital gauges.

Good thing the new car was a runner, as the new base price was $21,800 – up $3,510 from '82. But it didn't matter to buyers. The '84 Corvette scored the second best sales year with 51,547 units sold. The new C4 was a fantastic beginning for the next generation of Corvette. - K. Scott Teeters