Rumors of an upcoming Chevrolet Corvette SUV have been around for the past couple of years, and earlier this month, a report from Car and Driver claimed that the sporty SUV would debut in 2025.
However, this claim has now been disputed by Muscle Cars and Trucks that reports GM has not yet green-lit the project. So what's going on?
Here's our take: Automakers rarely (meaning never) comment on future products. Something as high profile as the Corvette brand is not something GM would be willing to discuss until decisions have been made public.
The C&D report from two weeks ago said that the Corvette SUV project is happening but that it won't be a battery-electric vehicle but rather an ICE model underpinned by the Alpha rear-wheel-drive platform and powered by V6 and V8 engines. However, no sources were cited to back up this claim.
Conflicting Reports
Turning the Corvette into a sub-brand is not without risks but sticking with proven combustion engine options does sound like the appropriate first step. But now we're being told that C&D's claim is "simply untrue" because the Alpha platform will be discontinued once the Cadillac CT4 and CT5 are retired. A date for that has not been announced but we predict it'll happen in the next few years, probably by 2025.
Given GM's aggressive push towards electrification, keeping Alpha around beyond those Caddie's life cycle makes no financial or product sense. With this in mind, the latest intelligence indicates the upcoming Chevy Blazer EV SS will assume the role of the brand's flagship performance SUV. And no, a Camaro SUV is not in the cards after the sixth-gen Camaro is retired. MC&T, which did not provide a source for this new information, says it stands by its report.
Who to Believe?
As cool as a V8-powered Vette-inspired SUV sounds - something that could potentially pose a threat to German and Italian luxury brand rivals - the Alpha platform's discontinuation sounds logical. But, there's still reason to believe that a Corvette sub-brand could happen because Chevy might be in need of something it hasn't had for a few years now: a high-performance sedan.
A Corvette-branded EV sedan could take on super powerful EVs like the Porsche Taycan and Tesla Model S Plaid. GM's Ultium adaptable architecture would be a no-brainer, and its talented design studio is more than up for the task.
This path would enable Chevy to pursue the Blazer EV SS as its flagship performance SUV, keep the ICE C8 around for potentially a little longer than initially planned, and allow the Alpha platform and the CT4 and CT5 to be retired gracefully.
Bear in mind we're merely speculating based on existing realities, but an ICE-powered Corvette SUV simply does not seem plausible.