2020 Chevy Corvette convertible: A look at the first hardtop convertible Vette

[MUSIC] There's been some noteworthy first with the arrival of the new. New C8 Corvette. The biggest one being that it's the first Vette to have its engine sit in the middle of the car. Also for the first time, it'll use a dual-clutch transmission and only a dual-clutch transmission. Yes, no manual gearbox will be offered. Which is a bummer. But another first comes with the debut of this the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible. No, it's definitely not the first Corvette drop tap. There have been a lot of those beginning with the original events they debuted in 1953. They were all exclusively convertibles, and followed by plenty of other open top versions throughout its history. But this latest model is the first to feature a hard time Up until now, all Corvette convertibles were soft tops. BUt moving to a hard top provides some good benefits such as a quieter cabin when it's up, better security compared to a rag top, and cleaner styling that manages to follow closely to the Coupe. A bi colored roof is standard while customers can opt to have [UNKNOWN] flash for a two tone appearance. The composite hard top, which can be operated at speeds up to 30 miles per hour takes just 16 seconds to go down. When stored, the top sits beneath a title cover featuring an engine cooling event and aero-optimized nozzles inspired by fighter jet engine housings. While quite large, Chevy says the nozzles are designed in a manner to reduce air from circulating into the cabin helping to further reduce cabin wind buffering and speed is a power rear window that can be operated with the top up or down and if you are wondering if the new corvette convertible feels like a convertible with these big [UNKNOWN] and more open feeling than the coupe with its roof panels removed, I can tell you it is absolutely more airy inside. As for trade offs that come with the convertible, Chevy made every effort to keep them at a minimal. From a function standpoint, the trunk can still hold two sets of golf clubs with the top down, and the front is still very capable of holding a roller board and laptop bag Performance wise, the chassis was designed from the beginning to be a convertible, so structure and rigidity concerns are non issues. And with the top up and rear spoiler from the Coupe's Z51 Performance Package, the convertible features the same coefficient of drag as the Coupe. There are, however, some changes to the suspension's spring adapters to cope with the convertible's less than 80 pounds of extra weight over the Coupe [MUSIC] Like the coupe power comes from the 6.2 liter LT2 V8 engine. It's all motor making 495 horsepower and 470 pound feet of torque when the optional performance exhaust system is installed. Without the exhaust output numbers drop to 490 horses and 465 pound feet. And the engine works with the aforementioned Tremec, Eight speed dual clutch transmission. The 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible will head into production next year towards the end of the first quarter, with right-hand drive versions coming later on for consumption in select international markets. As for the place here in the US the base [UNKNOWN] work here a $7500 place premium or over $59000 [UNKNOWN] [MUSIC]