New Corvette E-Ray 2025 review: heretic or hero?

Verdict 

A mid-engined hybrid Corvette might seem like heresy to diehard fans of America’s iconic supercar, but in terms of execution, things have gone very, very right. Not only is the mix of modern e-motor and old-school V8 an addictive, rapid combination, but the E-Ray’s ride, handling, transmission and brakes are all superb, too. Our one tiny reservation was that our drive was slightly limited by the conditions; with more open roads and dryer conditions to really push the car to its limits, it’s quite possible the E-Ray could chalk up that final extra half-star.

This is the eighth generation of the Corvette, and at first glance, America’s most iconic sports car has moved into the 2020s in a form that’s almost unrecognisable compared with its ancestors. 

First, there’s the branding. No longer does the car wear a Chevrolet badge; parent company General Motors considers the Corvette name strong enough to be a marque in its own right. We agree. 

And in one of the biggest changes in the Corvette’s history, the C8 generation is the first that has ditched the front-engined layout it has used since the fifties in favour of a mid-mounted set-up. This was a change brought about by Corvette’s continued commitment to motorsport; it felt the mid-engined layout would be what it needed to take on Porsche and Ferrari at iconic endurance races around the world, such as Daytona and Le Mans.

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But the changes don’t end there, because now, there’s the E-Ray. While that variation on the classic Stingray name sounds rather like what Dr Evil might have called a shark with a frickin’ laser beam attached to its head, it is in fact a Corvette with hybrid power.  

But this is not a hybrid intended to delicately sip fuel, but one designed to make an already quick car even quicker. Indeed, the E-Ray holds the title of the fastest-accelerating model in the current range, outsprinting even the ballistic Z06.

On paper, the formula is elegantly simple. The existing internal-combustion Corvette range sends its power exclusively to the rear wheels – and the same applies here. In this case, the E-Ray uses the same 6.2-litre LT2 V8 as the Stingray, which even on its own offers up a hardly shabby 475bhp and 613Nm. However, the E-Ray also has an electric motor up front, adding a further 160bhp and 165Nm. That’s enough for a total output of 635bhp - just 2bhp off the Z06, but with the added benefit of four-wheel drive. As a result, the E-Ray is fast. Really fast. The 0-62mph dash is dispatched in just 2.9 seconds, and top speed is 180mph.

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Our time behind the wheel wasn’t exactly the typical Corvette environment, though; less ‘sunny Sebring’ and more ‘drizzly Kettering’. Which, if anything, made us appreciate the extra security of the electrically driven front axle even more. In fact, our very first experience of the E-Ray was in pure-electric form; its Stealth Mode allows the car to move away in silence, using the energy from the 1.9kWh battery running down the spine of the chassis.

Once that charge has depleted – or you ask for more power than the motor can handle – then the V8 growls into life; that classic American soundtrack rumbles behind you, rather than ahead of you, as has been the case for so long. 

Even at low speeds, it sounds brilliant; there's a rich, off-beat burble that sounds every bit the old-school muscle car. Plant your right foot, and things get even better. It’s not quite the full NASCAR experience – it’s smoother and less ear-splitting than that – but the thunderous roar as it develops its maximum power at 6,450rpm sounds unlike anything else for the money. In a segment of the market where personality really matters to buyers, it gives the Corvette its own character to sit alongside the brilliant noises made by RS Porsches and the Ferrari 296. 

That could all be of the Stingray, too, but the E-Ray adds its own extra dose of aural excitement, because that electric motor is partial to whirring and whining under load, too. The combination of futuristic electric motor and old-school V8 singing together is a distinctive combination that left us mashing the throttle for the fun of it.

Splitting the power that way certainly helps in grim weather, too. With most of the drive supplied by the petrol engine at the back, it’s still possible to light up the rear tyres with a firm press of the throttle, but there’s always that extra security of the front wheels pulling things into line – whether you’re in a straight line or when getting just a little too keen on the exit of a corner. It means that even in damp conditions it’s possible to explore a chassis that feels brilliantly sophisticated, balanced and agile. 

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Indeed, we arrived at the Corvette expecting the powertrain to be a treat – and it certainly was – but it’s the rest of the package that left us even more impressed. That square-shaped steering wheel certainly looks a little odd, but the feedback it transmits from the front wheels to the driver’s fingertips is excellent; on damp, greasy roads, it was easy to sense the precise moment that the Michelin Pilot Sport 4S front tyres reached the limits of their grip. The suspension set-up isn’t overly firm or clumsy – quite the opposite, in fact. There’s a fabulous level of compliance, which makes the Corvette comfortable and easy to use around town or on a dual carriageway, yet offers enough travel and control to shrug off the busy bumps of a badly surfaced B-road.

Then there’s the dual-clutch gearbox, which is one of the very best of its type we’ve tried. In terms of its responsiveness when pressing on and the smoothness when shuffling around at low speeds, it feels not far off the sophistication of a Ferrari 296’s ’box, which is the slickest dual-clutch system we’ve experienced. 

Even the carbon brakes – often a set-up that can seem grabby and short of feedback – felt great here. The pedal is firm and reassuring, and delivers superb stopping power. We’d need to sample the E-Ray on faster, more challenging roads or a racetrack to really put them to the test, but for everyday use, they were superb. 

And that sums up much of the E-Ray experience, too. There’s a decent amount of boot space front and rear – although if you remove the T-Bar roof panel, it swallows up much of the rear storage area on its own – while the cabin is well appointed and comfortable. The wraparound dash design is unique, but while we often champion the use of physical buttons, the very long sliver of keys running up the centre console takes some getting used to.

All of this means that, even at £153,440, the Corvette E-Ray looks very tempting. Does it feel as immaculately engineered, fast or sharp as a Ferrari 296 GTB? We’d need to drive the pair side-by-side in identical conditions, but we suspect not quite. That’s fair enough, though, because the Corvette costs roughly half as much to buy. In the UK at least, it’ll probably be rarer, too - but based on this encounter, it deserves all the success it gets.

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