Last month, Chevrolet turned heads in the auto upholstery industry when it announced that the interior of the 2014 Corvette Stingray would be so finely trimmed that it would honor our craft.
Well, after months of teasing, the Corvette has finally been unveiled. Let’s take a look inside to see if Chevy lived up to the hype.
According to a press release issued by General Motors, the Corvette’s cabin features “real carbon fiber, aluminum and hand-wrapped leather materials, two new seat choices – each featuring a lightweight magnesium frame for exceptional support – and dual eight-inch configurable driver/infotainment screens”.
Taking a look at the photos below, it’s obvious that Chevy has gone to great lengths to spruce up the interior. The new Corvette’s materials seem richer, more supple and better crafted. Meanwhile, its seats look gorgeous, functional and supportive all at once. I especially love the combination of leather and carbon fiber.
Of course, some folks will argue that the Corvette’s interior is still far from luxury. And they’d be correct.
But the Corvette was never meant to be a luxury sports car. Its engineers have always favored function over form. That’s what makes it such an appealing sports car.
To properly judge the Corvette’s interior, you need to compare it to the Dodge Vipers of the World, not Bimmers or Benzes. In that regard, I think that the 2014 Corvette’s interior is a winner.
But the question remains – does it do our craft justice? You be the judge!
What do you think? Let’s have a round-table discussion. Share your thoughts on the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette’s interior in the comments section below.
[photos via Autoblog]
It’s certainly a big improvement over the previous years. The shape of the seats look great but would look much better with a sportier pattern than horizontal pleats.
I agree that it is unfair to compare this interior to that of a luxury car but if Chevy claims that they will “honor our craft” they certainly could have done a better job on this interior….far too much plastic.
Naseem, The stuff your calling plastic is real carbon fiber.
THis came off of Chevrolet’s website MATERIALS
An honest interior starts with authentic materials. This is no exception. If it looks like aluminum, it is aluminum. If it looks like carbon-fiber, it is carbon-fiber.When it’s leather, it’s Grade A leather — hand-selected, stitched and crafted
to adorn a new generation.
I think it’s awesome! I may have to trade old Esmerelda in.
Esmerelda is my 2000 Corvette Convertible. I guess the convertible will follow next year…..
I agree with Naseem . . . far too much plastic. It looks cheap. The carbon fiber accents on the headrest and instrument panel do not overpower much, but the door panels are overkill. Oh – and I am sure Naseem knows the difference between carbon fiber and plastic.
whatever!
I think we can all agree that this Corvette interior is a significant improvement over past models.
The question is, does it adequately “honor” our craft? Remember, that’s what Chevy said it would do.
The jury is out… Poppy79424 seems to think so. Naseem and Jim, not so much.
Myself, I’m torn. The new Corvette’s interior is, by no means, an upholstery showcase. But, given the vehicle’s purpose and history, it is pretty sweet.
At the end of the day, though, I have to agree with Naseem and Jim that more could have been done without going all-out luxury. For instance, a sportier pattern instead of horizontal pleats.
Does it “honor” our craft? Perhaps not as much as we would have liked. But it is a step in the right direction. Let’s hope that this is just the beginning of Chevy placing more emphasis on its interiors.
I like most of it, not crazy about the big carbon fiber piece on the backrest. And what is with the .99 cent seatbelt retainer on the backrest?
Yeah, the seat-belt retainer was a sore spot for me as well.
Yea that stuck out to me too. I do however really like the carbon fiber in the backrest. They should have made the seatbelt retainer from carbon fiber to match.
Over the last car it looks much better!
You can see what car manufactures thay’ve taken there styling from quite clearly!
I like the carbon touches, i think the photo/flash makes the carbon “look” plastic but in real life i’d say it give a touch…
overall it looks good but there’s no “class” about it.
The seat base for support look poor..my daily hot hatch has better seats but saying that you guys in the US have alot more miles to cover so comfort may play a part?
overall a big improvement over the last BUT… and the big BUT whats the quality of the interior like?
a good test would be a new corvette and R8 side by side.
I can’t imagine comparing the Corvette to the Audi R8. Sure, they’re both killer sports cars – but they’re built for two entirely different audiences. While the former craves performance above all else, the latter has a soft spot for comfort and luxury.
This is also evident in their prices. The Corvette’s MSRP ranges from $49,600 – $111,600. The Audi’s from $114,200 – $196,800.
Perhaps, though, we shouldn’t be comparing the Corvette to anything – at least not for this conversation.
Chevy said its interior would “honor” our craft. If we’re to look at the Corvette alone, in a vacuum, does it do that?
i like it, nice clean lines and especially like the fact that they didnt embroider the corvette logo somewhere in the seats – I dont really care for red in a car, I would have rather seen a two tone graphite and black. but thats trivial, i like the flowing lines on the door panels. I am not too hung up on the plastic thing – what else could they do – cover it in leather? which too me would make it possibly appear bulkier and heavier which is not what it seems their image of the car is going for – clean and sleek. I know one thing I am really growing tired of red stitching on steering wheels, shift boots etc. Frankly I am really digging the exterior these days
I think a person has to keep in mind the fact that this is a $60K production car. Injection molded plastic is a necessary component in today’s manufacturing process at virtually all price levels. The fact that we are seeing any carbon fiber and aluminum in this level of car is commendable…..Personally my hat is off to the folks over at Chevrolet. This car will be reviewed and compared to other production vehicles that cost two to four times the MSRP; and will hold it’s own in terms of performance and final fit and finish….I might have to stable one in my barn next year!
Bart
I like the exterior. It’s very aggressive looking, even shark-like, like its ready to attack. Very fitting for the “stingray” moniker. As far as the interior goes, if you’ve ever seen the interior of a sports car, particularly previous gen ‘vettes, then you’ve already seen the interior of this one. There’s nothing really new or innovative here. The carbon fiber accents just below the headrests are interesting but when you think about it, they’re rather pointless since they seem to be taking a page out of race seats…particularly race seats which can support a 4 point safety harness, which this seat looks like it cannot. With that in mind, why are the holes there? Do they give air to your shoulders? Seems kinda pointless to me.