The 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray aims to expand the breadth of the Vette’s capabilities, elevating it beyond just being a thrilling sports car to one you can comfortably use daily. To anyone who’s driven a Stingray, with its sizable dual storage compartments and optional compliant Magnetic Ride Suspension, the E-Ray may not immediately seem all that unique, given the base car’s excellent usability. However, an electric motor sends power to its front wheels, thus making it the first-ever all-wheel-drive Corvette. The E-Ray doesn’t just want to be a go-anywhere, do-anything Vette on lovely days, but one that you can confidently use year-round.
Starting at $106,595, including destination, the E-Ray slots between the $114,395 Z06 and the $69,995 Stingray. It borrows the latter’s 495-horsepower 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated V8 and supplementing it with a 160-hp electric motor. Drawing from the track-ready Z06, the electrified Vette inherits its broadened track and bodywork, wider 275/30 and 345/25 section tires, and even its optional carbon fiber wheels. However, while the E-Ray aims to be the most usable Corvette ever through its use of an electric motor, does its hybridization make it more exciting to drive?
Given how much hardware the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray borrows from its Z06 sibling, it won’t be surprising to learn that the pair share a near-identical aesthetic. Widened front and rear arches, restyled bumpers with more oversized air intakes, and options like my tester’s $13,995 set of exposed carbon fiber wheels are just some similarities. While the electrified Vette also offers aero packages like its spoiler wickers similar to those available for the Z06, a significant visual differentiator is its rear diffuser, which houses quad exhaust tips identical to the Stingray’s.
Like the Z06, the E-Ray wears its widened arches well, smoothing out the otherwise sharp lines and creases that make the Stingray’s aesthetic polarizing, resulting in a design that flows more cohesively. The extra bodywork better incorporates its large head and tail lights, which, combined with its other tasteful additions like body-colored bumpers and a color palette that ranges from the flashy to the subdued, the electrified Vette is arguably the best-looking C8 yet.
However, while the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray may resemble the Z06, the differing ethos of their powertrains vastly differentiates their driving experiences. At its core, the E-Ray counts on the Stingray’s 6.2-liter naturally-aspirated V8, developing an identical 495 hp and 470 lb-ft of torque, unchanged figures. Although the electrified Vette does feature a 160-hp and 125-lb-ft electric motor on its front axle, there’s no physical connection between it and the small-block V8 out back. Instead, software links the pair, thus managing torque sent to the front wheels depending on the drive mode.
A 1.9-kilowatt-hour battery pack sits between its seats, carefully tucked under its center console. Aside from bolstering this car’s performance, the pack allows the E-Ray to travel only on electrons for five miles at up to 45 mph. However, it’s worth noting that this car’s hybridization was implemented to support its performance rather than to improve its efficiency. Flat out, its 2.5 second 0-60 mph time makes it the quickest Corvette ever, completing the quarter mile in 10.5 seconds.
Despite the addition of an electric motor, the E-Ray’s power delivery will feel more than familiar to anyone who’s driven or is upgrading from a Stingray. While it grows to 655 hp and 595 lb-ft, the electrified Vette retains the small block’s charm and feel despite the additional speed and is as responsive and engaging as a naturally aspirated sports car should be. The result is not comparable to a heavily turbocharged engine that may lag before delivering the goods in a sudden rush; instead, it’s as if the standard V8 has magically found an extra 160 hidden horses.
From behind the wheel, only a faint sound, pipped in through this car’s speakers, lets you know that the electric motor is active at all. A quick-shifting eight-speed dual-clutch automatic that moves through gears seamlessly complements the well-integrated electric motor, resulting in a power delivery that feels perfectly cohesive.
Pick up your pace on a winding road, and the added traction and power from the front axle, along with the larger tires and widened track, allow the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray to offer excellent grip. Its front end may not be as agile or precise as the Z06’s, but its added traction allows you to effortlessly claw your way out of corners. While the electrified Vette’s 3,774-pound curb weight is 239 lb over a Z06’s, this difference is seldom felt outside of a track. The E-Ray’s magnetic ride control eliminates body roll while remaining surprisingly compliant, and its widened rubber complements it with high grip levels. Put together, these allow it to hide its heft effectively.
However, outside of these high-speed scenarios or launching it between stop lights, the E-Ray feels more like a spiritual successor to the now-defunct Grand Sport rather than something all-new like it is. During our week with it in Los Angeles, with clear blue skies and perfect weather, exploring its claims of added four-season versatility was impossible. Additionally, while cruising on the highway or just puttering around town, the electric motor is rarely active, leaving its small-block V8 to do most of the work as it does on the Stingray.
This contrasts sharply with the Z06, which, thanks to its flat-plane-crank V8, makes every drive feel truly special regardless of length or speed. How it vibrates, revs, and its naturally aspirated engine howls even at slow speeds never lets you forget that you’re driving something exciting. In this vein, the E-Ray’s comparatively subdued nature makes it a better grand tourer and commuter. While its newfound grip and speed on a twisty road are a substantial improvement over the Stingray, you’ll have to push it to feel them.
Inside, the 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray offers nearly the same expansive list of optional extras as its track-ready sibling. Available in three trim levels: 1LZ, 2LZ, and 3LZ, with our tester being the mid-range 2LZ, buyers can select between 21 interior color combinations while adding extras such as the $1,500 carbon fiber trim package, $1,995 competition sport bucket seats, and a $695 suede steering wheel to name a few. However, the physical components of its cabin, such as its digital instrument cluster, central infotainment screen, and rising row of center-console-mounted buttons, carry over from other models.
Because Chevy developed the C8 with a hybrid variant in mind, adding the battery pack beneath its center console doesn’t affect its cabin space or take up the front storage space integral to this car’s daily usability. This consideration for passenger and cargo space allows the E-Ray to slide into its role as a grand tourer easily.
While a 1LZ 2024 Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray starts at $106,595, our 2LZ tester bumps that figure up to $110,095, including GM’s recently increased $1,695 destination charge. For context, a comparable 2LT Stingray costs $77,095, while a 2LZ Z06 starts at $120,695. Given some of the optional extras mentioned above, our tester carries an as-tested price of $140,745.
True to Chevy’s intentions, the E-Ray utilizes its new electric motor to bolster its performance, delivering more incredible speed and, thus, a more exciting driving experience than you’d get out of a Stingray. However, you’ll have to test its limits on a winding road or launch it from a stop to feel them, as in most scenarios, its small-block V8 is the main character. For those seeking the ultimate thrill, the Z06 will still be the one to have, with its high-revving naturally aspirated V8 delivering an experience not even the Prancing Horse can match.
However, outside of these scenarios, the added traction of the E-Ray’s front end will ultimately serve as the best differentiator. If the Stingray wasn’t already so compliant and usable, its electrified sibling would have an easier time carving out its identity. That said, what the E-Ray does for the C8 range is improve its versatility; as Chevy gears up to unveil the ZR1 later this summer, it’s clear that the carmaker is looking to expand its offerings and differentiate the Vette’s personas. If there’s one thing the E-Ray does reinforce, it is that the C8 is still a spectacular sports car regardless of trim or price.
