2011 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Convertible – Used Car of the Week

Chevrolet made the Grand Sport for buyers who wanted to improve the handling and acceleration of the base Corvette but didn’t need the more powerful engine or cost of the Z06. Chevy added the stiffer springs, bigger dampers, thicker anti-roll bars, and larger tires (P275/35ZR18 in front and P325/30ZR19 in back) from Z06 to the base Corvette and got a car with a good balance between speed and handling. The body got an upgrade with a bigger, functional front air inlet, rear ducts to cool the brakes and extended fenders to cover the tires.

Chevrolet installed a 6.2 liter V8 producing 430 horsepower and 424 lb-ft. of torque in the Grand Sport. The hand-built engine features a high flow cylinder head and intake manifold, an aggressive camshaft and a compression ratio of 10.7:1. The Grand Sport goes from zero to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds and does the quarter mile in 12.6 seconds at 115 mph. That power goes to the rear wheels through either a six speed manual transmission or a six speed automatic with paddle shifters. The Environmental Protection Agency rates the car at 16 mpg in the city and 26 on the road.

Buyers who choose the Z51 Performance package got extra cooling capacity, stiffer springs and thicker stabilizer bars, enhanced shock absorbers, larger brakes and a special performance axle ratio. The upgraded suspension and wider tires give the Grand Sport with this option a 1.06g capability on the skidpad.

Safety equipment includes ‘Active Handling’ stability control, launch control, anti-lock disc brakes, dual stage front airbags, tire pressure monitor, airbag occupancy sensor, daytime running lights, engine immobilizer and side airbags.

Chevrolet’s goal was to produce a car that equaled European supercars in performance with a price that most Americans could afford. You could buy four Grand Sport Corvettes for the price of one Ferrari 458 Spider. Corvettes have better manners than super cars. They don’t over heat or lose clutch adhesiveness in traffic, and you can back into a parking space without
outside help.

We can’t always drive in a spirited manner. Sometimes we just want to get from here to there and not be bored. The Corvette includes an XM audio system, an AM/FM/Satellite/cd player stereo system with an automatic equalizer and input capability from exterior sources and speed sensitive volume control. The Grand Sport hardtop has 22 cubic feet in the back for luggage. The convertible cuts that to 11 cubic feet with the top up and 7.5 with the top down.