Chevrolet rolls out Corvette convertible

With an eye toward expanding the global reach of its 2014 Corvette Stingray, Chevrolet rolled out the convertible version of the sports car at this week’s 2013 Geneva Motor Show.

Competing with milliondollar Bugattis, Ferraris and Lamborghinis, the drop-top version of the Stingray boasts the same 6.2-liter V-8 as the coupe introduced at January’s Detroit Auto Show.

It has the same output, at 450 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque. The convertible will be offered with a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters or a seven-speed manual transmission with automatic rev-matching.

The three-layer fabric top folds under a hard tonneau cover behind the passengers. The roof itself has a glass rear window and sound-absorbing padding. The power-folding roof can be operated at speeds of up to 30 mph and can be controlled remotely from the Corvette’s key fob.

Chevrolet says the new Corvette’s aluminum frame is 57% stiffer and 99 pounds lighter than the outgoing model’s steel frame. As a result, the convertible needed no extra structural bracing for rigidity. It will have nearly an identical power-toweight ratio as the coupe.

Aesthetically, the convertible differs only slightly from its coupe counterpart. Excluding the obvious change to the car’s roof line, only the coupe’s air intakes above the rear wheel are missing on the convertible.

Chevrolet says the coupe and convertible versions of the 2014 Corvette Stingray will go on sale in late 2013.