I spent some time playing around with the configurator, and you can make it look pretty good with the right options. I was impressed with the amount of luggage space it has; not something I was expecting from a tight mid-engine layout. I don't like the steering wheel, and the interior just looks awkward as far as styling, but the functionality looks good. The instrument cluster screen shows a good look and layout when it's on. I watched their "behind the scenes" videos from the guys who designed various things, and I get what they were going for on the dash/interior layout, but after living with the beautiful elegance of the Giulia interior for almost two years, to me the new vette just looks clumsy inside. I do however like the seats; they look both comfortable and capable of holding you in place when using the performance of the car.
The back of the car is the visual weak-point exterior-wise. It looks like somebody sat on it when it was warm and squashed it down in the middle. I really wish they'd done something more like the front which looks much better. I really like the headlight housing style and design. The configurator lets you see the front with the lights on or off.
Actually, the configurator itself is impressive; really well done. I like how you can move the view in, out, all around as you choose each option to see how it all looks from any angle. Nice color palette for paint colors too.
The price: "under $60k" is a real surprise. I was expecting more along the lines of just under $70k. The base model will most likely be $65k by the time you actually buy one, but to have a car that looks like that with the performance it will most likely have, for that price, is pretty darned impressive. Best of all there are thousands of Chevy dealers coast-to-coast if you need service. For those who just have to have one right away, I expect the stealership mark-up is probably going to be pretty brutal the first 6 months or so.
I can see this pulling sales from the high-end Camaro and Mustang customer base, as well as some foreign brands. This thing is most likely going to be a big success. I don't want one for the same reason I don't like almost all of the super cars (the McLaren 720 being a big exception) which is that they look too garish for my tastes. I wonder what price the insurance industry is going to put on insuring it; the cost of ownership may be pretty high.
The other issue I have is where would you use a car with this kind of performance if you're not going to the track? My Giulia in N mode has 350 hp which is just about perfect for stop-n-go commute traffic; not too much, not too little. The new vette base model starts with 495 hp. I would be chomping at the bit with frustration if I was driving that in traffic as a daily driver. I know many of our QV drivers daily drive theirs, but it's also a 4-door sedan, versus the vette which is a tight 2-seater.
I can see this being a competitor for the QV to some degree; especially with their dealer network and support versus Alfa's which seems to be slowly disintegrating.
I really wish FCA knew what to do with the Alfa, as they don't seem to much care at this point which is SUCH a shame. The 2.0 is such a great car; especially at the price point it has. FCA has what they need to make it a success, but they don't seem to be doing anything to make it one. Without at least a good dealer network, the brand won't do any better than it has or is at the moment, which I fear may not be enough to keep it here in the U.S. If the dealer situation keeps deteriorating, "Houston; we have a problem".