All 2024 Corvettes (not just the ERay) will have several new safety features, and some Corvette enthusiasts are not happy about it! Corvette owners, in general, like to drive and feel in control of their powerful sports cars. Many don't want their car driving for them. I've had bad experiences with Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) in the past, but the Corvette engineers have said that they've calibrated our 2024 Corvettes to not be intrusive. We'll see. How many of these features can be turned off, and which ones stay off between ignition cycles? I'll let you know!
Another new thing for all 2024 Corvette models is a soft-close frunk to go along with the soft-close trunk that we've had since the 2020 C8 Stingray was introduced. Most people seem to be very happy with this development, as it will make it easier to close the front lid without leaving fingerprints on your beautiful Corvette. We'll be able to close the hood gently, put slight pressure on it, and it will be pulled down and secured automatically. Up until this point, we had to press down with a fair amount of force until it clicked, and then once again (two times), to get the frunk fully latched into the closed position.
One thing that's new in 2024 for ERay Corvettes only is Auto Start/Stop. This feature is very controversial as well, and I can understand why. Besides wear and tear on the starter motor, it seems to me like it would be strange to stop at a traffic light, have the rumble of the engine go silent, and then when the light turns green and you take your foot off the brake, the 6.2-liter V8 roars to life. It's not a quiet car, and I bet that could be startling for other drivers nearby. I might not mind Auto Start/Stop if I couldn't tell it was happening, but I don't see how that's possible in a Corvette, so at this point, I'm pretty much 100% sure I'll be shutting that off. However, I'm testing everything, so I'll wait until I can do that with my ERay and then let you know how each feature has worked for me.
Of course, the ERay has new Stealth and Shuttle Modes, which allow the car to be driven on battery power without even starting the gas engine, and there are also some interesting new gauges on the dash to show what's going on with all of that. Here's an example from a presentation by the Corvette engineers at the National Corvette Museum "Bash".
The first one is showing the power output gauges for the electric motor and gas engine, which displays on the Infotainment screen. The second one is in the Driver Information Center showing what it looks like when in Stealth Mode and the car reaches 45 mph. At that point, the gas engine automatically goes through a startup sequence and synchronizes with the electric motor's speed for a smooth transition into hybrid operation. Now, you theoretically have access to all 655 horsepower!
I have some nice shots of the battery and electric motor (not to mention VERY WIDE tires) here: Corvette ERay Cutaway Car
That's just a quick summary. I'll be digging into all of these features in depth once I get my 2024 ERay. If you have suggestions about what features you'd like to learn more about or specific questions you'd like answered about how the ERay works, please leave a comment below or send me an email (address in footer).
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