Hold Onto Your Butts! 2027 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport and Grand Sport X 0–60 MPH and 1/4 Mile Tested

For Corvette fans, 2026 is turning out to be a spectacular time to be alive. Earlier this year, Chevrolet unleashed the Corvette ZR1 and ZR1X, with monstrous powertrains churning out 1,064 and 1,250 horsepower, respectively. Now, a pair of newcomers, the 2027 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport and Corvette Grand Sport X, are nipping at their carbon-fiber wings. These new variants are not only packed with upgraded handling bits, but they also coincide with the introduction of a new V-8 engine dubbed the LS6, marking the sixth generation for Chevy’s venerable small-block eight-cylinder.

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The new 6.7-liter V-8 replaces the 6.2-liter LT2 V-8 previously fitted in the Corvette Stingray and E-Ray hybrid, and you can find all the details here. And while the LS6 doesn’t come close to the ZR1’s sky-high power, it still boasts a healthy 535 hp in the Chevrolet Grand Sport. The Grand Sport X hybrid, which essentially replaces the 655-hp E-Ray, supplements the LS6 with an electric motor powering the front axle for a total system output of 721 hp.

Just how much performance are these powertrain upgrades good for? We recently got both variants in for a comprehensive test session where we recorded a 0–60 mph time of 2.7 seconds in the Grand Sport and 2.4 seconds in the Grand Sport X. You can see the full acceleration results in the chart below.

More Power, More Consistency: The LS6 Story

Our 0–60 mph time for the Grand Sport bested Chevy’s claim by 0.1 second. The LS6’s added power certainly helped, but the Corvette’s launch control system likely deserves most of the credit. It put the power down admirably and with more consistency than it did in the early days of the C8 Corvette. Chevrolet suggested setting the Grand Sport’s Performance Traction Management system to Pro, though launch control will also work in tamer drive settings like Sport, Race 1, and Race 2.

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The Grand Sport we tested had the optional Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires and was a hardtop.

We also followed Chevy’s instructions to execute a couple burnouts prior to our acceleration runs, as our test car was fitted with the optional Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R tires that need a lot of heat to achieve full grip. We followed Chevrolet's burnout instructions to a T: “pull both steering wheel paddles, then release and re-pull the right paddle (while keeping the left pulled). Apply moderate brake pressure and full throttle. Release paddles, modulate brake pressure for a brief rolling burnout, burnout logic will only apply pressure to front tires.” Yes, it's as awkward as it sounds. But perhaps it becomes second nature with enough practice (and a healthy tire budget).

The Corvette’s launch control system has an Auto and Custom mode. Chevy suggests using the latter to adjust the launch RPM and wheel slip percentage for the quickest possible runs. We started at 3,250 rpm and 10 percent slip and, after a handful of launches, found the sweet spot for our test surface was 3,750 rpm and 10 percent slip. Here, the Corvette Grand Sport masterfully managed wheelspin and gradually doled out the power to maximize the Cup 2 R's bite. Power delivery was linear and the eight-speed dual-clutch gearbox was quick and snappy. Exactly 11 seconds after launch, the Corvette Grand Sport crossed the quarter-mile mark while moving at a whopping 122.0 mph. The best result we recorded for the outgoing LT2 was with a Corvette Stingray Z51 that ran to 60 mph and the quarter mile in 2.8 and 11.1 seconds, respectively.

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Just as impressive as the Grand Sport’s straight-line performance is how it performed in our handling tests, where it put down a record-breaking 1.23 g of cornering grip. That’s more cornering grip than not only the Corvette Z06 and the Porsche 911 GT3 but every single vehicle MotorTrend has tested in its 77-year history. We’ll have the full test results, including the wild figure-eight lap time, in our upcoming First Test review of the Corvette Grand Sport.

Gaining Grip with the Grand Sport X

Our Grand Sport was optioned with all the right equipment to generate eye-popping numbers. Our Corvette Grand Sport X, on the other hand, was decidedly less performance-focused. While carbon-ceramic brakes come standard on the Grand Sport X, the grippy Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Rs offered on the Grand Sport are not available on the hybrid for reasons that remain unclear. Instead, the stickiest rubbers available are Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer tires, a fine shoe for most owners, but one that will leave anyone who tracks their car wanting more performance.

Our X test car was also a convertible model with the power retractable hardtop and it rolled on forged aluminum wheels instead of the carbon-fiber wheels our Grand Sport wore. That added poundage to the Grand Sport raised the total weight to 3,928 pounds. Heavy? Yes, but when you consider all the extra equipment it’s carrying, a 220-pound penalty for buying the convertible hybrid seems perfectly reasonable and maybe even impressive.

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The Grand Sport X we tested was a convertible that tipped the scales at almost 4,000 pounds.

Testing prep procedures for the Corvette Grand Sport X pretty much mirror the Grand Sport with the added step of conditioning its 1.9-kWh battery pack to 90 degrees Fahrenheit and ensuring its state of charge reaches 95 percent. Both are easily achievable by entering Charge+ mode (which uses the LS6 to charge the battery) and traveling 50–70 mph under wide open throttle in eighth gear (with the gearbox in manual mode).

Again, launching at 3,570 rpm was the sweet spot, though we were able to get better times by increasing the wheel slip percentage to 12 percent. With the help of the 186-hp electric motor up front, the Grand Sport X ran out of the gate with more authority and grip than the Grand Sport. After hitting 60 mph in just 2.4 seconds, the Grand Sport X smashed the quarter mile in 10.4 seconds at 129.2 mph. Both those times match Chevy’s claims and were also good enough to outrun a Corvette E-Ray we tested by 0.2 seconds in both metrics.

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And not only is the Grand Sport X quicker and faster, but it’s also louder—at least as it pertains to the LS6. In the Corvette E-Ray, the LT2 and electric bits could be
heard in almost equal parts. Not so in Grand Sport X with the optional center-exit exhaust, where the LS6 absolutely steals the stage and pretty much drowns out any electrified noises.

Though the X crushes the Grand Sport in a straight line, the same can't be said when it comes to the handling tests. Given its additional weight and street-ier tires, that shouldn’t come as a surprise. We’ll have all the details in a complete First Test review of the 2027 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport X coming soon.

Photography byWilliam Walker

Deputy Director of Photography

Like many of my coworkers, my love for cars was cemented at a young age, thanks in part to Hot Wheels, car magazines, and every car poster I could afford when the book fair set up shop in my elementary school library. While most kids went straight for Where’s Waldo? and Goosebumps, I was torn between the poster of the Lamborghini Countach and the ’32 Ford hot rod with airbrushed flames on the cowling. In high school, I worked at Bergstrom's Antique Autos, a historic garage in Port Townsend, Washington. Surrounded by nearly a century of automotive history, I immersed myself in cleaning, sorting, and selling car parts and memorabilia. I also spent countless hours flipping through vintage car magazines and can comfortably say that I've looked through every Motor Trend, Car & Driver, Hot Rod, and Sports Car Graphic up until the early 1980s. Around the same time, I picked up photography—naturally, with cars as my main subject. Despite my high school photography teacher's advice to branch out, I stuck to my passion and attended every car show I could find. This led me to the Brooks Institute of Photography in Santa Barbara, California, where I earned a bachelor’s degree with a focus on automotive photography. I began my career at Motor Trend as a photography intern. After freelancing for a few years, I joined the Motor Trend team full-time in late 2010. My passion for cars and photography continues to fuel my work, and I hope it shines through in every shot.

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