Our long-awaited first drive of the new model was not without disappointment. As rain poured down and left deep puddles on GM’s newest test track, dubbed the ‘Lutz-ring’ (after GM V.P Bob Lutz and the famed Nurbring race track in Germany), we were relegated to the nearby roads surrounding the GM Proving Grounds. Fine for a Saturn VUE, even a Red Line version, but a travesty for a C6.

How did it handle? While it steers straight as an arrow, takes corners on point, powers like the wind, and sounds like a tornado brewing under full power, it was a bit squiggly in the puddles under hard throttle, just as it should be, with the back end choosing a separate course from the front on one occasion. Now, for a day with a dry track!

Corvette C6 raises the bar for performance among Vettes. The standard 400-hp engine nearly matches the output of previous high-performance Z06 models. Thanks to revised gearing, however, the C6 also achieves excellent fuel economy. That said, the Corvette defining the 21st century is one of exceptional flexibility and promise.