2014 Corvette: 460 hp, 30 mpg, 1 g, $52,000

No other sports car can match the C7's combination of performance, value, and overall efficiency. Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter provides insight on executing a masterpiece.

After 60 years of alternating redesign and evolution, the seventh-generation Chevrolet Corvette has entered production, this time all new and wearing the iconic Stingray nameplate. The 2014 C7 continues Corvette's tradition as General Motors' performance and technology flagship, and it's the pacesetter for advanced lightweight materials and structures that are emerging steadily on other GM vehicle programs.

Besides the new aluminum frame, carbon-fiber and lighter-density SMC (sheet molding compound) exterior body panels, and extensively upgraded Gen 5 LT-1 V8 previously detailed by AEI, the C7 also benefits from a thoroughly revamped assembly plant and almost new workforce in Bowling Green, KY. With a base price of $52,000, the C7 boasts the following significant engineering features: