Some sports cars appear on practically every gear head's list. You have the Ford Mustang, there is the Toyota Supra, but fans also praise the Corvette as it is considered to be one of the greatest muscle cars of all time. But what if we told you that General Motors designed an awesome concept in the mid-1980s that blew the versions of the Corvette that made it to market completely out of that water.

Well, that ride is the 1986 Chevrolet Corvette Indy Concept. Make no mistake, there are other concept cars for the Corvette, but this powerful beast is the one people wish would have been produced and sold to adoring fans. Not only was this car used to test out new technologies, but it also served the purpose of proving what GM was capable of. This, of course, without the pressure of having to bring these ideas to the world.

Overall, the theme of the 1986 Chevrolet Corvette Indy Concept car seems to be the future. From its outward design that deviates from the usual look of a Vette to the mind-bending power it was rumored to produce, this car was all about what could be instead of what was at the time.

Here is a closer look at the 1986 Chevy Corvette Indy Concept. It should be noted that there were three versions designed. One was intended to be shown for publicity, one was fiberglass, and the other was meant to be used to conduct research.

Let’s Talk About Power

Corvett Concept 2
1986 Chevy Corvette Concept Indy

As with many concept cars, it’s hard to fully pinpoint exact specs. This is because most people have never driven them and the public is mostly reliant on personal accounts of the performance of these experimental cars. However, one of the attention-grabbing aspects of the 1986 Chevy Corvette Indy Concept is that it has a max horsepower of more than 600. This was for the original Corvette Indy Concept. The other two differed when it came to engines.

The two additional concept cars were still exciting. According to motortrend, the fiberglass version had a 5.7-liter V8 that produced 380 horsepower and 370 lb-ft at 3800 RPM of torque. The transmission used in this dream version of the already iconic Corvette is a 3-speed automatic. Some may complain that it’s not a manual, but let’s remember that this car was never sold. Perhaps it was never even intended to be.

There are multiple reports regarding the top speed of this car. Some say 180 mph, but supercars.net states that it’s 210 mph. Apparently, this one could go from 0 to 60 mph in only 4.7 seconds.

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This Display of Technology Was Unheard Of

Indi Concept
1986 Indy Corvette Concept 

The 1980s were an interesting time for the auto world when it came to technology. Sure, some modern advances were featured in vehicles, but nothing super high-tech, at least not by today’s standards. This concept had displays on the door for climate and entertainment information. There was also a rearview camera, which, is commonplace on vehicles produced today, but was beyond rare then. The camera came in handy because this Corvette was much longer than the ones that made it onto the street.

This ride also featured a CRT cluster for navigation. However, due to the times, GPS was limited to the military. The 1986 Chevy Corvette Indy Concept also came with both anti-lock brakes and four-wheel steering. As we all know, these features are present on many production cars today. Four-wheel steering less so, but this feature first appeared on a production car in 1988 for the Honda Prelude, according to cartreatments.com.

The automaker also worked with Lotus for several components. One example of this is hydraulic active suspension. This was controlled by a microprocessor.

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A Lasting Legacy

Eray
Upcoming Corvette Eray

When it comes to concept cars, they can go either way. Sometimes nothing comes from them. Meaning, no new technology is derived from it and the car is largely forgotten. However, this one served a purpose. GM threw a lot of innovative technology at this car, and it paid off. Not only did they get the chance to show the world what they could do, but the 1986 Corvette Indy Concept car continues. It later became the CERV III, which was a 650-horsepower concept car. CERV stands for Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicle.

Also, many consider the Corvette Indy Concept to be a predecessor to the forthcoming C8 Corvette E-Ray.

Today, the experimental vehicle is housed in the General Motors Heritage Center. The 1986 Chevy Corvette Indy Concept car was truly the stuff dreams are made of. It displayed a use of technology that was unheard of then, and it’s still inspiring vehicles. If only we could ever get the chance to drive one, or even simply sit inside this spaceship of a car.