As the gearhead we think you are, you know that Callaway Cars is a GM-licensed American designer, developer, and manufacturer of specialty vehicles, specifically Chevy Corvettes and other GM brands. Headquartered in Old Lyme, Connecticut, Callaway offers high-performance product packages for GM cars, pickup trucks, and SUVs distributed via GM dealerships branded as Callaway.

In August this year, the performance tuner unveiled the new Callaway Corvette C8 Launch Edition at the Corvettes at Carlisle event in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Preceding the event, the automaker teased us with sketches of the upgraded C8 Corvette Stingray, showing off a massive rear wing and a redesigned rear bumper and carbon fiber diffuser, the latter of which houses a Double-D rounded center exhaust treatment. We also observed the upgraded Callaway Forged C8 wheels and new lower side skirts.

But the unveiling at the Carlisle event made it immediately clear that the 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 supercar isn’t the only option for red-eyed gearheads and C8 fans who imagine the stock pushrod V8 laced with enhanced performance on the new mid-engine Corvette. We’re not certain just yet, but what we have here is likely to match the power of the Z06’s quad-cam engi and humiliate it in a torque showdown.

Related: 2023 Chevrolet Corvette Z06: Costs, Facts, And Figures

What You Should Know About The Eight Generation Corvette C8

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via: Callaway Cars

Gearheads need no introduction to the 2-door, 2-passenger luxury sports car that Chevrolet has been making since 1953. The model is currently in its eight design generations, with each generation designated sequentially from C1 to C8. The Corvette (or Vette) is all about performance and - of course - its distinctive fiberglass or composite panels. It had always been front-engined until 2019 when it debuted its first mid-engine layout with the Corvette C8 – a pretty big deal for fans and enthusiasts.

It wasn’t just for the Chevy brand, though. The C8 Corvette is equally GM’s first production mid-engine sports car in nearly 4 decades, since introducing the Pontiac Fiero in 1983. The 8th-gen Corvette is thus the first mid-engine Corvette in the model line’s history, announced in April 2019 and making its global debut in July for the coupe while the convertible model rolled up in October at the Kennedy Space Center to coincide with the Apollo 11 50th anniversary.

GM experimented with several Chevrolet Engineering Research Vehicle (CERV) prototypes preceding the C8 Corvette. A thoroughly revised aesthetics accompanied the C8 Corvette’s radical shift from the traditional front engine to rear mid-engine layout, setting it worlds apart from previous generations. It features all-new aluminum architecture and coil-over springs, as opposed to the previous generation’s leaf springs.

It's also cosmetically more aggressive, with updated aerodynamics, including larger air intakes and prominent side scoops. The cockpit is more driver-centric, as evidenced by the numerous controls on the center console and the new hexagonal steering wheel with a special “Z” button (in homage to Zora Arkus-Duntov – the man known as the Father of the Corvette) that activates the performance features.

The driver gets a 12-inch digital screen (in lieu of the predecessor’s instrument cluster) that depicts the six driving modes and an 8-inch touchscreen. The 2019 industrial strike at GM that began in September delayed the production of the C8 Corvette until February 3rd, 2020, roughly four months after unveiling the Corvette C8.R racing version.

The C8 Corvette Stingray Engine

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via: Callaway Cars

Hoping to lay your hands on the C8 Corvette Stingray? Expect an evolutionary version of the LS-based GM small-block engine derived from the C7 Stingray's LT1, now called the LT2. The engine is new, naturally aspirated, and rated at 490 horsepower at 6,450 rpm and 465 lb-ft of torque at 5,150 rpm, which entails 40 horses and 10 lb-ft more than the erstwhile C7 Corvette Stingray.

But like its predecessor, the new C8 Corvette engine features GM's Active Fuel Management engine technology (formerly known as displacement on demand (DoD)) that utilizes a variable displacement system to "turn off" half of the cylinders under light-load conditions like highway cruising to improve fuel economy. It also features a dry sump lubrication system.

The track-oriented Z51 performance package comes with two radiators on both sides in the front and a third water-to-water and water-to-oil radiator on the rear driver's side to cool both the engine oil and transmission lubricant by breathing through the rear quarter panel opening.

The optional Dual Mode Exhaust system available with the 6th-gen Chevy Camaro (codenamed “NPP”) raises the power output from 490 to 495 hp and torque from 465 to 470 lb-ft on the C8. We can't resist mentioning that the NPP system allows the driver to adjust the exhaust note from the touchscreen inside the cabin, just in case you didn’t know that already.

Chevy said the C8 Corvette can cover 60 mph in 2.9 seconds (2.8 with the 1-foot rollout subtracted) equipped with the Z51 package, a claim that Road&Track matched in official testing. The automaker already said improved rear grip is one of the reasons it switched the C8 Corvette to mid-engine – that seemed to work. Notably, the 2023 Corvette C8 covers the 60 mph distance in 2.6 seconds and boasts 175 more horsepower.

Related: 8 Camaros That'll Be Worth A Fortune Soon

What We Know Now About The Callaway Supercharged C8 Corvette

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via: Callaway Cars

Callaway Cars developed the supercharged C8 Corvette to commemorate its 35th year of partnership with General Motors. The supercharged high-performance package includes its 2.3-liter twin-screw TripleCooled supercharger, which utilizes an in-house design with Eaton TVS 2300 rotors, which Callaway says can "reliably increase the already-outstanding performance" of the C8 Corvette Stingray.

The tuner wouldn’t dish out power figures just yet, just as it didn’t provide official pricing or available options. But we get the idea, considering this is the same supercharger system that churned out 757 horsepower and 777 lb-ft of torque mounted atop the SC757 C7 Corvette Stingray’s 6.2-liter LT1 mill. The Callaway supercharged C8 is currently completing the final stage of engineering, emissions compliance testing, and performance validation, with production set to commence in early 2023.

If you want one, you can get in line by depositing a refundable $1,000 online or via Callaway California offices. The automaker says the supercharged C8 Corvette will come with a three-year/36,000 mile Callaway Warranty which supplements the Corvettes' Chevrolet/GM warranties." It also offers an optional five-year/60,000-mile Callaway Powertrain Service Contract provided at GM dealerships. The vehicles come with 50-state emission compliance certification.

Besides the mills, we expect the Callaway Corvette C8 to rock exterior and interior updates, including the Alcantara horn cover, door sill panels, new pedals, and embroidered floor mats. Finally, we're happy to inform you that the 2020 to 2023 Stingrays are eligible for conversion via the Callaway 2nd Change program.