Sam Hodde
America has produced ample muscle cars over the past seven decades, but the Chevrolet Corvette is atop most lists of the best domestic sports cars. Overall, the right mix of power, handling, and styling make the Corvette a coveted coupe.
The Corvette debuted in 1953 in New York and is now in its eighth generation with the mid-engined C8 — produced since 2020 — the latest generation of the storied car, ahead of what could be an all-electric ninth-generation up next. Each generation — numbered from C1 to C8 — has its partisans, with arguments raging over decades about which is the best, which is the second-best, and which is the not best. What’s inarguable is that the Corvette is the American sports car, and, for a time in the 1960s, was truly the biggest car in the world, if not in sales, then in reputation and influence. It’s not that any more — the car world is probably too diffused these days to have a biggest car, though if it existed it would almost certainly be electric — but the Corvette is still the American sports car, with some apologies to the Ford Mustang and Dodge Challenger.
The Corvette has also lived long enough, at this point, that it may be here forever, or at least as long as GM is. And while it’s easy to sort and rank the ‘Vette’s eight generations and their various trim levels by performance specs, those lists have been done. Instead, let’s get subjective and rank every Corvette by its exterior aesthetic.
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8. C8 Corvette | 2020 – Present
Image Credit: Chevy Apologies to fans of the current, mid-engined Corvette, but it’s the least attractive member of the family. It’s like a Monet painting: it looks decent from far away (you’re thinking that’s a Ferrari coming at you down the highway), then it gets closer, and it’s a big old mess. Sharp angles, marked creases, and aggressive body lines can help a car look leaner and meaner, but when overused, as with the C8, it ends up looking like a kid’s crayon sketch come to life. This generation will look incredibly dated on a concours lawn in 25 years time. (That said; the 1,064-horsepower 2025 ZR1 looks the best of all the C8s, due to that flow-through hood and aero kit.)
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7. C4 Corvette | 1984 – 1996
Image Credit: Chevy The disappointing C4 suffers the opposite problem from the C8: there aren’t any substantial lines on the body. No fender flares, no swooping scoops, no nothing. Just a rolling wedge. How dull. The circle tail lights were okay, and the turbine rims are somewhat distinctive, and certainly of the era, but beyond that, there’s little to make the C4 a memorable or winning Corvette design.
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6. C5 Corvette | 1997 – 2004
Image Credit: Chevy When revamping the C5, Chevrolet polled former and current Corvette buyers and asked what they wanted, and heard back that a distinctive look, something different from a Ferrari or an Acura NSX, would be nice. But GM was going through some financial issues at the time, and money was tight. Rumors were that some bean counters in Detroit even wanted to kill off the ‘Vette. While the C5 ended up being a total redesign, with 1,500 fewer parts and pieces than the C4 (see aforementioned money troubles, perhaps?), it only looks marginally better than its predecessor. At least there’s a hint of a fender arch on the C5.
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5. C6 Corvette | 2005 – 2013
Image Credit: Chevy Things get better with the C6. Rumor has it that C6 designer Tom Peters was heavily inspired by the C2 Corvette and the Lockheed Martin F22 jet fighter. While pop-up headlights were a staple Corvette design facet, the integration into the front fascia works here. As do the side vents, and the hood lines that start from the badge and flare outward and rearward, giving the front end more presence. The fenders are enlarged to allow for larger wheels, and those flared fenders draw further emphasis to the wheels.
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4. C3 Corvette | 1968 – 1982
Image Credit: Chevy Forget that the C3 launched with a dismal 165 horsepower from a 350-ci V8. Forget that later C3s lost power due to the mandatory catalytic converter. Just look at those beautiful lines. This “Coke bottle” design was borne from the Mako Shark II concept car, and GM pulled off bringing that aggressive but flowing style to the C3. The high fender arches that dive down to a slim midsection give the coupe a sense that it’s ready to attack at any moment. The low front grille adds a little menace, and the side vents behind the front wheels give strong shark gill vibes. Early C3 models had a light ducktail at the very end, though this was sadly eliminated in 1974.
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3. C7 Corvette | 2014 – 2019
Image Credit: Chevy The last generation of front-engined Corvette looks lean and mean, but some of that’s due to simple visual tricks, like blacking out the B- and C-pillars. It gives the C7 an elongated look, substantially longer than the C6 when in reality it’s only about two inches longer. Some of the angular, aggressive stance comes from the downward sloping beltline. Overall, it’s a nice blend of curves and angles. The best C7 trims include the 755-horsepower ZR1 and the C7.R race car (yeah, yeah; it’s not a road car, but it sounds like the gates of hell opening up, and it looks incredible so we’re including it.)
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2. C1 Corvette | 1953 – 1962
Image Credit: Chevy The almost best-looking Corvette is the C1, the model that started everything. In 1953, when the C1 first debuted, the design was iconic and refreshing. A little fintail, a little rounded front fender, those handsome whitewalls; everything just worked wonderfully. As the C1 evolved, the memorable coves—or the side scoops—were introduced in 1956, and the ability to have a contrasting color in the cove meant the whole car popped more on the road. Moving the taillights from the tip of the fin to the top of the fender in 1957 was also a solid choice.
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1. C2 Corvette | 1963 – 1967
Image Credit: Chevy The winner: the C2. Long hood. Short trunk. Fender flares. Everything below the beltline bends inward, reflecting the ground below, making it appear to sit lower. Everything designer Larry Shinoda did with the C2 was *chef’s kiss.* The tail fin, which screamed the 1950s, was eschewed. Instead, a cleaner tail line that wrapped around and continued over the wheels gave it good presence. And of course, there’s the famous split rear window coupe, made only for one year, 1963. That spine in the window didn’t continue in later models because it was poorly received by the public at the time, though it was widely lauded by car designers.
Authors
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Sean Evans
