The man in charge of the next Corvette, Blackwing, and maybe Camaro

Arguably the Corvette is General Motors' most iconic and important vehicle even if it's not a sales leader. As the possible finale of the C8 Corvette lineup arrives in the form of the Grand Sport a new leader is taking over the team and all of GM Performance. It's a critical moment, and Tony Roma has big shoes to fill. As the next-generation Corvette takes shape, the next-generation Blackwings start development, and the Camaro nameplate sits in the corner on hiatus, again, for now, Roma must make tough decisions that include V8 engines, maybe manual transmissions, and much more. Enthusiasts are watching, anxiously with anticipation. But cars require business cases and Roma knows what has to meet the mark to get approved in a board room. The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder are joined by Tony Roma who now serves as Executive Chief Engineer for the Chevy Corvette and Performance Cars at General Motors to discuss the automaker's most prized sports cars now and into the future. And yes, there's Camaro talk. Stories referenced in today's episode: We Drove the New LS6-Powered 2027 Chevy Corvette Lineup. Here’s the One to Get Corvette ZR1’s Chief Engineer Will Be Immortalized Forever on the Car Corvette Team Loses Another Key Member in GM Performance Shakeup The Corvette CX Concept Is the North Star for the Future of America’s Sports Car This New Six-Speed Manual Could Fit in the C8 Corvette and Ford Mustang GTD ‘It’s Not Real’: Corvette Engineers Squash Manual C8 Rumor Tremec Politely Disagrees With Team Corvette That Its 6-Speed Manual Transaxle ‘Isn’t Real’ GM’s Rumored Car Comeback to Bring Camaro Revival, New Cadillac CT5, and Buick Sedan: TDS It Looks Like GM Design Teased a New Chevy Camaro—and It’s Not an SUV 00:00 - Intro 03:45 - What the biggest difference with today's Corvette team from the previous team? 06:45 - The C8 finale and current lineup 17:01 - The electric Corvette 18:17 - The Nurburgring 22:24 - Why does the Camaro keep dying? 29:33 - The C9 Corvette 31:11 - Manual transmission in the Corvette 35:52 - The C9 Corvette 43:59 - Corvette as a subbrand 45:30 - The Blackwings 48:28 - Cadillac in Formula 1, tech trickle down 51:23 - Where's the Raptor competitor? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices