From the start, Tadge Juechter and his team designed the C7 Corvette with a no-compromises convertible in mind. The result of that forethought is a Corvette Z06 convertible that is almost as light as the Z06 coupe and just as powerful. Chevy introduced us to the car last night at a little event away from the bright lights of the New York auto show, and it’s pretty impressive.

Its supercharged 6.2 liter V-8 makes 625 hp and comes mated to either a 7-speed manual or 8-speed automatic. It’ll sprint to 60 in 3.5 seconds. It’s a real Z06 and yes, you can get it with the Z07 performance package.

Corvette Mike

If you’ve been itching to replace that 2002 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 convertible sitting in the garage, I hate to break it to you, but the 2014 model probably isn’t for you.

Unlike its predecessor, which was a potent but fully outfitted sports car, the all-new Z/28 is a stripped-down, street-legal track machine that’s more in the spirit of the original 1967 racing homologation special than the coupes and convertibles that followed it. Chevy’s single-minded goal was to make it the fastest-ever Camaro around a track.

To that end, no drop-top is available; it comes from the factory without a carpeted trunk or air conditioning to cut weight; and the stereo isn’t really one because it has only a single speaker that’s there only because the feds require it to provide a door-open chime.

(Why Chevy included the audio head unit is more of a mystery, but [...]

Early this morning, General Motors announced five separate recalls, affecting roughly 2.7 million Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Pontiac, and Saturn vehicles from the 2004 to 2015 model years. One of the recalls is so serious that GM has asked owners to stop driving the vehicles immediately.

RECALL #2: 2005-2007 Chevrolet Corvette

This recall of 111,889 U.S. vehicles is meant to fix a serious problem with the low-beam headlights. GM says that “When the engine is warm, the underhood electrical center housing could expand, causing the headlamp low-beam relay control circuit wire to bend slightly.” Over time, the circuit wire can break, disabling the low-beam headlights.

This problem appears to affect Corvettes from the 2008-2013 model years, too, though GM says that those vehicles will be repaired via a Customer Satisfaction Program, rather than a full-fledged recall. As with recall #1, GM hasn’t specified how it will fix the problem.

Visitors to The National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky, can learn a lot about the classic American sports car. These days, they can also get a lesson in making lemonade from life’s lemons.

When a sinkhole opened up under an exhibit area in the wee hours of February 12, eight of the museum’s prized cars were swallowed up. The museum closed for one day before reopening and transforming the sinkhole recovery operation into another—and very popular—exhibit. A viewing window at a safe distance provides a peek at the site, and webcams allow the curious to view progress live on the Internet.

The damaged cars will be on display through August before some of them are sent off for restoration. The museum is across the street from the only GM factory that manufactures Corvettes. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children ages 6 to 16. (800) 538-3883. —Paul Zieke [...]