The 2024 Corvette E-Ray Holds A Strange But Impressive Record You Might Not Expect
Adding a hybrid drivetrain that introduced all-wheel drive to the mid-engine C8 Corvette resulted in E-Ray earning the title of quickest Corvette ever, with a 0-60 sprint taking only 2.5 seconds on the way to a quarter-mile time of 10.5 seconds. But Chevy's marketing for the new E-Ray will also focus on the all-weather capabilities made possible by that all-wheel drive layout, in an effort to entice a wider customer base to the brand and model.
That priority also led to another surprising record the E-Ray now holds: From the factory, it's equipped with the widest all-season tires ever seen on a production vehicle. Those are Michelin Pilot Sport All-Season 4+ ZP tires, which at the rear measure an absurd 345 millimeters wide (plus 275 millimeters up front, for those following along).
These all-seasons get a different tread design with four distinct compounds to handle low temperatures, rain, and snow. But Michelin developed the new tire with Chevrolet to ensure it still gets the same top speed rating as the optional Pilot Sport 4S (also an excellent all-rounder tire), and even the Cup 2s on the Z06 or Z07-equipped track stars. At a recent E-Ray launch program in Colorado — where in our E-Ray first drive we saw just how much grip there is — I spoke with Michelin's Product Category Manager for OE Wayne Yount about working with GM to develop the E-Ray's record-setting all-season tire.
All-season tires for a mid-engine supercar
Yount started by explaining the four different compounds that meeted the E-Ray's double standards of performance at both ends of the spectrum.
"Amongst the four different compounds that are spread out across this tire in the outer grooves," he told me, "there are compounds that are winter compounds, they're specifically for snow, and it's just in the groove because when it rolls through, it grabs the snow, and then the snow versus snow is your best contact. So that's a key design element. The other three compounds are across the tire to get the right rigidity for the right feel of the car, get the right handling performance that they need."
We then walked over to a cutaway E-Ray showing off the new hybrid drivetrain's packaging, but Yount also pulled out a cutaway of the all-season Michelin to illustrate his next point.
The purpose of the wavy belt
"One of the other keys," he explained, "and this is something you can't see unless you destroy the tire, but you go in the tire itself, the distance from here to the bottom of the belts is different as you go across. We call that the wavy belt."
Think of corrugated sheet metal, which is far more sturdy than a flat sheet. The varied depth of the metal belts running through this all-season tire helps to provide a level of rigidity that mimics the design of more typical high-performance tires, since the softer rubber compounds might otherwise create too much flex in the tread.
"In addition to that," Yount continued, "These are ZP, or zero pressure tires, so run-flats. They have customized sidewalls that are actually used to tune both handling, in addition to its run-flat capability."
Sacrificing performance at the limit in the name of all-season confidence
All-season run-flats designed to maximize grip in slippery situations while also providing the kind of performance that Chevrolet required in the new hybrid E-Ray—this all sounds too good to be true, I told Yount. He laughed.
"Everything in this tire is bespoke for the E-Ray and it's done in partnership with Corvette, just to deliver a fantastic ride. With this tire, you're getting one g on the skid pad, with the summer tire you're getting 1.1 g. So most drivers on public roads—that are not looking to get arrested—are gonna be extremely pleased with the performance of this all-season tire. And it gives you a year-round driving experience in the E-Ray."
Of course, stepping up to the PS4S, Cup 2, or Cup 2R will enhance the track potential for any Corvette (really, any car, since tires are the most important part of any vehicle). And the question of how a tire built using four different compounds for a high-powered, relatively heavy sports car will wear over the course of real-world driving remains a question. Still, for many potential E-Ray customers, the ability to trade only slight margins at the edge of performance in the name of year-round driveability will likely make these record-setting all-season Michelins a popular option. And keep in mind, they come standard.