During the recent media launch of the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible, chief engineer Tadge "The Chief" Juechter was quoted responding to a query about the new 2015 Z06 model, saying it would be the last in the line unless sales pick up. The new Z06 is scheduled to debut alongside the C7.R race car at the upcoming 2014 Detroit Auto Show. We checked with Chevrolet spokesman Monte Doran, who told us he thought "Juechter's comments were taken out of context" and that the company cannot speculate on future models. However, Doran did acknowledge that "every model, from the Silverado to niche cars like the Z06, has to make a solid business case to proceed."

And that's a crucial point when considering the costs associated with the Z06. The last one was a lightweight, track-oriented Corvette that adopted an expensive aluminum frame. It also sported a larger displacement 7-liter LS7 V8 with an output of 505 hp. All this extra engineering costs money, and implicit in Juechter's comment (and Doran's semi-confirmation of that comment) is that expensive-to-produce specials like the Z06 and ZR1 don't sell enough copies at a high enough price to justify that expense.

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