As if winning Super Bowl XLVI and becoming the MVP of the game wasn’t enough, New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning was also handed the keys to a 2012 Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Convertible Centennial Edition.

The MVP Award winner was chosen through a media panel and fan vote on www.superbowl.com during the game, and those that watched the events unfold during the big game probably knew the younger Manning would be MVP once the game was over and the Giants had won. Now he’ll get to enjoy the 6.2L V8 with 436-hp and 424 lb-ft of torque in a limited, black-on-black Centennial edition model to celebrate 100 years of Chevrolet history.

Those who watched the post-game ceremony probably got a good laugh at how Manning didn’t seem to really acknowledge that he had won a car. In fact, the announcer had to reiterate a couple of times just to get Manning’s attention to hand him over the keys. But we’ll give him the benefit of the doubt; considering he just won his second Super Bowl, proved he was an elite quarterback and, well, probably didn’t care too much about the Corvette.

GALLERY: Eli Manning / Chevrolet Corvette Grand Sport Convertible

The first ever 2013 Chevrolet Corvette 427 Convertible went for a hot $600,000 at the 2012 Barrett-Jackson auction. Sporting VIN #001, the convertible sports car was sold to Ron Pratte, a multi-millionaire who made his fortunes from wood framing and concrete foundations.

When the ‘Vette first hit the auction block, it caused a bidding frenzy quickly jumping up to over $200,000 when things started to die down. Then Jeff Gordon decided to make it more enticing by adding in his own racing suit and a VIP trip to the 2012 Daytona 500. The final $600,000 sale price wasn’t even the best part, as Eddie Vannoy added another $100,000 donation to the price of the car, which is going towards the AARP Drive for Hunger charity.

The Corvette 427 features an LS7 engine from the Z06 with 505-hp and 470 lb-ft of torque. It’s the most powerful engine ever placed into a Corvette convertible. It’s also outfitted with several carbon fiber pieces in order to save some pounds, with the convertible weighing in at 3,555-lbs. Its 0-60 mph time is a scant 3.8-seconds while it can clock the quarter mile in just 11.8-seconds.

GALLERY: Corvette 427 Convertible

When the Chevy Corvette celebrated its 50th birthday back in 2003, many enthusiasts were hoping for a special edition model to be released. Chevrolet for the most part failed to deliver, only offering a version with custom paint and an emblem package. The aftermarket decided to take things into their own hands, coming up with a limited edition appearance package that commemorated the 50th anniversary.

Developed by Advanced Automotive Technologies out in Rochester Mills, Michigan, a 1953 Commemorative Edition appearance package features retro C1 styling with a then-new generation C5 Vette – in this case, a 2001 model. Only seven total C5 Z06s got converted, and this is one of them. In total, only 200 of the 1953 Commemorative Edition packages made it onto C5s worldwide.

Packed with 405-hp, this very hard-to-find creation sports only 8,049-miles on the odometer and has an asking price of $69,900. Other than the retro-styled appearance package, most everything is what you’d expect on a C5 Z06, so no huge surprises under the hood or inside the cabin except that it’s all immaculate. Nonetheless, the aesthetics are what makes this car so unique, with it completely torn down to everything but its doors and roofs for the remake.

The fiberglass panels for the 1953CE kit were aligned to factory perfection before the entire body got resprayed Torch Red. To complete the transformation, new lights and red metal accents were added to the car. The result is a retro-style Vette with modern technology under the hood and a modern body to preserve it for many years to come.

Check out a video highlighting the car after the break.

GALLERY: Corvette Z06 1953 Commemorative Edition

[Source: RK Motors]

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Men in the U.S. went big, brawny and sporty in 2011 – that is, when it came to the kind of vehicles they bought this past year.

According to J.D. Power’s Power Information Network (PIN) real-time transaction data, men leaned towards sports cars and pickup trucks in the first 11 months of 2011. In fact, out of the top 10 new-model vehicles that men bought or leased, six of them were large pickup trucks or vans. Topping the list of model pickups and vans were the Ford F-Series and Chevrolet Silverado. The data shows that these vehicles were purchased for commercial uses, not necessarily for dropping kids off at soccer practice.

Also in the top 10 models were three cool sports cars – BMW M3 , the Porsche 911 and Chevrolet Corvette. The M3 had highest number of male car buyers in the sports category, with most of these buyers falling into the 16- to 35-year-old demographic. The Porsche 911 was the second top pick, followed closely by the Corvette.

Also making the 2011 list is the GMC Sierra, the Audi A8/S8, the Ford Econoline and the Chevrolet Express. One of the new entries on the list this year is the Chevrolet Volt, although it didn’t crack the top 10.

[Source: J.D. Power and Associates]

Hertz has expanded its Prestige and Adrenaline Collections, now offering the Cadillac CTS, Chevy Camaro SS Convertible and Corvette Convertible for rental in 2012.

In their desire to offer their customers a greater variety of exciting cars that they can rent, Hertz’s Adrenaline Collection will now feature the 6.2L V8 powered Camaro SS and Corvette convertibles. The Camaro SS comes packing 400-hp and a six-speed automatic transmission while the Vette has 430-hp and a six-speed manual. The Adrenaline Collection is available in California, Nevada, Colorado, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Florida, New York and New Jersey.

The Prestige Collection now adds Cadillac’s CTS to its lineup, featuring a 3.6L V6 with 318-hp, NeverLost GPS, satellite radio and Bluetooth capability. Hertz’s Prestige Collection is available in Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Colorado, Arizona, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Texas, Florida, Georgia, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts.

Set to compete in the 2012 Grand-Am Racing Series and making its debut at the upcoming Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona Race, Chevrolet’s Corvette Daytona Prototype was caught testing at Daytona and there’s plenty of videos showing what it can do.

The footage includes some fan-shot videos that really show off what the car is all about and loud its V8 rumble. Four different teams will be campaigning the new Corvette Daytona, and Chevrolet hopes that one of them will claim the 24 Hours of Daytona Race, where the last time a Corvette has won was back in 2001 with a C5-R.

Check out the videos after the break.

GALLERY: Corvette Daytona Prototype

[Source: Inside Line]

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Autocross is generally the safest form of motorsport you can participate in. Most courses are setup to focus on skillful driving rather than high speed passes, leveraging your vehicle’s handling and brakes more than its horsepower. Unfortunately for this Chevrolet Corvette, a cold track with cold tires meant a long, unintentional sideways slide into the curb.

And of course all the action is caught on video and immediately uploaded onto YouTube for the world to see. We’re going to guess this accident is partly driver error and partly (albeit, much smaller) bad course design. Even though the ‘Vette doesn’t seem like it’s going at any real fast rate when the accident occurs, there’s definitely some significant damage to the car, especially to the chassis.

Check out the video after the break.

[Source: Autoblog]

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Roughly 24 hours after renderings of the C7 Corvette surfaced, Chevrolet has unveiled a Corvette of a different sort, one meant for competition use only.

The Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototype will compete in the Grand-Am Racing series in 2012 and make its debut at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona race. Four teams will run the cars, including the No. 90 Spirit of Daytona Racing,  the No. 10 SunTrust Racing, the No. 99 GAINSCO/Bob Stallings Racing, and the No. 5 and No. 9 Action Express Racing teams. The last time a Corvette won Daytona was in 2001 with a C5-R.

Hit the jump to read the press release below

Gallery: Chevrolet Corvette Daytona Prototype

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One of America’s most iconic sports car is due for a refresh and now renderings of the new Chevrolet Corvette C7 has hit the Internet thanks to hours of hard work from Jalopnik who got a glimpse of the next generation

They decided to do all of us automotive nuts a favor, whipping up renderings rather than leaking the actual photos – to protect their sources – and confirms that this render is as accurate as it can get with the next-generation ZR1.

Jalopnik also confirms that they’ve showed the renderings around to different sources at GM, all of which have confirmed that it’s an accurate depiction of what we can expect from the Corvette C7. Obviously we’ll be seeing the base model Corvette hitting the market first, but the ZR1 variant is expected to bow sometime shortly.

There is quite a bit going on with the new C7 in terms of styling changes. At first glance it looks as if Chevrolet’s merely updating the Corvette’s look and feel, just as it has every other generation prior. But clearly there’s some Camaro-inspired design cues going on, and who can blame Chevy given how successful the Camaro has become.

Check out the link to Jalopnik below for more Corvette C7 renderings

[Source: Jalopnik]

Lingenfelter Performance Engineering has been hard at work tuning the LS9 found in 2009-2012 Chevrolet Corvettes, and now has three engine packages for those hungry for more horsepower. The first, offers up to 680-hp thanks to a supercharger pulley upgrade, while the remaining two are both supercharger system upgrades, one of which brings power output to 710-hp while the other is a more extreme 750-hp.

The pulley upgrade package is a surprisingly affordable $2,995 (installed) package helping safely increase boost to 12-13 psi from the factory supercharger. The increase isn’t too shabby either, taking the factory figure of 638-hp and 604 lb-ft of torque to 680-hp and 660 lb-ft of torque. As with all other Lingenfelter products, even the pulley upgrade comes complete with pre- and post-install dyno and a 1-year/12,000-mile warranty on added components.

The lesser of the two supercharger upgrades is available at $5,295 with additional upgrades which include Lingenfelter’s Heat Exchanger upgrade, Corsa stainless steel cat-back exhaust and an Akrapovic Titanium Evolution Exhaust. Total power output on this package is 710-hp and 680 lb-ft of torque thanks to the addition of Lingenfelter’s supercharger front cover or snout and air intake system.

Lastly, the most extreme of the three packages gives the ZR1 750-hp and 730 lb-ft of torque in exchange for $12,895 from your bank account. But this isn’t just your typical supercharger upgrade, Lingenfelter adds on their GT9 supercharger camshaft and Lingenfelter CNC ported LS9 cylinder heads. This comes with a 2-year/24,000-mile warranty and can take anywhere from three to four weeks to complete.

So those looking for more power out of their ZR1, head on over to Lingenfelter Performance Engineering to see what they’ve got.

[Source: Topspeed]