In recent years, the high performance arms race has seen automakers turn to forced induction one-upmanship in the pursuit of headline-grabbing horsepower. While the logic is sound – enthusiasts like to go fast, after all – in the realm of sports cars and sports car driving, more horsepower isn’t always the answer.

Take the C7 Z06, for example. There can be little doubt that it’s a great sports car that delivers incredible performance for the money, but it does come with a few caveats. For instance, the Z06’s supercharged LT4, and its downsized blower versus the unit used on the C6 ZR1, has seen its share of criticism. Most of it is related to its reputation for excessive heat, which in turn causes power-robbing heat soak from the supercharger and can also trigger the motor’s fail-safes to dial back the power through the engine’s software.

Offering more options than any Corvette sold ever before, the Grand Sport boasts a number of exterior options, like this black racing stripe that runs from the hood to the trunk lid.

While it’s not a serious issue on the street, it can become a liability during extended sessions on a race track, where the motor is called upon to perform at peak levels continuously for extended periods of time. To their credit, Chevrolet says they’ve addressed the issue with some cooling system updates for 2017, but the overall effectiveness of those updates remains to be seen.

Mechanical gremlins aside, balance is also something that’s highly coveted in the realm of sports cars, which is one of the reasons that the Mazda MX-5 has as rabid a following as the Porsche 911. Although the Z06 comes with upgraded brakes, suspension, aero, and a larger footprint underneath for additional grip, the sheer fury of the LT4 is still a lot to contend with, and it can make the Z06 a bit of a handful at full tilt on a road course.

Positioned between the base Stingray and the top-spec Z06, the Grand Sport formula takes the naturally aspirated drive train from the former and merges it with the military-grade hardware of the latter. The result is the most balanced, track capable Corvette in production today, and by that logic, the purest sports car in the Corvette model lineup.

Grand Sport Heads Back To The Track

The Grand Sport legacy dates back to 1962, when Zora Arkus-Duntov decided to create a factory-produced race car out of the Corvette despite an industry-wide ban on direct automaker participation in racing efforts at the time. Duntov had initially planned to build 100 examples of the Grand Sport, but only five would actually make it out of Chevrolet’s factories and into the hands of race teams, creating motorsport folklore in the process.

The Grand Sport moniker would return to the fold as a limited production package for the fourth-generation Corvette in 1996, and it would return again 14 years later as an options package for the C6.

While both the C4 and C6 iterations of the Corvette Grand Sport were special cars in their own right, neither paid homage to the original car as earnestly as the new C7 Corvette Grand Sport does.

The spec sheet for this new Corvette almost reads like a homologation special, fusing the rock-solid, naturally-aspirated 460 horsepower 6.2-liter LT1 V8 with the wider rear track of the Z06, allowing for more tire to fit in the fender wells. Coupled with Z06’s suspension, tires, brakes, and aggressive bodywork, it amounts to Z06 dynamics without the additional weight and the arguably over-the-top power plant. And starting at just five grand more than a Z51-spec Stingray, it can also be one hell of a performance bargain when properly configured.

Pulled from the Z06’s options sheet, the Z07 package is a no-nonsense performance option that includes the incredibly grippy Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tires, along with unique suspension tuning and massive Brembo carbon ceramic brakes.

But to really eke out all of the Grand Sport’s on-track benefits, buyers will have to venture out of base-spec territory and equip their GS with the optional Z07 package. First seen on the Z06, the Z07 package adds more aggressive bodywork, Brembo carbon ceramic brakes, Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 rubber, and a uniquely tuned suspension system, resulting in a package well worth the $7995 asking price. Our tester includes this Z07 package, along with the optional competition seats and a number of other extras that take it into Z06 territory at $91,655 after destination charges.

At that price you’d be right to question whether or not this Corvette middle child can outshine its bigger brother in the right context. Accordingly, we grabbed the keys to this Corvette Racing Yellow example equipped with a seven-speed manual transmission and headed out to the urban sprawl and winding mountain roads of Los Angeles county to find out.

Behind The Wheel

It likely goes without saying that this Corvette will turn heads. The C7 has been a looker ever since we laid eyes on the new Stingray in 2014, but the Grand Sport is perhaps the best looking among the three models. It merges the purposeful stance of the Z06 with some slightly more subdued elements of the Stingray, like its svelte hood, in turn giving this Corvette the best of each from those other two models.

Inside it’s a similar story. The interior of the Z06 never really ventured far from the Stingray’s formula, but the presence of its flat-bottomed steering wheel in the Grand Sport brings a sense of occasion to the proceedings, while the optional Heritage Package brings aluminum hash marks to the center grab handle. Aside from an emblem below the HVAC controls there’s little else to distinguish the Grand Sport from other Corvette models inside the car.

As mentioned previously, this tester is equipped with the optional competition seats, and they’re well worth considering. While the side and shoulder bolstering is aggressive it’s also adjustable, and despite being a real-deal performance seat that’s ready for racing harness installation, it’s actually very comfortable even during extended stints at the helm.

The LT1 comes to life with an authoritative bark, its standard active exhaust system allowing the V8 to clear its throat before settling back down to relative quietness. Although the behavior of the multi-mode exhaust system is dictated by which drive mode you have it in (Touring, for instance, is quieter than Track mode), the pipes will go into full song if you drop the hammer hard enough, and the soundtrack is unmistakably Corvette.

“See honey – there’s plenty of trunk space!” Truth be told, it actually IS relatively spacious – provided you’re not stowing the targa top in there. The top locks into clips when stored back here.

The Stingray’s seven-speed manual gearbox is used in the Grand Sport, while an eight-speed automatic is available as well. For those unfamiliar with this manual gearbox – which made its debut in the Stingray in 2014 – the tight gates and extra overdrive gear can feel a little bit unintuitive at first. But after a day’s worth of driving, any of the gearbox’s perceived eccentricities quickly begin to fade.

The Grand Sport may be down 190 horsepower from the supercharged Z06, yet it’s worth noting that it’s far from being a slouch in a straight line – the 0-60 mph sprint takes about 3.7 seconds in this manual-equipped model with its ultra-grippy tires, and the quarter mile happens in 11.8 seconds on its way to a top speed that’s a few digits shy of the base Stingray’s 181 mph due to its additional downforce.

Chevrolet’s lauded Magnetic Ride suspension is standard on the Grand Sport, and its adaptive damping allows the Corvette to soak up bumps in the softer Touring mode and ramp up the stiffness for flatter cornering when Sport or Track mode are selected. Outfitted with the Z07 package the tuning here is fairly aggressive even in its softest setting, as you’d expect from the most performance-focused suspension combination currently available on a Corvette. But provided you know what you’re getting yourself into, it’s not really objectionable around town, even when traversing the pockmarked asphalt of LA’s city streets.

Toggling between drive modes is as simple as twisting this knob left or right. The Corvette’s auto rev-matching feature is activated by tapping the shift paddles on the steering wheel. Annoyingly, rev matching is deactivated every time the car is turned off.

Heading out to the epic twisties of Angeles Crest highway, Sport mode becomes more appropriate, while Track mode can feel like overkill at times, particularly due to the heavy steering effort that the system defaults to in this mode, along with the unrelenting stiffness of the suspension. Fortunately the Corvette’s system allows for drivers to mix and match the various traction, stability, steering, differential, suspension, and exhaust options to taste if they so desire, so if you want the light steering effort of Touring paired with the performance attributes of Track mode, that’s easily achievable.

While the optional six-piston carbon ceramic brakes provide incredible stopping power out here, it’s around town where they impress us the most, since noise is a typical characteristic carbon ceramic brakes and these stoppers remained squeal-free throughout our time with the car. They’re a bit grabby at the top of the pedal – as most big brake packages are – but pedal effort is fairly consistent after that initial chomp.

The Goldilocks Corvette

It’s easy to get caught up in the supercharged mania of the Z06, but truth be told, the Grand Sport is the truest sports car among the three Corvette models currently available. The near-endless grip available along with the highly capable braking and suspension components equate to a Corvette that feels planted and confidence inspiring, in turn allowing the car to be driven harder (and with more liberal applications of throttle) without the lingering doubt that it could get away from you in an instant.

Track-ready right out of the box while still docile enough to be driven daily (weather permitting), the Grand Sport strikes a balance previously unseen in the seventh generation Corvette while giving up relatively little straight-line performance to get there.

As the most highly optioned Corvette that Chevy has ever offered, the price tag can quickly swell out of bargain territory, but that also means the GS can be tailored to fit more precisely than the other Corvette models currently on offer. Any way you slice it, the Grand Sport is a welcome addition to the Corvette roster.