Trifecta Performance: It’s Cracked! The C8 Corvette’s Untunable ElectronicCU

Trifecta Performance: It's Cracked! The C8 Corvette's Untunable ElectronicCUHowever, don’t expect to see huge power gains.

For the 2020 model year, the Chevrolet Corvette C8 was introduced with a brand new platform, new technology, and a mid-engine layout to earn the legendary “C8” moniker. The brand saw the best European supercars and sports cars, so the new ‘Vette attracted new customers who would not have considered buying a Chevrolet. Although the automaker wanted to keep the Corvette C8 stock, a tuning company was able to unlock the engine control unit.

Trifecta Performance, a Washington-based Chevy tuner announced that it had made significant progress in tuning the C8’s V8 engine. Trifecta Performance agrees that GM’s C8 is an exceptional car. It is also very good in stock form, and has no complaints about its performance.

The Corvette C8’s V8 is extremely capable, with little to no power remaining. Although the tuning company made adjustments to the air-to-fuel ratio, ignition timing advance and variable cam phasing angles, it only achieved minimal power gains. However, the tuning company will focus on the transmission because they see potential in faster gear changes.

“Now that we have examined the performance of the C8 calibration we will focus our efforts on drivability characteristics. The C8’s driving skills are excellent right out of the box. The C8 has solved almost every problem we had with the C7’s driving style. However, there are some areas where we can deliver on our Trifecta Performance promises.

The tuning company also wants to improve the response of the accelerator pedal to make it more linear. The specialists believe there is still some compression in the pedal between 65 and 100 percent. This can be tamed.