SEMA 2007: The Inside Scoop On Jay Leno's Corvette C6RS

We got some inside info on the C6RS from Kip Wasenko, GM's Director of Design, Performance Division after the reveal of that car tonight at the Wynn Hotel. We broke bread ... er ... watermelon ... with Kip and Marcelo Gaffoglio of Gaffoglio Family Metalcrafters at the event, and if you're wondering why Marcelo's name sounds familiar, this may be why. But on to what we learned:

The (as of now) one-off machine boasts a wider rear end than the Z06 by two inches. And even though the body is made completely of carbon fiber, the C6RS is the same weight as the Z06 due to the addition of about 140 pounds of sound deadening material which makes the car, Kip says "quiet as a Mercedes" on the inside.

One feature that didn't make it onto Jay's version of the E85-powered Corvette was a retractable spoiler that would raise up at higher speeds, a la the Porsche 911, but Kip said he and his team just didn't have enough time to get it done. He did say that feature might show up on the next generation.

Kip also hinted at a possible drop-top version, much to the chagrin of at least one of us, who argued that it just wasn't right to make a convertible out of a super-Vette that really belongs at the track.