Unlike most hybrids, it’s not really made for efficiency, although it will get a little better city mileage than a standard Stingray at 16 MPG.

But because of higher mass and air drag, it will do worse than the standard Corvette’s 24 mpg on the highway. The electric motor adds 160 horsepower to the 495 generated by the V8, for a total of 655. Both systems come on at once for maximum acceleration.

Engineers say its technology sets the stage for the all-electric Corvette. When the latest generation of ’Vette came out four years ago with the engine in the middle, engineers designed it, so there could be hybrid and electric versions in the future.

This version of the Corvette, code named “C9,” may be the last one to have a gasoline engine, in light of GM’s plans to sell only electric passenger vehicles by 2035, Abuelsamid said. But he sees this version evolving at least through the end of the decade.

The E-Ray’s computers are configured to keep it stable by applying power to individual wheels when it’s slippery. GM engineers say most electronic stability controls rely on braking individual wheels. It’s a lot of engineering work for a niche product, but GM says knowledge from developing the car will show up in other vehicles. GM sold only 34,510 Corvettes last year.

“I think the blending of the motor control and brake control is something that they’ll be able to apply to the EVs,” Abuelsamid said.

The 1.9 kilowatt-hour battery is small compared with a full electric vehicle. It’s positioned under the console. You can’t plug it in to recharge it, but it gets energy restored from regenerative braking and from the V8 motor. It can be driven in “stealth mode” up to 45 mph for about two miles to quietly leave a neighborhood, GM says.

“As fast as you can discharge it, we recharge it, and we always keep it at a pretty optimum state of charge,” said Mike Kutcher, lead development engineer for the E-Ray.

The E-Ray will hit showrooms sometime during the second half of this year as a 2024 model, GM said.