One of the many joyous perks of being the president of any company is the ability to try upcoming products well before consumers and even the press get their hands on it. In this case, we’re talking about General Motors North America President Mark Reuss and the brand-new, seventh generation Chevrolet Corvette Stingray, and to be precise, the pace-car version of one of America’s most famous automotive nameplates.

“The all-new, 2014 Corvette Stingray proved last week at Indy that it’s at home on the racetrack, and we’re excited to bring it home to Motown to pace the Chevrolet Indy Dual in Detroit,” said Reuss referring to this past weekend’s racing event. “To be able to drive this car, on this track, in this city, is a huge thrill for me personally, and I can’t wait to get behind the wheel to pace this great field.”

Like its regular coupe brethren that goes on sale later this year with a suggested starting retail price of $51,995, which includes an $895 destination fee, the Corvette Stingray Pace Car sports a newly designed 6.2-liter LT1 V-8 that was recently SAE-certified at 455hp (461PS) and 460 lb-ft (624 Nm) of torque in base trim and 460hp (466PS) and 465 lb-ft with the optional performance exhaust.

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