You Can Now Buy A C8 Corvette With A Manual, But It Doesn't Come From Chevy

Chevrolet nailed the supercar brief with the C8 Corvette, building a car that can rival the best from Europe at a much more affordable price point. One thing Chevy wasn't able to retain from previous iterations of the Corvette was a manual transmission. Now, some seven years after the C8 was launched, it is finally available with a traditional stick shift.

Peitz Performance is behind the manual C8. It has teamed up with Tremec to bring the transmission manufacturer's new six-speed manual transaxle into the C8 Corvette, creating a car that 'Vette enthusiasts have been clamoring for. Tremec's new transaxle was unveiled at last year's SEMA Show and can support up to 1,000 pound-feet of torque and accommodate the screaming 8,600 rpm redline of the fiery Z06.

Fitting a six-speed manual into the C8 Corvette isn't easy. Peitz replaces the car's standard eight-speed dual-clutch transmission in favor of Tremec's TR9060 and adds a concentric slave cylinder, a modified clutch pedal from a Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing, and a new flywheel and clutch. The key to ensuring the six-speed works with the C8 is the MoTeC M182 plug-and-play ECU controller and the MoTeC M150 transmission control unit.

Peitz says the new TCU allows for precise blips while downshifting and upshift ignition cuts, in addition to controlling important data like the clutch pedal position, gear position, and transmission fluid temperature. The M182 control module allows for fine-tuning of the C8's powertrain, allowing the tuner to add things like rolling anti-lag, adjustable traction control, and the fitment of nitrous and methanol systems.

In July, Californian firm Rezvani unveiled its own gated manual for the C8 Corvette, built in partnership with Italy's Studio Carrozzi. The catch of this system is that it isn't a true manual like Tremec's and simply serves as an add-on to the existing dual-clutch transmission. In fact, it doesn't even include a clutch pedal, and the driver doesn't need to lift off the gas to change gears. What Peitz is offering is a full, traditional manual swap for the Corvette, giving the world a 'Vette that not even Chevrolet itself has been willing to build.

The only not-so-exciting thing about the Peitz's manual C8 swap is the cost. The company is charging $74,528 for its three-pedal transformation, which gets you all the hardware and software for the swap but you still need to provide the donor car. To put this price tag into perspective, you can buy a brand-new 2027 Corvette Stingray from as little as $73,795 including delivery.