It is no secret that the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8 has been a tremendous sales success for the American carmaker. In fact, if you try and buy a brand-new Corvette right now, you’ll be met with ridiculous asking prices and lengthy waiting lists. As you might imagine, this level of success undoubtedly catches the attention of competing brands, Ford especially.

A new report by Ford Authority seems to have caught the American carmaker driving around a brand-new C8 in Detroit. At first, the mid-engined sports car raised suspicions by driving around known testing routes. However, after a quick drive, it eventually went into a Ford-owned facility.

What is Ford doing with a 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8?

On the surface, seeing Ford driving around a 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8 isn’t all that strange. In fact, manufacturers routinely purchase each other’s vehicles with the goal of testing and benchmarking them against upcoming products. According to Ford Authority, this Corvette first appeared driving around Ford’s known testing routes. The car in question appears to be finished in Torch Red and features the Z51 Performance Package.

It is worth pointing out that this mysterious test car wasn’t doing any sort of performance testing, instead, Ford Authority reports that the car was simply driving around, before eventually stopping at one of Ford’s facilities. Naturally, this raises many questions about why Ford would want to benchmark a mid-engined car.

As of writing, Ford hasn’t shown any interest in building a mid-engined sports car. The last mid-engined model produced by the American carmaker was the GT which had a six-figure base price. However, given the recent sales success, the Corvette has seen, a competitor would make great financial sense.

Will Ford produce a mid-engined supercar?

As of writing, no one knows exactly why Ford was caught driving around a 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8. However, Ford Authority theorizes that Ford might be developing some sort of new performance model. For starters, the brand recently trademarked the name “Thunderbird” in January of this year. Given the existence of the F-150 Lightning and Mustang Mach-E, there is no doubt that Ford is on a roll reviving names for brand-new models.

While the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8 is the only variation of the mid-engined sports car currently available, that won’t be the case for very long. Before the end of this year, we should see the all-new Z06 replacement, which should feature a flat-plane-crank V8 and close to 600 hp. From there, rumors suggest that we might see turbocharged variants and even an electric Corvette with up to 1,000 hp. As a result, Ford could get left behind in this market segment if it doesn’t offer up a competitor.

Is the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8 the only car being benchmarked?

To add to the mystery of this 2021 Chevrolet Corvette C8 story, the Chevy isn’t the only car Ford is testing. According to Ford Authority, the American carmaker has recently tested a Ram TRX, Tesla Model 3, Jeep Gladiator, BMW X7, and an Audi e-tron. As a result, it seems various new models are brewing over at Ford. Now we’ll have to wait until they see the light of day.