For a period starting in the late 1960s, it looked like everyone was going mid-engine. After Lamborghini turned the world on its head with the excruciatingly beautiful Miura in 1966, mid-mounted drivetrain layouts became de rigueur in 1970s supercars. Ferrari followed suit with the 206 Dino and later 365 GT4 BB, Lancia with the Stratos, and even Maserati joined the fray in 1971 with the mid-engined Bora. It wasn’t just the Italians, either—Mercedes-Benz tested the handsome C111 platform, and later BMW launched the M1. If there was a high-performance, high-dollar car in the 1970s, you can be sure the automaker at least tested a mid-engine platform. Unsurprisingly, that also included General Motors. After its CERV II concept successfully demonstrated the General’s capacity for cutting-edge tech, serious attention was turned toward moving the Corvette’s V-8 thumper amidships. Papa Corvette—Zora Arkus-Duntov—really, really liked the idea of a mid-engined Vette to keep up with Europe’s...