Most Corvettes have used a V8 engine. Chevrolet established the Corvette’s performance identity around compact, powerful V8s, beginning with the small-block V8 introduced for the 1955 model year.
That tradition continued across the Corvette’s generations. The C2 Sting Ray used small-block and big-block V8 options, while later generations brought larger-displacement, fuel-injected, supercharged, and naturally aspirated V8s. Even the mid-engine C8, introduced for 2020, retained a V8 power plant.
The answer is about the engine layout, not the engine’s size or technology. A V8 has two banks of four cylinders arranged in a V, whereas V6 and V12 engines have six and twelve cylinders. The Corvette has occasionally used unusual experimental powertrains, but production Corvettes have overwhelmingly been V8-powered.