When General Motors disbanded its High Performance Vehicles unit in February, a ripple of fear shot through the automotive press over the future of the Corvette. GM was quick to quell the concerns, however, and today GM's CEO Fritz Henderson has again spoken directly on Corvette's secure future.

"Corvette pays its rent," said Henderson in an interview with AutoWeek. The next-generation C7 Corvette had been put on indefinite hold as the global market entered its tailspin last October, but Henderson says plans for the car's development are in place and moving forward.

Interestingly, Henderson hinted that the C6 Corvette's prowess is so great that the company doesn't want to do anything to compromise that, leading to speculation that the next Corvette may not be the C7, but a sort of in-between model.

That would help GM wring more value out of its C6 platform while also giving it a longer time frame to spread out development costs of the C7 car - both no doubt attractive points given the company's current status.

The bottom line, however, is that the Corvette is safe - or at least as safe as anything at GM is these days - and that enthusiasts can hold out hope, and hype, for the next-gen car.

Corvette ZR-1