Photo: General Motors
High demand for the all-new 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray has run up against the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some customers who pre-ordered the highly anticipated mid-engine sports car will have to wait until the 2021 model year.
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A General Motors spokesperson told the Detroit Free Press that the automaker wouldn’t be able to fill all of the pre-orders for 2020 models. Â
The reason? GM had to shut down production for several weeks this spring due to COVID-19, and bringing it back up to normal levels can’t be done immediately. The Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, is still working to get back to full strength across the two shifts that build the model.
Production also depends on getting the necessary parts from suppliers, who are dealing with their own stoppages and timelines for returning to full capability.
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Photo: General Motors
Because of these uncertainties, GM can’t predict when it will be able to produce all 20,181 Corvettes that were pre-ordered through May 1.
According to the Free Press, Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter told a meeting of enthusiasts last month that GM will keep producing the 2020 model into the fall, which will allow it to build most of the promised cars. However, some may not be produced until the following model year — and GM isn’t making promises on numbers or dates.
GM did reveal one element of the timeline: Customers will be able to pre-order the 2021 Corvette starting in late July.
Those who’ve had to wait for the first-ever mid-engine Corvette can take comfort in one fact: the 2021 model will have the same attractive entry-level pricing as the 2020 version. The base Corvette coupe will start at $59,995 and the base convertible will start at $67,495.
By all indications, the heavily awarded new Corvette should be worth the wait — and hopefully, that wait will be over soon for affected customers.
A longtime editor/writer and recently transplanted Hoosier, Caleb Cook lives in Xenia, Ohio. His favorite activities are reading and listening to music, although he occasionally emerges from the heap of books and vinyl records in his basement to stand blinking in the sunlight. Once fully acclimated to the outside world again, he can be observed hanging out with his wife, attempting a new recipe in the kitchen, attending movies, walking the dog, or wandering into a local brewery to inquire about what’s on tap. See more articles by Caleb.
