Chevrolet's C8 Corvette Reportedly Delayed for Six Months
It was long assumed that the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette would premiere at the North American International Auto Show next month. However, General Motors recently confirmed this was not to be. In fact, it doesn’t appear as though the automaker has any big announcements scheduled for the event. Did something go wrong?
Big time, according to GM Authority. The outlet claims the C8 Corvette’s engineering team found a major electrical issue that stymied development. Anonymous sources hinted that the current system isn’t robust enough to carry the load necessary to support all of the car’s components simultaneously.
From GM Authority:
To address the issue, engineers will need to re-engineer the vehicle’s electrical system. Naturally, changes made to the sports car will also need to be coordinated with suppliers involved in providing GM with the electrical components, as well as any associated equipment. The undertaking will delay the mid-engine Corvette project by six months.
While disappointing, it’s better that GM takes care of this now. Crossing your fingers and hoping that the inevitable recall isn’t too savage is a poor way to launch a new product, especially a high-profile model like the Corvette.
However, it still leaves the manufacturer in a minor predicament. GM now has to contact its suppliers as it makes tweaks and looks for a place to showcase the automobile before 2020. The six-month delay makes the New York Auto Show, which takes place in April, seem unlikely. Meanwhile, Los Angeles is almost a full year away.
Would GM engage in mild sacrilege by unveiling a new Corvette outside the United States? It has certainly happened before. The 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible and 2017 Grand Sport were both unveiled in Europe in a bid to help its image in that market. The Vette has always been a giant-slayer in terms of cost-to-performance, but the rest of the world hasn’t appreciated that fact to the same degree as America. Maybe GM thinks the mid-engined C8 will change their minds.
[Image: General Motors]
A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.
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Danio has already decided there isnt any and will never be any mid-engine Corvette, so all the talk and the test mules are just, um, a distraction, I guess.
I wonder if the new engine, the possibility of adding all-wheel drive, and keeping whatever clearances needed for pedestrian protection are what made them move to a mid-engine. With the engine out back, it probably gave them much more freedom at the front end.