In case you’ve had the chance to drive a C7 Corvette, or took the time to read the reviews, you know GM’s sportscar is simply brilliant. As it turns out, those living in South Korea will never get the chance to find out, as the sound regulations in the country don’t allow the ‘Vette to be imported.
Speaking to the local media at a recent drive test event for the 2015 Aveo, Cruze and Trax, Chevrolet Korea explained why the Corvette won’t arrive in the country anytime soon, as GM Authority reports.
“The launch of the seventh-generation Corvette is being delayed indefinitely due to Korea’s regulation on automobile noise,” Chevrolet Korea CEO, Sergio Rocha said. “Although such regulatory stance may benefit the industry in the short run, I wonder if that’s something that should be in place for a long time.”
I’m pretty sure that being called communists is the last thing South Korean officials would like to hear and yet this is exactly how such laws... sound to me. What about the 650 HP Corvette Z06? This question is more of a joke when asked in South Korea.
What’s next, forcing cars with odd and even number plates to only drive on separate days? Come to thing of this, Paris has tried the move earlier this year, only to drop the measure soon after its introduction. Then again, that wouldn’t be the first communist-sounding piece of French law I’ve come across over the years.
While the ridiculous piece of aural trouble legislation obviously affects all the carmakers on the South Korean market, GM must be pretty frustrated over this. After all, they are a major industrial player in the country. Think about it, models like the Aveo, Spark, Trax and Cruze are developed and built over there, being imported on other markets. They also produce the Malibu and Camaro domestically, so the aforementioned words of the CEO were more than mild. After all the work GM's engineers put into the new Corvette, the man deserves a medal for his diplomatic skills.
It’s amazing how South Korea dares maintain such regulations when their automakers have made such important efforts of climbing up the global car industry ladder. For crying out... loud, Hyundai even tries its hand at sporty models and they've even set up an N Division and a testing base at the Nurburgring!
Alas, demand for the previous Corvettes has been extremely low in the country, so GM officials aren’t exactly motivated to lobby against the absurd regulations. Sometimes these supply-demand pathways work as vicious cycles, but it looks like there’s nobody to break this one.
I can’t help but wonder if South Korean ballistic missiles are quieter than North Korean ones...
“The launch of the seventh-generation Corvette is being delayed indefinitely due to Korea’s regulation on automobile noise,” Chevrolet Korea CEO, Sergio Rocha said. “Although such regulatory stance may benefit the industry in the short run, I wonder if that’s something that should be in place for a long time.”
I’m pretty sure that being called communists is the last thing South Korean officials would like to hear and yet this is exactly how such laws... sound to me. What about the 650 HP Corvette Z06? This question is more of a joke when asked in South Korea.
What’s next, forcing cars with odd and even number plates to only drive on separate days? Come to thing of this, Paris has tried the move earlier this year, only to drop the measure soon after its introduction. Then again, that wouldn’t be the first communist-sounding piece of French law I’ve come across over the years.
While the ridiculous piece of aural trouble legislation obviously affects all the carmakers on the South Korean market, GM must be pretty frustrated over this. After all, they are a major industrial player in the country. Think about it, models like the Aveo, Spark, Trax and Cruze are developed and built over there, being imported on other markets. They also produce the Malibu and Camaro domestically, so the aforementioned words of the CEO were more than mild. After all the work GM's engineers put into the new Corvette, the man deserves a medal for his diplomatic skills.
It’s amazing how South Korea dares maintain such regulations when their automakers have made such important efforts of climbing up the global car industry ladder. For crying out... loud, Hyundai even tries its hand at sporty models and they've even set up an N Division and a testing base at the Nurburgring!
Alas, demand for the previous Corvettes has been extremely low in the country, so GM officials aren’t exactly motivated to lobby against the absurd regulations. Sometimes these supply-demand pathways work as vicious cycles, but it looks like there’s nobody to break this one.
I can’t help but wonder if South Korean ballistic missiles are quieter than North Korean ones...
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