Photo: Chevrolet
Care to guess how many C7 Corvette models were sold during calendar year 2018? Make that 18,791 examples of the breed, down from 34,839 in 2014 when the seventh generation started rolling out to U.S. dealerships.
Now that you are aware of these numbers, how do you feel about 40,000 eighth-generation Corvettes being sold to U.S. customers before the start of production in February 2020? That’s an absolutely insane demand for the Stingray, but hey, the mid-engined hype was definitely worth it for The Big G.
"The first year is sold out for 2020," said Barry Engle, president of GM in North America. Speaking to Motor Trend at the launch of the 2021 Tahoe and Silverado, the official is also responsible for the sales volume we’ve talked about beforehand. In many ways, that’s quite an achievement for the ‘Vette.
Almost half the number of Mustangs sold by Ford in the U.S. in a typical year, the demand for the C8 also has financial implications for General Motors. It’s understood that Chevy doesn’t make a profit on the C8 unless it’s equipped to the tune of $80,000 or so, which is why the 2021 model year will be that little more expensive than the $59,995 starting price of the 2020 model.
“Engle said dealers have been encouraged to sell the new Corvette at sticker price and not resort to dealer markups or price gouging,” but we’re not exactly sure if the salespeople will play nice while there’s such a huge demand for the C8. Heck, even Toyota had a few instances of the GR Supra going for $100,000 and beyond, a ridiculous sticker price for a BMW Z4 with different badging.
Available in three trim levels (1LT, 2LT, and 3LT), the C8 Corvette in Stingray flavor can be ordered as a coupe with a removable top or as a convertible with a retractable hardtop. The LT2 engine is that little bit more powerful when specified with the sports exhaust or Z51 package, but nevertheless, the seven-speed manual transmission is gone forever in favor of an eight-speed DCT.
Moving forward, the Z06 is expected to sweeten the deal with a DOHC flat-plane crankshaft V8 with 5.5 liters of displacement and a pair of turbochargers. Even further down the line, the ZR1 is understood to feature an electrified front axle for supercar levels of straight-line and cornering performance.
"The first year is sold out for 2020," said Barry Engle, president of GM in North America. Speaking to Motor Trend at the launch of the 2021 Tahoe and Silverado, the official is also responsible for the sales volume we’ve talked about beforehand. In many ways, that’s quite an achievement for the ‘Vette.
Almost half the number of Mustangs sold by Ford in the U.S. in a typical year, the demand for the C8 also has financial implications for General Motors. It’s understood that Chevy doesn’t make a profit on the C8 unless it’s equipped to the tune of $80,000 or so, which is why the 2021 model year will be that little more expensive than the $59,995 starting price of the 2020 model.
“Engle said dealers have been encouraged to sell the new Corvette at sticker price and not resort to dealer markups or price gouging,” but we’re not exactly sure if the salespeople will play nice while there’s such a huge demand for the C8. Heck, even Toyota had a few instances of the GR Supra going for $100,000 and beyond, a ridiculous sticker price for a BMW Z4 with different badging.
Available in three trim levels (1LT, 2LT, and 3LT), the C8 Corvette in Stingray flavor can be ordered as a coupe with a removable top or as a convertible with a retractable hardtop. The LT2 engine is that little bit more powerful when specified with the sports exhaust or Z51 package, but nevertheless, the seven-speed manual transmission is gone forever in favor of an eight-speed DCT.
Moving forward, the Z06 is expected to sweeten the deal with a DOHC flat-plane crankshaft V8 with 5.5 liters of displacement and a pair of turbochargers. Even further down the line, the ZR1 is understood to feature an electrified front axle for supercar levels of straight-line and cornering performance.
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