Another day, another Corvette production stoppage. For the first time in 2023, C8 Corvette production at the GM Bowling Green, Kentucky Assembly plant has been shut down due to a temporary parts shortage. Production is scheduled to resume on February 27, those with orders expecting their cars to enter production should expect the date to be pushed by one week.
According to Automotive News, the stoppage isn’t semiconductor-related. Massive chip shortages have been a plague to the entire industry since 2020 when it was brilliantly decided to cancel ongoing chip orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly three years removed from those decisions and automakers are still struggling to recover lost supply.
Image copyright Steven Pham, Muscle Cars & Trucks.
On top of the current delay, allocation of the 2023 C8 Corvette Z06 has been sold out for months, with some dealers telling shoppers to expect a three or four-year wait for America’s supercar. Luckily NASCAR was able to get their hands on a few to serve pace car duty at the Daytona 500 last weekend.
“Our supply chain, manufacturing, and engineering teams are working closely with our supply base to mitigate any further impact on production to meet the strong demand for our products,” a spokesperson for General Motors said.
Image copyright Steven Pham, Muscle Cars & Trucks.
There have been numerous production shutdowns since the C8 Corvette entered production in Bowling Green. In November 2020, and again in February 2021, the big red button was pressed on C8 production due to parts shortages directly related to decisions made at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic. That wasn’t it, in May of 2021 C8 production was stopped due to a shortage of TREMEC DCT parts coming from Mexico.
In September of last year, it was reported that parts shortages had made numerous C8 cosmetic options unavailable, these included red-painted brake calipers, chrome wheel locks, and the high-wing carbon spoiler. Even more severe were the restrictions placed on the remainder of 2023 C8 Corvettes.
Gloss Black forged wheels are unavailable, the Z51 performance package is sold out for the rest of the 2023 model run, this includes eLSD, the performance exhaust, heavy-duty cooling, and big Brembo brakes. The sell-out also extends to Magnetic Ride Control and the Z51 Package with Magnetic Selective Ride Control.
2024 C8 production will see the new E-Ray added to the mix at Bowling Green. Here’s hoping things run smoother.
Image copyright Steven Pham, Muscle Cars & Trucks.
Image copyright Steven Pham, Muscle Cars & Trucks.
