According to a report on Mid Engine Corvette Forum, the Bowling Green Assembly plant in Kentucky, the sole production site of the Corvette, will soon shut down for four weeks, two of which are consecutive. They’re the weeks starting February 24th, March 17th, March 24th, and May 19th. If true, production will come back shortly before the beginning of the 2026 model year.
According to an admin and co-founder of Mid Engine Corvette Forum, who goes simply by John, the main reason for the shutdowns is inventory control. However, he cited other key reasons, such as an influx of plant employees retiring by taking buy-outs outlined in a recent UAW contract, some physical changes to the plant, and new componentry for the 2026 model year.
Further, John says he’s received confirmation from a source that “something is changing” for the Corvette for 2026 and speculates that it could be a Grand Sport model. Last November, we reported on a mysterious spy shot of a camouflaged C8 with a Z06-like widebody treatment but a surprisingly subtle rear spoiler.
It’s possible this test mule was a prototype C8 Grand Sport, and it’s possible the change that John is referring to is the long-speculated Zora variant. We expect the C8 Zora to be an AWD hybrid Corvette similar to the E-Ray, but will use the ZR1’s twin-turbocharged 5.5L V8 LT7 as its ICE engine. We also believe it will be a de-contented track car with a higher power and torque rating, but a lower price tag than the C8 ZR1.
In addition to the reported changes at Bowling Green Assembly, Corvette personnel have also seen a recent shakeup. At the start of February, Corvette Product Marketing Manager Harlan Charles was pushed into early retirement. Exterior Design Manager Kirk Bennion left at the same time under unknown circumstances after more than four decades at the company.
Meanwhile, dealers will start accepting orders for the 2026 Chevy Corvette on April 13th, 2025, and production is slated to kick off on June 2nd, 2025, though this is subject to possible change in the interim.
Comments
2025 Corvette production has ended, demand for 2025 Corvettes must be weak.
The “flavor” is out of the gum.
The C8 has officially transitioned into a commodity now.
“Inventory Control”?
Seems everyone that wanted a C8 already has one…
Discounts growing and the plant going idle for a month…
Mid-Engined cars will ALWAYS be niche toys for the Wealthy…
Every other Corvette Generation could be a persons daily driver… the C8 is beyond awesome but it’s a rich dudes 4th car…
That makes zero sense. The C8 is probably the BEST daily driver Corvette there has ever been. My C8 is my only car, it’s driven all winter in the snow, to Walmart, on road trips……doesn’t matter where it’s a great car. Tons of cargo storage, gets 30 MPG, comfortable for long drives, etc. I mean, what DOESN’T this car do good?
Why on earth would somehow a C7 or earlier Corvette be a great daily driver, and then suddenly the C8 isn’t? My dad has a C6 and that car is NOT half as comfortable to drive as my C8. This comment is ridiculous.
Agree totally
Rotting on lots in Alberta. In 2017 bought a C7 Z51 with options for $65,000 Canadian. Now the C8 version of that car is $105-110,000!! Ridiculous, and no manual.
Really miss the manual also
“I’nventory control” IE, we don’t want to offer incentives even though we could sell every one we make, but we don’t want the “smelly rabble” getting their hands on them. When did corvette become an elitist car? What happened to their pride? They’d make a killing even with a discount give its margins.
Hopefully the lul forces them to roll out the Gen VI small block that should of been rolled out 2 years ago, but they’re sitting on it to make the current one a cash cow.
Steve 29,
Too young to know.
Corvettes have always been an elite American dream car. Corvette used to make a set number of them per year. That kept the price high, and the resale value even higher.
Most of the Corvettes were sold to GM executives and GM salaried employees. You had to be on a list to reserve one for purchase.
My salaried supervisor at Rochester products division of General Motors, told me years ago that he was on a list for 10 years before he finally got his Corvette.
General Motors changed that, and now they produce as many as they can sell. This brought the price down, along with resale value, and mystique of owning a Corvette.
Years ago when General Motors limited the production number of Corvettes manufactured, no matter how much you paid for your new Corvette you would never lose a dime on it.
Unlike other vehicles, those Corvettes increased in value as you drove it from the lot.
Haha, no they didn’t John. What cloud are you living on? So much misinformation you have given. First, they don’t limit them with a set number of cars produced to try and become a Ferrari in terms of exclusivity, they do it based on demand, suppliers and part constraints. They try to plan it so they don’t have 30 sitting on dealer lots. If demand spikes, they increase production. The C1 they were producing nearly 10k a year, that is FAR MORE than mostly GM execs and employees, ANYONE could buy a Corvette. That coworker that was on a so called waitlist for ten years, that was a special employee allocation and discount program. Why would they want to sell one at a discount when they can sell one at regular price? They limit discount selling and flipping…
The Corvette NEVER increased in value the second you drove it off the lot outside of a few early months of a new generation or special model, otherwise as soon as the hot commodity demand fizzled they because like any other car and regular depreciation hit. The current C8 and Z06 are prime examples, you can get them on discount and even cheaper used. If your thought was applied, I wouldn’t be able to pick up a C5 Z06 for under 30 grand (they sold for 50k new). Dang you have some fluffy misinformation to share…
Tmi,
You should have read my post more carefully. I was talking about the old days pre 1970s Corvettes were limited production built.
I do not have the exact year. Also back in GM’s hay day, mid to late ’70s GM had over 600,000 employees. GM was the largest corporation in the world. Back in the ’60s Corvettes were not discounted. And there was no GM employee discount. When the GM employee discount came out it was only for salaried employees. It wasn’t until around the mid 80s that hourly- Union employees were able to participate in the employee discount program. Most years the Corvettes were excluded for a discount in the program.
I remember back in the 1960s when a new Corvette came out we would have to drive around to many dealerships just to find one. And as always the 1 on the showroom floor wasn’t for sale, it was already spoken for.
Ask someone that purchased a brand new Corvette back in the 1960s, how hard it was to get a hold of one. Also ask them if their car ever lost value from the day they purchased it.
Corvettes for many decades now have been sold just like any other car.
You are certainly entitled to your opinion.
I work for General Motors for 40 years I know these things that I stated in the above post to be true.
Limit production to keep numbers down so prices can spike
Your good old days are gone forever thanks to Mary Buick Envision Made in China-Barra’s policies of pricing the C8 Corvette too close to Porsche prices, the market for $100,000+ Corvettes and dealer markups is very limited.
Inventory Control= gm & dealers don’t want to lose the chance to keep the prices really high to simply make more profit. Profit isn’t bad, but there used to be a saying about the customer being right. Guess that doesn’t mean being treated right.
Mary Buick Envision Made in China-Barra shut down the Corvette production line due to high inventories, Barra only cares about profits and not the customer. Barra would like every Corvette to sell near or more than $100,000, the market for Corvettes being sold at or near Porsche prices is very limited.
Hey Chevy bring back a manual and throw some different colors on the vette.
Also, you’ve been using the same old aluminum wheels for 6 years now, they are nice enough, but it’s time for a change. IMHO you might sell some more cars.
No one turns their heads any longer when one passes by. The style has gone stale quicker than any before. I recall the launch of the C2. To this day, can’t ever recall not having one go by without a twist of my neck.
Frank,
Sad but true, I feel the same way.
My favorite Corvette was the 1963 Split Window Coupe. I have always felt that the design was way ahead of its time. To me the design seems almost timeless. If it wasn’t for the narrow tires you would never think that car was over 60 years old. I just love them.
I will give you that, it sure doesn’t look a day over 55 years old. You can EASILY tell an old car from new…
I get that GM has to placate to a younger generation, ( i.e. mid-engine) to keep sales going but us older boomers have a hard time accepting these C8 versions of America’s only sports car. I saw one at the car show in Toronto and thought was a Ferrari, (LOL) I’m tying my best to like the new design, but when I see the back end and then think, ” Did someone rear end it ?”
This news does not come as a surprise, GM/Chevrolet/Corvette has been doing this for many years now. Always circumstances that seem to come up that brings this sort of craziness to light. So who do you believe? We have no choice but to simply let the Corvette Plant “do it’s thing” while potential customers (what few there are nowadays) simply wait to see what happens. My personal opinion (sic) is that the market is now fully saturated with customers that wanted a new C8 or have had them since 2020. Because Chevy has not really changed the C8 very much (base model that is) since it first came out, there is no need to rush down and order one, besides there are Chevy dealer lots full of new and used C8’s (still over priced at some dealers I think) to choose from. All we can do is to wait and see what happens next. A really odd way to run a business, but it is what it is and has been that way for more years than I care to remember. Sheesh!
The large Corvette dealerships now find themselves between a rock and a hard place. In order to retain large allocations, they must continue to order and stock their lots with slow moving (sales) C8s. They’re forced to knock 10K and more off MSRP. No tears for them now because they rode the wave for a good stretch while demand was hot.
Like many of us, I keep tabs on vintage offerings and the used Corvette marketplace in general. When the C8 came out, many C6 and C7 owners traded up. Back then, dealers had a good supply of used vehicles. Now it appears as though there isn’t a strong desire by owners of C6 and C7 to trade. They’re keeping them longer and who wouldn’t considering that they’ve seen a bounce in value.
GM and the UAW need Bowling Green to keep the lights on, but dealers are choking on them. Right now, Ciocca in Atlantic City , NJ has 198 new on the lot with more in transit. Likely the same situation exists for dealers’ coast to coast. Unsold inventory is an expense. To rebound, the car needs a major refresh; inside and out. And not just different paint and wheel options or low volume niche(read expensive) examples like the ZR-1.
Number 1 sales volume dealer, MacMulkin , has 287 new and Demo on the premises.
BGJ, Sure you can take your C8 to Home Depot to get some bags of cement. But when you need to pull the engine to replace the water pump you won’t do that in your driveway like a C7.
$$$
First they need to fix the squeeking brake issue, so annoying, fix transmission problems. I mean really, 2025 and you can’t make a transmission already without problems? And after the price gouging that went on the last few years buyers are holding on to them just to justify paying for. them. Those 3 reasons are why sales might be down
A tad bit of bickering here but maybe all us Corvette enthusiasts (and Chevy) should be asking what will the Corvette be in 5 to 10 years. From the low of 165HP and 0-60 times nearing 9 seconds at one time, to now, how much better can it get in terms of performance. We’re about at the limit of adhesive for tires, top speed is irrelevant, so what’s left. Maybe a few 10ths of a second to whatever but basically it’s going to be down to styling, colors in and out and the ability to make one’s corvette not look like like everyone’s else’s vette. At some point, the corvette will have peaked.
I ordered my 25 C8 SR in November and Jan 15th it moved to 3000 status. Hasn’t moved since. WTF ??? now the frickin plant shuts down this month for weeks?
I’m sure the insane UAW contract has nothing to do with the Corvette plant shutting down to control production costs.
The UAW has nothing to do with the Corvette plant shutting. It’s called corporate greed, the market for Corvettes with MSRP over $100,000 and dealer markups is now very limited, you can only sell so many Corvettes at or near Porsche prices. A Corvette does not have the build quality or status of a Porsche. Besides Mary Buick Envision Made in China-Barra needs Corvettes and many other GM vehicles to sticker over $100,000 to justify her $25 million compensation that the doesn’t deserve.
You think corvette production has slowed down, just wait till the tariffs kick in, then you will see slow.
Love my crystal red metallic C7 with Kalahari interior. The 465hp is plenty enough to keep it exciting to drive and keep me out of trouble. Why would I spent 100k on a C8. I could afford it but just don’t see the need.
The 2nd shift is going away in August . Maybe this will keep the line running .
It is unfortunate that everyone on 2nd shift will loose their jobs .