Chevrolet Corvette production in Bowling Green, Kentucky, is on hold again because of parts shortages. Chevy isn't specifying what component is in short supply. A spokesperson told Automotive News that the situation wasn't related to a lack of semiconductors.
Chevrolet provided the following statement about the situation to Motor1.com:
Due to temporary a part constraint, Bowling Green Assembly is taking downtime this week (week of March 21) on both first and second shift. Our supply chain, manufacturing, and engineering teams are working closely with suppliers to mitigate further impacts on production and we expect to resume operations the week of March 28.
Like many vehicles in the last several years, Chevy has had to stop Corvette production several times. The reason hasn't always been parts shortages, though. In December 2021, a tornado hit the Bowling Green factory. It caused a fire, damaged a portion of the roof, and destroyed an employee entrance.
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GM had to close the order books for the 2021 Corvette earlier than planned. A parts shortage forced stopping assembly for the model year so that the '22 version could arrive on schedule. The company continued to fill any already placed orders.
One of the stoppages in 2021 lasted for around two weeks. Initially, the goal was to have the components within a week but that didn't happen. Chevy said the problem was not related to the microchip shortage.
The production pauses didn't start in 2021. Motor1.com reported on Chevy having issues building the Corvette in October 2020, and a UAW strike caused a delay to the start of C8 assembly.
Looking towards the future, a rumor suggests that the production of the 2023 Chevy Corvette Z06 might begin on May 9. Generally, there are several weeks between the beginning of assembly and the first deliveries of a new vehicle.
It's important for Chevy to solve these production difficulties because not only is there still demand for the standard C8, but the Z06 and E-Ray hybrid are also coming. There are even rumors of the ZR1 and Zora variants coming later. All of them would come from the Bowling Green factory.
