Something tells me GM management has delayed the C8
 

No spy shots for months.

No teasers.

8,000 white collar workers losing their jobs.

Five plant closures in the U.S. and Canada.

Talk of electrification being the future.

I don't know any more than anyone else here, but my intuition is I suspect GM management has put a wrench in the works of the C8. I recall the build-up to the C7, and this seems too quiet for a build-up to the C8. Based on past history, when things go bad at GM, sports cars suffer. GM is big on corporate edicts, too. All it takes is some corporate edict, such as electrification, to cause a full reset on the C8 project. The engineers would have to scramble around to meet the edict, and the car is delayed.

I have to agree.

This car has been in the works for a LONG time.
Unless there is a BIG problem NOW, I doubt the engineering wasn't done a long time ago.
Creating a mid-engine sports car is not like building a Space Shuttle.
Frankly, all GM had to do was come up with a new chassis.
It shouldn't be a big deal for a manufacturer that has been doing the Corvette for 60+ years.

IMO, it should all be about marketing at this point, but GM doesn't appear to be in any hurry.
And I don't know why...especially with all of the bad news/press coming out lately about General Motors.
It is strange and does raise Red Flags.

There you go again.

first off things always go quiet just before the release. second... electrification future? they are doubling down on electric in China and quadrupling down on big gassers in the states. They just killed the volt, don't want to make cars anymore, and that is simply a sign of what is selling. GM is a global brand and will do what works for each market

Well, right or not, I think at least the notion that the car would be introduced at the Detroit Auto Show (like the C7 was) is pretty much a no-go at this point -- which may possibly point to some kind of delay. The various dealer videos are interpreting the lack of a Detroit introduction as a signal that it will then be done in New York in the Spring, but I don't think there is any specific knowledge about that, just some educated guesses.

A delay would be a much bigger deal at GM with these cuts going on right now, so if there are problems I imagine they have very difficult decisions to be made between budgetary and quality dictates.

GM indeed needs to sell more cars in china to keep some of these turd cars viable. Or just dump em like ford.

Can't sell what you make, better make something else quick and the auto industry isn't very agile at all with lengthy product lead times and limp weeinies that don't have solid insights into the future.

we make suvs and trucks which are just fine if that's what you want. and now the other manufacturers do that much better at similar price points so there you have it.

customers vote with their feet and it truly is a world game. I for one want our engineers and limip weenie managers to start taking a hard look at what the competition delivers, become more agile with 3d print and design and more agile build processes that require less auto workers (sorry guys, that's what the competition does) And our technology to go towards automation and adaptive engineering. GM has put out so many solid engineered products only to have them watered down and "crappied up" with junk interiors and poor quality and maintenance track records.

And while I'm on the rant, go into the foriegn car dealers, and see how they operate, now do the same thing with our dealer networks. You have salesmen that don't know a durn thing about what they are selling, and what they call service is a joke.

No one pays to be treated badly which is a key reason our auto manufacturers are failing. We can't compete overseas, and we sure as can be have stiff competition here.


What the hell happened to the big automotive "turning the corner and becoming profitable" Now we have huge layoffs, dumping product lines, and throwing in the towel.

Shame on you weenies. Give the products back to the engineers and bake some quality into the products like your competitors have been doing for years.

We have alot or work to do or just go ahead and stop making cars.

The corvette has been able to produce world class performance at an affordable price, but many times in history struggled to be viable.

The work to bring the car to market has been done and it's coming. Future versions are in jeopardy as is the company.


make better products than your competition and sell, or be an also ran and wither and die.

Yes, GM is a global company. While they announced that the Cadillac CT6 is history in the US, GM will continue to build the Cadillac CT6, as a plug-in hybrid, in their Chinese plant. It is selling well there. GM will also continue building the Buick LacCrosse and the Cadillac XTS in China, even though those models have been declared dead in the USA.

For the first 3 quarters of 2018, GM sold 2.57 million vehicles in North America, and they sold 2.68 million in China alone.

Sales and profits of the Corvette are just a fly's turd on an elephants ass for GM.

Yes. Delayed. Maybe a few months. But the C7 also had its issues before they went to production.

GM is "holding" off on the ME because of all the unsold C7s on dealer lots. No mystery here. Its pretty simple. The biggest generational change is coming. Revealing too soon will be the dagger in the heart of C7 sales. The C7 will be old news over nite. The high volume dealers know this. But, of course, are not saying it.

Remember, GM has TONS of private testing area. If they can keep these cars off the road before the reveal, that would be great for them. Less chance of us getting spy shots and figuring out stuff. And it makes people such as yourself nervous, which could even help sell more C7's. It's a win win if GM keeps these cars off the public roads. Plus, I believe I remember Tadge or someone else saying that the Corvette would be the last vehicle in GM's lineup to become full electric and/or self driving. They are going to hold out on that for as long as possible. The ME Corvette would not be scrapped this late. I'm sure GM has several hundred million in it already in R&D alone. They just cant scrap it. C7 sales are down becuase everyone is waiting on this new car. The C7 would have been ME if it weren't for the bankruptcy. GM is doing great right now. Those reasons you list for why the new ME could be scrapped beciase you think they are signs of GM doing bad, it's the complete opposite. GM is taking premitve decisions, something pre bankruptcy GM would never do.
Ignorance is bliss. You just gotta look at the facts.

Relax... GM is doing exactly what I would expect, creating a buzz and building up hype in the market.

While I agree w. quite a bit of Rkreigh's post above, Joe states that China alone still wants to buy, and will continue to do so, with our GM models that will either be hybrid or left the same.

Also, the para about giving it to the engineers doing an excellent job and then putting in crappy interiors (a different engineering group) is not the answer or even an answer. Everything automotive is conceived of first with a price point and a cost point--how much to sell it at, how much it will cost to produce. It is a balloon filled with water: squeeze one end and the other gets larger. Put more into motors or chassis and something else will suffer.

While the perceived/real quality of sedans and coupes may, and does affect sales, it's also true that the general inclination of the public has temporarily waned on buying those vehicles in favor of compact suv's and other size suv's. But there is no doubt quality has not been great in sedans and coupes, even compared to competitor brands. IMO no Corvette has ever had quality improvements as a result of something being found in sedan/coupe production methodologies.

It is too easy to say give it to the engineers to build what will sell and keep the company growing AND profitable---we have only to look at a very recent example, the Acura NSX. It is a total flop, sales-wise. The co will continue building it because "it is an engineering co." and as the then-CEO said once before when the co. was selling the older-gen NSX in the double digits worldwide, to paraphrase, "we do it because we want to, and because our roots are engineering." That kind of logic will kill any company, and it's not coming from a money-losing company. Somehow they exist, but it is not the formula for success even if it works for Honda.

Typical truck owners have cared little about quality, comfort, etc. but that is changing. And the reason some competitors are making inroads in that sector is quite obvious re GM and others. Build what people NOW WANT, not what they used to settle for. Stand still, and you're actually going backwards into "history".

Finally, as to GM and Barra's moves now---maybe it just has to be done, and now is better than later. What's worse: firing people and closing plants when you're running out of money and time and it's a recession---or doing it early to try to successfully stave off all the effects of a recession and weather it in a better position? Ask yourself this question: have you ever been in a recession AND lose a job---not so easy to find one, is it? You betcha!

We agree on your last sentence: "make better products than your competition and sell, or be an also ran and wither and die."

We have different ways or thoughts on how to get there. I've seen GM do it the other ways, plural; I'm hoping Barra's way which is different will work for Corvette's sake, and all of GM. And yeah, my money's on her choice because we ALL paid for it with that bailout. So, I want it, or her to succeed marvelously. I truly dislike an "investment" by any name that works badly---for me.

When no schedule has been announced, there can be no delay. If GM had announced they'd be revealing the new Corvette at DTW or NYC in 2019, and then cancelled that plan, that would be a delay.

True-with no actual reveal date/venue ever stated/scheduled and no cutoff date for C7 orders made available to dealers at this point who is to say it's not still on track? The absence of "mule" sightings could raise some concern but as has been stated it may be kind of a PR pull back in light of the layoffs and model discontinuations.

I do not agree. The c8 Corvette is far too along in the process to kill it or delay it.

We are right there on the same page.

If there is any delay, it's to work out kinks/issues with the C8 that came up during testing.

As I mentioned in another thread, better to catch these issues now than when you have actual customer deliveries. Many supercars have severe design flaws which should have been caught with proper testing. Eg. Audi R8 has a weak front subframe which literally cracks with normal driving, totaling the car. Luckily GM has a 300,000 mile testing process + performance/track testing with Corvettes to identify any issues upfront.

Think they (GM) are waiting for the new year. Still thinking we a going to see a reveal in January! It may be at the Detroit Auto show (yes still possible) or be some telecast from some unknown location on the Internet.If C7 production is going to end...they have to announce the car soon..

it's too late for Detroit.