Mid-Engine Corvette Driving New Jobs at Chevy

Two weeks after announcing that the all-new mid-engine Corvette will be unveiled on July 18, 2019, Chevrolet announced that it is hiring a second shift to build the 2020 Next Generation Corvette at its Bowling Green Corvette Plant. Chevrolet is adding 400 hourly workers at Bowling Green Assembly, specifically to build the C8 performance car. That will bring the total number of workers at the plant to over 1300.

“The Corvette’s iconic status owes so much to the men and women of Bowling Green, where it has been built exclusively for almost 40 years,” said GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra. “This is the workforce that can deliver a next generation Corvette worthy of both its historic past and an equally exciting future, and today’s announcement gets us one step closer to its reveal on July 18.”

Bowling Green Plant Dedicated to Corvettes

Bowling Green has built more than one million Corvettes since it opened in 1981. The entire facility is a shrine to the Chevy sports car. The complex also is home to the Corvette museum and hosts several programs for Corvette buyers who wish to watch their vehicles being built and take delivery of their vehicles there. No word on if any of those programs will be in place for buyers of the Next Generation Corvettes.

After years of spy shots and sightings at the General Motors Milford Proving Grounds, General Motors finally confirmed the existence of the Next Generation Corvette ahead of the New York Auto Show. GM CEO Mary Barra and the Chevrolet Corvette Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter arrived at an event in New York in the camouflaged vehicle. The date on the door says 7-18-19.

Huge Investment in Future Performance Cars

According to GM, the company has invested more than $900 million in the Bowling Green plant. It has upgraded the body shop, paint shop, increased the engine capacity and added a new Performance Build Center.

Many had hoped that the mid-engine Corvette would make its big debut at the 2019 North American international Auto Show in Detroit, last January. At the time GM Authority, a website that usually has the inside track, reported that the performance car was being delayed by electrical problems. It appears that Chevrolet is confident that it has any issues worked out and is proceeding with a debut.

According to General Motors, the final production seventh generation Corvette will be auctioned off this summer with proceeds benefitting the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation. According to its website, "The Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation honors the sacrifice of firefighter Stephen Siller who laid down his life to save others on September 11, 2001. It also honors military and first responders who continue to make the supreme sacrifice of life and limb for our country."

At this point, Chevrolet is not releasing any fuel economy or pricing numbers. Nor are they saying when any of the new performance cars will actually be available to order.