NOW Is The Time To Buy A 2022 Chevrolet Corvette

Jul. 26, 2021 1:07 PM ET by Jay Traugott Sports Cars / 2 Comments

Those who wait will miss out.

The C8 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray got off to a rough start. First, there was the five-week-long UAW strike in September 2019. Once that was settled, the coronavirus pandemic struck and continues to wreak havoc to this day. The waitlist for a new C8 continues to grow and the Bowling Green, Kentucky, plant is doing its best to fulfill these orders, despite supplier issues. Many customers who've placed orders are still waiting for delivery. And if you intend to buy one for the upcoming 2022 model year, then you'd better act now.

According to the Corvette Action Center, dealers across the country are reporting they have received the first round of allocation figures. While some dealers are saying their allocation numbers are greater than expected, others are shocked at how low they are.

2020-2022 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Forward View

2020-2022 Chevrolet Corvette C8 Rear View Driving

This initial production round is currently slated to get underway the week of September 27. Unlike for the 2020 and 2021 model years, Chevy is not basing a dealer's C8 allocation on its previous three-year Corvette sales period. Instead, the number is being calculated based on a dealer's 12-month rolling Corvette sales.

The automaker is moving to what's called an "Available Days' Supply" (ADS) allocation methodology that eliminates the need for any special allocation guides. Unfortunately, this new method could result in some dealers receiving fewer new Vettes because the formula takes into account sales figures from June 2020 through June 2021.

That 12-month period wasn't exactly the best time for dealerships due to lockdowns. Even those who were able to open could not always conduct business normally as they often had difficulty receiving Certificates of Origin from GM and getting new cars registered and insured for their customers. Sometimes this resulted in sold C8s having to sit on a dealership's lot longer than they normally would.

The bottom line here is that C8 inventory will differ from dealer to dealer, and each Chevy store surely has a waitlist. Those who don't place an order soon may have no choice but to wait until 2023.