There's A Strange Issue Affecting 2020 Corvettes

Nov. 06, 2020 9:10 AM ET by Jay Traugott Sports Cars / 10 Comments

What's up with the check engine light?

The all-new C8 Chevrolet Corvette has been a phenomenal success for the automaker despite some production delays. As the first-ever mid-engine Corvette enters the 2021 model year, there's apparently still an issue affecting some 2020 C8s.

Owners are reporting that a "Check Engine Light" warning has been appearing as well as a message saying power could be reduced, although temporarily. But what's strange is that none of them have yet to actually experience a sudden power loss. Understandably, this is leaving some owners feeling uneasy when driving their cars.

One affected owner even reached out to Corvette Blogger informing the site of the issue and that he was thinking of just selling his C8 because he was scared to drive it. Now, for the good news. GM has apparently been aware of this issue for some time and is currently working on a software fix.

According to GM-Techlink, an undetermined number of 2020 Corvettes are indeed affected by this check engine light/reduced power warning issue. Again, there've been no reports of actual power loss, but the real culprit appears to be a software bug.

GM technicians have been instructed to perform a series of software refreshes and then re-evaluate the condition. The bulletin specifically points outs "these conditions are not a performance issue with Transmission Control Module or transmission assembly." A more thorough software patch should be announced shortly.

So if there are any 2020 C8 Stingray owners out there who've been plagued with that pesky check engine light with a reduced power warning, fear not. Your 6.2-liter V8 is just fine, as is the eight-speed dual-clutch transmission. We don't think the eventual fix will require a recall, but if the issue does affect owners, dealers will at least know about the problem and how to fix it.