News: Why Corvette in Europe faces a tough road

[Rob]

Why Corvette in Europe faces a tough road

MIKE COLIAS
Automotive News Europe
March 5, 2013 08:00 CET
UPDATED: 3/5/13 6:46 am ET

GENEVA -- By unveiling the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray convertible in Europe, General Motors is signaling that it believes this generation of the 'Vette can stretch its halo beyond American shores.

Much has been made of the hints of Euro-flavored styling found on the coupe, interpreted as Chevy's bid to appeal to younger and international buyers. But it'll take more than that for Corvette to win consideration in Europe, the home to a disproportionate share of supercar brands.

Chevy sold only about 200 Corvettes in Europe last year and 377 in 2011, a spokesman says. There are plenty of reasons why those sales remain so puny, even as the Chevy brand as a whole gains traction here.

Europeans generally don't believe that Corvette measures up to Porsche and other European sports cars -- and for decades they were right. It won't be easy to convince European performance buyers that the Stingray will be as good as Chevy says it is.

Full Story: Why Corvette in Europe faces a tough road

 

[67vet]

As the article admits, they had a lack of sales and service across the European market. That is something you have to work on to build. Not just overnight. They need many more dealerships and authorized mechanics for the Corvette buyers to take a look.