General Motors has notified roughly 900 of its over 3,000 Chevrolet dealerships that they qualify to sell the 2014 Corvette Stingray when it launches.
That means fewer than one-third of the Chevrolet dealerships will be eligible to sell the new Stingray when it becomes available this summer, though the dealerships that are eligible can begin ordering the sports car in the coming weeks. The American automaker expects the demand for the Corvette Stingray to outstrip supply, causing it to limit allocation and inventory to its highest-volume Corvette dealerships.
“Chevrolet provided dealers with guidance and requirements early in 2012 so dealers would know well in advance whether they would likely receive Corvette models during the initial six to nine months after launch,” Russ Clark, Chevrolet marketing director for performance cars, said in a statement.
The 900 dealerships chosen account for 80 percent of Corvette sales last year and other dealerships won’t be allocated any inventory until at least six to nine months after the seventh-generation ‘Vette launches. To be eligible at all, the dealerships had to sell at least four Corvettes last year.
The dealerships picked will still have to meet several other requirements including having Stingray specialists in both sales and service. Those specialists must attend a 1.5-day training session at the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Dealer Sales Academy at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch in Nevada. The cost is $2,000 per attendee excluding travel expenses.
[Source: Automotive News]