Month: April 2012

A new free trade agreement between the United States and Korea means that 2012 Corvettes will be on sale for the first time in Korea, beginning on May 4.

General Motors’ South Korean branch – GM Korea Co. – announced the decision today after the import tax for American-made vehicles was cut in half to 4 percent thanks to a free trade agreement between the U.S. and Korea which took effect in March.

The Corvette Coupe won’t come cheaply for Koreans, with the base price starting at 86.4 million won or some $76,300 – more than 50 percent higher than the cost in the United States.

That’s still a bargain compared to the Porsche 911, which costs 126 million to 145 million won in Korea, and similar to the BMW Z4, which retails for 80 million to 96 million won.

The Corvette becomes the ninth Chevrolet model offered by GM Korea, which has introduced seven South Korean-made models and a Canadian-made model since last year. Those models include the seven-seat Orlando sport-utility vehicle, the Camaro sports car, the Captiva SUV, the five-seat Aveo hatchback, and the Cruze hatchback.

“The Corvette Coupe will raise the bar for the brand and products and broaden our base of Chevrolet customers in Korea,” GM Korea Chief Executive Sergio Rocha said.

GM Korea dumped the Daewood brand name in 2011 and switched to the Chevrolet name in South Korea as part of GM’s rebranding strategy. South Korea is GM’s manufacturing base for mini and small vehicles, and GM Korea will export vehicles to the U.S. for the first time, the 1-liter Chevrolet Spark manufactured at its Changwon plant.

GM Korea sold 206,173 vehicles in South Korea from January to March, up 8.0 percent from last year.

In 2011, the company’s sales in South Korea rose 7.6 percent to 808,309 vehicles, giving it an 8.9 percent market share, up from 8.1 percent in 2010.

Source:
inautonews.com

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One of the highlights of the NCM Bash at the Corvette Museum is annual seminar that recaps the current production year and then showcases the changes for new model year. At the “What’s New for 2013 Corvette” Seminar presented to a standing room only crowd in the Chevrolet Theater on Saturday morning, Team Corvette Members Tadge Juechter, Harlan Charles, Kirk Bennion and Craig Sass went through their areas of expertise and then opened up the forum for questions. Watch the complete 1-hour seminar after the jump.

While most of the information on the new 2013 Corvette has been out for a while, there were a few things we did learn or were clarified from watching this seminar.

The 60th Anniversary package is available on all models, but you have to go with the 4LT trim package on Coupes, Convertibles and Grand Sports to get it. Z06 and ZR1 buyers will need to select the 3LZ and 3ZR options group. If you’ve seen the special 60th Anniversary badges on the side of the Corvettes, those badges only appear on the 427 Convertible with the 60th Anniversary Package. All 2013 Corvettes will have a special 60th Anniversary crossflags badges, 60th Anniversary Sill Plates and the 60th graphics in the gauge cluster.

The RP0 for the 60th Anniversary package is called Z25. The graphics package with the full-body stripe is RPO Z30.

The 427 Convertible is a separate model with its own unique VIN sequence. It will be available in 2LT, 3LT and 4LT trim levels. There is a special Heritage Package for the 427s called RPO Z27 which ads the hood dome stripes and 427 logo floor mats.

Harlan talked pricing which up to this point hasn’t officially been released. We mentioned on Friday that he said the MSRP of the 2013 427 Convertible Edition will start at $75,925 with a fully-loaded example just north of $90,000. According to Harlan, the pricing for the other models will remain the same as the 2012 models. Those prices* are:

• Coupe – $49,600
• Convertible – $54,600
• Grand Sport Coupe – $56,000
• Grand Sport Convertible – $59,600
• Z06 – $75,600
• 427 Convertible – $75,925
• ZR1 – $111,600

* Pricing doesn’t include the $925 delivery charge.

The new 2013 Corvette will enter full production this week with customers getting their Corvettes in June. The 2013 model year production will be shortened due to getting the plant ready for next year’s 2014 C7 Corvette so if you’re interested in ordering one of the new 2013 Corvettes, you should probably get with your Corvette dealer sooner rather than later.

Also, Team Corvette members mentioned several times that 2013 will be the “last year of the ZR1″ albeit in C6 form. While the C7 is due to debut in 2013 as a 2014 model, rumor is that the high-performance ZR1 and Z06 models for the C7 may not come for some time, so if you’re looking to own the ultimate in Corvette performance, you should probably get on that as well!

We’ve got a ton of more videos to share from the weekend’s events so stay tuned to CorvetteBlogger as we try to share all the important events and happenings from the 2012 NCM Bash.

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At the NCM Bash on Friday, visitors were greated with a lineup of 2013 Corvettes on display on the patio outside the Museum. The display included the new 427 Convertibles as well as a Grand Sport, Z06 and a ZR1, all in 60th Anniversary white trim.

At the end of the day, we were able to review the Corvettes pretty thoroughly. This latest batch of photos also captured the 60th Anniversary door sills and seat embroidery as well as the 427 floor mats.

Follow CorvetteBlogger’s Twitter feed and Facebook page as we will be uploading photos and comments from the final day of the NCM Bash.

Related:
MSRP for 2013 427 Convertible Edition Corvette to Start at $75,925
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Callaway Shows Off the 25th Anniversary RPO B2K Corvette
[PICS] First Look at 2013 Corvette Night Race Blue and 60th Anniversary ZR1
[VIDEO] GM Corvette Seminar at the 2012 12 Hours of Sebring

 

We’ve heard about obsessive-compulsive owners who won’t drive their Corvette if there is even a 10 percent chance of rain in the forecast five days from now. We even heard about one guy who parked his ‘Vette underneath a car wash during a storm to wait it out – while on a date with his future wife!

Apparently the dude on this video, however, didn’t get the memo that Corvettes are something to be treasured and taken care of.

We don’t know why he did it – maybe a triple dog dare or just a drunken fit – but the fact of the matter is, with a huge crowd of onlookers witnessing the debacle, he decided to go muddin’ in a C5 Corvette.

Which is obviously not a smart thing to do.

After revving up his motor thinking that his traction control might somehow get him out of this mess, another four-wheel drive vehicle more suited to the task comes to the rescue and saves the Corvette in less than a minute. At one point we thought the left front tire was about to come off, but it was just mud flaking off the wheel.

By the way, did anyone happen to get the VIN on this C5 so we’ll know never to buy this one? Let’s hope there is no permanent damage to the radiator and motor and other assorted parts of the car that aren’t designed to be dipped into liquefied dirt, but we wouldn’t bet on it! It’s going to take a lot more than a car wash to get this one clean!

Source:
CorvetteOnline.com

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