MC&T Staff 
The Corvette has been the quintessential American sports car for over 65 years. With the debut of the mid-engine Corvette earlier this summer, there has arguably never been so much hype surrounding the two door sports car. When Chevrolet opened up pre-order allotments and confirmed the car’s sub $60,000 price, dealership phones likely rang off the hook. But as some customers may have already found out, not every Chevy dealership will be able to sell the C8 Corvette.
To clarify, this is not exactly a new thing for the Corvette model. Chevrolet has always required their dealerships to become specially certified in order to sell the iconic American sports car, and the requirements for the new car carry over from the C7 generation. Chevy does this to ensure that Corvette buyers are dealing with informed employees during the purchase and ownership processes.
After a dealer requests Corvette certification, they must complete online courses, as well as attend an in-person training experience. Here dealers will drive the new C8 Corvette at the Ron Fellows Corvette Driving School at Spring Mountain Motorsports Park in Pahrump, Nevada, as well as take part in classes for more in-depth product knowledge. Chevrolet requires that a least one employee that has undergone this Corvette specialist training work at every Corvette certified dealer.
Jalopnik was the first to report that this certification will cost under $20,000 for any dealership that isn’t currently a certified Corvette dealer, though this price does not include the mandatory set of specialized tools required to service the 2020 C8 Corvette. Dealerships can also opt to become “Signature” Corvette dealers, by sending more sales personnel, managers and technicians to take place in specialized training at Spring Mountain. We have no word yet as to how much this “signature” certification will cost dealerships.
If you are looking to purchase a C8 Corvette from your local dealership, you should be alright if they already sell Corvettes. Don’t fret if that’s not the case, as we’re sure that more dealerships than ever are going to want to become certified to sell this revolutionary version of the American sports car.
