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Chevrolet Builds Two Corvette Generations at Once for the First Time
Chevrolet is assembling 2026 and 2027 Corvettes side by side at its Bowling Green plant, keeping the older 6.2-litre V8 alive for right-hand-drive export markets while North America moves to a new 6.7-litre unit.
By Charlotte Redford · 4 min read
Chevrolet is building two model years of the Corvette at the same time for the first time in the sports car's history, as its Kentucky factory continues to turn out older 6.2-litre V8 versions for right-hand-drive export markets alongside the updated 2027 model.
The arrangement began roughly three months ago, when production of the extensively revised 2027 Corvette started at the Bowling Green assembly site. Rather than ending output of the 2026 car, the plant has kept both lines running, with North American deliveries moving to the new model while right-hand-drive examples of the previous generation are still assembled for buyers overseas.
Trevor Hall, program engineering manager for the Chevrolet Corvette, confirmed the overlap at a recent press event in Australia. «You're right, we're building both models concurrently,» he said. «We have an extremely flexible plant, despite the complexity we have between the different models, powertrains, coupes, convertibles, et cetera. The plant's very flexible that way, and yes we are building the 2026 and 2027 concurrently that way.»
The split reflects the different pace of the two markets. All North American cars have moved to the 2027 update, which brings a new 6.7-litre naturally aspirated V8 in place of the long-serving 6.2-litre unit. Right-hand-drive markets including Japan, the UK, Australia and New Zealand are still taking the older specification, so Bowling Green continues to produce it.
The same logic applies to the Corvette E-Ray. Chevrolet is still building right-hand-drive E-Ray models for export, even though the car has been replaced in North America by the more powerful Grand Sport X, which uses the new 6.7-litre V8 shared with the 2027 Stingray.
How long the two model years will be manufactured side by side remains unclear. Hall declined to give a timeline, but acknowledged the situation cannot continue indefinitely. «We can't build 26 model year as you get into the '28 calendar year et cetera, so there will be some time where that will have to transition, but providing that date is not something I can do right now,» he said.
The flexibility of the Bowling Green plant is central to the arrangement. Building coupes, convertibles and multiple powertrains on the same lines is already complex, and adding a second model year increases that complexity further. Chevrolet's ability to do so without disrupting North American output underlines how adaptable the facility has become since the mid-engined Corvette was introduced.
For buyers in right-hand-drive countries, the overlap means the 6.2-litre V8 remains available in a new car for longer than the North American switchover would suggest. For Chevrolet, it allows export demand to be met without forcing those markets onto the 2027 specification before they are ready.
The transition will eventually come, but the company is not saying when. Until then, two generations of the same car will continue to roll off the same Kentucky line, a first for a nameplate that has been in continuous production since the 1950s.
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