Corvette Success in 2020 Bolstered by Convertible Sales

Corvette saw a 20% increase in sales in 2020, with nearly 40% being convertibles.

There weren’t many vehicles in the North American market that had a good year in 2020, but the C8 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray was one of them. In a year where production was repeatedly slowed by labor disputes, a global pandemic and component shortages, the legendary Chevy sports car saw sales numbers grow by more than 20% over the year before. Needless to say, the new look and the shift to the mid-engine design has proven to be popular with buyers, but there is an interesting aspect to this rare 2020 success story.

According to the folk at CarBuzz, the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Convertible played a key role to the boom in C8 sales, with a take rate that is roughly double that of the C7 convertible.

C8 Corvette Convertible Sales

The crew at CarBuzz spoke with Harlan Charles, Product Marketing Manager for Corvette, who confirmed that since the C8 convertible has been introduced, 35-40% of Corvettes sold have been drop-top models. During the C7 era that ran from 2014 through 2019, convertibles accounted for 20% of sales, so with the generational shift, Corvette convertible sales have doubled by ratio to coupes. That means of the 21,626 C8 units sold, between 7,570 and 8,650 of those were convertibles. For comparison, Chevrolet sold 17,988 C7 Corvettes in 2019 and with roughly 20% being convertibles (roughly 3,598 units).

In short, Corvette sales improved by 3,638 units from 2019 to 2020. If we use the 35% figure for 2020 and the 20% figure for 2019, there was a rough difference in convertible sales of 3,972 units. Based on this basic math, the convertible was responsible for the year-over-year growth rate of the model as a whole.

Americans Love the Drop-Top

There is no set reason why so many more Americans are buying up the C8 Corvette convertible over the coupe. There are, however, plenty of possible variables that have led to the impressive popularity of the open-air Stingray. Most notably, the C7 came with a canvas folding top while the C8 comes with a body-colored folding hardtop. This hardtop presents cleaner lines, mimicking the look of the Stingray coupe when the roof is in its upright position. The looks of a coupe coupled with the open-air comforts have clearly made the C8 convertible a popular choice.

Another popular aspect of the C8 Corvette convertible is the function of the folding hard top. The two-piece hard top features six electric motors that transform the Stingray in just 16 seconds, so dropping the top is quicker than ever. Also, thanks to the hard folding top, C8 owners can put the top down when in motion. No longer do they have to come to a complete stop to drop the top, allowing convertible operation at speeds up to 30 miles per hour.

Finally, the entire convertible top mechanism adds just 80 pounds to the overall curb weight of the Corvette, so there is very little decrease in real-world performance.

The C8 Corvette costs $7,500 more in convertible form, yet with drop-top sales booming, that upcharge isn’t deterring customers from buying the open-air Stingray.

.

‎