C8 Part Info & Possible Dates?

[Sparro]

I just received a little bit of info on a minor part (not a big deal.) My brother-in-law works for a parts manufacturer up here in The Great White North. He says he just confirmed they are the parts supplier for the GM platform Y2xx (mid-engine vette.) It's a stainless steel muffler hanger assembly going into PPAP (production part approval) at the end of June. The builds start this December so he suspects once they build up enough inventory they should be selling and delivering by end of Q1 2020. He also notes that they have asked them to quote (as an option) a non-stainless steel assembly that to be painted to save a few bucks... lol.

[ZORA 69]

There is quite a few explanations why this is not a clue that the car will not be available until First Quarter 2020. Maybe a different vendor/manufacturer at present building the part in question, etc. The first cars in my opinion, will be getting delivered by November 2019.

[Meldoon]

That’s not right!

[jagamajajaran]

There have been a couple of supplier leaks regarding a December production startup. With the holiday break and at least three weeks of quality holds, I'd be surprised if any deliveries would take place before January 1, 2020.

[SheepDog]

When will the C7 assembly line stop.? How long will the assembly line be shut down? How long can it be under Union agreements? Are the paid for training time?

[Boomer]

When will the C7 assembly line stop.? How long will the assembly line be shut down? How long can it be under Union agreements? Are the paid for training time?

Really? What you think? How's that work where you are?

[John]

Jag has his finger on the pulse as they say. Here’s a similar timeline I put together in my mind the other day, what I believe is most reasonable given all the many factors coming in to play, but as you read this, we all need to remember that GM has not yet announced word one of their plans, and that they rest of us are just sifting through the tea leaves and listening to the whatever tidbits we can clean.

As to answering all your questions relating to union contracts, I have no knowledge of their provisions.

Overall, I believe is the process and schedule would most likely be:

I believe that he assembly line will end production of the C7 sometime after July. Why do I guess that? Because we are not beginning to see the typical, progressively-growing list of constraints we usually start to see roughly six weeks prior to the end of a generation. Whether C7’s production end is this in August or September, we do not know.

Then the Plant will go through a shutdown/upgrade to most effectively build C8’s. Could be six weeks long? Could be 10 weeks long? During that time, employees are extensively trained through the process Kai Spande first outlined to us 1 1/2 years ago, then every one of those employees tested (retrained and retested if/as necessary) to insure their skill level reaches the “level four mastery” required of every assembly line worker. Level four mastery is required for every employee for at least two jobs in their part of the assembly process. Area supervisors must reach that mastery level for every single job they supervise (so that at a second’s notice as needed, they can step in an perform that task immediately. Such a need most often relates to equipment issues, to parts issues, and similar — but of course could be related to employee illness, scheduled dental appointments, etc. Again such employee training to mastery takes place during the same time that Plant upgrade is occurring.

Once the Plant’s physical upgrades and employee training are both completed, and critically assuming all needed parts are sequenced and arrive at BGA at that time, the first customer cars start down the line. During the C7 era, whereas the assembly rate was 17.2 units per hour prior to the C6 to C7 Plant conversion, the initial C7 assembly started at a rate of just Corvette car being completed per hour.

Many quality control (QC) inspectors were highly involved with that initial ramp up, and true to GM’s typical process, during the initial time of C7, 1 Corvette/hour production, BGA augments its full time QC staff by bringing in additional QC inspectors/supervisors from other GM plants — all to insure initial C7’s were built to spec.

That 1/hour rate then ramps up only when GM is fully satisfied with inspection of end-of-assembly-line completed cars (this secondary dissecting takes places with micrometers and similar, often in specialized QC rooms), then the line speeds up to 2 new Corvettes completed per hour. This progressively goes on until the currently schedule assembly rate of 11.5 units/hour is achieved — again with still extra inspections/reviews, and if and as necessary any adjustments to either assembly line processes, tools, and/or to parts received from the suppliers (e.g., might re the latter parts, the length of an attachment tab could be changed from 15 MM to 14 MM; or might the angle of a attachment tab be changed 1/4 of a degree to facilitate such assembly to either speed up assembly or to make it easier?). Having worked on an auto assembly line, the previous are some of the types of issues through examined/critiqued during initial start up of a new model.

Then as each Corvette has been completed, including being inspected and determined to meet all specs, each one is progressively collected in a “hold area.” During the C7 process, 1,500 C7’s were built, and held for a probably one month QCH (quality control hold) prior to the first one being shipped.

Adding in all the above estimated timelines , my best guess is that the first new ME Corvettes are going to be shipped sometime after January 15th of next year.

Could I be off by more than a month? Of course. GM is not going to definitively tell us anything about the initial C8 delivery schedule until at least 48 days from now.
.

[Boomer]

Then as each Corvette has been completed, including being inspected and determined to meet all specs, each one is progressively collected in a “hold area.” During the C7 process, 1,500 C7’s were built, and held for a probably one month QCH (quality control hold) prior to the first one being shipped.

Lotsa good info John. Guess if you can get in that first 1,500, you're likely to get that coveted rigorous QCH thus assuring a perfect car!

My 2014 C7 was chosen for the extended QC process as it came off the assembly line and went to production status 4D00. At the time I believe every 125th car was selected. Maybe just a coincidence but never have had an issue with my C7 (except a dealer oil change overfill).

[Meldoon]

Once again, a wealth of information from John. Thanks for sharing John.

[Sparro]

My dealer that i have my allocation in with says they will no longer take factory orders on the C7 starting tomorrow, June 1st.

[John]

Very interesting. Interesting even more since GM has historically given dealers at least a two weeks heads up, so they can be sure to finishing placing all orders that they have been working hard on with customers already.

Of course, anything and everything can always change.

I will check this out in the morning, and confirm your dealer’s statement to be correct (or not), then post on the forum.

[John]

Lotsa good info John. Guess if you can get in that first 1,500, you're likely to get that coveted rigorous QCH thus assuring a perfect car!

My 2014 C7 was chosen for the extended QC process as it came off the assembly line and went to production status 4D00. At the time I believe every 125th car was selected. Maybe just a coincidence but never have had an issue with my C7 (except a dealer oil change overfill).

I like you all, am a realist. When a the Bash, I talked with one of my favorite people, ex Plant Manager Wil Cooksey. He and I were chuckling over his oft-repeated, very often re-quote phrase, “ when you show me the perfect person, I will build them perfect car.”

Of course we know that no car is perfect, not even the first 1,500. However, they are more highly inspected than most. Why? Because let say that a few weeks into the build process, as happened with early C7’s, a problem was found. GM wants to have them all there in their BGA hold yard, where they have the best tools, the best trained workers on that new model, and back up replacement parts (at least more likely than at a dealer who is just getting their first of a new generation).

[John]

My dealer that i have my allocation in with says they will no longer take factory orders on the C7 starting tomorrow, June 1st.

.

Sparro, am I not correct that you live in Canada? I am thinking that your dealer told you accurate info for your country, but not for the U.S., for we have repeatedly seen here is that GM gives advance written information to its dealers,e.g., that “option X” orders will be accepted through “date Y.” Second, as a generation gets closer to ending, specifically because GM option projected take rates are often different from what customers choose, we have typically seen more and more option constraints be announced.

Yet we have so far seen, almost zero constrained C7 options. Hence while Canada might have its C7 orders cut off tomorrow, I am thinking that is not going to be the case in the U.S., that instead GM would continue to accept U.S. regular C7 orders for perhaps as long as another month, maybe longer.

However, all the above reasons apply only to the Stingray, Grand Sport and Z06 models, for ZR1 orders have been in constraint all year due to challenges in making all its gorgeous, centerline-matched visible carbon fiber, and IMO perhaps all ZR1 orders might end real soon.

[Bikerjulio]

I'm with the other large dealership in Canada and they were putting in what they claimed was their last possible order for the year back in February! Maybe that's what they had been told at the time. Who knows?

I was trying to think about what was different in a "Canadian" car. The only thing I can think of is the metric gauge faces. Even that does not rule out shipping a US version, since that happens all the time and the speedo/odometer can be switched.

Possibly some of the labelling has French and the manuals of course.

Just trying to think why the cutoff for Canada would be any different.

[Sparro]

That's what the sales rep told me. He could be wrong i'm sure, or he was just guessing but he sounded pretty certain at the time. As for the gauge clusters, nowadays with electronic clusters it's a simple flick of a switch to change from km/h to MPH. Other than that there is no real difference other than printed manuals also coming in french. I'm pretty sure Canadian emissions are on par with California.