GM To Allow Owners To Build Their Own Corvette Engine

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GM To Allow Owners To Build Their Own Corvette Engine

We heard back in January that GM was considering adding a program that would allow owners the opportunity to build the engine that would be installed in their new Corvette. Yesterday, GM announced that the Corvette Engine Build Program would be available starting in 2011 for customers who order a Corvette Z06 or ZR1.

The Corvette Engine Build Experience is an option costing $5,800. When a customer selects the PBC option and the order is submitted, a special concierge contacts the customer and helps to coordinate arrangements to schedule the engine build as well help with local reservations for lodging, meals and transportation. The customer is responsible for their own arrangements to and from the Detroit area.

The LS7 and LS9 engines that go into the Corvette Z06 and ZR1 are hand-assembled by master mechanics at the Wixom Performance Build Center. Customers will be matched with one of the skilled technicians who will supervise the build. Once the engine is fully assembled, the owner will have their name affixed on a special plate next to the one reserved for the master builder. The engine is then sent to Bowling Green where it will be installed in the customers new Corvette.

“Corvette owners are some of the most passionate – and most involved – enthusiasts in the industry,” said Jim Campbell, U.S. vice president, Chevrolet marketing. “The Corvette Engine Build Experience offers customers an unprecedented opportunity to participate, hands on, in creating the car.”

The engine build program adds another level of customer involvement to the new car buying process and the program will allow Chevrolet to strengthen its ties to its most loyal of customers.

“Simply put, no other sports car manufacturer can match the level of personal customer involvement that Corvette offers,” Campbell said. “The Corvette Engine Build Experience takes this personal involvement to an unprecedented level.”

The Engine Build Experience is the latest program Chevrolet offers for Corvette owners. Other programs include:

  • Corvette plant tour, where customers can follow their vehicle down the Bowling Green assembly line
  • Corvette Photo books, which document the assembly process of owners vehicles at Bowling Green
  • Corvette Museum delivery, where customers take delivery of their new Corvette at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green
  • Corvette ZR1 Driving School, which offers complimentary attendance at either Bob Bondurant’s Corvette Driving School in Arizona, or Ron Fellows’ Corvette Performance Driving School near Las Vegas.

Here is a new video from Chevrolet showing one of the master builders assembling an LS9 Supercharged V8 engine that will go into a Corvette ZR1:

For more information about the Engine Build Program, check with your local Chevrolet dealer or give Kerbeck Corvette in Atlantic City, NJ the opportunity to earn your business by calling Dave Salvatore at 877-537-2325.


Source:
General Motors

Related:
Jalopnik: GM May Offer “Build Your Own LS9″ Program for Corvette Buyers
[VIDEO] Corvette Engine Building Video Shows Owner/Builder Interaction

 



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