by Chris Chilton
- Corvette DCT production moves from Canada back to Michigan.
- Change affects logistics only, not hardware or performance.
- Canadian plant will focus on next-gen GM V8 engine output.
The Corvette is as American as apple pie, but for the past few years, it came with a kick of maple syrup. Not any longer. Production of the C8’s eight-speed dual-clutch transmission has moved out of Ontario, Canada, and across the border.
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The Tremec-built gearbox has been a huge part of the mid-engined Corvette’s personality since launch. It fires off shifts faster than you can blink and is almost good enough to make us forget GM no longer offers a manual option. Now, Tremec is once again assembling every single unit in-house at its Michigan facility.
Three-Year Secondment
Since the 2022 model year, some of those transmissions had been built under license at GM’s St Catharines plant in Ontario, Canada. That arrangement officially wrapped up in 2025. From here on out, if it’s bolted to the back of a C8’s V8, it’ll have come straight from Tremec’s own production lines
From there, it’s shipped to the dedicated Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Kentucky, to be united with the car. The Bowling Green plant has been building Vettes since 1981 – and you can even help build yours. Before that, the sports cars were built at GM’s decrepit St Louis, Missouri, plant for over 25 years, though the very first cars were put together in Flint, Michigan.
The move doesn’t sideline Canadian workers. St Catharines is set to play a major role in GM’s future by building the next generation of gasoline V8 engines. It already produces V8s for GM’s full-size trucks and SUVs, so it’s hardly being left out in the cold.
Not All DCTs Are Created Equal
Every current Corvette, whether that’s a base 495 hp (502 PS) Stingray, an all-wheel drive E-Ray hybrid, a Z06, ZR1, or 1,250 hp (1,268 PS) ZR1X, uses the same basic Tremec dual-clutch transmission. But as GM Authority reports, the hotter versions get some important tweaks to make sure they’re up to coping with four-figure power outputs.
The track-ready ZR1X, for instance, gets strengthened inner and outer input shafts, shot-peened gears, improved oil management, and a bunch of other tweaks deemed not necessary on the entry-level car.