He got the best color for 09 and what is this I hear about modding mine is still stock
FINALLY!!!!! (long)
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Joined: Oct 2008
Posts: 59
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From: Cherry Hill NJ
FINALLY!!!!! (long)
Well, my exercise in patience is finally over - my new '09 Coupe was delivered on Weds, and I couldn't be happier. I want to take a second to thank all of the great folks here... if it weren't for you, I would have gotten screwed on the deal, bought the wrong options, and had much less confidence in my decision to move from BMW back to Chevy (my first new car was a '96 Camaro w/a ton of problems). From an outsider's view, your Corvette fanaticism is (for the most part) tempered with honesty about the "goods" and the "bads", as well as a real willingness to jump right in and help other forum members resolve their issues. What a great place this is.
That being said, my long-story-short goes a little like this... My 2003 Z4 was by far the most maintenance-free car I have ever owned. Having had German cars for a while, I knew I didn't want to own it out of warranty due to the potentially ridiculous repair costs I'd incur. For various reasons, I decided to keep the car for about 18 months post-warranty anyway, but began to realize that this past Summer would be my last with her. As you all know, I couldn't have picked a better time to shop for a new car (especially a Corvette) than Aug/Sept of this year. I found out quickly that I didn't like the new BMW 3 Series Coupe as much as I thought I would (hated the stick - it was nothing like my Z4's), and that I didn't really want an Infiniti G37 or an Audi A5. The Corvette was always in the back of my mind, but I figured it was probably going to be too expensive in the end.
I went to at least 4 local Chevy dealers at the end of the Summer, each was worse than the last. In a market where cars weren't selling at all, I was told I couldn't test drive a Vette b/c I might "fart in the seat" (no joke), that I couldn't order what I wanted, that the dealership "doesn't do locators", or that prices I'd seen here were "impossible". As expected, I also got nothing but lowball offers on my pristine, low-mileage trade-in. In the end, I used the power of this forum to get in touch with Rick Conti at EVS in Wisconsin when one deal with a different forum sponsor went south and another changed their price at the last minute. I ordered exactly what I wanted, and got the best possible price. I am totally convinced that no one will ever be able to buy my car for what I paid in September... unbelieveable.
So, I sold my Z4 on Craig's List (got my asking price in ONE DAY), spent a month in a POS rental, went on vacation, and came home expecting to pick up the car at the local dealership a day or so after I got back. When paperwork issues resulted in the car being sent to Wisconsin instead of New Jersey, Rick went to bat for me w/GM and his boss, and arranged to have FedEx/Passport bring the car to my front door. Not that I was pleased about having to wait another 2 weeks, but I've found that, unfortunately, service recovery like that is getting rarer and rarer these days.
Anyway, Weds night, the trailer pulls up to my house:
With some pretty cool company - a '64 Impala SS, a '40s Caddy, and this:
Once everyone was out of the way, she came out onto the lift:
The rest of my night-time pics suck, plus it snowed here on Thurs and Fri, so it took a couple of days before I could snap a "real" pic or two:
At least while it was snowing I could impress the neighbors with my Mild2Wild, which was ordered and delivered well before the Vette even got here. <broken record on> It really is a must-have for NPP cars <broken record off>.
So, now I have to go to the doctor because my face hurts so much from smiling, I haven't slept in 2 days (I just keep running down to the garage in the middle of the night - is that normal???), and my left leg is getting suprisingly bigger than my right (clutch-itis, I guess). Oh well - it's the price we pay, right?? Thanks again to everyone here, especially those who made it to the end of this post!!
That being said, my long-story-short goes a little like this... My 2003 Z4 was by far the most maintenance-free car I have ever owned. Having had German cars for a while, I knew I didn't want to own it out of warranty due to the potentially ridiculous repair costs I'd incur. For various reasons, I decided to keep the car for about 18 months post-warranty anyway, but began to realize that this past Summer would be my last with her. As you all know, I couldn't have picked a better time to shop for a new car (especially a Corvette) than Aug/Sept of this year. I found out quickly that I didn't like the new BMW 3 Series Coupe as much as I thought I would (hated the stick - it was nothing like my Z4's), and that I didn't really want an Infiniti G37 or an Audi A5. The Corvette was always in the back of my mind, but I figured it was probably going to be too expensive in the end.
I went to at least 4 local Chevy dealers at the end of the Summer, each was worse than the last. In a market where cars weren't selling at all, I was told I couldn't test drive a Vette b/c I might "fart in the seat" (no joke), that I couldn't order what I wanted, that the dealership "doesn't do locators", or that prices I'd seen here were "impossible". As expected, I also got nothing but lowball offers on my pristine, low-mileage trade-in. In the end, I used the power of this forum to get in touch with Rick Conti at EVS in Wisconsin when one deal with a different forum sponsor went south and another changed their price at the last minute. I ordered exactly what I wanted, and got the best possible price. I am totally convinced that no one will ever be able to buy my car for what I paid in September... unbelieveable.
So, I sold my Z4 on Craig's List (got my asking price in ONE DAY), spent a month in a POS rental, went on vacation, and came home expecting to pick up the car at the local dealership a day or so after I got back. When paperwork issues resulted in the car being sent to Wisconsin instead of New Jersey, Rick went to bat for me w/GM and his boss, and arranged to have FedEx/Passport bring the car to my front door. Not that I was pleased about having to wait another 2 weeks, but I've found that, unfortunately, service recovery like that is getting rarer and rarer these days.
Anyway, Weds night, the trailer pulls up to my house:
With some pretty cool company - a '64 Impala SS, a '40s Caddy, and this:
Once everyone was out of the way, she came out onto the lift:
The rest of my night-time pics suck, plus it snowed here on Thurs and Fri, so it took a couple of days before I could snap a "real" pic or two:
At least while it was snowing I could impress the neighbors with my Mild2Wild, which was ordered and delivered well before the Vette even got here. <broken record on> It really is a must-have for NPP cars <broken record off>.
So, now I have to go to the doctor because my face hurts so much from smiling, I haven't slept in 2 days (I just keep running down to the garage in the middle of the night - is that normal???), and my left leg is getting suprisingly bigger than my right (clutch-itis, I guess). Oh well - it's the price we pay, right?? Thanks again to everyone here, especially those who made it to the end of this post!!
Life Time NCM #2196
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 82,586
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From: Converse TX
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