QUAKEJAKE

Your opinion on the C7 possibly being the off spring of the Sky or Solstice.We could call it the Vettestice or the Skyvette. Dont take this thread lightly.There is a company out there producing LS7 Solstices for real.

lockmart

That would suck ha, I'm 6' 3" which is tall but not a giant. Even I can't get my knees into a Solstice.

WaxWeekly

I'd be all for a broader range of choices, as long as something similar to the current Corvette is one of them.

If I wanted something completely new/different, all sorts of competative options are already available.

jackhall99

I wouldn't mind seeing a broader range of cars available under the Corvette umbrella.

An updated Solstice roadster as the entry model, and a coupe with more snot for those who want to move up a bit. Add an updated Fiero with a V-6 turbo for a rear-mid model to run in that circle. And keep the current size/performance car for the high-end.

It probably won't happen, but IMHO it could capture a larger audience of buyers at a younger age, and hopefully those buyers would move upscale in the future.

Jinx

I don't think a second, less-expensive bespoke sports car chassis is in the cards at GM.

The best you'd get is an Alpha platform car, but that runs smack into the next Camaro. I doubt that GM will see a market opportunity for a second Alpha sports coupe. They'll make the Camaro smaller and lighter and call it done.

I think a Boxsteresque entry from GM would be cool, but they have so many bigger fish to fry.

SanDiegoBert

. . . Including survival. "Boxteresque", indeed.

jackhall99

They will survive.

Boxsteresque was intended in my post, and the cars outlined wouldn't have to come tomorrow. Porsche didn't reach their current results overnight.

I doubt if GM would ever structure all/most performance cars under one 'brand' as that would hurt Cadillac I suppose. But adding the Cad CTS-V to the Corvette 'brand' I outlined would suck in a broad spectrum of owners, young to old, single or couple or family, and keep them as their needs change.

SanDiegoBert

That would certainly be in keeping with the original premise of GM. Keep 'em under the GM tent as their fortunes rise: Chevy, Pontiac, Oldsmobile, Buick and ultimately Cadillac. That did not work out too well in the long run, but it did for a while.

Jinx

GM would prefer that buyers recognize that Corvette and Cadillac are both GM vehicles. I doubt this is a problem for performance-minded buyers.

LS1LT1

I don't see it happening.






True.

http://www.mallettcars.com/solstice-conversion.htm

But that still doesn't mean that GM/Chevrolet would do the same.

SCM_Crash

My dad had a 2007 GXP Solstice (The turbo model) and it sucked the peanuts out a poop. Seriously that car sucked.

He sold it and bought a 2003 convertible Corvette and LOVES it. He says it is light years ahead of the Solstice.

The kappa platform could have been good but GM went cheap on it. Turned it into a serious piece of crap and the build quality was simply awful on top of it. It looked good from the outside and had comfortable seats and that's where the good points ended.

Jinx

To be fair, they built it (in a hurry) to sell for $20,000. But your point puts the original post in (chilling) perspective.

capevettes

The Sky and the Solstice was a short lived failure. Why would GM try to replicate that with the C7? My bet is that the C7 will not be a disappointment at all in either appearance or performance.

SanDiegoBert

That bet is made by GM and its stockholders.

SCM_Crash

Right... But had GM actually put some real time into it, and made LOTS of them, instead of making just enough to fill orders, they would have been competition in sales for cars like the Miata and Caliber. But GM purposely went out of there way not to build Solstices. It's a real shame. A higher production number would have given them room to give it a better interior and cut less corners.

GM isn't going to make that mistake with the Corvette. It's a tried and true car. They know it's going to sell and they're not worried about putting real time and energy into it.

Jinx

The Solstice was never going to be a volume production car. Miata owns the market... and its US sales are lower than Corvette's.

SCM_Crash

I'm not saying it was going to be. But if it were, it would have been a really good seller. GM didn't make it readily available on every dealer lot and getting one was really a big pain in the ***. There were a couple dealerships that bought a couple to add their own "dealer installed" garbage and marked them up crazy. I remember I saw one dealership that put wheels, exhaust and a wind screen on it. They marked it up $15K over MSRP and it wasn't even a turbo. Basically $35K for a $20K car and they wouldn't put the price back and put it back to stock. Had to buy it as is. (That's a scam if you ask me. Especially since you couldn't get them to order you a bone stock one in most cases.)

GM lets the dealerships do dumb stuff to limited run cars. That's unfortunate. But if GM did with the Solstice what Ford does with the Mustang, they would have sold like crazy.

Jinx

They did. You misspelled Camaro.

And dealers always load up the hot new thing with as much profit as possible and put a ridiculous markup on it. That's just n00b bait. Or it's a way of getting as much promotional value as possible out of the one and only car they're going to get for a while (it stays on the floor so people come in to see it; maybe some nutter buys it, maybe some people order a car).

Rock36

I'm sure nobody really cares, but the Solstice did dominate their categories at the SCCA Club Racing National Championships from 2006-2009 ha ha.

CRABBYJ

Back in 1967 when I owned an '65 Corvette vert, I test drove a new Sunbeam Tiger and was not impressed. Fast but not even close to being as good of an overall sports car as the Corvette.

Fast forward to 2008 when I stopped into a Saturn Dealer with my '05 C6 Coupe to test drive a Sky. It was déjà vu, all over again. The Sky XLP was a nice little ride but no where near as satisfying as my Corvette. Its build was good enough but offered less of a driving experience overall.

Bottom line, I would pick a Corvette, even a used one at the same price over any Solstice or Sky GM had offered. The Corvette is an awesome value for its size, stance and power against anything near its price range foreign or domestic.

Fiero, Solstice, Sky! Strike 1,2,3. GM will not soon go back to that well again.

P.S. I also looked at an '68? Toyota 2000GT about the same time that a Toyota Dealer wanted to sell to me, but the $6,500+ price was too much. I didn't drive it but it was good looking for its time. Only about 60 made it into the US. Today they can go for as much as $350,000!!!!!