Corvette profitability
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 694
Likes: 102
From: CA
Corvette profitability
Im curious about how profitable the Vette currently is for GM. Historically has the Vette always been profitable? From what I understand, the C3 and C4 were, but how about the c5 and C6?
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,598
Likes: 1,593
My guess is even the "new" GM does not build cars to lose money.
Porsche makes high-performance sportscars and is VERY profitable... even though most of these profits come from SUVs... but so do Chevy's.
"Cost" is a tricky concept... for example, the engines and mag shocks from Corvette are used in Camaros and Caddys... the A8 is used across all product lines...so who eats the development costs... ?
At 30-40,000 units the Corvette is hardly a "low-production" car by world standards... and a lot of these cars are loaded with option$$$
Yes, GM is making a profit on every Corvette it sells
Porsche makes high-performance sportscars and is VERY profitable... even though most of these profits come from SUVs... but so do Chevy's.
"Cost" is a tricky concept... for example, the engines and mag shocks from Corvette are used in Camaros and Caddys... the A8 is used across all product lines...so who eats the development costs... ?
At 30-40,000 units the Corvette is hardly a "low-production" car by world standards... and a lot of these cars are loaded with option$$$
Yes, GM is making a profit on every Corvette it sells
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 34,992
Likes: 12,385
From: NE South Carolina
My guess is even the "new" GM does not build cars to lose money.
Porsche makes high-performance sportscars and is VERY profitable... even though most of these profits come from SUVs... but so do Chevy's.
"Cost" is a tricky concept... for example, the engines and mag shocks from Corvette are used in Camaros and Caddys... the A8 is used across all product lines...so who eats the development costs... ?
At 30-40,000 units the Corvette is hardly a "low-production" car by world standards... and a lot of these cars are loaded with option$$$
Yes, GM is making a profit on every Corvette it sells
Porsche makes high-performance sportscars and is VERY profitable... even though most of these profits come from SUVs... but so do Chevy's.
"Cost" is a tricky concept... for example, the engines and mag shocks from Corvette are used in Camaros and Caddys... the A8 is used across all product lines...so who eats the development costs... ?
At 30-40,000 units the Corvette is hardly a "low-production" car by world standards... and a lot of these cars are loaded with option$$$
Yes, GM is making a profit on every Corvette it sells
Now, but probably not in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 they only sold 12,000 to 13,000/yr. Even Tadge said in an interview when the C7 was introduced they needed to sell significantly more than in the prior few years or the Corvette would be in trouble.I'm always amazed when you look at production stats that '76 tru '79 were peak sales years at 45 to 53,000/yr. Those were terrible HP years with the advent of new pollution controls, air pumps etc. Max hp was 225!
Last edited by JerryU; Jun 5, 2015 at 04:43 PM.
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 694
Likes: 102
From: CA
Now, but probably not in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 they only sold 12,000 to 13,000/yr. Even Tadge said in an interview when the C7 was introduced they needed to sell significantly more than in the prior few years or the Corvette would be in trouble.I'm always amazed when you look at production stats that '76 tru '79 were peak sales years at 45 to 53,000/yr. Those were terrible HP years with the advent of new pollution controls, air pumps etc. Max hp was 225!
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 368,358
Likes: 24,782
From: In a parallel universe. Currently own 2014 Stingray Coupe.
C7 of the Year - Modified Finalist 2021
MO Events Coordinator
St. Jude Co-Organizer
St. Jude Donor '03 thru '26
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
I would imagine that the bean counters at GM would kill the car if it didn't show a profit for the company.
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,319
Likes: 436
Now, but probably not in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 they only sold 12,000 to 13,000/yr. Even Tadge said in an interview when the C7 was introduced they needed to sell significantly more than in the prior few years or the Corvette would be in trouble.I'm always amazed when you look at production stats that '76 tru '79 were peak sales years at 45 to 53,000/yr. Those were terrible HP years with the advent of new pollution controls, air pumps etc. Max hp was 225!
They ran the C6 line too long IMO. 4-5 yrs should be max for a body line in todays "Gotta have it" mentality. If they run the C7 for 8 years sales will drop the same. Most people could not tell you the difference between a 05vs13 model.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 6,442
Likes: 2,535
From: New Jersey
Now, but probably not in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013 they only sold 12,000 to 13,000/yr. Even Tadge said in an interview when the C7 was introduced they needed to sell significantly more than in the prior few years or the Corvette would be in trouble.I'm always amazed when you look at production stats that '76 tru '79 were peak sales years at 45 to 53,000/yr. Those were terrible HP years with the advent of new pollution controls, air pumps etc. Max hp was 225!
Last edited by Corgidog1; Jun 6, 2015 at 08:01 AM.
Corvette Stories
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
Top 10 Most Expensive Corvettes Ever Sold on Bring A Trailer
Brett Foote
10 Things Every Corvette Owner Needs (2026 Edition)
Michael S. Palmer
8 Most "Only Corvette Owners Understand" Quirks and Problems
Pouria Savadkouei
10 Reasons the C6 Z06 is Still A Performance Benchmark After 20 Years
Joe Kucinski
How Much Horsepower Every Corvette Engine "LOST" in 1972
Joe Kucinski
Top 10 DOs and DON'Ts for Protecting Your Convertible Top!
Michael S. Palmer
Top 10 Most Explosive Corvettes Ever Made: Power-to-Weight Ratio Ranked!
Joe Kucinski
150 hp to 1,250 hp: Every Corvette Generation Compared by the Specs That Matter
Joe Kucinski
8 Coolest Corvette Pace Cars (and Replicas) of All Time
Verdad Gallardo
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 2,226
Likes: 1,029
From: Thomas Texas
Ex-GM Vice President, Bob Lutz, wrote a book titled "Car Guys versus Bean Counters" a few years ago. There was a review of that book in one of the major car magazines and I wrote a email to the editor's stating that blaming the bean counters for the failure of GM was like saying the Yankees didn't win the World Series because of the scorekeepers. My letter was awarded the letter of the month.
I have witnessed engineers not taking into consideration or ignore the cost of a part or system. Many times Project creep happens and costs go up dramatically. When it comes time to make the critical decisions, they are forced to look at the cost and make a decision but blame the accountants who are simply reporting the facts. Scape goat.
Good Engineering involves establishing a reasonable budget then making sure that the product will be cost effectively for the targeted revenue.
Some engineers don't know or take into consideration the profitability of a product and back themselves into a corner. When it comes time to make the critical decisions, they have to look at the cost and make a decision what to do. An important decision by the head of engineering involves making sure that the car will be profitable.
I have witnessed engineers not taking into consideration or ignore the cost of a part or system. Many times Project creep happens and costs go up dramatically. When it comes time to make the critical decisions, they are forced to look at the cost and make a decision but blame the accountants who are simply reporting the facts. Scape goat.
Good Engineering involves establishing a reasonable budget then making sure that the product will be cost effectively for the targeted revenue.
Some engineers don't know or take into consideration the profitability of a product and back themselves into a corner. When it comes time to make the critical decisions, they have to look at the cost and make a decision what to do. An important decision by the head of engineering involves making sure that the car will be profitable.
Last edited by RussM05; Jun 6, 2015 at 08:03 AM.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 2,299
Likes: 466
From: Long Island New York
Much like today, the Corvette was a tremendous value for its relative performance if you wanted a 2 seat sports car.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2004
Posts: 5,040
Likes: 416
From: hardyston new jersey
St. Jude Donor '09-'25
and I had both an 05 and a 13 and a couple in between. Except for A4 to A6 with paddle shifters, I don't think I could tell many differences. 
Pro
Joined: Feb 2013
Posts: 565
Likes: 143
From: Bedford VA
Some have called the C6 a C5.5 and I think I agree. Taking that into account, the C5/6 production run was 17 long years. About time for a new model and the C7 is a winner it appears.
E-Ray, 3LZ, ZER, LIFT
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 34,992
Likes: 12,385
From: NE South Carolina
You forget (or maybe were too young) that in that era there was really no competition to Corvettes (and most American cars); 225 hp doesn't sound like much, but the other 2 seaters of that era had much less: Mazda RX7 - 100 hp, Datsun 280Z - 130 hp, Porsche 911 - 157 hp.
Much like today, the Corvette was a tremendous value for its relative performance if you wanted a 2 seat sports car.
Much like today, the Corvette was a tremendous value for its relative performance if you wanted a 2 seat sports car.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 2,598
Likes: 1,593
GMs problem IMHO was miserable Executive Leadership... too many VPs,... too much noise and too little vision.
GM always had the best Engineers, best Marketers, best Accountants... worst CEOs... duh!
GM went bankrupt because is was scaled for 50% market share and through decades of incompetent Executive Leadership and lousy product, eroded to 25%... too many dealers, too many divisions, too much capacity, too much labor costs... chasing quarterly results rather than fundamental change, and just collapsed under the weight of excess capacity.
IMHO the "new" GM is a different animal... streamlined management, focused marketing, their products are competitive up and down the range... the C7 is raising lots of eyebrows in the Porsche community, I can tell you.
Future looks very bright to me...
GM always had the best Engineers, best Marketers, best Accountants... worst CEOs... duh!
GM went bankrupt because is was scaled for 50% market share and through decades of incompetent Executive Leadership and lousy product, eroded to 25%... too many dealers, too many divisions, too much capacity, too much labor costs... chasing quarterly results rather than fundamental change, and just collapsed under the weight of excess capacity.
IMHO the "new" GM is a different animal... streamlined management, focused marketing, their products are competitive up and down the range... the C7 is raising lots of eyebrows in the Porsche community, I can tell you.
Future looks very bright to me...
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2014
Posts: 1,319
Likes: 436
Driving down the road I have to look for tale tale signs between the two... Moving they are very similar at a stop it gets better.
Door handles, headlights and rear exhaust valence short or wide. To tell if it's a C5 or C6.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 2,299
Likes: 466
From: Long Island New York
Just look at the new Cadillacs' - really nice cars, but if they expect anyone who owns a comparable Audi, BMW or Mercedes to buy one, they need it to be as good as those cars, and cheaper by 5-10% (the Acura and Lexus model) - instead, under the new fool who runs Cadillac, the ATS Premium Coupe, comparably equipped has a MSRP that is $1,200 more than a BMW 4 series, and on a lease it is $160 more per month. Who in their right mind would take a chance and buy a Cadillac for more money than a BMW?
Race Director
Joined: Oct 2011
Posts: 15,056
Likes: 1,613
From: Holly Springs NC
St. Jude Donor '16-'17,'22,'24
After 97, it's introductory year, the C5 had only one year, 2002 when if failed to reach over 31000 units. In it's last two years the C5 sold over 35000 in 03 and over 34000 in 04 and that's with the knowledge that a redesign was on the way. The C5 was very profitable. Overall, the C5 sold 238230 units, over 18000 more than C6. The C5 sales numbers would be a good target for the C7. Personally, I hope it beats the C5 and continues to be profitable for GM and keep the Corvette legend going.