Maybe its just me, or maybe not. Yesterday, I placed an order for a 2016 Z51 convertible, 3LT, carbon fiber dash, chrome wheels, red calipers, A8 automatic, Competition seats/Suede inserts, Shark Gray, Kalahari interior. Order entered with Supplier Discount. Today, the dealer (not forum dealer) called and informed me there is a constraint on Z51..!!!!! BTW, this is a confirmed allocation, not a pipe dream.

Are you kidding me. GM has know since MY 2104, 2015 that well over 80% of orders have been Z51. Something is seriously wrong with their Supply Chain mgmt. NOTE: I do not want to deal with the larger forum dealers whom may not have constraint issues because of their size. I am just fed up with GM/Corvette and the way they conduct business.

The entire process, specific to C7 has been nothing short of frustrating and ridiculous. To the best of my knowledge, there are no other GM brands that suffer from constraints and the mysterious way Corvette brand conducts business.

I am so pissed at Corvette, I decided to contact the Cadillac dealer (still staying with GM ) and inquired about the totally redesigned 2016 ATS-V. We built one to my specs, the General Mgr Sales contacted his district GM contact. The response was no constraints, no delay, order will be accepted immediately, 8-10 week turn-around. BTW, this build included Recaro seats with Microfiber inserts. The build has an MSRP of $74k, not including the discount I will receive due to my relationship with the company principal. NOTE: The 2016 Z51 has an MSRP of $84k., Supplier Discount $76K. I know, not an apple to apple comparison. But, a luxury/track ready sports sedan with several Corvette components. I am not that brand loyal, nor do I want the Corvette that badly to put up with the BS. I am leaning towards leaving the Corvette brand, even thought I currently own a 2013 GS convertible, which I like. BTW, I turn cars ever 3-4 years, and mine is coming up on 3 years.

Thank you for listening to my rant, but I needed to vent.

 

"Well over 80%" of all C7s are Z51? Is that true?

 

No it's not. But it probably could be if it wasn't on constraint pretty much since day one.

 

I heard that only 53% of 2015s were Z51s.

 

Well I could be off on the % of Z51 orders. But, the point is why are there still constraints. That is the frustrating part. I have worked in Supply Chain, and this is pathetic...!!!

 

Still waiting on the ruling from SCOTUS ....................

 

It is ridiculous that GM can't avoid all the constraints on the C7.

 

I dig my Corvette, but those little turbo Caddys look pretty cool. Take lemons and make lemonade I suppose.

 

If you do decide to go the Cadillac route I think you'll love it. My XLR-V was fantastic. Another real plus is that you'll have a whole different (read better) experience with a quality Cadillac dealer than with the typical Chevy dealer. The latter just doesn't know how to treat customers who spend $75 or $80K on a world-class car.

 

No, demand was 53% for the Z51 Option.

 

Translation: Nobody else wants one, so we'll have no problem filling your order.

 

If your dealer had a confirmed allocation for a Z51 then the constraints shouldn't be an issue. Not understanding how they could have an allocation and now can't get you one? Sounds like the issue might be at the dealer level , whether they actually had an allocation for a Z51.

 

2016 Model Year Chevrolet Corvette Constraint Report – June 18, 2015

TPW Constraint # Option/Model Code Description % of Nat Alloc Qty Comment
8/3/15 268 Z51 Performance Pkg 40% Material Restriction/Entire Model Year
8/3/15 269 C2Q Body Color/Transparent Roof Panel Pkg 34% Supplier restriction/Greater than 4 weeks
8/3/15 270 CFA Base Painted Roof Panel 34% Supplier restriction/Greater than 4 weeks
8/3/15 272 G1E Long Beach Red Met 0% Startup restriction/Less than 4 weeks
8/3/15 336 GC6 Corvette Racing Yellow 11% Startup restriction/Less than 4 weeks
8/3/15 628 B92/GXH CF Hood Insert with Night Race Blue 0% Eng validation/Greater than 4 weeks
8/3/15 625 EFY/GC6 Ext Trim with Corvette Racing Yellow 0% Eng validation/Greater than 4 weeks

 

My wife was looking at the ATS V and my dealer said they have the same allocation process so We walked away. I did it for my C7 and Z06 but I am spent after those. It is frustrating to say the least.
Eric

 

If you want to avoid the frustration of the constraint issues there are 4 ways to avoid/minimize it.

1.) Order through Kerbeck. They get more allocations than anyone.
2.) Order through MacMulkin.
3.) Speak to Mike Furman at Criswell
4.) Buy off one of the above dealers lots once they start rolling in. The big 3 will have plenty of Z51's on their lots.

None of these dealers require you to visit if you live far away. It can all be done via email/fax.

 

Heck, Mike and I did it all over the phone. Used text for the pictures of my trade.

 

To the OP:

I appreciate you wanting to stay local and the purpose of this post is not an attempt to sell you a car but more to address your original post.

First off, not only is Corvette not the only car in GM to suffer from constraints (Cadillac has plenty), but GM is not the only company to offer constraints.

Most of the constraints on the Corvette now are due to Carbon Fiber which is in high demand everywhere (not just automotive). There is one supplier who makes those parts for Corvette and he is limited to how many he can make per year without making a major capitol investment in his facilities which he is not willing to do without some kind of guarantee in orders from GM which they are not willing to do.

Your problem is with the Z51 constraint. GM has never stated this on the record anywhere for the C7, but over 20 years of ordering new Corvettes and dealing with suspension and/or gearing ratio constraints leads me to believe that the Z51 constraint has nothing to do with supplier issues but with good old Uncle Sam.

General Motor, like every auto manufacturer in the US, has a CAFE number they need to hit or face HUGE fines from the federal government. For GM to hit their number, Chevy has to hit their number. For Chevy to hit their number, Corvette has to hit their number. For Corvette to hit their posted average of 20, a certain percentage of their cars have to be built without the Z51, especially with the auto Z06 being in the gas guzzler range.

GM has not stated this and it's only my opinion, but in the C5 and C6 we did have constraints that were there simply because of the CAFE regulations and I don't see why that would be any different now.

Best of luck in whatever you decide to do!

Dave

 

I understand the point about the CAFE standards, but do the math. What's the gas mileage difference between a Z51 and non-Z51 car? How many cars are we talking about between the 50% constraint its been on and, let's say, 80% if it wasn't? Now how does that number compare to the total number of cars GM produces?

Won't even be noticeable. So if they really are doing because of the CAFE limits, someone at GM hasn't done the math.

 

I there were no constraints, I'd venture to say that over 90% of cars would be Z51. We stock some non-Z51, but not many. Most dealers who are ordering 1 car every month or 2 would definitely order a Z51 for stock if they had the choice.

We have very few people who look at one of our cars and say they won't take it because it has a Z51, but I have people turned cars down because they were not.

Dave

 

Dave, I call on your CAFE theory.
2016 Model Year Corvette
Z51 Pkg 40% Material Restriction/Entire Model Year