LT1 Z51

That was a marketing blunder.

patentcad

That's just unfathomable.

What's worse is their inability to keep a future Corvette under wraps so that a sizable % of buyers forestall their decision waiting for some friggin vaporware mobile. That just kills everything - GM new C7 sales, existing car resale value, etc. I mean not for nothing, lusting after a 'mid-engine Corvette' (the automotive equivalent of the friggin unicorn for the last 50 years) is all well and good, but that stupid show me the car already you ******** product may not be available in showrooms for ANOTHER 18-24 MONTHS and it has already be killing sales of this car for over a year now.

WhatEVER. Love my 2017 C7, that's all good. As for all these posts that say '460 bhp isn't all that anymore'. Uh-huh. I have a VERY hard time unleashing MY lowly stock Stingray car on the roads around here, and I live in a place with great rural/semi-rural sports car roads.

Ernest_T

Everything in that damn car was oval!

"The interior was also completely redesigned for the 1996 model year. The gauges were placed in an oval pod while the dashboard wrapped slightly around the driver; all of the main controls were placed within easy reach, and were designed to be recognizable by touch and to be operated by drivers without taking their eyes off the road. The controls for the radio and climate control (some of which, like the preset buttons, were oval shaped) were combined into an oval-shaped "Integrated Control Panel" mounted in the center of the dash.

Ernest_T

The other issue is used Corvettes are now down in the mid to high $30K range which makes buying used really attractive.

thill444

Agreed. The rumors are all over the place and I have actually had people (who are not even car enthusaiasts) ask me if I am going to sell my C7 for the new mid engine Corvette this year (because they saw it on Fox/CNN/NBC).

There is not one reason why sales are down, its a bunch of them but anyone who thinks sales should either be up or the same as last year are fooling themselves. I doubt GM expects sales to go up in the fifth model year either.

thill444

And many used C7's are garage queens with very low mileage, some of which have never seen rain or snow.

JayhawkCPA

I wonder if the used car inventory of C7's effects this? I am in the market and looking at 2015's and 2016's...

snow

A lot of good points made. I for one see the C8 as a factor with new vette sales. I dont think I would have jumped on the ZR1 fan boy club regardless, I dont see the ZR1 as that major of a step forward for the C7. I see it more like that is what the Z06 should have been and I think a lot of others may feel the same way.

I cant imagine anyone dropping $130K on a ZR1 when the C8 is right around the corner, that has to be impacting sale I'm sure.

JoesC5

GM does not produce a mix of Corvettes that they "think' people will order.

GM ONLY builds Corvettes that the dealers order. The dealers order what they "think" their individual customers will buy.

Photos of the storage lot at Bowling Green is not full of unsold cars that GM built "thinking" that the dealers will buy someday. Those cars were built to specific orders by GM's dealers and are waiting to be loaded up on trucks to deliver to the dealers.

GARYFINN

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...odelCode1=CORV

joemessman

I'm from Arizona and we need all the horsepower we can get around here. We can take advantage of it. Believe me.

LT1 Z51

Not entirely true. The dealers are "encouraged" to order specific types of cars for the build out. This is done through dealer incentives and placing items on restriction (or constriction I think in GM terminology).

Marketing and Manufacturing have a huge say, since a build-out requires a cohesive support from the supply chain (what extra parts need to be ordered and from who), and the sales channel (how do we need to discount or incentivize models).

The dealer gets a lot of "kick-back" (aka bonuses) for reaching goals that OEMs set. You can't meet the goals if you don't order the right mix of cars.

jschindler

It happens to every generation. They propped up sales 18 months ago with huge incentives. That will continue. There is a limited market for a two seat Chevrolet no matter how good of a car it is. GM can live with that and the huge discounts as the engineering and tooling is amortized.

I still contend the mid engine car is not a C7 replacement. I expect it to be a more expensive running mate that will sell in much smaller numbers.

Zymurgy

Typical, Joe. Misusing "statistics" to show your hatred of the C7. First of all, Corvette sales were down 35%, not 40%. Second, the GM figures you quote above are not just "car" sales, they are total vehicle sales including CUVs, SUVs and trucks. There has been a significant shift in consumer buying away from cars to CUVs, SUVs and trucks. If you look at the details, you will see that. Car sales are down significantly more than your figures represent. Finally, your 2018 number is not correct. That reflects only US January sales. Feb US is 220,905.

source: http://gmauthority.com/blog/gm/gener...sales-numbers/

I should also point out that your figures are actually just US, not US and Canada as you stated.

Judgment Day

If there is one, I should go to the Chevy Impala forums just to see how they're reacting based on the OP's pdf link. They gotta be typing in straitjackets at this point.

mschuyler

I think what we are seeing is a version of the Osborne Effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osborne_effect

GM is well-known for being tight-lipped about future projects, but they have been unable to manage other people speculating. And given what the press is saying, there are a number of loose cannons inside GM and the supplier network who have intentionally leaked information despite any NDAs they have signed. We don't know if the press is faking it about these insiders in an attempt to boost their credibility or if it is real information, but the bottom line is that it doesn't matter as the damage is done.

patentcad

Implying that the C7 is a sales failure (a dubious contention, that depends on the metric you use) isn't supported by observing that a newly re-designed Corvette sales numbers progressively drop even while overall sales increase. Corvette sales have generally always dropped as the new design ages and/or customers anticipate an impending re-design. That's a long established pattern in Corvette sales history that's not necessarily linked to GM overall sales results.

Another post above says that you're 'anti-C7'. I don't know if that's the case, but if you don't like the C7 I'm just curious why?

I'm curious how the base price of the Corvette over 30 years relates to median household income and if the % of that income necessary to cover the base price of the car is higher or lower now than in say 1988. Maybe the car is pricier (adjusted for inflation) than it was for the C4, C5, C6. Maybe it's cheaper. I don't know. But if it's pricier, that might help explain sales results.

mazurekd

I have a 2011 C6 that suits me fine... better than fine. I am on the C7 site more than I am on the C6’s. I do like the C7. But when I got the itch for a new one, talk popped up here on the new ME C8. Well, I have had my C6 for seven years, what’s one, maybe two more. I don’t want to take two hits going from a C6 to a C7, then to a C8, so I am waiting to at least see the C8. If I like the styling, which I think I will, if the real thing looks at least as good as other’s renderings, and the price fits me, I’ll be glad I waited. If not, then I can look at the C7s again, and I can only assume there will be major discounts on them, what with the C8 out. So here I sit, waiting. Just my reason why Chevy sold one less C7.

thill444

Per the bolded part I am thinking more and more you are correct. If not GM very well could price the Corvette out of many driveways. For every Z06 owner there are many more base owners who bought one for $50K or less. If a base midengine started at $70K (with zero options, we both know most of them will be north of $80K) even with 10% off MSRP you are well into the $60's.

thill444

You could get a great deal on a C7. Drive that one many years then buy a C8 when those are heavily discounted. There won't be many discounts for the first year or two on C8's. Unless GM misses the mark.