dbirdhouse1

I get your point and am regularly impressed/amazed/surprised by how many Vette buyers trade in/sell after little time and mileage accrued (my father would buy and trade in Caddies every two years....until I convinced him to buy a Lexus in 1990)

And I bought my 6th (and last Vette, I am retiring) with less than 5K on the clock BECAUSE Vette owners by nature/stereotype tend to take meticulous care of their cars and they are as close to new as a used car can get. Only one of my Vettes were bought new (what a story and a deal) and it is the caring nature of the typical Vette owner that kept me coming back to used....try that with a used performance car from Asia or Europe...not I

tcinla

New c7’s get significant price reductions / rebates / etc. so savvy buyers start out on the,adder of depreciation on a lower rung. I can’t speak for people who don’t shop smartly / negotiate. Your example speaks the the top trim / z06 buyers it seems so it makes sense why they get hit with more depreciation.

Why do they sell so soon? Who know? I can only imagine that, since they do, it’s not a problem for them to do so. Sort of a ‘those who can, do” thing?

Mayor111

Roadbike - Im sorry, I respectfully disagree - Im truly not picking on anyone. Im asking why I see SO many Z06s for sale, with only a few thousand miles on them, and they are being sold for SOOOO much less than they paid for it. The majority of us dont make money buying then selling our cars - I totally get that...but when I see a pattern of 18 out of 20 FOR SALE posts are Z06s with under 8k miles for sale WAY below what they paid...I have the right to ask why? Just like if you asked me - why do I think buying used is the better way to buy my C4's, my C5 and now my C7 used. As the other gentleman stated earlier, I love that you are paying $80k for the car that Ill drive for $50 in two years with 8k miles on it. As far as Im concerned - if your only driving the car for 8k miles - no one farts that much within only 8k miles of driving...and honestly - even if you took a crap in the car...new leather will never cost me $30k I saved vs buying new...

I do agree with you that people may say, why buy a 4 year old sports car, Im sure even if I paid $10,000 for a C7 there are people out there that will say, "why would you buy a car you cant use year round"...it doesnt matter. We buy Vettes for SO many reasons and no one reason is wrong...but if you ask me if I want a 2014 Vette for under $40k or the EXACT same Vette in a 2018 for $40k more...sorry, Ill take the 2014, drive it like I stole it and no one sitting next to me at a light will know if I bought it new or used...they will be just staring at the car... Kind of hard to argue that point...lets at least agree on that...

VNAMVET

Buy high....sell low and make up the difference in volume.

But seriously:


That's what happened to me with about every Corvette that I've ever purchased and then traded in ....and that's about 12 of them......and I've loved every minute in each.

Skid Row Joe

I buy new Corvettes. I always have, too. I'm not a bottom feeder. Many of us value the new Corvette experience a lot more than you do apparently. Likewise, many of us are high net worth individuals who can buy whatever we want to. That doesn't include being relegated to only buying used stuff. Perhaps you're unable to afford stepping up to the Big Leagues buying new? Buying a 6- year old used car may be all you can do? Just sayin'.

falcon5619

1. Many typically buy new Corvettes at 15-20% off MSRP

2. You get the new car experience and latest tech.

3. Full length of bumper to bumper warranty. Some don't want to own these cars out of warranty.

Avanti

Welcome to the new car business. Hardly new... or unique to Vettes.

Steve_R

It’s really not complicated or hard to understand. Many Vettes are toys and don’t get driven much. As for why they’re “being sold for SOOOO much less than they paid” that’s what they’re worth. Anything is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

dreamingat30fps

There's plenty of people who upgrade their phone every year for 1 or 2 new features. Same thing, just much richer people

SilverGhost

i'll pay for no farts in a new car, but the smell in a new vette is not a pleasant one. wouldn't pay for that. I often wonder if Ca. won't get around to labeling the inside air of a new car as a source of potentially carcinogenic off-gassing vapors from all the super-elastic bubble plastic in a new car. Connolly hides, wool carpeting and burled walnut, now THAT was a new car smell.

another poster wrote today about buying a used vette 250 miles away from where he lived; got it delivered like that new carvana service. problems, problems, problems, unhappy buyer, even as the dealer is trying to make it right.

i've seen videos on this forum of things done to vettes while "driving"; posts like "hey man, I just melted your brakes;" and outrageous mods done to perfectly running cars.... all that would make my hair turn white, if it wasn't already.

and the vette, as my reward car, as a treat, not an income-earning need car, would never be purchased USED by me unless I knew the owner, and the owner's history with that vette from day one.

trying to justify the economic sense of buying a vette is like putting a man in a round room and telling him to go poop in a corner. It ain't gonna happen.

David_Foxx

Discretionary income makes worrying about depreciation a non-factor. Live within your means and buy what you can afford. All 4 of my Corvettes were purchased new. 3 of them were traded in for the purchase of a new vehicle. Dealers love me I'm sure, but I drive what I want, when I want and do not worry about how much a mile cost me. People sell their Z06 for less than what they paid because they can and in most instances I would guess because they want something new to play with and the first sentence I typed applies. Have fun with your new C7. New or used, the drive and thrill of owning and taking care of one is like no other in my opinion.

Dave80C3

Bought my first C7 new special order. Pretty much the only way to get it then. I didn't want a C6, or a C5. They just didn't say buy me like the C7 did.

Owned it four years and two months, 18500 miles. Had no plans of trading it, but I fell in love with the Carbon 65. So as you say I lost 20K, or 5K a year. For me it was worth it to have the car I wanted, when I wanted it. Some one got a great used car, that was garage kept.

I got a very good amount off the new Carbon 65. I'm happy .

I trade my Custom Vehicles Operation Harley every other year. They usually have 42 to 46K miles on them. I usually loose 6K over two years. I think that is inexpensive for the amount of pleasure it brings, and to always have a bike under warranty. I also get the latest and greatest.

My Pick up's I keep a long time. Last one was 11 years when I traded, and got 12K less than I paid for it new.

cowboy casey

I bought used because that is what I can afford, and I am alright with that... It is a bonus that almost every Corvette owner is meticulous in ownership and I can get a really great looking and running "used" car that really is not used...

Within a couple years I will be doing the same with a Z06 if they actually come out with All Season tires in those sizes as I drive mine every day and every chance I get

jonebone

Kind of a spin-off question, can someone answer?

If someone has the car custom built to their specs, are they paying full MSRP?

The reason I ask, I bought a car recently for $48k on a $76k sticker and the guy had it built to his specs, drove up to MacMulkin NH to pick it up at release. In this case, did the guy really take a $28k bath on it? I know that some people are arguing "we get them 15% off (or more) new", but this guy would have had to buy at full sticker due to having it built, right?

Kevin A Jones

To each their own, however I've never bought into the adage that "anything is only worth what someone is willing to pay for it", as individuals purchase all sorts of items everyday for more and less than what the items 'broad market' dictates it's worth.

cuspid

Buyem right get out of them right, Bought a new 13 traded it 5 years later lost $4900, $80/month cost of ownership

JerryU

I ordered all 5 of my Vettes exactly they way I wanted, color, features, wheels, trans etc. I got good deals and the last three from out-of-state dealers with deep discounts. You're "guessing" you got an "Amazing Deal" but you have no idea which one of the many computers may fail next and cost several 1000 dollars. You have no idea what may have made the original owner sell it!

All my Vettes have been my DD, albeit they are mostly driven locally and we use the wife's larger car for long trips (or frankly now mostly airplanes!)

Last year when I sold my 2014 Z51 to get a Grand Sport got a good price, as I have sold all 4 on my own. My measure is black book prices. Yep, guess you could call that depreciation but I call it the cost of ownership. I don't "invest" in cars!

Tally Ho

Depends on the dealer. I ordered my 2006 and my 2013 to my specifics and got $6K off sticker on the 2006 and $13K off sticker on the 2013.

Mayor111

Apparently being a rude ***** means your bad at math too. A 2014 Vette means the car is FOUR years old today...not SIX years old... You sound pretty "big league" to me...

Also, paying $40k for the same car you paid $80k for, doesn't make me a bottom feeder...it allows me to go buy that boat your wife wont let you buy, because she thinks your Vette payment is too high...

JerryU

No Way! The dealer, whoever it is, has nothing invested and will get full payment for the ordered car BEFORE they have to pay GM!

DETAILS:
Can't understand anyone on the Forum NOT just clicking the LOGO of the largest Vette dealer in the Country in the upper right of every page in this General Section (which they sponsor) and seeing what they have and the prices. Just did and it states they have over 325 Vettes in stock or on order! They sell many Vettes by taking orders! (As do other forum dealers you can also search.) I have ordered all 5 of my Vettes, 3 from out-of-state including 2 from Kerbeck -great Vette knowledgeable folks.

First their prices are what you see is what you get! No haggling! They sell "Ordered Cars" for about the same discounts. In fact my Grand Sport took me ~10 minutes to buy over the phone as I knew exactly what I wanted. I also know since they buy so many Vettes they have a large allocation so if my Machined Faced Aluminum Wheels were allocated at 25% or orders I have a much better chance of getting them! a local dealer that sells one Vette/month could wait a long time or give you some BS and tell you you'll have to take XXX!

In my case the Grand Sport was built in Bowling Green to exactly my specs and delivered to a dealer 30 miles away from my home who accepted Courtesy Delivery for a flat $250! Never saw Atlantic City! That is a deal Chevy (and other manufactures) has had for many years. There is a flat delivery fee to whatever Chevy Dealer it gets shipped to. Be it Museum Delivery in Bowling Green or San Diego!

The Courtesy Delivery dealer gets paid by GM for doing the prep etc.

Now you at least should look at their site, find a car that matches what you want and print the page and bring it to the local sales manager IF you want to buy locally for whatever reason. Perhaps you can do better on a car they ordered that is not moving!