I Have A Question
Thread Starter
Pro
Joined: Mar 2007
Posts: 707
Likes: 143
From: Missouri
I Have A Question
I have a friend looking at a 16 coupe, Z51 with a 2LT package with 284 miles on the clock. Carfax says it's a 1 owner, and it's listed as a dealer vehicle. What does listed as a dealer vehicle mean? Does it mean this is a mechanic's training vehicle which has been taken apart and reassembled several times for training purposes?
Last edited by Cedar; Oct 3, 2021 at 07:49 AM.
Safety Car
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 4,833
Likes: 1,850
From: NJ
2025 C8 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2023 C8 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
2022 C7 of the Year Finalist - Modified
2021 C7 of the Year Finalist - Unmodified
I have a friend looking at a 16 coupe, Z51 with a 2LT package with 284 miles on the clock. Carfax says it's a 1 owner, and it's listed as a dealer vehicle. What does listed as a dealer vehicle mean? Does it mean this is a mechanic's training vehicle which has been taken apart and reassembled several times for training purposes?
Advanced
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 84
Likes: 54
From: Oak Creek, WI
I have a friend looking at a 16 coupe, Z51 with a 2LT package with 284 miles on the clock. Carfax says it's a 1 owner, and it's listed as a dealer vehicle. What does listed as a dealer vehicle mean? Does it mean this is a mechanic's training vehicle which has been taken apart and reassembled several times for training purposes?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 6,442
Likes: 2,535
From: New Jersey
I have a friend looking at a 16 coupe, Z51 with a 2LT package with 284 miles on the clock. Carfax says it's a 1 owner, and it's listed as a dealer vehicle. What does listed as a dealer vehicle mean? Does it mean this is a mechanic's training vehicle which has been taken apart and reassembled several times for training purposes?
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 7,137
Likes: 3,176
From: Kannapolis MA.
Sounds like a great score.Probably would have to get a extended warranty with the time running out on the drivetrain.Bumper to bumper is probably passed?
Ha..It was passed from day one according to the wide wheel ripoff but that shouldn't be a issue with the z51 wheels that year.
Not owning the car early to get the so called...Get the bugs out? If any?
A warranty is key
Ha..It was passed from day one according to the wide wheel ripoff but that shouldn't be a issue with the z51 wheels that year.
Not owning the car early to get the so called...Get the bugs out? If any?
A warranty is key
Burning Brakes
Joined: Jan 2005
Posts: 823
Likes: 182
From: Plymouth MI
I have a friend looking at a 16 coupe, Z51 with a 2LT package with 284 miles on the clock. Carfax says it's a 1 owner, and it's listed as a dealer vehicle. What does listed as a dealer vehicle mean? Does it mean this is a mechanic's training vehicle which has been taken apart and reassembled several times for training purposes?
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
Le Mans Master
Joined: Aug 2015
Posts: 6,884
Likes: 2,887
From: Toronto
Id say its the dealer owner owned the car. Ive bought a Jeep owned by the dealer principal. Low mileage and well taken care of. When he heard I was a car guy and I showed up in the C7, he showed me his collection of 15 cars in a private garage in the lot. All low mileage.
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 368,297
Likes: 24,776
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 '25
NCM Sinkhole Donor
CI 5, 8 & 11 Veteran
Sounds like a great find. Doubt it had anything like a complete teardown performed on it due to mechanics training. If your friend can get it at a great price, the car checks out with an inspection, and a warranty can be added, go for it.
Race Director
Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 19,964
Likes: 6,768
From: Bonneville Salt Flats
I worked for a dealer back in the day. What it would have meant if it were his is that everyone in his family drove the livin' p**s out of it until something else came in that caught their attention. So, there is no way to know what the car may or may not be without more info... much more, imho. 
Tech Contributor
Joined: Oct 1999
Posts: 41,055
Likes: 9,817
From: Charlotte, NC (formerly Endicott, NY)
Every dealer owns a car that just comes from the manufacturer, is traded with another dealer or they purchase from an Auction or Customer. You can see that on CarFax all the time on vehicles that are purchased new, used for a couple of years, and then traded in for another car. While the cars are in the dealer's hands they are sometimes listed as Dealer Vehicles. Not a big deal, don't make a mountain out of nothing.
The following link is the CarFax for a multiple owner Tahoe that is traded at for other vehicles by it's owners: https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistor...-KWTY3gTn5xtSo Notice the term Dealer Vehicle is used multiple times. The car started in Florida, had an accident, went to Texas for a while, then went to Tennessee and then to North Carolina. It went through a couple of auctions along the way. Also, notice it is a typical low-mile car averaging slightly less than 10K miles per year.
If you want to find out whether the original dealer used the car as a personal or demo car check the In Service Date of the car. That is what starts the warranty. If the In Service Date is ahead of the original sale retail sale date then there is a chance the car was used by the dealer. They don't use them for training purposes. GM provides the training at several locations scattered around the country.
Bill
The following link is the CarFax for a multiple owner Tahoe that is traded at for other vehicles by it's owners: https://www.carfax.com/VehicleHistor...-KWTY3gTn5xtSo Notice the term Dealer Vehicle is used multiple times. The car started in Florida, had an accident, went to Texas for a while, then went to Tennessee and then to North Carolina. It went through a couple of auctions along the way. Also, notice it is a typical low-mile car averaging slightly less than 10K miles per year.
If you want to find out whether the original dealer used the car as a personal or demo car check the In Service Date of the car. That is what starts the warranty. If the In Service Date is ahead of the original sale retail sale date then there is a chance the car was used by the dealer. They don't use them for training purposes. GM provides the training at several locations scattered around the country.
Bill
Last edited by Bill Dearborn; Oct 4, 2021 at 02:57 AM.
Racer
Joined: Apr 2021
Posts: 361
Likes: 392
To answer the OP's original question, no, it almost certainly was not torn down multiple times by the service department as a training vehicle. That's not something most dealerships do.
Like any used car, unless you can speak with an honest previous owner, it's a mystery as to how how car was used. For me personally, that's actually TOO low on mileage to be comfortable. I would not want to buy a car that is 5 years old with less than 1000 miles unless I was collecting it. It would make me nervous about delayed/neglected service as well as the fact that if a car is a lemon (manufacturing defects) that usually reveals itself in the first year and 5k miles, and this car hasn't been given that chance. Low mileage is good, but to a point (again, for me). A 2016 with 10k-15k would be more attractive.
Like any used car, unless you can speak with an honest previous owner, it's a mystery as to how how car was used. For me personally, that's actually TOO low on mileage to be comfortable. I would not want to buy a car that is 5 years old with less than 1000 miles unless I was collecting it. It would make me nervous about delayed/neglected service as well as the fact that if a car is a lemon (manufacturing defects) that usually reveals itself in the first year and 5k miles, and this car hasn't been given that chance. Low mileage is good, but to a point (again, for me). A 2016 with 10k-15k would be more attractive.
Drifting
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 1,705
Likes: 539
From: Hampton VA
Was the car titled and registered to the dealer or did they use dealer tags when driving. If it wasnt titled then the warranty begins when it is titled to an owner. I dont know the how dealer owned cars are registered with state 
Safety Car
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 4,628
Likes: 397
From: Madison Wi
Let your eyes tell the story. Look it over. It should be perfect in every regard visually, as if it were brand new, tire tread depth included.
Mechanically, with only 284 miles, there is not much anyone could of done to it to hurt it. It's still going to have the factory reduced rev limit active. 4500 RPM I believe.
If it looks like it should I would not hesitate. If it shows any, even the slightest visual signs of wear I'd pass.
Mechanically, with only 284 miles, there is not much anyone could of done to it to hurt it. It's still going to have the factory reduced rev limit active. 4500 RPM I believe.
If it looks like it should I would not hesitate. If it shows any, even the slightest visual signs of wear I'd pass.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2012
Posts: 6,391
Likes: 1,453
From: South Dakota
In May 2019, I bought a 2014 3 LT Z51 with only 8 miles on it. It was shipped to a casino in Las Vegas to be won as some sort of prize. It had been won twice, but both times the winners took the cash instead. I bought the extended GM Platinum warranty. Yesterday my wife and I went for a drive and she commented that she can still smell that new car, leather smell. It's been, and still is a great car.