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Much to my disappointment I found out that this car was a manufacture buyback A.K.A lemon.
I called the dealership and the salesperson told me it had a leaky transmission “adapter” and that they replaced the entire transmission system after the buy back and that there is nothing wrong with the car at this point so they claim.
The reason I’m having trouble looking past this car and moving on is due to the fact that this particular example happens to have each and every option I want and nothing I don’t- and due to my constrained budget, it was just affordable enough for me
To my more wisened Corvette enthusiasts: what would you do in this scenario? Am I currently in denial and should stay the heck away? Do I lowball them, and if so how low? Any input or advice would be extremely welcome
Last edited by LiuBearPig; 01-11-2019 at 07:26 PM.
Much to my disappointment I found out that this car was a manufacture buyback A.K.A lemon.
I called the dealership and the salesperson told me it had a leaky transmission “adapter” and that they replaced the entire transmission system after the buy back and that there is nothing wrong with the car at this point so they claim.
The reason I’m having trouble looking past this car and moving on is due to the fact that this particular example happens to have each and every option I want and nothing I don’t- and due to my constrained budget, it was just affordable enough for me
To my more wisened Corvette enthusiasts: what would you do in this scenario? Am I currently in denial and should stay the heck away? Do I lowball them, and if so how low? Any input or advice would be extremely welcome
Anything you save will cost you when you go to trade or sell it, and it may have way more problems than they are disclosing. GM does not buy back vehicles for something as minor as a leaking transmission.
This car seems to have spent most of its life being serviced; transmission, differential, brakes, fluid changes, etc. Have to suspect it made have been ridden pretty hard but, either way, there are plenty of other cars like this or close to it without the risk involved Unless you're really limited on funds, find a well-known quality new Vette dealer and see what you can find in their used inventory.
Anything you save will cost you when you go to trade or sell it, and it may have way more problems than they are disclosing. GM does not buy back vehicles for something as minor as a leaking transmission.
Originally Posted by BLUE1972
If you really want it I would make a $50k offer with a 10 year 100k warentee, and then get up and walk if they said no.
The car is already 5 years old . (so to speak)
I'm crazy because the age doesn't bother me per se.
If one is in the position of knowing you're going to keep the Z and not trade/sell it (like I was two month ago), then I'd make a bid like it was a salvage refurbish:
Up to 50% of msrp and a new manufacturers warranty (ie, 3Y etc) ... no one is going to give a 100K 10Y on this thing, so basically you'd be saying NFW.
What bothers me is you had to find out it was a lemon law. That said it is worth about ten grand less than a whole one. What is the warranty situation? Some banks won't finance it. The longer you keep it the 10k difference shrinks.
Anything you save will cost you when you go to trade or sell it, and it may have way more problems than they are disclosing. GM does not buy back vehicles for something as minor as a leaking transmission.
saving a considerable amount of money now means significantly more to me than getting more for it later if/when I decide to sell. I’m 30 years old right now. I’ll never be this young again and it means more to me to have an amazing car like this while I am relatively young- even if it means proverbially screwing myself later down the line because (hopefully) I’ll have more money by then and it won’t matter as much. My biggest concern is the last part you mentioned; I’m scared there’s more issues with the vehicle that the dealership is holding back. When I contacted the original dealership in Santa Rosa to inquire about the service history, they refused to disclose any information to me because I am not the owner
is there some sort of rule for full disclosure? Is there any way I can make them tell me everything that’s wrong with the car or would I have to take their word for it?
Last edited by LiuBearPig; 10-26-2018 at 03:55 PM.
Typically there is a document stating the reason(s) for the buyback. They should share that with you. I was involved with many of these with another manufacturer. They were transparent and extended the warranty 2 years also. If they are hiding facts I would run away.
At the very least get them to show you the work order for "replaced entire transmission system"
Unless you can get it for significantly less than what it is listed for, it's not worth the hassle IMO. For that kind of price range you'll probably find one here in forum, may not have all the options but certainly worth considering.
Let me put this into perspective for you.They have that car listed at 62,000.
I bought my 2015 z06 w/ 3LZ, Z07, PDR and comp seats with 8,900 miles for 65,000. Non lemon car will hold it's value far more than a lemon car. Pretty much guarantee that if you buy that car, you're never going to be able to resell it (if you were able to resell, it would be for a fraction of what you bought it for) and you're almost 100% guaranteed to have ongoing problems. If you're worried about saving money now... instead worry about saving money down the road on a broken lemon car. There are good deals out there for these cars you just have to find them. I get you're 30 and you want to live a little, but don't make dumb decisions.
saving a considerable amount of money now means significantly more to me than getting more for it later if/when I decide to sell. I’m 30 years old right now. I’ll never be this young again and it means more to me to have an amazing car like this while I am relatively young- even if it means proverbially screwing myself later down the line because (hopefully) I’ll have more money by then and it won’t matter as much.
Let me put this into perspective for you.They have that car listed at 62,000.
I bought my 2015 z06 w/ 3LZ, Z07, PDR and comp seats with 8,900 miles for 65,000. Non lemon car will hold it's value far more than a lemon car. Pretty much guarantee that if you buy that car, you're never going to be able to resell it (if you were able to resell, it would be for a fraction of what you bought it for) and you're almost 100% guaranteed to have ongoing problems. If you're worried about saving money now... instead worry about saving money down the road on a broken lemon car. There are good deals out there for these cars you just have to find them. I get you're 30 and you want to live a little, but don't make dumb decisions. Assuming/hoping you're going to make more money down the road and making an impulse buy is a terrible choice, but to each his own. Remember.. an extra $3000-$5000 can equal less than an additonal $100 a month in the payment depending on interest rate and length of loan.
Do you really want to risk buying a lemon car to save $100 a month?
When the C8 comes out the price difference will not matter as much.
If you can get a super buy and an extended warrantee I would go with it.
My 88 Olds was a " lemon" demo" , got the extended warrantee. Only lasted 18 years until one of the kids wrecked it.
I know todays cars are more complex - but sometimes it's the dealer who is actually the lemon in the repair department.
My 85 Camaro had issues that the Chevy dealer (4 times) could not correct - I took it to a Cady dealer when visiting a friend in the adjacent state, the Cady dealer fixed it correctly.
kept that one 20 years.
I would have to pass, bad history too many unknowns, even if they give you an extended warranty do you want to spend the majority of your time driving it or scheduling service for it.
Anything you save will cost you when you go to trade or sell it, and it may have way more problems than they are disclosing. GM does not buy back vehicles for something as minor as a leaking transmission.
I did not read the detail of this buyback but the statement above is misleading. GM can be forced to buyback if the car is out of service for a certain number of days usually 30 in the first year. In 2016 GM was not releasing diffs for repair jobs - instead sending all available units to production. It was a choice they made and they bought back cars that could not be repaired timely because of the part unavailability as a result.
Look it's not a end of life decision. In 2001 I was told by everyone Not to buy a 2001 Flood Corvette. I bought the car, kept it 3 years, with no problems, sold it to a coworker and he's still driving it. If You feel like you're getting a fair deal don't worry what others opinion of the decision is.
Life is short, Buy the car and have fun, hope for the best.
Last edited by randy ransome; 10-26-2018 at 07:54 PM.
Buy a new one and lease it for three years and toss it! Do not worry about stated value just get the cheapest insurance and ride in to the wind Let the dealer worry about all the problems you might have! .
Much to my disappointment I found out that this car was a manufacture buyback A.K.A lemon.
I called the dealership and the salesperson told me it had a leaky transmission “adapter” and that they replaced the entire transmission system after the buy back and that there is nothing wrong with the car at this point so they claim.
The reason I’m having trouble looking past this car and moving on is due to the fact that this particular example happens to have each and every option I want and nothing I don’t- and due to my constrained budget, it was just affordable enough for me
To my more wisened Corvette enthusiasts: what would you do in this scenario? Am I currently in denial and should stay the heck away? Do I lowball them, and if so how low? Any input or advice would be extremely welcome
I have lost money on every Corvette I own. I bought my cars to have fun and drive. It is an expense and costs money.
You said you want to drive it and enjoy the car.
I advise whatever you do avoid being upside down on the car. If that is unavoidable then set a limit on how much you are willing to lose. Drive that car and have a blast.
10-26-2018, 02:15 PM
Would you buy this Z06 lemon? [*UPDATE 1/11/19*]
This car seems to have spent most of its life being serviced; transmission, differential, brakes, fluid changes, etc. Have to suspect it made have been ridden pretty hard but, either way, there are plenty of other cars like this or close to it without the risk involved Unless you're really limited on funds, find a well-known quality new Vette dealer and see what you can find in their used inventory.
