While enthusiasts are ready to experience the mid-engine C8 Corvette, dealers see the new halo model as a way to usher more traffic into their stores. However, dealers will need to enroll in one of two programs to qualify as an authorized mid-engine C8 Corvette dealership.
According to details posted to the Corvette Forum, dealers have two options. The first is the “Corvette Dealer” program, which is pretty basic. Dealers will need to send one sales specialist to Spring Mountain for education, which will cost the dealer $3,500. All personnel will need to undergo sales and service training as well. Finally, the dealer will need to purchase all C8 Corvette service tools, which will cost an additional $1,500 for current Corvette dealers.
The second program is called the “Signature Corvette Dealer.” To become a signature dealer, the business must “comply with the Corvette Participation Agreement” (we’re not sure what that means exactly) and send a sales specialist or service advisor to Spring Mountain. Signature Corvette Dealers will also be showcased on Chevrolet’s official website and will be able to sell merchandise from their dealer website, too.
Additionally, dealers can sign up for a “mobile tour.” At a cost of $16,000 for one day or $25,000 for two days, Chevrolet will send a mid-engine Corvette expert to the dealer. Potential customers will be able to comb over the car with the expert before production begins, which is rumored for December. The expert can help customers configure and place orders ahead of production start as well.
Overall, it won’t be too difficult for Chevy dealers to sell the mid-engine Corvette, but for those who want to treat the new car like a European exotic, they’ll need to pony up some major cash upfront.
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Source: Corvette Forum
Comments
I say thats proof this thing will be not much more complicated to work on than a C7.
It’s GM, so all you need is a long screwdriver and a hammer… Lol
No it will not be much different than the present car. The most difficult thing on mid engine is cooling systems but with today’s flush and fill machines air pockets are no longer an issue.
I have a mid engine now and we use the old Lotus trick of keeping the rear high up and the nose down on fill.
But even on many front engine vehicles today you can no longer fill without a machine anymore with out the risk of air or the sloshing in the dash sound.
The difficulty of mid engine cars have often been the need to change cam belts at 30K miles on an engine that needs to be pulled. We will not have such an issue.
“The difficulty of mid engine cars have often been the need to change cam belts at 30K miles on an engine that needs to be pulled.”
That’s not a mid engine problem, that’s a BAD ENGINEERING problem. Any car that was designed from the out set with a timing belt instead of a timing chain is already treading on thin ice with me. But ANY engine that was designed with an interference valve train AND timing belts that require changing at less than 80-100,000 miles is pure engineering stupidity in action.
I don’t need a special buying experience. Just to get one would be enough. 2nd or 3rd year production preferred.
It’s not an exotic. It won’t be able to attract an exotic buyer. That being said, I am looking forward to seeing what it can do.
Define “Exotic”.
@TreDeuce,
I’m sure Bob’s definition of “exotic” simply means “import”. Maybe he drives an exotic Corolla! haha.
Reading this brings back bad memories about how GM (and I’m sure many other brands) force the dealers into some things. Example: When with the Buick, Cadillac, GMC and Honda store, I recall the dealer telling us that in order to sell the Allante the dealers had to purchase special equipment, training and dedicated branding for the store. Therefore we did not become an Allante dealer do to the cost and the expected inability to sell enough to re-coup the costs. This was also done with the XLR and I think again with the ELR (but don’t quote me on that one).
To me, this is a real kick in the behind to the dealers who push and sell the product all year long. They push through the “not so good” products. They sell the great products. They are there all year long, year after year, pushing the metal for this company just to be told they can’t sell a certain “hot” product unless they jump through a bunch of hoops and red tape. Total BS in my opinion. Funny thing however, look at the history of the Allante, XLR and ELR. Look at any of the specialty products (maybe outside the Vette) and how does that work? How did it work?
I’m sure many of the Chevrolet stores all over the country do their best at selling as many Vette’s as they can all year long. With the exception of a few specific tools needed for this all new Vette, don’t make the dealers pay up to sell your products!
So IF they are able to get the C8 smaller dealers will justify the cost of their deal by saying it “cost me $$$$ just to be able to sell the thing” then just pass the cost on to the customer making the car that much more expensive.
…But first they must triple the price, and then pass these costs to the consumer.
“Total BS in my opinion. Funny thing however, look at the history of the Allante, XLR and ELR. Look at any of the specialty products (maybe outside the Vette) and how does that work? How did it work?”
– Cadillac brass want to sell hypothetical exclusive Cadillac to affluent folk in Region A. With demographic data they’ve mined, they know how many they could sell to break even.
– Dealers says they know the Region A market better than GM, and most refuse to pay the admission price to get the Cadillac.
– Cadillac sales in Region A fall as the affluent folk buy from others.
– Cadillac drops the exclusive Cadillac from their range.
– Dealers complain about Cadillac being starved of new product.
– Repeat for 60 years.
If GM just offered their hypothetical exclusive Cadillac in their own company owned stores, there wouldn’t be a dealer undermining GM’s marketing plans for Cadillac by denying the car from being sold in region A.
I know Cadillac is everybody’s favorite whipping boy on this website, but Cadillac is no different than any other maker, when it comes to selling halo/niche vehicles. These are never intended to be high volume or long term vehicles. How was Cadillac’s efforts to sell the Allante any different than Ford and their 2005 Thunderbird, or Chrysler’s Prowler and on again off again Viper, or the Chevrolet SSR, or even the 56-57 Lincoln Mark II?
When it comes to the XLR, I’m not even sure that Cadillac wanted it. I thought it was more a GM corporate decision to utilize the excess capacity at Bowling Green, than Cadillac’s desire to have a halo vehicle?
The XLR did not utilize “excess capacity” at Bowling Green. The were built on assembly carts in an area that had been used for a number of support activities. The fact that they were hand assembled on wheeled cart tells me GM had little faith in the car from the get go. I was at the factory several times during production, and no assembly workers were even present. Three or four cars were awaiting the next steps toward completion. It looked like an underfunded corporate start-up. Wil, the plant manager and staff drove XLRs around town.
I’m no fan of GM’s policies, but is it unfair to require a dealer to purchase the tools needed to fix/service the vehicles they sell? The manufacturers don’t provide tools. With the markup and the huge “administration” fee, they should buy the tools or don’t sell the cars.
Excellent point. After plunking down 80 grand for a vehicle (or thereabouts), I’d like to know that I can get it serviced at said dealership with the correct tools by someone who knows what they’re doing.
Oh man $5000 dollars !!! How will these dealers ever recover financially? They will probably never be able to break even !!! GM is really screwing over its dealerships!!
C’mon there was a similar price and mandatory Spring Mountain event to be able to sell the C7, you are overreacting.
GM is not making dealers jump through hoops by any means. The majority of potential customers have never experienced owning a car like this and dealers have no experience selling or servicing a car like this, so the dealers need to be educated to ensure the launch of the C8 is a success. If dealers are not equiped with the proper knowledge, the C8 will fail not because of bad engineering but because of consumer ignorance.
SEE: Chevrolet Corvair and Pontiac Fierro.
my wife was office manager at a chevy store and nothing new here except the cost is higher
The big question in my mind is whether the dealers will have ME C8’s that can be test driven.
if you show up in C-5 to C-7 you will get a test ride but if you show up in 10 year old honda with a fart pipe you may to wait a while. I have bought 11 new corvettes and never took a test drive.
Regarding test drives. I have purchased only one vehicle without a test drive. That was when I was 19 years old and did a factory order of a; 1966 Ford Custom 2-dr. sedan, with the 427, 2-4bl, 425 HP side-oiler FE engine, 3.50:1 rear gear, 4-speed top loader transmission. When I decided to become a Corvette owner, I was able to take two test drives to help me decide that was the vehicle I wanted to purchase; this was in 2005. Without those test drives, I don’t believe I would have done my factory order for the C6 I still own today. Through 2013 I’ve purchased 8 new autos, 4 new snowmobiles, 4 new sport bikes, 4 used vehicles; all test driven as part of the process. Everyone has their process they are comfortable with. As a note; it was much harder the past year to test drive a C7 from dealers who may only move 5-6 new Corvettes per year.
The reality here is two fold.
GM wants any dealer that can sell the car to be able to sell one. But they also want top front line dealers to be better prepared for dealing with non traditional Corvette buyers who expect the staff to know more than they do.
Let’s face it most Vette buyers know more about the car than the average sales staff.
The requirement for tools is very reasonable and you know the dealer owners will be more than happy to take the trip to the race track. The tools for the Ford GT really cut the number of dealers down that could sell the car. Since GM is moving volume here they had to keep it real and simple to deal with repairs.
To me the low cost for dealers tells me repair cost will not jump much and the price should not be much different either.
scott3,
No dealer even touches the Ford GT. It is sold direct by Ford and serviced exclusively bY Multimatic.
The last GT that was built by Ford not the present.
And there were only 4250 cars built for 2005-6 including those built for Europe. Most dealers only got a single car and again were selected by Ford. So tools didn’t limit the number of dealers.
BTW, Ford did not build that one either. It was built by Saleen Automotive on the Saleen production line created for their own car.
Complicated or not I think once these things get in general public’s hands the various forums will start loading up with all kinds of info from DIY maintenance to modding. I figure about a year before being in full swing.
There are two ways for GM to do this, they can continue to sell 10’s of thousands of Corvettes at a profit. Or they can pound their history the way FOMOCO is at a (loss) with the GT.
https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1105296_why-ford-is-making-a-huge-mistake-with-its-new-gt
Then again, they could whip at a near dead horse down the back straight the way FCA is doing with the Dodge brothers, did Chrysler [ever] use the brothers when it was an AMERICAN company? (NO) with the “not a HEMI” twin spark plug carbon credit chewing lead sleds (literally).
It’s business, dealerships are not part of the corporation. They are “permitted” independent sales distributors of the products. Play by the rules or else.
Between the Charger/Challenger (same platform) no one else comes close to selling as many performance vehicles as FCA. I guess they really fooled those customers!
maurelius,
They sure did, especially considering that the platform for these vehicles was originally designed in the mid-90’s by Mercedes for their E Class which was never considered to be a good handling platform. A good straight line boulevard cruiser, yes, but that’s it. They did a fantastic job creating hype and a decent looking vehicle that makes noise and can do smokey burnouts. But as a true performance vehicle, it falls really short. For their selling strategy, FCA gets an A+.
I believe more people are interested in drag racing than sport car racing and that give FCA an advantage
Maybe in your area or group of friends but not in my area and in my car clubs. It’s the exact opposite. In my city, the only people who drive those cars are rednecks. The Hellcat’s weight starts at 4500lbs without a sunroof. That’s pick-up truck territory.
Bottom line, the Charger/Challenger isn’t even a sports car. It’s far too big and could only be considered a GT at best. It’s hopelessly outdated and as soon as fuel prices go up, it’s dead.
as someone who owned 11 new corvette and track days most all of them there are few if any people I know with camaros that track day them. the local drag strip is loaded with hell cats. I also owned new 68 and 69 Z/28s and I track day and hill climbed both of them. a friend has a new ZL/1 camaro and he only drag races it. there is not much chance of doing damage to your car at the drag strip but you can at track days. been there done that as the mrs put our new corvette into the fence one time doing track days
Drag racing really appeals to people who can’t drive or are afraid of corners. As a result, anybody can do it.
In the past, American vehicles couldn’t handle and especially brake. But now many can. As someone who has been tracking for 20 years, my expense is mostly brakes and tires. Drag racing is far more demanding on the engine and driveline but to each their own.
“Not much chance of doing”……..
Damage?
Because anyone can mash on an accelerator right, but can they drive?
fastyle,
That article got it completely wrong and is quite dated from 2016. Ford never released profitability on the Ford GT. Everything got outsourced, so it may have cost far less than expected. Also, production wasn’t 200 cars but is now around 1200. It was never intended to be a volume vehicle or a permanent fixture in the Ford line.
Regardless, the Ford GT is a marketing exercise with the goal of promoting the EcoBoost line especially in the F150. Along with the 50th anniversary win, that program was a wild success and has given a return of 100:1. It was an advertising/marketing expense. Ford surpassed all their goals and more. They also got a heck of a car in the process.
ford is not going to support a GT race team next year so private owner will have to foot the bill to race
Yes the program and car production are coming to an end this year.
Be great if the Dealer community just treated folks well. Anybody can sell you a car. It’s the after-the-sale / Service experience that builds loyal, generational customers to the Dealer and the Brand. And that, the fixed end of the business, is where the most money is made any ways.
I bought all of my 25 cars and trucks plus 11 corvettes from the same family owned small town dealer. I just called them up tell them what I want and they call me when it comes in. my wife worked in the office there for 10 years so most likely that helped. my whole family most likely bought 50 cars from that dealership. don’t look for the best price look for a friendly dealership.
The drag race / road race debate is usually decided by a person, based on proximity of a racetrack, time commitment, and more importantly, budget.
As a Corvette owner, I will tell you, mine was bought to cruise in, and to weekend getaways with the Mrs; not to race. It is a fun car for sure.
In my racing days; a prior AMA Pro and WERA license holder here, I not only road raced, but spent a fair amount of time at the drag strip honing launch techniques. Reason: short “Sprint” races do not give late entry riders that find themselves gridded in the back row, enough opportunities to work their way to the front, for a chance at a checkered flag; hard, front wheel down launches can take you from 32nd to a top five spot just ten seconds into a race.
I found myself enjoying the drag strip so much, that I built a Nova, and then Mustang for Saturday night grudge matches; racing is fun if you’re winning, no matter what track you are at.
Also, to build a competitive road race car can be expensive, require others to assist with pit duties, etc. Drag racing can be done with a minivan, if you look at bracket racing; if you know your equipment well enough, you can embarrass those that don’t.
Just my .02
Peace
Just tried to order a C8 and was told by the Scottsdale dealer that it would require a $20k deposit and that the price would be $20k above sticker.
Now looking at the Lexus LC 500.
It’s the Phoenix Corvette dealer’s doing what they always do – rip off Corvette buyers. I bout 6 new Vettes when I lived in Phoenix, none of these in Arizona. There are a lot of dealers letting them go for MSP.
Name the Dealer
You won’t have a problem getting an LC 500 as nobody wants that car. Sales are absolutely dismal.
Don’t be a sucker, wait 6-12 months and you’ll be able to negotiate a deal below MSRP. Manufacturing doesn’t even start until the end of the year.
Dealer is Van Chevrolet. Does anyone know a dealer who will sell a C8 for sticker price?
BTW I drove a LC 500 today and was pleasantly surprised engine is high revving handling is better than expected price is a little higher than expected but used cars with very low miles are available for about what the dealer wants for a new C8.
Ignore ‘Thirsten’, obviously he knows not of what he speaks.
One of the automotive highlights for me so far in 2019, was a weekend driving and riding from San Francisco to South Lake Tahoe and back in a new LC500h. I was smitten by the end of the weekend. GT travel at its best.
The car got studied look overs wherever it was parked and a lot of questions.
Overall, an extremely pleasant and memorable experience and one I wish I could easily afford, Mniern.
I know of at least seven dealers promising MSRP. I won’t name them, but do your homework, and you can easily find them. Forums are a good place to look. It may involve a road trip or shipping, but I had some great times with my new Vettes driving back to Phoenix, especially my Ron Fellows Z06 in a Spring blizzard. Great memories.
I was one of the first ones on the list here at Penske Chevrolet in Cerritos CA, when the salesman called me to reserve my order, I was also informed that there would be “25-30K Market Adjustment”. Really, how can Chevrolet actually let this happen when all they did was brag about the pricepoint on their release event. Moving on also, and if everybody else would, they would stop this kind of customer abuse.