Karl Johanson

Forum Members,

I have an allocation available this week for a Commemorative ZO6 -2004-Z16. This allocation showed up today and I have until Tuesday evening to make any necessary changes to the Vehicle for the right buyer. The expected build week of this Commemorative Z16 will be 5-10 or 5-17. Due to the limited availability of this vehicle, I will be asking for MSRP on the unit.
At the moment that MSRP will be $ 57335.00. I am expecting a build week around 5-17 at this time. I have equipped it with the AAB,DDO, and V49 options only. I have not added the body side moldings or the Museum Delivery.

If you are interested in the Commemorative Z16 2004 ZO6, Please feel free to contact me at your convenience.

Thank you for your time.





[Modified by Karl Johanson, 6:45 PM 4/13/2004]

Karl Johanson

Museum delivery can be added to this order through Tuesday 4-12.

Have a Great Weekend.

RangerZR-1

The car I want, with the Museum Delivery I want.........but for MSRP, I'll pass. Thats a lot to pay for no power upgrade, a paint job and a hood. Maybe in 20 years I'll be kicking myself

phrogs

Yeah Im with you! I want one but cant justify the funds, Nothing aginst you Karl or the other forum vendors but I see these on Ebay now hovering around $50000 but I want to deal with a local or semi local delaer Because I want to possibly trade my 2002 Z71 in on the car.... :leaving:


[Modified by phrogs, 8:44 PM 4/9/2004]

64VETTEMAN

My local dealer has one close to invoice. MSRP? No thanks.

Guest

Read the rules for this section, and move on....

RangerZR-1

I'm paying cash and want to pick it up returning from overseas.....but no one wants to deal, I guess I'll have to go e-bay too :confused:

Karl Johanson

Sorry that I haven't responded to your post guys. I realize that there are a lot of deals out there and a lot of dealers that are literally giving away their corvettes. I too have had to make slim deals to move some of my 04 units out even though I have not resorted to giving them away. One of the reasons is that it not only devalues the new vehicle but also hurts all those that currently have corvettes that they may have wanted to trade and cannot because the depressed market on the trades have been effected by the lower prices on the new.

Chevrolet has chosen to manufacture a limited amount of Z16 units and as a result, I have decided not to give the unit away just because everyone thinks I should meet the price of the other dealers that have engaged in a price war on this forum. I apologize if that offends anyone but the fact is that we are in business and never claimed to be a wholesale house for corvettes.

I respect you rights to your individual opinions and I am confident that you will respect my right as a forum dealer to offer this unit at a price that my owner and myself had decided to ask for the Limited edition Corvette.

This vehicle will be available for that special person that truly wants a limited edition Corvette that is not just looking at the price of the Corvette but the opportunity to own a part of corvette history.

If you are that person, please feel free to contact me on my toll free line to discuss that possibility.

Thanks for all your comments.

Respectfully submitted.

dizzzzy

No Offense to you Karl, you seem like a very nice guy, who shares the same kind of passion for the corvette as all of us here... The thing I do not understand about your last post though is this... Your Looking for a buyer who really wants a limited edition corvette correct?? Then why not sell it at a reduced price to a true corvette person, one who will cherish it, and take care of it for a long time... By reading your above post, the only difference between you trying to sell it for MSRP, or matching another forum dealers price is the pure profit the owner of your dealership and you as the salesman make.. I highly doubt that if someone were to trade in a Z16, you would find it in your heart to give him a extra 8k on the trade in value of his car.. If that were the case, everyone would be buying these at a discount, and trading them into you for a profit.

I really do respect what you do for this forum, but your post made no sense at all to me as a consumer. The price of the C5's are falling, and by you making 8k on a car instead of $1500 is not going to do anything for all of us, but it will give your dealership and yourself a little bonus. Lets not forget about the C6, and all the money it will bring into your dealership this year, and so on.

Respectfully Submitted


[Modified by dizzzzy, 3:28 AM 4/13/2004]

Racer

:iagree:

Because,

"this vehicle will be available for that special person that truly wants a limited edition Corvette that is not just looking at the price of the Corvette but the opportunity to own a part of corvette history".

for a lot less from other supporting vendors. :cheers:

Karl Johanson

dizzy,

Thanks for your comments and as I said before both you and Racer 44 have a right to express your opinions freely on this board.

You are correct in that it would be more profit for the dealership as well as a
better commission structure for myself. I don't mind admitting that. I am a professional that would like to enjoy a good life and make a respectable living like everyone else. I will not apologize for that. Some people work off of salaries and some off commission. If you were in my place, would you prefer to take a limited edition model that will make a little profit and pay yourself a respectable wage for the work that you put into your profession or would you prefer to let the unit go and go home to tell your wife that you made $ 100 for selling the limited edition. If your company had 100 cars per year and you would make $ 100 per unit, would the professionals on this board consider that to be a good living. I think not. As a result of the attitudes that everything should be given away and that the dealership or the sales person do not deserve to make a profit, the real value of all of our corvettes has been effected. I am concerned about the fact that the price war on this forum has caused it to be like looking at the Saturday news paper to see who has the lowest price for a vehicle that you may not want when you get to the dealership. I have chosen to always be honest with my customers and there will always be those that do not like what we are doing and that is their right to do so. Personally, I would think it refreshing to know that there are still those of us in this profession that believe in telling the truth even if it means losing the sale in order that no one can place you in the catagory that so many consider people in my profession to be in and that catagory is " A CAR SALESMAN ". When the Good Lord brought about the circumstances for me to enter into this business, I must say that I questioned him and his wisdom. After 11 years in this profession and always being given the freedom to conduct business in an honorable way, I can truly say that I have enjoyed working with those corvette consumers that have given me an opportunity to earn their business. I have also made myself available to them after the sale as well as during the sale and on various occassions have had the opportunity to assist some of my customers from all over this country even when they were not in the process of purchasing another car.

We are all spoiled when dealers chose to drop the price of these vehicles to a level that the dealership itself is literally paying someone to take these vehicles off their hands in an effort to maintain their allocations for the next body style in which they do intend to charge MSRP. So do I, because right now everyone is taking advantage of the fact that the cars are being given away and that is OK for the consumer at this time. Sure you may get a car at a lower price at another dealer and it is not an issue to determine if your sales representative will still be around to assist you when you have a question or if you have difficulty with the service department. I have simply chosen a different direction in the way I work with my customers and am trying very hard to remain someplace that allows me to treat my customers in a professional manner that will keep them coming back.

I take no offense in your comments and respect your right to voice your opinion. We on the other hand have made a business decission that we do not feel bad about and will not allow the decisions made by other dealers effect what we have decided to do. I might add that in the 5 years that I have been on the forum, I have always been able to hold my head up in the way that I have dealt with my customers. You will not hear much of that but only those that are displeased with your decisions. That is unfortunate but the way of life on the forum.

I have a rule kinda like Ken's rule " Under Promise , Over Deliver "; mine is "Always tell the truth and you will never have to remember what you said to any of your customers".

I am sorry if anyone is offended that we are conducting business by asking more than someone else. Isn't this country great though, if you are unhappy with the price, no one is forcing you to buy it. It's kinda like Goldsmith's and Walmart. Some prefer Walmart because the price is lower. Some would prefer to purchase their items at Goldsmith's.

My job was to offer the vehicle as I have done. Along with that will come the reality that there are many that will not want to pay the price and their are some that may still consider that I have one that will be available if they are willing to pay the price. There is nothing wrong with either position.

Out of 40 salesmen, I have chosen to reach out to the entire country in lieu of waiting for someone to wonder onto my lot here in Memphis. I think that is a good business decision due to the fact that there will be the dealers that will still ask over MSRP for this unit. The only prices that you see are the ones that posted on this forum. There are many dealers that do not want anything to do with the Internet. I personally have made a fair living by doing so. As I said though, if you are going to post on this forum you better be prepared to accept the fact that their are many that do not like what you are asking and want to make it known.

All I can say is it is your right to express that, but please do not judge the way that I treat my customers or potential customers until you become one.

My right is to ask what I feel I should for this particular vehicle.

Thanks for your comments.


[Modified by Karl Johanson, 12:54 PM 4/13/2004]


[Modified by Karl Johanson, 2:02 PM 4/13/2004]

dizzzzy

Thank you for the response Karl, and you do make sense in your statement.. I have not had the pleasure of purchasing a C5 from you, and maybe I am missing something... Only question I would have left, is the one that went unanswered.. What If I were to trade in a Z16 to your dealership?? Would I expect to see your dealership returning some of my hard earned cash back to me, for something like the Z16 which would have cost me so much more purchasing it through you?? If you could honestly say yes, then I guess I was mistaken to ever judge you..

96 Collector Edition

:nonod: :nonod: :nonod: :nonod:

I also hear you saying, Karl, that you seem to feel that you make buying a Corvette from you such a pleasure that the fact that the same Corvette can be bought elsewhere for less does not matter. I must say that does not make much sense to me. I do, however, agree that you certainly may ask whatever you feel is fair for any vehicle and the rest is up to the consumer.


:cheers: :seeya

Karl Johanson

Dizzy,

You seem to be an intellegent young man. Wish I was 35 again. Can you honestly tell me that you expect to get all of your money back when you purchase an automobile. It will depend on whether you intend to purchase this vehicle for pleasure and enjoy it or whether you intend to place it in your garage until you are 65 that will determine how much you can expect to get back out of this vehicle. I believe I read the other day that Roger's Corvette center paid about 612000 for a 62 or 63 model with 12 miles on it at an auction. Wouldn't that be great, if we are still alive 40 years down the road. If you would like to trade the vehicle immediately, then your answer is no you will not get as much of your hard earned money back if you pay my price over one of the other dealers. I believe that is obvious to everyone on this board. Is that really an issue here. Do you expect to purchase any vehicle and turn around and trade it immediately. If that is your intent, I would have also advised you not to buy it in the first place whether from myself or the other dealer that is going to give you 6000 off. Do you believe that he will turn around and give it back to you as well? Even though, I honestly don't believe that you have an interest in my car but would like to see if you can get a rise out of me, I guess you have that right. This vehicle is obviously not for you but that does not mean that it is not something that someone else in the country would not like to have. My advice would be if you feel that the deal is not acceptable to you then that is OK with me. It would be better for you to purchase one of the other dealers cars while they are still available in lieu of questioning my motives. If I have not answered your question to your satisfaction, then please feel free to discuss it personally. We pay the forum good money to advertise what we have available to the consumer and if you have a genuine interest in the car then feel free to call me. If you are trying to make a point that everyone on the board already is able to figure out on their own, then you have made your point. If you are just trying to see if I will be honest with you,then I hope that I have satisfied your curiousity.

Karl Johanson

I do place a lot of time an effort into insuring that my customers are well taken care of. I strive to be one of Chevrolet's best salesman and have generally maintained a 3.96 customer satisfaction index out of 4 points. That is not an easy thing to do and any salesmen on this board will understand that. I don't claim to be perfect but I sure try to be. I did not intend to sound as though I feel that I am better than any other Professional Salesman, however; and if that is how it came across I apologize to anyone that was offended. The fact is that I do care about my customers before and after the sale. I appreciate all of my customers that have allowed me an opportunity to serve them in that fashion.

This is a tough job in todays economy but only those that have tried to make a living in the automobile industry can fully understand how tough. I will never be able to please everyone; I am responsible to do the best I can for those that allow me to do so and understand that we all have a responsibility to someone other than ourselves.

Thanks again for your comments.

AHMAD

Your post did not make any sense, Dizzzy. What Karl was saying is that if more poeple didn't engage in price wars, then it wouldn't hurt the overall resale market as much. Of course regular Vettes are selling dirt cheap. The Z16s are the few cars that dealers can actually justify MSRP or close to it because of the very limited production and they are more likely to get MSRP for that car than a regular C5. There may be some dealers that are selling it less, but on the other hand, there are dealers that are asking more. Hell, there are still dealers that are asking over sticker for a coupe or Vert. Resale value is not affected by what you paid new for the car and we all know that...so I don't know why you took what Karl said and ran with it. He was making a point that people like him that don't just try to outdue the other dealer by a few hundred, are the ones that keep the resale market from not falling AS FAST. Naturally, if prices get lower and lower, then resale value does the same. I have had the opportunity to purchase a Corvette from Karl and he hass been a great help both before(while ordering), during and after the sale. Something I haven't been able to find in many salespeople.

I also agree that everyone wants a great price, but alot of people comrpomise service for money and regret it after the sale when the salesman is no longer able to be reached, or is just not any help. I think that due to the fact that there aren't that many Z16s out there, MSRP isn't too high of a price. Heck, just about a month ago they were selling for MSRP right?...and a dicount was unheard of. There are people who can't travel, and some who don't spend all their time online that will want this car and pay MSRP for a limited production car. They won't get more than me or you for the same car if thet paid more, but if nobody is giving away Z16s..and more people held them for sticker, resale valuse would be a little more I guarantee you that.

Anyway, just my $0.02. Don't think it's a bad deal and especially if Karl sells it to you.




[Modified by 2003yellowZ06, 6:56 PM 4/14/2004]

Maalox

Karl,

I think it is refreshing that you have maintained your composure throughout this thread. Let me know when you want to sell your 04 Spiral coupe. I would be interested

Maalox

C5Longhorn

Well said Karl. Your honesty is appreciated. I bought my '99 coupe from Chuck Hutton when I lived in Memphis and wish you would have been my salesman.

Karl Johanson

My coupe will be available in most cases in about 6 months. Please let me know if you are still interested around October.

Thanks for asking.

Karl Johanson

TTT