C7 Discounts...My Thoughts
 

From reading the various C7 threads it looks as though there will be a significant number of dealers nation wide that will be selling the C7's at MSRP (there is still a good profit at MSRP). If the large forum dealers are doing the same (selling at MSRP) what's to stop the buyers from buying local versus our forum dealers taking into consideration the costs of buying remote. I realize the logistics of the allocation process for the large dealers but I do not think that will be enough of an advantage to not consider buying local.
I feel that the CF Dealers will have to discount the C7's by an amount to offset the advantages of buying local at MSRP.
Just my thoughts......can anyone remember what the large dealers did with pricing with the introduction of the C6's?

I am buying my C7 from a forum dealer (Mike Furman) because I want an expert in corvettes to help me in the ordering process. I am willing to pay for that expertise.

I am not familiar with the pricing dynamics of large dealers versus small dealers. I actually don't now what makes a large dealer "large" versus "small".
My C6 purchase underwent "standard cookie cutter" discounts:

- One year old model discount
- USAA discount
- And another that I do not recall at the moment.

Each carried a set quota/amount


I discerned the same approach talking to the Chevrolet dealer this morning.

For the first year model (allegedly only 900 to be produced...) it looks like the Corvette loyalty discount cannot be applied...

As you all know pricing is still in limbo..I was told ranges in the 70-80 for a 3LT (all) non Z51..

Where on earth did you get that info. There are about 900 dealers that are going to get allocations during the first 6-9 months. There will be way more than 900 produced - thousands.

More like 15,000 to 17,000 in the first 6 months.

Yep, :iagree:

Ok so maybe you have been living under a rock or maybe just turned 16 and you are rich and buying your first Corvette but people pay many thousands of dollars over msrp to have their cars before others. That is the whole reason people pay what they pay so if you do not see how or why people would buy from a forum dealer with a high allocation (which I would assume means they will get their car earlier then if they ordered local, even at the same price) then I don't know what to tell you.

1. Many "local" dealers will not even get a C7 for the first 6-9 months. Only 900 dealers out of 3000+ will.
2. Many local dealers will be adding a "Market adjustment", adding $1000's to the price.
3. The forum dealers with their significantly larger allocations will get cars before many of the other dealers do.

I'm getting mine from a forum dealer and doing Museum delivery. Museum delivery adds slightly to the cost, but it gives a good opportunity to tour the assembly plant and take a nice road trip home. That experience easily justifies the slightly higher cost.

Reliable has all their first round of allocations spoken for at $1,000 UNDER MSRP. A forum member was told by MacMulkin that they were taking orders at $500 UNDER MSRP.

Reliable is a top 50 Corvette dealer and MacMulkin is #2 in Corvette sales. Looks like some very stupid people are buying their new C7's for UNDER MSRP, not thousands OVER MSRP. I bet that Reliable's and MacMulkin customers get their C7's early in the production run(first on their block at less than MSRP).

But, if you want to pay thousands over MSRP, there is a dealer looking for you. Something about a fool and his money are soon parted.

My local dealer stated, they will be asking 10-15 K over list for the C7.

I am relating what I was told by the "boss" of a chevy dealer and it could be very likely that I misunderstood him as he was referencing number of dealers (900) versus number of units built up to DEC 13.

900 units built between AUG and DEC 13 is kind of low I suppose?

especially considering that the line speed produces 18 C7's an hour. That is over 3,000 a MONTH rolling out of Bowling Green.

The 900 dealers that will be selling the C7's initially, sell 80% of the Corvettes sold. The remaining 2,000 dealers don't sell that many Corvettes.

The top 50 dealers sell 34% of the Corvettes sold.

Sent an email and left a phone message for the Florida CF dealer. I did not get a reply. So, I went to a local dealer that is large and had allocations. My order was placed last Monday. Maybe the CF dealers will get orders filled before my local dealer. No way that I will know if a CF dealer would have gotten the car sooner. Without a price discount, I do not see what difference it makes.

asking and getting are two different things. 10-15k over MSRP will not be the norm, even though they might find a few suckers. I can even imagine some of this forum's members contacting them.

My experience with my C6 purchase was, local dealers will discount to match the larger dealer's discounts. Remember, there will be recalls and warranty issues. Chevrolet dealers have to honor service issues on your new Corvette, but really are they going to go the extra mile if they didn't sell the car.

Thank you and MAN! 18C7s/Hr!!!

I recall reading about 9C6s/Hr back when...

With these kinds of outputs there ought to be space for demand and supply discounts..

There is no magic to forum dealers. Yes, there are very good ones and if you don't have a dealer local that you like it's a great option. I have an excellent relationship with a local Chevy dealer that I have bought 17 vehicles from (six Corvettes). I would not buy a Corvette from anyone else due to my past relationship.

Keep in mind that I deal directly with the owner and inventory manager, and when they tell me what they can get I know they are telling the truth. When the C6 came out and most dealers were at or over list, they did discount it for me a little. But again, it depends upon your situation.

When the market hit the skids on the C6, GM did slow down the line several times. I think the first time was from 18.5/hr to around 11-2/hr and then down to around 8/hr. During that time frame, GM also shut down the plant several times because the dealers weren't ordering. I think they shut down for 3-4 weeks several times.

GM has apparently configured the plant to produce the C7 at 18/hr but they have the flexibility to adjust the line speed to produce less cars per hour(with fewer direct labor employees). While there will be no shortages of C7's GM will not flood the market. GM only builds Corvettes to fill their dealer's orders, not to fill the storage lot behind the plant.

Your point is good. And, a dealer can make as much or more servicing your car over five or six years as they made at the sale. I have seldom had the car serviced where I bought it.

There may be a lot of preorders in the books but taking into account the release will be in the (bad timing) fall, the fact that the economy sucks, and the fact that many will wait for the bugs to be worked coupled with not wanting to pay MSRP it would be prudent for those who don't have to have the first builds to wait. Supply and demand is what makes the world of cars go round, believe me if cars start to sit on dealer lots going into the winter watch how fast the dealers boxers hit their ankles.