NCM Delivery Report
12-28-2006, 09:35 PM
#1
Le Mans Master
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St. Jude Donor '07
NCM Delivery Report
Well, I finally got around to typing this up.
I ordered my car back on November 16th. Got a TPW of December 11th. Car came off the line on December 11th. Spoke with Gary at the Museum and he told me to be quiet about it but he was going to cheat a little bit with my car to get it delivered to me on December 21st. They're supposed to hold the cars for a 2 week period but Gary got it to me 10 days after it came off the line. The R8C option was paying dividends already. An early Christmas present for me.
Took the usual trip explained by others on the forum. Flew into Nashville, TN on the 20th and then rented a car at Enterprise (totally painless - just left the car in the lot and the keys with my guide). Drove to Bowling Green that night and stayed at the Baymont Inn. Not a great hotel but not a bad one either. Went ahead and booked my room there for the Corvette Forum Cruise In while I was there.
Got up the next morning and it was a dreary day, weather-wise anyway. But that damn sure wasn't going to dampen my spirits. No-sir-ree-Bob! I was getting ready to take delivery of my 2007 Atomic Orange Convertible.
So I head over to the museum for my 11:15 appointment (Gary couldn't get me the 7:45 before Christmas). Met up with my tour guide, Carroll. An older gentleman, knowledgeable and nice as could be. Watched the safety film and then headed over to the plant. What an experience! I'd almost say that was worth the price of admission right there. I thoroughly enjoyed the plant tour. Met a lot of workers and all were friendly and seemed to be very much into the quality aspect of performing their jobs.
After the plant tour it was back to the museum to go through the paperwork and go over the car. I got a bunch of paperwork and the museum even put the seat plastics and other covers in one of the trunk cubbies. I got my window sticker laminated and ordered a build sheet.
After taking care of the paperwork and thoroughly going over the car with Carroll I got a very quick tour of the museum. I will be going through it more thoroughly when I return for the Corvette Forum Cruise In this coming May.
By then the sun was dropping fast and Carroll still wanted to get my picture out front. Soon thereafter I left and went back to my hotel room. Because it was getting dark, I decided to wait until the morning to begin my drive back home in my new baby.
Went out to dinner at the Montana Grill. It's everything everyone on here has said it would be. I got an awesome ribeye with some killer baked beans.
Got up the next morning and headed over to the plant for a couple more photos before I hit the road home.
For the break-in I decided to take some back roads through Kentucky and Tennessee before hitting the interstate. I had a map that I had printed off of Map Quest with written instructions to go with it. At one point the instructions said to go right on KY 928. I never saw a sign anywhere and I hadn't completely figured out how to program the NAV for guidance. However, I did have the NAV turned on and checking it all along I noticed that KY 928 was a road I had passed.
Whipped a U-turn and hung a left onto unmarked KY 928. Damn! How did I live without NAV? I know others have said it's not all that great but for someone that's never experienced any navigation unit, I absolutely love it.
Anyway, I ended up hopping on I-40 after about 150 miles of backroads, drove down to Ashville, NC and stayed for the night. Up the next morning and got on I-26 heading for Charleston, SC. Hit the 500 mile mark at mile marker 117 on
I-26E. Woo Hoo! Romped on it a bit but stayed somewhat subdued. Stopped in Charleston to visit with CF member mph1972 (Micah). Even got to wash off all the highway crud off of the car there. Thanks again Micah! 
Late the next morning (Christmas Eve) I was on I-95S headed home. Arrived home around 4:30ish with 928 miles on the car.
All in all, an awesome ride in an awesome car. Had a complete blast the entire time. Couldn't have asked for anything better other than weather.
Here's some shots from the delivery, etc. I'll try to get some of the car in the sun and post those up soon.
Because it was getting close to plant shut down the museum was delivering more than 12 cars per day. I ended up getting the engineering position...
Just had to have this picture showing the odometer when I took delivery…
Crappy weather but I wasn’t about to let it dampen my spirits..
Unfortunately it had gotten too dark the night before and I wasn't able to get the shot with my name on the marquee...
Thoughts on the car...
Fit & Finish: Overall I consider the fit to be fairly decent. There's better, yeah, but it's a step up from the C5 IMO and I'm happy with it. The only real nag I have is that there is a buffeting noise behind the rear window at around 73-74 mph. I have read on here that this is caused by the trunk lid having too large of a gap in that area. Nothing a little adjustment won't cure. The cockpit is very tight, especially compared to the C5. Rather quiet and definitely more refined.
Paint: The museum did a great job prepping the car for me as I didn't find a single scratch or mar on the car anywhere. The interior had a couple of spots that could have been done a little better but they wiped right off when I got the car home. This was definitely the right color choice for me. Absolutely stunning in the sun and I have received several compliments on the color in the short period that I have owned the car. It does have a fair amount of orange peel on it but I will come to live with it. It is a Corvette afterall and they are well know for their orange peel. Besides, it fits my Atomic "Orange" perfectly.
Handling: I got the Z51 package and haven't had a chance to get to a track yet so I haven't even come close to putting the car through its paces. However, it handles like a dream in city and highway driving. The runflats are noisy as hell though. I had heard they were quieter that the C5 runflats but I sure don't remember my C5's runflats being this loud.
Power: The car feels a quite bit stronger than my C5 with intake and LT's. Of course I have yet to find a chance to plant my foot on the floor thus far. I got the paddle shifters and for those of us that are physically limited, it is the next best thing to being able to drive a stick in a Vette. There's definitely more of a delay in the upshifts over the downshifts but that is just something to get used to. Personally, I love this feature of the car. The only downside is that when I was in S mode I have accidently bumped the downshift without knowing until I see the rpm's shoot up. A little scary at first but just another learning curve for me.
Overall, I am a very satisfied Corvette owner.
I ordered my car back on November 16th. Got a TPW of December 11th. Car came off the line on December 11th. Spoke with Gary at the Museum and he told me to be quiet about it but he was going to cheat a little bit with my car to get it delivered to me on December 21st. They're supposed to hold the cars for a 2 week period but Gary got it to me 10 days after it came off the line. The R8C option was paying dividends already. An early Christmas present for me.
Took the usual trip explained by others on the forum. Flew into Nashville, TN on the 20th and then rented a car at Enterprise (totally painless - just left the car in the lot and the keys with my guide). Drove to Bowling Green that night and stayed at the Baymont Inn. Not a great hotel but not a bad one either. Went ahead and booked my room there for the Corvette Forum Cruise In while I was there.
Got up the next morning and it was a dreary day, weather-wise anyway. But that damn sure wasn't going to dampen my spirits. No-sir-ree-Bob! I was getting ready to take delivery of my 2007 Atomic Orange Convertible.
So I head over to the museum for my 11:15 appointment (Gary couldn't get me the 7:45 before Christmas). Met up with my tour guide, Carroll. An older gentleman, knowledgeable and nice as could be. Watched the safety film and then headed over to the plant. What an experience! I'd almost say that was worth the price of admission right there. I thoroughly enjoyed the plant tour. Met a lot of workers and all were friendly and seemed to be very much into the quality aspect of performing their jobs.
After the plant tour it was back to the museum to go through the paperwork and go over the car. I got a bunch of paperwork and the museum even put the seat plastics and other covers in one of the trunk cubbies. I got my window sticker laminated and ordered a build sheet.
After taking care of the paperwork and thoroughly going over the car with Carroll I got a very quick tour of the museum. I will be going through it more thoroughly when I return for the Corvette Forum Cruise In this coming May.
By then the sun was dropping fast and Carroll still wanted to get my picture out front. Soon thereafter I left and went back to my hotel room. Because it was getting dark, I decided to wait until the morning to begin my drive back home in my new baby.
Went out to dinner at the Montana Grill. It's everything everyone on here has said it would be. I got an awesome ribeye with some killer baked beans.
Got up the next morning and headed over to the plant for a couple more photos before I hit the road home.
For the break-in I decided to take some back roads through Kentucky and Tennessee before hitting the interstate. I had a map that I had printed off of Map Quest with written instructions to go with it. At one point the instructions said to go right on KY 928. I never saw a sign anywhere and I hadn't completely figured out how to program the NAV for guidance. However, I did have the NAV turned on and checking it all along I noticed that KY 928 was a road I had passed.
Whipped a U-turn and hung a left onto unmarked KY 928. Damn! How did I live without NAV? I know others have said it's not all that great but for someone that's never experienced any navigation unit, I absolutely love it.
Anyway, I ended up hopping on I-40 after about 150 miles of backroads, drove down to Ashville, NC and stayed for the night. Up the next morning and got on I-26 heading for Charleston, SC. Hit the 500 mile mark at mile marker 117 on
I-26E. Woo Hoo!
Romped on it a bit but stayed somewhat subdued. Stopped in Charleston to visit with CF member mph1972 (Micah). Even got to wash off all the highway crud off of the car there. Thanks again Micah! Late the next morning (Christmas Eve) I was on I-95S headed home. Arrived home around 4:30ish with 928 miles on the car.
All in all, an awesome ride in an awesome car. Had a complete blast the entire time. Couldn't have asked for anything better other than weather.
Here's some shots from the delivery, etc. I'll try to get some of the car in the sun and post those up soon.
Because it was getting close to plant shut down the museum was delivering more than 12 cars per day. I ended up getting the engineering position...
Just had to have this picture showing the odometer when I took delivery…
Crappy weather but I wasn’t about to let it dampen my spirits..
Unfortunately it had gotten too dark the night before and I wasn't able to get the shot with my name on the marquee...
Thoughts on the car...
Fit & Finish: Overall I consider the fit to be fairly decent. There's better, yeah, but it's a step up from the C5 IMO and I'm happy with it. The only real nag I have is that there is a buffeting noise behind the rear window at around 73-74 mph. I have read on here that this is caused by the trunk lid having too large of a gap in that area. Nothing a little adjustment won't cure. The cockpit is very tight, especially compared to the C5. Rather quiet and definitely more refined.
Paint: The museum did a great job prepping the car for me as I didn't find a single scratch or mar on the car anywhere. The interior had a couple of spots that could have been done a little better but they wiped right off when I got the car home. This was definitely the right color choice for me. Absolutely stunning in the sun and I have received several compliments on the color in the short period that I have owned the car. It does have a fair amount of orange peel on it but I will come to live with it. It is a Corvette afterall and they are well know for their orange peel. Besides, it fits my Atomic "Orange" perfectly.
Handling: I got the Z51 package and haven't had a chance to get to a track yet so I haven't even come close to putting the car through its paces. However, it handles like a dream in city and highway driving. The runflats are noisy as hell though. I had heard they were quieter that the C5 runflats but I sure don't remember my C5's runflats being this loud.
Power: The car feels a quite bit stronger than my C5 with intake and LT's. Of course I have yet to find a chance to plant my foot on the floor thus far. I got the paddle shifters and for those of us that are physically limited, it is the next best thing to being able to drive a stick in a Vette. There's definitely more of a delay in the upshifts over the downshifts but that is just something to get used to. Personally, I love this feature of the car. The only downside is that when I was in S mode I have accidently bumped the downshift without knowing until I see the rpm's shoot up. A little scary at first but just another learning curve for me.
Overall, I am a very satisfied Corvette owner.
12-28-2006, 10:19 PM
#5
Le Mans Master
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St. Jude Donor '07
Thanks guys.
mikepipe597: You're going to love it. Good luck on the weather for you.
su8pack1: Yeah, I have seen your avatar on here before and thought, "Oh man, I sure hope I get a sunny day." Didn't happen weather-wise but my eyes were bright as all get out.
mikepipe597: You're going to love it. Good luck on the weather for you.
su8pack1: Yeah, I have seen your avatar on here before and thought, "Oh man, I sure hope I get a sunny day." Didn't happen weather-wise but my eyes were bright as all get out.
12-28-2006, 10:43 PM
#9
Pro
Great pics and write up.Got mine on Tuesday
the 19th. Great experience. I stayed at the new
super 8, teriffic room at an great price.
I also rented a car at Enterprise nashville airport .
Was told $100 plus tax. Ended up being $135.
Tennessee must have 35% tax rate,?
The museum did a great job prepping my car.
WAR EAGLE
the 19th. Great experience. I stayed at the new
super 8, teriffic room at an great price.
I also rented a car at Enterprise nashville airport .
Was told $100 plus tax. Ended up being $135.
Tennessee must have 35% tax rate,?
The museum did a great job prepping my car.
WAR EAGLE
12-28-2006, 11:38 PM
#15
Drifting
Nice write-up....
Don't worry about bumping the revs with a downshift.... the rev limiter is very effective, and is your friend as you learn how to time those upshifts.
It isn't that the shift itself is slow, there's jsut that annoying lag from the time you punch the paddle until things start to happen.
Don't worry about bumping the revs with a downshift.... the rev limiter is very effective, and is your friend as you learn how to time those upshifts.
It isn't that the shift itself is slow, there's jsut that annoying lag from the time you punch the paddle until things start to happen.
12-29-2006, 07:00 AM
#16
Team Owner
Great trip report, brings back memories on my NCM delivery back in March, only it was a cool bright sunny day when they pulled our MR outside. Digitial photography doesn't do some of these colors justice
I had an easy 425 mile trip back home, but within the first 50 miles I had already bumped into the rev limiter too. I discovered how effective the C6 headlights are over the C5 as a buddy in his C5 traveled with us and as we were traveling side by side on a drak streach of interstate I dropped back until my headlights and his were luminating the same distance, I was 6 car lengths behind him.
Thanks for sharing your NCM delivey with us.
Tom
I had an easy 425 mile trip back home, but within the first 50 miles I had already bumped into the rev limiter too. I discovered how effective the C6 headlights are over the C5 as a buddy in his C5 traveled with us and as we were traveling side by side on a drak streach of interstate I dropped back until my headlights and his were luminating the same distance, I was 6 car lengths behind him.
Thanks for sharing your NCM delivey with us.
Tom
12-29-2006, 07:31 AM
#17
Burning Brakes
Nothing beats a museum pick up. Did mine Sept 8. Wife and i really enjoyed it. Great write up.
12-29-2006, 07:58 AM
#20
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Location: Franklin, Tennessee NCM Life Member #1631
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St Jude Donor '07-'08-'09
Great report on the best delivery experience in the business (IMHO). What a great way to start your experience with your new Corvette. Congrats.