I remember seeing some 2005 and 2006 C6 Corvettes (non-Z06s) selling as low as $18,000 and averaging the $24,000 mark.

Now that the C7 is here and is regarded by many folks and car magazines as being the greatest Corvette ever... how does this affect the second hand market for the C6 Corvettes?

Have they depreciated much faster now, meaning lower prices all across the board?

 

C6 prices wont drop significantly until the C7 has been on the streets for quite a while. Thats still a very long ways off considering customer purchased C7's wont even hit the streets until ill around July. As it stands now GM, just started taking orders for the C7 this morning (4/18). And those orders simply go into an order bank which tells them what materials & options to prioritize. On 4/25, pricing will finally be announced for the C7. Followed a week or so later with final production HP/MPG/performance stats. Yes the C7 is not finalized yet and still subject to testing & small changes. GM wont actually start production of the C7.. until sometime in May. Delivery to dealers in will begin late June or early July. And only the very top Corvette dealers will get allocation for the first 6 to 9 months. Smaller mom & pop Chevy dealers wont get ANY C7 allocation until next year (2014).

All that said expect C6 values to hold very firm throughout THIS spring & summer. Not only are the spring & summers typically "Corvette season" when people either buy these cars or take them out of winter hibernation. But the C6 still extremely popular & probably the best bang for the buck used performance car on the market. Also remember there are some Corvette fans who do not like the C7 styling and are particularly dissatisfied with the new rear-end/taillights. Keep in mind this is a rather small group of rather hardcore Corvette enthusiasts who prefer the more classic lines & 4 circle taillights of the C6 generation. And many from this group already own a C6.. but they will be looking to trade up their C6 base or GS model.. for a C6Z06, C6ZR1 or C6-427Vert model.. simply because those "top of the line" C6's are now more affordable than ever. There's also a plenty of signs pointing to the death of the 427ci LS7 engine. Making the C6Z06 even more desirable among Corvette traditionalists.

Expect all that C6 worship to continue until Fall comes later this year, temps drop & the 2013 Corvette season comes to an end. At that time, expect heavier amounts of depreciation on pretty much all C6's as the public will have gotten used to the C7 on the streets.. and the C6 begins to look very dated with the two cars side by side. At that point many C6's owners will be eager to trade their C6 for the latest & greatest C7.. a high-performance C7 model (Z06 or ZR1) will also be leaked out making closing to 700hp.

Lastly there's also alot of C6 owners who want the C7 right now, but do want to trade their reliable C6 in for a first year model C7. They are afraid of 1st year model bugs, 2nd year upgrades (8-speed auto or DCT tranny) & definitely do not want to pay MSRP (or even over sticker price) for a C7. A C7 that will only be drivable for a few months in Northern states. To sum it all up: This fall/winter, when the 2nd year 2015 C7 lineup gets announced.. THEN expect C6 prices to fall heavily.

 

Hello,

Thanks for the intelligible and informative reply. This is exactly the response I am looking for, and I DO hope by summer 2015, all the C6's will drop by 25% or so. I am leaning towards a black Z06 or a Grand Sport, with either ranging from low 20's to around mid 30's in price from private listings on various forums/sites.

I don't really need the HP and raw performance of a Z06, but prefer the exterior styling and looks over any other Corvette for the C6 family. GS is more than suitable for my needs, but something about the exterior styling doesn't do it for me and I'm not sure what.

Is the Z06 perhaps lower in height, longer, and wider in the rear/backend of the car, compared to a base and Grand Sport Corvette?

Thanks again!!

 

You can find C6Z06's in the mid-30's now. But these are generally '06/07 cars that have at-least 50k miles on the clock. The factory power-train warranty will have also expired on those cars. While I consider the LS power-train pretty much bulletproof and capable of 200k miles of trouble free driving.. the LS7 has been known to drop valves in a few examples. And nobody wants to spend $14,000 for a replacement LS7 motor.

When I say few.. maybe 1-2% of Z06's sold have experienced this problem. And generally speaking those Z06's were modified. The chance of buying a low mileage, stock Z06 that will experience a valve problem is extremely rare. Of course these low mileage, stock examples will have held their value better and will be more expensive to purchase. Expect to spend atleast $40k for one.

'08+ models are the most desirable because they received a transmission, steering, center console & key fob upgrade. '08+ models should also still be covered by factory GM power-train 5y/100k warranty. '09+ models came with Bluetooth. As I said before, expect to spend atleast $40k for one of these. If the base C7 provides C6Z06 performance OR a C7Zxx gets announced, then expect more C6Z06 trade-ins this coming fall/winter as those owners upgrade their car. And the price of a well kept '08+ Z06 to drop into the middle 30's.

Either way, I dont think you will be buying a C6Z06 in the 20's anytime soon. Even the oldest, higher milage cars are still commanding mid-30's selling prices. And to answer your question the Z06 is about 0.75" lower than a Base/GS car. The GS uses the same wide body panels as the Z06, so the two cars are exactly the same length & width.

 

I don't think it will plummet right away. I think the C7 has revamped interest and demand for the Corvette, so for those who can't afford a C7 right now, grabbing a C6 Grand Sport or Z06 is a pretty solid option. Maybe C5 prices will drop further (to C4 levels!).

 

I was hip-deep in the Corvette Community when the C6 was released. All the guys with C5Z06s were "hoping" to cash in. A few sold their low miles 2002-2004 Z06s for decent coin initially. Nobody would touch the 2001s even though they were the first. The reality finally set in and prices came down to earth and sales went back to normal by the time the 2007s were on the street.

We'll probably see that again. A few hopefuls will hold out for "Last year C7 Z06 Carbon edition/low miles OWN A LEGEND" ads go up and maybe a few unsuspecting first timers will fall for it, then by 2016 everything will be more reasonable in the C6 market.

I could see owning a 2011-2012 C6 GS or Z06. Chevy, like Ford with the Mustang (I still get in this thing and can't believe it's a Ford) have come a long way. They have def. closed the gap in mechanical/cosmetic/materials with the world market.

Mike