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GM moves '04 Corvettes with rebates, 0% financing
Scores of outgoing models must sell to clear way for 2005
By Ed Garsten / The Detroit News
Less than a week after rolling out the Chevrolet Corvette of the future, General Motors Corp. is putting cash on the hood and offering zero percent financing on the outgoing model.
Today through Feb. 2, customers purchasing a 2004 Corvette will have the choice of a $2,000 cash rebate or no-interest financing for up to five years, according to dealers.
GM wants to clean out inventories of the outgoing model — known internally as the C5 — to clear the way for the all-new 2005 Corvette, which goes on sale in the fall.
At the end of November, GM had enough Corvettes stockpiled to last 162 days at current sales rates — far above the industry average of 65 days. In December, Corvette sales dropped 38 percent.
“We’ve got some 160 C5s on the ground,” said Scott Montgomery, sales manager at Les Stanford Chevrolet in Dearborn. “They’re trying to take the person considering paying cash and flushing them out.”
Corvette sales were down 14.1 percent in 2003 compared with 2002, according to Autodata Corp. The decline may be due to anticipation of the 2005 model, only the sixth generation of the Corvette in its 50-year history.
Montgomery said he’s taken deposits on 2005 Corvettes from more than 40 customers since Monday.
This isn’t the first time in recent months GM has baited Corvette customers with incentives. In September, GM offered the choice of a $1,000 rebate or low and no-interest financing to clear out remaining inventory of 2003 Corvette models.
