Should Corvette Become its Own Brand?

[HOTMOTORSPORTS]

I don't think the interior discussion would be cured with a dedicated Corvette division.

With an allocation change to the dealers letting them order the Corvettes in the quatities they want (within limits of production), then some of the service problems should go away. Sincere dealers and not dealers with special quatities alloted to them would earn the respect from the customer for service, support, knowleadge, and pricing. Just think of every Chevrolet dealer having 6 to 12 Corvettes a year if they want!

Having options such as cloth seats, no power anything, even radio-delete and primer exterior would make the car more affordable and the public (and press) would go nuts with the possibilities.

The question of a three tier Corvette would take car of itself.

Just think, we may have cured most of the Corvette blues! If we were in the styling/engineering meetings, we could have made a Corvette bonus for each of us.

Chuck

 

[Vettelt193]

I agree...

we should be in charge of making the corvette design decisions... after all, we are the ones that actually drive the car

 

[gooney0]

I'm with " singledad_9 ."

There has always been a strange relationship between Chevrolet and Corvette. You'll notice a surprising lack of "bowties" on a Corvette, and the word "Chevrolet" is hard to find.

I think they try to play both sides. They want Corvette buyers to think they are getting something better than a Cavalier, and they want Cavalier buyers to think they are getting a car by the makers of the Corvette!

I see this alot from Camaro guys. They are always looking to add a few HP, then they think their cars are as good as the Corvette (or at least the same thing) for less money.

Likewise, i've met VW owners who think their car is the "same thing" as a Porsche.

I don't see GM opening "Corvette" dealers. They don't sell that many Corvettes as compared to the Grand Prix or Cavalier. Not to mention they are closing Oldsmobile and have quit making the Camaro/Firebird.

It all comes down to a matter of price, and who wants to buy. The Camaro (i think) was always a good deal for the money. Not a "true sports car" like a Corvette or Porsche but for $20,000 you get to do burn outs.


Likewise, the Corvette isn't a Lotus, but for $50,000 you get a lot of "sports car." If they made the Corvette $100,000+ nobody would buy it. How often do you see a Lotus?

Last I checked, GM lost $1,100 on each Cavalier they sold. They keep making them because they want to sell you your first Chevy in the hopes you'll move up next time.

It would be nice to order a vette (or any car) with exactly the features you want. I don't think GM wants to build cars "to order," anymore than McDonalds likes special orders. ( you know how well they do that! )

I think the Corvette exists so that GM can issue press releases!

-Gooney0

 

[kenwa]

I can't see GM making Corvette it's own brand. Only about 36,000 Vettes are sold every year. That's not nearly enough for a dealer to sell exclusively. So, who would sell the Corvette brand? Well, Chevy dealers of course. So, really nothing would change: same salesmen, mechanics, etc.

BTW, offering more options (even "lower price" options) will not actually lower price, but probably raise price instead. Every time the assembly line has to put something together that is different, it takes money to make the change.

 

[Interceptor430]

I voted no. The Corvette should always be Chrevrolet.

 

[phxraptor]

I voted no. Perhaps to give better service and allow the selling dealer to get more cars to sell the General should take note of what Ford (ugly word I know) does with their SVO and SVT line of cars. Not all Ford dealers are allowed to sell these,they are specialty Ford dealers and by doing this those dealers have ALL the hypo cars to sell and the techs that must service these cars are better trained and enjoy working on them Because they are the cream of the crop techs,they have pride in working on those cars. Just a thought.

 

[ROCKETBLOCK]

I don't need runflats either. They're heavy, expensive to replace, and I belong to the Auto club. How many flats have you actually had in your life? The cost & all-the-time-weight make the insurance to expensive for me. IMO it's OK to save cost / price here too. Make 'em an option.

This thread is about whether Corvette should be it's own brand and not a Chevy, but I must respond to runflats. First of all the next generation runflat (we are told) is going to be lighter and better. Second, I am a member of an Auto Club and I have waited 1 1/2 hours from daylight into darkness for a wrecker to show up. He'll put on your spare... if your spare has air in it. My spare was low and his compressor on the truck didn't work. I drove the car to a gas station to fix and air up the regular tire on a flat mini-spare. That was fun and it trashed the spare. I will take the run-flats any time. What a great technological advancement. By-the-way Corvette should always be a Chevy!!!

 

[Neepawa]

they are specialty Ford dealers and by doing this those dealers have ALL the hypo cars to sell and the techs that must service these cars

Well, not that this is a Ford thing, but my Explorer is from a dealer that sells the hot SVT cars, doesn't make them better at service.

As for the Bow Tie, I don't see how you could consider a Vette to be anything other than a Chevy. After all, that thing under the hood is not a small block Toyota is it?

 

[Corvette-Pilot]

No !

The Covrvette IS Chrevrolet.
Only in the past few years have the trucks picked up the slack otherwise there is nothing to make Chevy stand out. They dumped the Firebird/Camaro ? Why dump the flagship of the fleet.

Then again a Corvette only dealer will more likely be able to fix one than the present dealer network.
Not a good enough reason to split it off though.

My $.02

 

[vette-dude]

I am going against the grain here by stating that I bought a Corvette -- not a Chevy! The Corvette has a lot more quality built into it than the Chevys I currently own. The Chevys I drive
( Impala LS & Silverado C-1500) are less than three years old and the quality of both in terms of interior, suspension, paint, and fit & finish is extremely shoddy and second rate. On the other hand my 12 year old Corvette fit & finish is excellent, the paint is perfect, the suspension is still working well after 75K miles and I am extremely pleased with all aspects of the workmanship put into this car. Should Corvette be its own Marquee?? I say yes as it is miles ahead of Chevy in the manufacturing of a quality automobile and besides it is a sports car not an everday persons transportation. Whether the Corporate Gurus at GM would ever make Corvette a separate entity is doubtful but if they continue to produce the poor quality Chevy's (both cars and trucks) it is only a matter of time before their lousy quality programs bleed over to the Corvette line. I have always driven Chevy's in the past but I will never purchase another Chevy car or truck. I would however buy another Corvette.

Randy

 

[LongTimer]

... it is only a matter of time before their lousy quality programs bleed over to the Corvette line. I have always driven Chevy's in the past but I will never purchase another Chevy car or truck. I would however buy another Corvette.

Randy

Randy, I agree with some of what you say. I think that Chevy and Vette will NEVER part ways. But, I am NOT Chevy bashing here, I think they lead their class. However, IMO the Vette has changed Classes. Having owned C3s and a C4 and spent trip time in a buddy's C5, it's my opinion that vette quality is the highest ever today, certainly the price is. Fit and Finish on my older vettes is generally acceptable or poor - but they were bargains for their time costing little more than the loaded 4 dr sedan that Chevy sold. Today's Vette can cost more than twice the price of a loaded Impala.

Rob has asked that we keep service out of this discussion, so let me refer to the Customer / Dealer relationship as the driver for my position on this issue. The vast majority of Chevy dealers do not have an organization in place that is capable of providing the appropriate level of interaction with a customer that pays $50-60k for his/her investment. IMO.

 

[Edmond]

I think that Corvette should be it's own brand if that will allow Corvette to bypass all the beancounters and politics at GM. At the same time, I still think the car should be affordable.

Comparing Corvette to Porsche isn't a fair comparison. Porsche is the brand name of their line and Corvette is a specific model. But I would like the idea of having more options or less options if you'd like. How would that effect cost? I don't know, but I think that dealers would have to have less stock on hand so they can have their money tied into the faster selling vehicles.

 

[HOTMOTORSPORTS]

Edmund,

Porche is a perfect example why Corvette should stay with Chevrolet.

For 2003:

1st 6 Months of Chevrolet produced about 390,000.

1st 6 months of Porche produced about 13,215.

1st 6 month of Corvette produced about 16,946.

With that, think of how expensive Corvette would get with these low numbers. That doesn't count lowing costs by sharing many of the Corvette's parts and electronics with the others (Cadillac, Pontiac, etc.). AND getting something from them. Although it could still happen being under the GM umbrella.

Also not being able to share beancounters (no choice, that comes with politics), would add even more.

I'm not trying to make your suggestions sound bad. You want it both ways which would be nice, but I don't think it could work.

Chuck

 

[Edmond]

Chuck,

I know, my ideas would never work. We would need utopia! :L:L:L

But at the same time, I feel those beancounters and the politics at GM keep the Corvette from really making bigger leaps and bounds. Don't get me wrong, with each generation and trim; the Corvette is raising the bar of performance. But what if there were no politics and beancounters holding the Corvette back? Do Corvette sales really account for that much in terms of the whole GM picture?

 

[HOTMOTORSPORTS]

Here's some food for thought. During the mid years 63-67, the beancounters and others wanted the Corvette to stay front engine.

Imagine if Zora would have had nobody in his way for the mid-engine!!!

Ouch.

Chuck

 

[Blade]

Not just No, But H-E-double-hockey-sticks No!

Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix it.

Don’t need Corvette to become car(s) for the mass population. The Corvette is a unique automobile. Chevy & GM already make an assortment of other vehicles to appeal to the masses and other specialty groups.

 

[HOTMOTORSPORTS]

NC 50anny,

I never thought of that part of it. GM never lets another GM car actually beat the HP of the Corvette.

Wonder if there would be an "all bets are off" for horse power againts Corvette?

Chuck

 

[RedVetteMan02]

i don't see why not...as long as it's still with GM!

 

[Edmond]

NC 50anny,

I never thought of that part of it. GM never lets another GM car actually beat the HP of the Corvette.

Wonder if there would be an "all bets are off" for horse power againts Corvette?

Chuck

I believe the Buick GNX was something that came close right? Hell, the F-body's were awfully close. The differences were basically car weight and exhaust tuning.

I always thought that GM didn't elevate the Vette' to a higher status, GM just kept the other cars under the status quo in terms of Vette' performance.

 

[Tuna]

I believe the Buick GNX was something that came close right? Hell, the F-body's were awfully close. The differences were basically car weight and exhaust tuning.

The standard 1986 Buick GN was listed at 235 HP right there with the Vettes 230/235.

The standard 1987 GN bumped the HP up to 250 - Vette bumped to 240.

The 1987 GNX was a special version of the standard GN and was advertised at 300HP. Only 547 were built. However, the Callaway Corvette came along that same year with 345 HP and there were only 184 of them.

So, the standard GN was a little ahead of the standard Vette in HP. But the special Callaway version was ahead of the special GNX.

My 2 cents.