Personally I don’t believe there was as big a change between the C4 and C5 as there was between the C3 and the C4. Remember that the C3 was basically a C2 which was a late 1950’s design. The C4 launched the Vette into the 21st century.
As I see it, the big difference between the C4 and the C5 was in how GM decided to market the car. Their target market as noted in several of their product video’s was the buyer who might never have bought a Vette. In their ads instead of showing the car sliding around a wet pavement or doing burnouts they show someone putting groceries into the back of a coup or the guy getting one of two golf bags out of the back. When the first C5 came out we had the usual buyers but also had people who had never owned a Vette but were promised that they could now get into and drive one on a daily basis. Many of these aspiring Vette owners were more than just a bit over weight. That lower entry point was pushed hard as well as the increase in passenger foot well space. We also sold it on the quiet ride. At the time it was quieter than SS Camaro’s we had. With the C4 we found a lot of 40-50 something lookers/buyers many of whom were interested in performance options. With the C5 we had a lot of 50-60 something lookers/buyers who seemed more interested in dual air and sound systems but got excited by the potential power. I was not in sales when the C6 was introduced but judging by the average owner I see at the cars shows I would believe that the C5 and C6 continue to be bought by those in the upper age brackets.
Ironically while the C5 does have a lower side sill. It is deeper which means that you have to step further into the car to get to the seat. This reminded me of getting into and out of the first Ford GT-40’s (1965-1967 series) which had side tanks you had to cross over. I find that for me, it is actually easier to get into my C4 which has the higher but narrower threshold than my C5. When I am in the C5 and have the door open it appears I have at least 12 inches between the seat and the outside of the door sill. Anyway that and the quiet ride were some of the main selling features of the C5 that made it more desirable to most buyers.
All of this is to say that the C5 had and continues to have broader target market than the C4 and as such it will force down the value of a C4. However as stated, because they were used as daily drivers, many of the C5’s do have high mileage. Here in AZ you can easily find a late model C4 coupe with 50K miles for $8000-8500 or a convertible for $9500-11000. Early C4’s go for much less but out here many of those early C4’s seem to suffer from no working air-conditioning and or malfunctioning dash components. If you are like me and like the looks of the C4 now is a good time to buy, buy, buy.
It sounds like you were in new car sales with the c-4's and c-5's. Just curious, but did you see a difference in the number of buyers that financed the c-5 versus the c-4?
I know you did not sell the c-6 but I wonder what % of those buyers finance versus just write a check?
However when the end of the c-4 and beging of the c-5's is when the home equity loans were getting big so it may have looked like they were paying cash but in reality were just borrowing against a home.
Lastly, when considering Vettes, was a buyer able to negotiate a much better price when he/she did pay cash?
Just curious is all since I am one of those "have the money before I buy" types and then if I have $20K try to only spend $10K.
Thanks