![[VIDEO] GM Changes Owner Retention Policy to One Year for Corvette ZR1 Buyers](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/03/032225_6.jpg)
It was a few years ago that GM first “laid down the law” with a new vehicle retention policy requiring C8 Corvette Z06 buyers to hold their new cars for one year before flipping them, or else they wouldn’t be allowed to order another “in-demand” vehicle, plus the factory warranty would be lost to the new buyer. To sweeten the deal, GM would also offer Z06 buyers who keep their vehicles for the retention period with 500,000 in GM Points that was worth $5K in parts and service. GM would change the retention period to only be in effect for six months instead of the year just before the Z06s launched, but did it accomplish what GM was hoping for?
Well, if you mean punishing the next owner of the car while allowing dealers to go rouge with outrageous markups…then yes, it worked like a charm. GM would go on to require a six month retention for the E-Ray, and we assumed the 2025 Corvette ZR1 would be sold with a six month retention policy as well.
However, thanks to Corvette seller Rick Conti, we now know that the new 2025 Corvette ZR1 will be sold with a 12-month retention policy basically outlining the two points that were enforced on the Z06: No new cars for the flipper and no warranty for the next buyer.
Rick shares the contents of the new Retention Letter that must be signed by both the buyer and the dealer acknowledging receipt, and curiously, there is this line at the end that says it’s the requirement of the owner/seller to “communicate the loss of warranty coverage to the transferee” should the car be sold within the parameters of the retention policy.
To say that we not fans of the retention policy is an understatement, as the biggest “issue” we saw with the Z06s wasn’t the flippers but the greedy dealers who took advantage of their customers to the max. I’ve been thinking about this policy and it seems to me the way to do this so that everyone gets what they want (except the greedy dealers) is to offer an exclusive non-negotiable 12-month lease for the ZR1 where GM holds the titles for that time. If they get turned back into the dealer, then the dealer can sell them for whatever they want. Just an idea…
Here is Rick Conti on the ZR1’s new 12-month retention policy:
Source:
Rick ‘Corvette’ Conti / YouTube
Related:
Chevy Drops the Hammer on Z06 Flippers by Limiting Z06 Warranty Transfers
Chevy Releases Additional Details and the Customer Sign-Off Form To Tamp Down on Z06 Flippers
[VIDEO] GM Blocked the Warranty on this Z06 Corvette Despite the Owner Never Flipping His New Car
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Anyone who will pay the outrageous price for a ZR1 can care less. Most of these cars will get squirreled away in collectors garages.
It wouldn’t be so bad if GM would actually do something to the dealers sticking huge ADMs on the car, despite saying they were cracking down on it. I’ve heard of no dealership punished for doing so despite them saying so.
Heres an idea: Any dealer that sells a ZR1 for more than 10% over MSRP must provide complimentary maintenance and parts equal to the amount of the markup.
I can’t pay the price. She don’t get the cars that easy. Quit whining when your wine is based upon the fact that you can’t afford to pay the price. We went to 06 and I wait a year, but one blowing SRP and receiving six weeks. Some of you are still waiting on some of these large number one and number two dealers like county. Support your local dealer and Dell support you.
Better idea. Any dealership charging ADM or mandating add-on packages for C8’s…should have their allocations reduced to 0.
I agree with the GM policy – and disagree with the author vehemently. Author’s comment: “but the greedy dealers who took advantage of their customers to the max” is one of the dumbest things I’ve heard. Nobody has to pay over sticker for a Corvette (or any car). Many dealers sold Z06’s (and Erays) for MSRP. Plenty of opportunity to purchase a car at sticker. The problem is, the author, and others, did not get on a dealer list in time that did sell the car for MSRP. That is not a GM problem, that is an individual responsibility problem. Showing up a month ago and expecting to get a ZR1 at MSRP without being on a years long list – that is your problem, not the dealer. But if you are a person who didn’t get on a list early – you can STILL get a ZR1 as long as you are willing to pay a large ADM. So, is seems the system works fine. Comparing flippers to dealers is not an apples to apples comparison – flippers just add costs to the process and add zero value.
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