In 2013, your author was working at a Chevrolet dealer that specialized in America’s Favorite Sports Car. Everyone was excited about the arrival of the C7. The new generation was all people were talking about, but we were offered the last C6 Z06 allocation in the State of Colorado. Surprisingly, its spec sheet was entrusted to this young but enthusiastic salesman. I proceeded to craft a fully loaded masterpiece with only one stipulation from my bosses: keep the MSRP under $100,000. Because of this, I had to leave the box for RPO B92: Carbon Fiber Hood unchecked, but still, in an environment where dealers were only ordering low-risk Grand Sport builds and then marking them down in order to move them, I felt incredibly fortunate when I got to hit “submit” in Dealer Link for a Torch Red Z07.
Since this peek behind the curtain, it’s been interesting to observe the demographic changes in Corvette orders throughout a generation as the majority of builds transition from highly individualized and enthusiast-driven sold orders into vanilla dealership stock. This shift usually doesn’t move the needle on things like exterior color take rate but can be plainly seen as one ventures deeper into the order guide and official EOY statistics from Bowling Green. Perhaps the greatest example of this phenomenon can be seen by analyzing the life cycle of my build’s predecessor: the “Big Nasty” C7 Corvette Z06.
It’s hard to believe ten years later, but manual transmission C7Zs actually outsold automatics 4,467 to 4,186 in 2015. The take-rate of the seven-speed mostly held steady in ’16, with 4,156 takers, though it was vastly outsold by the 8-speed and its incredible 10,119 takers. By year three, the waiting lists of passionate fans and early adaptors had been satisfied, dealers were starting to take on more C7 inventory, and the two-pedal model had established itself as the easy one to sell to the mainstream, off-the-street customer. Once dealers had their hands on the reins, only 4,961 more Z’s were ever assembled with a clutch pedal – meaning 2017 through 2019 could barely outdo 2015’s solo numbers!
Fast forward to the third model year of C8 Z06 production (and the sixth(!) overall for the C8), and a lot is being made of the high number of ‘Vettes on the ground. In spite of some alarmists jumping to conclusions that the once-revolutionary C8 Corvette has gone stale and might be “cooked,” this feels like the natural next step in the life and times of the most recent Corvette. There are also some other factors likely exacerbating the situation; on top of some larger economic developments at play, there’s also the fact that we’ve been put into a holding pattern for the long-awaited 1,064-horse ZR1, a car so impressive that it’s making a lot of would-be Z06 buyers hold their money and wait to see if they can score one.
Cautious new-car managers also have to take some of the blame. A look over the current inventory reveals a ton of similar, unimaginative builds. A cookie-cutter ordering approach has yielded a national fleet composed primarily of $100k Stingrays and Z06s that betray the nature of their badge by favoring luxury over on-track prowess.
Which is why this 2025 Z06 out of Indiana so easily stands out from the crowd and has our full attention! Hirlinger Chevrolet has zigged where everyone else zagged by only selecting options that make this slice of its inventory either faster or better to drive fast. It doesn’t feature wireless phone charging, memory seats, the theft deterrent system, a heated steering wheel, a surround-view parking camera, front lift, any kind of interior or engine bay appearance/materials package, blind spot or cross-traffic monitoring (which honestly sounds magical), universal home remote, heated, cooled, or even full-leather seats!
What it does have, though, is a $14,000 set of lightweight visible carbon fiber wheels, the vaunted Z07 Ultimate Performance track package, and the associated aero package for an additional $19,490. The “performance textile” seats are in the heavily bolstered Competition Sport style (a $995 option), and the Performance Data Recorder, a black recovery hook, and a microfiber steering wheel round out the options list at a grand total of $153,495 – currently marked down to $147,351! This car makes us Corvette Bloggers incredibly happy; it feels incredibly focused and self-assured about what it’s meant to be. It feels like the one Zora would’ve snuck out the back door to his racer friends. It just feels right!
Back to my 2013 Z06 order, it beat the odds and ended up being our fastest-selling C6 of the year. We hope Hirlinger is similarly rewarded for going out on a limb and topping $150 large without selecting any extra creature comforts OR having a specific customer in mind. That kind of moxie is what made the ‘Vette a legend in the first place, and these days, it doesn’t get much more legendary than the lightest possible variant of a free-breathing 670-horse monster presented in an unassuming white and black suit!
Source:
Hirlinger Chevrolet
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Certainly a one of one Z06 ever built
a lot of “stock” orders on the ground ??? Seems GM focused on stock orders rather than sold orders. People (me included) have waited for S/R’s since December and they still sit at 3000 mode. GM shut the plant down for modifications for new model’s in March, yet they can’t build sold orders?? Go figure.
This is a nice build. It’s just pure, raw max performance Corvette!
Interesting that there was a time with the C7Z when manuals were so popular. These buyers were more interested in the feel or connection with the car. Today GM markets the C8 to the look at me buyers.
In its base 1LT form, the C8 is a lot of car, regardless of its available options, creature comforts, and upgrades.
I’m sorry but not all dealers try to artificially control the Z06 market like some of the big three. In 2019 I bought my 1st Z06 and they were pretty much available. Then as I walked into the dealer, saw the one he had in inventory and custom ordered what I wanted and got it eight weeks later for several thousand below MSRP
When the C8 came out, of course, all the vultures resellers and flippers went to work. The largest Corvette dealer was advertising they were selling at MSRP and then told me that they had a waiting list for 2000 cars so in five years my name might come up. I knew this was baloney, but I didn’t want to deal with a dealer like that. So I told my dealer once the price stabilized a little bit I would again be interested in ordering a new one. No deposit no reservation list. Oh by the way, my dealer sells about 125 Corvettes a year. About a year ago he called me and said he had two new allocations with absolutely no build restrictions and I could order whatever I wanted from the base to fully loaded Z06/07. I sent him my spec sheet that day and it was approved for build by Chevrolet that afternoon. I didn’t choose to buy something to resell and he knew that. He appreciates people that actually drive their cars and are not flippers. My Z06 model is likely a one of one with the options that I selected primarily that of paint match trim, and a color deviation on the interior. I didn’t order a bunch of carbon fiber because to me that is just unnecessary icing on the cake. I ordered my car for my occasional drag racing and I drive my car every day. No matter where I go be it the doctors office the grocery store Home Depot I drive my car every day. Now I don’t drive as much as I used to, but I don’t leave it sitting home in the garage. I realize that’s not possible or feasible for everybody, but I’ve been driving new Corvettes since 1965 when I lived in a much more adverse climate but Corvettes were made to be driven every day.
The current selling price of Corvettes is still too heavily influenced by a few, but not many, greedy, dealers, and sellers who have no intention on keeping the car. And those stupid individuals who initially paid way over MSRP and are now trying to resell. Their cars have caused this inflated market. Only when real Corvette people buy the cars will the prices come back to where they were.
Oh, by the way, when I ordered my Z06 a year ago, the way I wanted it, I paid under MSRP angel at home seven weeks later.
I, for one, think that the glut of carbon fiber offerings for the C8 is predominantly not for performance; and that cars featuring it are indicative of catering to sale value–not function. And it certainly doesn’t look good either.
If there’s too much inventory sitting on lots–GM should do a better job of allowing CUSTOMERS to order, not DEALERSHIPS to order them. Ideally, GM should have badge engineered this for Cadillac. Chevy could have retained all of the no-frills performance models. Cadillac could have all of the comfort/luxury. I’ve been saying that since the E-Ray debut.
C8 is a masterpiece regardless to what trim you get!!! 57k on my daily driver 2022 htc I love it .
Typical GM, they’re constantly talking about what’s coming, before the paint’s dry on the last latest model, destroying sales along the way. GM talks a good game, but rarely follows through
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