![[POLL] Would You Take a Chance on an All-Time Corvette with a 'Severe' Accident on its Record?](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/07/071125_3.jpg)
About once a week, during a daily dive into a multitude of online car sales websites, an example of America’s Sports Car really catches the eye. Once in a blue moon, said Corvette is also priced, let’s say, competitively; so much so, that it begs the question “what’s wrong with it?” One such instance happened this week during one of the five (now six that C8 ZR1s are arriving at showrooms) Corvette-related saved searches that your humble author clicks through at least every 24 hours during his little bits of downtime. It’s one of the best specs I’ve seen this summer, and the asking price is suspiciously low, but it certainly comes with a sizable red flag!
There hasn’t been a lot of action on C6 ZR1 front as of late. Prices are back up mostly over MSRP, especially for well-maintained specimens, yet not many people are willing to sell their LS9 beasts these days. Most days go by with zero new listings, but an alert buzzed my phone yesterday, and the build was way outside the norm. A vast majority (81% or a whopping 3,809 units) of the 4,695 C6 ZR1s ever built fell to the first three years of production between 2009 and 2011. With just 886 additional examples of the first factory supercharged ‘Vette, finding a ’12 or ’13 should be considered a treat.
![[POLL] Would You Take a Chance on an All-Time Corvette with a 'Severe' Accident on its Record?](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/07/071125_4.jpg)
Within the confines of the Blue Devil’s senior and ‘super senior’ year on sale, exist the ultimate exemplars of the breed, the 375 (split nearly evenly between the years at 184/191) outfitted with the greatest C6’s final upgrade; RPO PDE. PDE cars are usually easy to spot with their black Cup-Style wheels and lightly improved full-length black spoiler, but it wasn’t just a visual package to make the aging C6 look meaner; it also packed some serious bite. Those wheels saved 12 pounds of rotating mass vs. the regular car’s 20-spoke alloys; it featured closer gear ratios, and the most serious rubber ever offered from General Motors, Michelin’s then-new Pilot Sport Cup semi-slick was also included in the package.
After Team Tadge did a little too good of a job closing the gap between Z06 and ZR1 with the Z07 package in 2011, PDE cracked the door again. One of these new black wheel ZR1s was able to shave six seconds from its 2009 predecessor’s record at Germany’s infamous Nürburgring, and at home, it was over a second faster than before on the shorter VIR Grand circuit while putting almost 3 ticks on the ’11 Z07, which was, itself, some five seconds faster than the 2007 model.
![[POLL] Would You Take a Chance on an All-Time Corvette with a 'Severe' Accident on its Record?](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/07/071125_6.jpg)
When zooming back out to the larger ZR1 picture, again, there are also five exterior colors that are exceedingly difficult to source. With that one LeMans Blue ZR1 classifying as “impossible” to get your hands on, the remaining four colors that found under 100 original buyers are Atomic Orange (35 in 2009 only), Inferno Orange (69 built between ’11 and ’13), Carlisle Blue (the rarest with only 11 examples built in 2012), and 2013 exclusive Night Race Blue (54). Only the final three paints have the possibility of intersecting with the PDE package, and in such instances, you’d be gazing upon the Holy Grail of rare and desirable C6s (at least in a tie with the Z06 Carbon and certain high-end examples of the two final special editions – Centennial and 60th Anniversary).
![[POLL] Would You Take a Chance on an All-Time Corvette with a 'Severe' Accident on its Record?](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/07/071125_5.jpg)
Which, much to my surprise, is exactly what just popped up in Circleville, Ohio, at Gibby’s Auto Exchange. Their gorgeous PDE grail is of the Night Race Blue variety. It wears VIN 415 and only has 12,334 miles. That should land it in the neighborhood of $110,000 – and possibly up to $142,000, according to Hagerty’s Valuation Tool – but is somehow listed some $10,000 lower than its Z07 twin that we posted about last month. Its current $79,900 sticker is so low that it even registers as a great value to the overly conservative appraisers at CarFax.
That CarFax, generously provided by Gibby’s, goes on to spell out the rest of the bargain treasure’s story, a story that interestingly doesn’t begin until 2015 when it was listed as a manufacturer vehicle. Upon entering circulation, it wasn’t long until it was involved in a single-car collision that damaged the left side and front “severely,” though the airbag reportedly didn’t deploy.
![[POLL] Would You Take a Chance on an All-Time Corvette with a 'Severe' Accident on its Record?](https://www.corvetteblogger.com/images/content/2025/07/071125_2b.jpg)
Since the January 2016 incident, the ZR1 has been fixed – and it looks great from what can be seen in the listing’s 18 photos – and driven/verified for another 4,000 miles, leading to today’s question: would you take a flyer on an excellent buy of an even better Corvette that has a less-than stellar history but now shows well, or does the “severe” mark in its report card earn it an instant “pass” from you?
Source:
gibbysauto.com
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I would want to know why the airbag didn’t deploy after a severe frontal impact. This awesome looking ZR1 is badass for sure with its Night Race Blue paint, black wheels, tinted windows and PDE package. I would love to own one like this but as picky as I am when it comes to cars I would reluctantly have to take a pass on this one.
Need to see the car and look at pre accident pictures….
A hard hit typically creates unseen damage besides the obvious damage.
I’d have to see photos of the damage and talk to the people that repaired it, then I’d probably buy it. Just from what we know now, I’d pass.
It would depend on both (1) the results of an in-depth inspection by a very knowledgable shop, to make sure you have comfort regarding what you are buying, and (2) how much of a discount the seller would be prepared to accept relative to what a similarly equipped Corvette with a clean CarFax would sell for.
Google the dealership address and look at street view pictures…not a place you’d expect to see a ZR1…even a salvaged one.
You have to ask yourself why no other dealers wanted it at the auction. I would guess the hit was hard enough to cause frame/structural damage and reputable dealers want nothing to do with it.
I bought a CT4-V with a rebuilt title on 1/31/25. It was rear ended and I saw all the pictures during the rebuild. The dealer I bought it from only sells high end cars with rebuilt title. Comparatively, which is hard because mine is turning in to a sort of unicorn, if I would have went to the Cadillac dealer it would have cost about $10k more. It’s the only way I could get in to one. I have put just under 5000 miles in it. And they have been wonderful! So glad I did it. So happy.
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