Lowering the Corvette's Demographic

[z28luvr01]

It's no secret that the Corvette's demographic is somewhere in the 50s, and the younger crowd does have a few negative connotations associated with it, namely that it's the default purchase of balding men going through a mid-life crisis and having a need to compensate for "other" shortcomings. How do we fix that? How should Chevy lower the buying age of the Corvette? How do we get in their 20s and 30s to sell their souls on a loan for a Corvette as opposed to, say, an M3 or G37? Should Chevy even bother?

[Drew Dowdell]

Lower the price.

[Justin Bimmer]

Improve the interior.

Why would I get a Corvette when I can get a Camaro instead for less?

[loki]

Lower the price.

not possible as is, at least if it stays the "halo" vehicle

Edited April 5, 2011 by loki

[Drew Dowdell]

Lower the price.

not possible as is, at least if it stays the "halo" vehicle

the point remains - 20 and 30 year olds cannot afford Corvettes. 30 years old is right in the middle of the child raising years for men. $60,000 buys a lot of diapers and 529 deposits.

[z28luvr01]

I think the price can be lowered somewhat, but how do you go about doing that?

I have my own ideas, but I'll keep them to myself for now.

[Turbojett]

Lower the price.

+1

and marketing would go a long way, too.

[SAmadei]

The average age of a new car buyer is 45~50... so 50 is not too bad.

Before lowering the demographic on the Corvette, perhaps the entire auto industry has to push its demographics down a bit.

[crunksoulbrotha!!`]

One way I think they can lower the price is to have some v6 options. The original came with a I6, so why not? And pic what options you want, instead of option packages.

[Drew Dowdell]

I could see a turbo 3.6 as a base option

[Z-06]

Corvette has really reached a stratospheric price. I have been letting it know all along. 2005 Corvette started at under $43K. The current one starts at under $49k. 16% price jump in 6 years is a lot.

Given the cost of development of a TT3.6 compared to a Gen V Small block, I do not think it would be a suitable option if the price is to be lower.

[z28luvr01]

OK here goes. Without taking too much away from what the Corvette is fundamentally about, I'd create a "stripper" model (or, in marketing speak, "track ready" model) that follows these three principles:

1. Decontent: Does a Corvette really need power heated leather seats, GPS NAV, dual zone HVAC? Any gadget or gizmo that doesn't aid in the car's handling/braking/performance should be reviewed. I'd leave push-button start, p/w, p/l to keep production streamlined, and there is some weight savings there. I'd even consider going with styled steel wheels (painted or chromed). It's entirely possible to make something lightweight and strong out of steel if you're clever.

2. Stick one of the truck V8s in the engine bay. A lower-power V8 that GM makes millions of every year would be a better option to lower cost vs. a TT36. Plus, the truck V8 won't create much of an uproar in the Vette enthusiast crowd.

3. make the roof fixed.

I think what you'd end up with is a slightly lighter, potentially more efficient Corvette that has only slightly less performance for at least a couple thousand cheaper. I understand that GM tried to go this route with the 99-00 FRC, but they ended up taking so little out of the car that it saved little over the standard Corvette.

[Drew Dowdell]

I bet the 5.3 could be tuned differently to be more "corvette" appropriate rather than truck appropriate.

[Robert Hall]

Lower the price.

not possible as is, at least if it stays the "halo" vehicle

the point remains - 20 and 30 year olds cannot afford Corvettes. 30 years old is right in the middle of the child raising years for men. $60,000 buys a lot of diapers and 529 deposits.

Likewise for 40 year olds..most of my 40 something married w kids friends are buying $40k minivans or SUVs...(one traded his Mustang GT convertible from his single days on a minivan when he transitioned to married w/ twins a few years ago).

The only person I've known that bought a new Corvette was a buddy from grad school, leased a '97 when he started his first real job at around 25..caught up him w/ a while back, married w/ kids and has a Prius and minivan now..

Back in the day, my first car purchase after grad school was a 2 yr old M3, I did look at the Corvette then ('98) but really didn't care for it..

Edited April 5, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[G. David Felt]

Lower the price.

not possible as is, at least if it stays the "halo" vehicle

the point remains - 20 and 30 year olds cannot afford Corvettes. 30 years old is right in the middle of the child raising years for men. $60,000 buys a lot of diapers and 529 deposits.

The Corvette is supposed to be the Halo Car, something people work up to, so the age group is proper for the Corvette. 20-30 something crowd is what the Camero is for, they need to update the interior of the corvette so that it is superior to the camero and is what an established successful man can purchase and show his status off.

You DO NOT, SHOULD NOT cheapen the Corvette to a lower level. Camero is the 20-late 30 crowd. Corvette should be polished for the 40 and up crowd.

[Robert Hall]

For a smaller, cheaper sports car, GM shouldn't have given up on Kappa....though since Pontiac and Saturn are gone, could Chevy support a 'baby Corvette'?

Edited April 5, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[G. David Felt]

You could probably do a smaller version and call it a Stingray, but then it would also compete with Camero. I think it is best to modernize the interior and keep the Corvette as Halo image and let the 20-30 year old have the Camero.

[Robert Hall]

You could probably do a smaller version and call it a Stingray, but then it would also compete with Camero. I think it is best to modernize the interior and keep the Corvette as Halo image and let the 20-30 year old have the Camero.

I don't know about the Camero, but it wouldn't have to compete w/ the Camaro...it could give GM a Miata competitor, where the Kappa tried to go.

The Camaro is a hefty, muscular 4 seat sports coupe/convertible, a totally different flavor of performance car than a small, nimble 2 seat sports car.

Edited April 5, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[hyperv6]

I think we can all learn from the mistakes of Porsche.

They several times Porsche tried to lower the price and age with cars like the 912, 914, 924 and 944. These cars damaged Porsches image more than they helped. Today they were as popular as a AMF built Harley.

Here are the factors of the Vette going cheap.

1 Insurance is too high for most in the below 30 age group anyway. When I was in my 20's I could afford the Vette but the insurance was more than I could bear. Making it cheaper is not going to help the Insurance much. It would take a great cut in the claims for theft, crashes and performance to lower the insurance. That would leave you with a car no one would want enough to steal and too slow to crash.

2 The Vette should not be a common car. The key for desire is the inability of most others to have such a car. If everyone had one where would the image go. Ask a Fiero owner who back in the day had a Fiero on every corner The Miata is pretty much the same today.

3 The Vette is already a car that for the performance it gives it is at the lower price rung of the GT sports car market. You really get a lot for the money even with the ZR1.

4 The Vette just needs to remain profitable but it will never be a profit center. 2 seat cars have a limited market even cheap ones.

5 Few would really want to be seen in a Econo Vette. It is like the Boxster that screams that you can't afford a Carrera 911. Nuvo rich is not cool.

6 You can offer a stripped down one but be really honest we all know few people will ever buy one. Today people want as many options as they can afford and few people in cars over $40K want to cheap out. Besides low content would not lower the price that much.

The issues here is just one of the paradox of life. The cool cars cost money and often you can not afford to buy or insure one till you get older. For the most this may have kept many people alive too. To change this would change the Vette in ways that I feel would hurt it in the long run.

If you want to play cheap lower powered sports car then do another Solstice like car. Even then it will die in 5-8 years at best even if it is a good car. It is difficult to make low priced low volume car like a two seater. To be honest few sports cars last other than the Vette and Miata. The RX7, MR2 and many other lived short popular lives.

The Vette has image, heritage and a solid fan base. You mess with any of these and you really could kill the car. It is like Harley Davidson. They could have dumped the Twin V a long time ago for a better engine but that is their heritage and people buy them for that. The look and sound are Harley Davidson. The imports have built V twins to copy and many are very good bikes but they are still not a Harly.

Honda had a hard time learning that no matter how good the NSX was it was still not a Ferrari. Never underestimate image and heritage. The Vette was never a car for everyone and never should be. The Image GM has with this car took years to build and can take little time to squander.

Edited April 5, 2011 by hyperv6

[Camino LS6]

I have a few notions, but I want to think them over a bit more.

[Satty]

Short of spinning Corvette off and making it a separate brand, I don't see many ways of making it mote accessible. A full line with the Corvette, smaller Corvette, Corvette sedan, Corvette wagon, Corvette compact hatch and Corvette minivan might make the Corvette something everyone can buy.

[balthazar]

ANY attempt to make the Corvette 'something everyone can buy' would be the most colossal 'dropping of the ball' in the history of the industry. The 'Edsel' of this century.

GM is not & cannot be about crushing volume anymore. The Corvette once lived another year on 300 annual units, because that car is not about volume, never was about volume, and never should be. Those in charge then understood this, I sure hope those in charge now do, too.

[Camino LS6]

OK here goes. Without taking too much away from what the Corvette is fundamentally about, I'd create a "stripper" model (or, in marketing speak, "track ready" model) that follows these three principles:

1. Decontent: Does a Corvette really need power heated leather seats, GPS NAV, dual zone HVAC? Any gadget or gizmo that doesn't aid in the car's handling/braking/performance should be reviewed. I'd leave push-button start, p/w, p/l to keep production streamlined, and there is some weight savings there. I'd even consider going with styled steel wheels (painted or chromed). It's entirely possible to make something lightweight and strong out of steel if you're clever.

2. Stick one of the truck V8s in the engine bay. A lower-power V8 that GM makes millions of every year would be a better option to lower cost vs. a TT36. Plus, the truck V8 won't create much of an uproar in the Vette enthusiast crowd.

3. make the roof fixed.

I think what you'd end up with is a slightly lighter, potentially more efficient Corvette that has only slightly less performance for at least a couple thousand cheaper. I understand that GM tried to go this route with the 99-00 FRC, but they ended up taking so little out of the car that it saved little over the standard Corvette.

I really like where you are going with this recipe.

However.

I'm not so sure that the goal can be reached via a lower price. That, and steel wheels are a non-starter on a Vette.

So.

What if lowering the demographic wasn't dependent on lower pricing?

Take your stripped-down, fixed-roof Corvette and build a track day series around it. Require racing school as a standard RPO and sponsor events across the country. Fun is as much of a draw as a good bargain.

It would be expensive, but I think it could work.

[Robert Hall]

Interesting idea...however, when Porsche and BMW build stripped down track-oriented models, they cost considerably more than the usual loaded versions...

[Camino LS6]

Interesting idea...however, when Porsche and BMW build stripped down track-oriented models, they cost considerably more than the usual loaded versions...

That's just the point: price would not be what drives the interest.

Of course, it couldn't hurt if the Corvette undercut the Porsche and BMW analogs in typical Vette fashion.

[Camino LS6]

And... this is something you'd want to market to extremophiles that grew up with video games, snowboarding, skydiving, rock climbing, while slugging-down Red Bull. Done well, it could be a genuine halo for the Corvette brand while building -in a lower demographic.

[Robert Hall]

And... this is something you'd want to market to extremophiles that grew up with video games, snowboarding, skydiving, rock climbing, while slugging-down Red Bull. Done well, it could be a genuine halo for the Corvette brand while building -in a lower demographic.

I think the Subaru WRX is the hyperactive car for the Red Bull set...

[Camino LS6]

And... this is something you'd want to market to extremophiles that grew up with video games, snowboarding, skydiving, rock climbing, while slugging-down Red Bull. Done well, it could be a genuine halo for the Corvette brand while building -in a lower demographic.

I think the Subaru WRX is the hyperactive car for the Red Bull set...

Not if this strategy was put in place...

[smk4565]

The Corvette buyer I believe is mid 50s and rising every year. Lowering the price would get sales, but that is why they make the Camaro, a cool looking sports car at a lower price point, and it has a back seat, even if it is little. Price is an issue though, $50k to start, and easily to $60k with a couple option packages, for an interior not fit for a $25k car. I think price needs to drop back to $44k to start and $50k with the typical options. The car used to be more affordable and have a better value proposition, they need to get that back.

Aside from price point, the car has some flaws. They have used the same formula for a long time, thus it looks out dated or old fashioned to younger buyers. I mean that car has leaf springs, and basically the same engine since the 1970s. The Corvette also is very plasticy and not very refined, due to the old fashioned blueprint and fiberglass body. Asking people to spend $60k for lack of refinement is tough.

Next problem, interior is horrible. With no back seat, this is a single person's car or a person with grown kids car (or second car for someone with disposable income, read older people). So a percentage of buyers are automatically turned away because it is 2 seats, the people on the fence about a 2-seater better we wowed about the interior. And the Vette's interior is behind the 2012 Focus, it is embarrassingly bad.

The easy ways to improve the Corvette are make it not as wide, add a back seat, lower the price, add a V6 that is easier on gas, and Chevy already did that with the Camaro and the Camaro is selling well. I would keep the Corvette 2 seats, add a V6, update the chassis, shape, technology to make it more modern, and most importantly, quantum leap in interior quality. I think they have to address the lineup as well, there is too big a price gap from base car to ZR1. They should focus on $43-60k like the old days, or if they want to play big, make it $80k base and go after Porsche, Aston, etc.

[PurdueGuy]

A Kappa-esque Stingray and decontented "track" base 'vette both make sense IMO.

[Paolino]

I think the price can be lowered somewhat, but how do you go about doing that?

I have my own ideas, but I'll keep them to myself for now.

Throw the 2.4L in there with a 4-speed auto. It'll cost less and help slightly with CAFE

[smk4565]

I think the price can be lowered somewhat, but how do you go about doing that?

I have my own ideas, but I'll keep them to myself for now.

Throw the 2.4L in there with a 4-speed auto. It'll cost less and help slightly with CAFE

Yes, because people claim the 2.4 liter in the 4,000 lb LaCrosse or Equinox provides adequate acceleration, in a 3200 lb Corvette it should be a rocket. The Z06 could get the 2.0T.

[daves87rs]

Lower the price.

+1

Offer a wide line, from the basic (let them build them up) to the halo priced.

Can't see why they couldn't start around the same starting point as the camaro. They could grow some vette lovers, prob double the sales....

In honesty, the Vette is a dying icon only the rich can afford now.

[SeanLoh]

The major problem is the basic impracticality of a 2 seater sportscar, but stray from that and you have the Camaro. So how do you take the Corvette formula to a younger crowd? Take a second look at the Kappa platform. Do some repackaging, even if the car grows slightly. Offer it with 3 maybe 4 engines ranging from a base 2.4 litre 4 (eAssist?), to the LNF 2 litre turbo 4, 3 litre V6, 3 litre twin turbo V6. Offer it in 3 body styles coupe, convertible, and shooting break. And stay away from retro styling. As much as I and old people love retro style the majority of the younger demographic want something slick and modern. Make sure that the Kappa car is a stepping stone to the faster Corvette (top of the line Kappa car may be faster than a base Corvette)

[Paolino]

Well, I was joking about the 2.4L... seriously, the Corvette should only have two engine options: Damn powerful and crazy powerful.

It's a car that really shouldn't be sacrificed in power/handling. Doing so may lower the price but also lowers the cachet of having a Corvette. Owners of Vettes are usually very proud, if not cocky and obnoxious.

Lowering the price a bit is going to help lower the age, but it's difficult to do without competing with the Camaro and hopefully GM will realize like with their other newer cars, you can deliver on an interior.

[ZL-1]

I'd say (at least) some 95% of Porsche 911 and other cars of that kind are older, affluent drivers, and that isn't an issue for those brands; why should it be an issue with the Corvette?

[Camino LS6]

The problem with most performance cars today is that they rely upon the legendary status they earned long ago.

They need to be out there earning new victories and devotees.

The cars themselves are the best that they have ever been, but they need to leverage their huge fan bases by making news today at races and events.

[z28luvr01]

The problem with most performance cars today is that they rely upon the legendary status they earned long ago.

They need to be out there earning new victories and devotees.

The cars themselves are the best that they have ever been, but they need to leverage their huge fan bases by making news today at races and events.

This

Gone are the days when a younger person could save up his money working over the summer and buy himself the Corvette that he's been dreaming of since he started approaching driving age. It won't ever be that way again, and doesn't have to, but I think making the Corvette relevant to a new generation that's been preconditioned to want a 3, C, G, or Z to show the world they've arrived should be the order of the day. Lowering the Corvette's base MSRP by about 5-10K (without taking away from the car's capabilities) should put it right in that pack.

And I don't buy that the Corvette competes with the Camaro. That might have been true with the 4th gen Camaro, but the 5th gen is a completely different animal - no closer to the Corvette than it is to a Silverado LTZ.

[GMTruckGuy74]

Hmmm.. for years when I was a teenager, the Corvette was the 'halo' car for me. I told my parents that one day I'd buy a brand new Corvetter (okay, so I was 14 and very dreamy-eyed). As I aged the Corvette still was a halo car for me, but not as important. I'm 36 years old now and still like them, but feel the pricing is out of this world to ever be attainable (well, maybe when all my kids are gone - another 15 years!). The Corvette should remain a halo car and GM should make damn sure that the next generation knocks the socks off young kids. THe Stingray concept car, as featured in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, garnered a lot of positive comments from young kids to teenagers to 'older folks' who were around me at both the Philadelphia and New York auto shows (2010). That's not to say that the regular production models on display didn't get a lot of traffic (the blue ZR1 sure did have it's own spotlight for sure), but the Stingray led people to it... mesmerized by the design. GM/Chevy needs to make sure the next gen has that kind of draw, and an awesome interior to boot, to bring new life to the Corvette line. A baby Corvette, a'la Kappa, would only be good if Corvette became it's own brand in Chevrolet dealerships, where those with track driving hobbies could buy either one and both could offer base, well-equipped, and overly loaded models to suit different budget-minded consumers looking for a 2-seat vehicle. However, if Corvette by Chevrolet doesn't happen, a baby Corvette would only add to an already packed lineup of Chevy vehicles. Going with a budget Corvette (cloth, fixed roof, single-zone HVAC, base aluminum rims) and then moving up to the ZR1 model on a redesigned (interior & exterior) Corvette would bring new sales to this historically 'halo' car.

[Robert Hall]

Given the coming EPA standards, an SS version of the Spark or Aveo will be the aspirational halo car for kids in the future.

Edited April 6, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[G. David Felt]

I think we can all learn from the mistakes of Porsche.

They several times Porsche tried to lower the price and age with cars like the 912, 914, 924 and 944. These cars damaged Porsches image more than they helped. Today they were as popular as a AMF built Harley.

Here are the factors of the Vette going cheap.

1 Insurance is too high for most in the below 30 age group anyway. When I was in my 20's I could afford the Vette but the insurance was more than I could bear. Making it cheaper is not going to help the Insurance much. It would take a great cut in the claims for theft, crashes and performance to lower the insurance. That would leave you with a car no one would want enough to steal and too slow to crash.

2 The Vette should not be a common car. The key for desire is the inability of most others to have such a car. If everyone had one where would the image go. Ask a Fiero owner who back in the day had a Fiero on every corner The Miata is pretty much the same today.

3 The Vette is already a car that for the performance it gives it is at the lower price rung of the GT sports car market. You really get a lot for the money even with the ZR1.

4 The Vette just needs to remain profitable but it will never be a profit center. 2 seat cars have a limited market even cheap ones.

5 Few would really want to be seen in a Econo Vette. It is like the Boxster that screams that you can't afford a Carrera 911. Nuvo rich is not cool.

6 You can offer a stripped down one but be really honest we all know few people will ever buy one. Today people want as many options as they can afford and few people in cars over $40K want to cheap out. Besides low content would not lower the price that much.

The issues here is just one of the paradox of life. The cool cars cost money and often you can not afford to buy or insure one till you get older. For the most this may have kept many people alive too. To change this would change the Vette in ways that I feel would hurt it in the long run.

If you want to play cheap lower powered sports car then do another Solstice like car. Even then it will die in 5-8 years at best even if it is a good car. It is difficult to make low priced low volume car like a two seater. To be honest few sports cars last other than the Vette and Miata. The RX7, MR2 and many other lived short popular lives.

The Vette has image, heritage and a solid fan base. You mess with any of these and you really could kill the car. It is like Harley Davidson. They could have dumped the Twin V a long time ago for a better engine but that is their heritage and people buy them for that. The look and sound are Harley Davidson. The imports have built V twins to copy and many are very good bikes but they are still not a Harly.

Honda had a hard time learning that no matter how good the NSX was it was still not a Ferrari. Never underestimate image and heritage. The Vette was never a car for everyone and never should be. The Image GM has with this car took years to build and can take little time to squander.

This is Right on the money, there is no reason to build a cheaper version of the corvette. It has a niche market and that is what a Halo car is all about.

Edited April 6, 2011 by dfelt

[SAmadei]

Gone are the days when a younger person could save up his money working over the summer and buy himself the Corvette that he's been dreaming of since he started approaching driving age. It won't ever be that way again, and doesn't have to, but I think making the Corvette relevant

Not true. Youngsters just need the right job... something involving some chemistry and Pseudoephedrine... actually, now that I think of it, probably your best time to "save up" for a Corvette that way would be before it stays on your adult record...

[Robert Hall]

Gone are the days when a younger person could save up his money working over the summer and buy himself the Corvette that he's been dreaming of since he started approaching driving age. It won't ever be that way again, and doesn't have to, but I think making the Corvette relevant

Not true. Youngsters just need the right job... something involving some chemistry and Pseudoephedrine... actually, now that I think of it, probably your best time to "save up" for a Corvette that way would be before it stays on your adult record...

Heh-heh...a legal way kiddies can make decent coin involves using Ruby on Rails, Groovy, or Clojure, or the old standby 3 Ps-- PHP, Perl and Python...

Edited April 6, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[SoCalCTS]

The Corvette needs MORE content and less trim levels. There should be one nicely equipped entry level corvette with NAV, leather, a stunning interior and of course an engine and handling that makes this a halo car. There should be a version similar to the Cadillac V cars that is fast beyond imagination and has the same interior features as the base model. Then at the very top there should be another version that is carbon fiber with an engine that is tweaked to perfection.

That is how you would sell more.

When I look at a Corvette I cant get past the hideous interior. It needs to be comfortable if Im spending 70K. I dont want a stripped down car. I dont want a camaro.

I need to be able to walk in to Chevy and decide on a color, a transmission and maybe wheels and those are the only options I need. Then they can sell the car for a fixed price like Saturn. The problem now is you go in for one price and you get nickel and dimed and you start thinking that you really dont want a Corvette after all.

[ocnblu]

I agree with those that say the car should not be compromised with de-contenting, that it should have a nicer interior, and it should be customizable with a wider choice of colors and wheels, like BMW and Porsche. I also agree that to make the car relevant to younger people, sticking it into grassroots racing, autocross, road racing, drifting (if drifting isn't already "over") and such should be done with a factory presence and tie-in to marketing (I rarely see ads hyping Corvette's contemporary racing successes). The car is PLENTY capable... it is, in a way, unfortunate that it has been saddled with this gold-chains, middle-aged playboy image. The Corvette is immensely better than that. Chevrolet needs to find a way to pull the rug out from under that image while gaining a new crowd of devotees.

[Camino LS6]

I agree with those that say the car should not be compromised with de-contenting, that it should have a nicer interior, and it should be customizable with a wider choice of colors and wheels, like BMW and Porsche. I also agree that to make the car relevant to younger people, sticking it into grassroots racing, autocross, road racing, drifting (if drifting isn't already "over") and such should be done with a factory presence and tie-in to marketing (I rarely see ads hyping Corvette's contemporary racing successes). The car is PLENTY capable... it is, in a way, unfortunate that it has been saddled with this gold-chains, middle-aged playboy image. The Corvette is immensely better than that. Chevrolet needs to find a way to pull the rug out from under that image while gaining a new crowd of devotees.

Exactly.

Leverage the legacy.

[hyperv6]

The Corvette does not competes with the Camaro. But the Camaro compliments the Corvette. The Camaro is the car that gives the driver that taste of the Corvette like performance in a car that is a little more practical. A Corvette is a second or thrid car at best for the average person while the Camaro is a car someone could deal with as a daily driver only car.

The Vette has always been for the most one of the most expensive Chevys and out of reach of many but with in reach of some. This gives the owner the image he has arrives when he owns Americas sports car.

The racing adds to the excitment but until the last two gens the Vette never had a all that great racing record. They did wins some big races here and there but compared to Porsche and others it was a drop in the bucket. The neat thing is even cars with limited sucess like the Grand Sport still became ledgends. The fact for so many years the Vette carried the tag of Americas only sports car has made a point of civic pride even for non Chevy fans.

The Vette image needs protected and it should never be cheapened to the point you can see a new on in front of ever double wide.

If you want affordible performance that appeals to the younger buyers do a seperate model of the Alpha Camaro that has a good Turbo package and options they like and want. Make it compliment the SS but not compete with it. The Mustang is moving in on the BMW like performance market and The Camaro needs to do the same to keep up. Today people want top performance but they want it well sorted and refined. The days of just dumping a big engine in a econo chassis are long gone.

As for the gold chain people there is nothing you can do about them. Besides GM needs them as they are a major part of the buyers when the sales drop like last year. With out them you may not have a Vette.

Besides all high end sports cars have their Gold Chain buyers. Even Paris Hilton and those like her own some of the greatest performance car in the world and there is nothing that Bugatti, Aston, Porsche and Bentley can do about it. There are just too few Jay Leno's out there with money.

Edited April 6, 2011 by hyperv6

[nightwave]

Should the Corvette be "stripped" and offered for the kids? Yes and no.

Let me explain.

No, there should never be a spartan car with the "Corvette" name on it that sells for $20k-$30k. That may be what the Corvette was, but that's not what it is anymore. Doing that would effectively throw away everything Chevy & GM have developed with its image. Besides, if everyone can afford one, then it loses its magic. Once you make it "un-special," and put one in the hands of everyone who wants one, it becomes meaningless. The Corvette is there for people to aspire to own; it's not for everyone. The car is fine as-is. Once the new model comes out, everyone will forget all this "doom and gloom" BS and go back to talking about how awesome it is and how they want one.

Now, should there be a lower-priced "Mini-Vette" for more of the masses? Yes. It would, however be rather expensive to re-use Kappa, even if they did own the tooling and the factory (assuming my understanding that Kappa was under-priced with the Solstice and Sky). They do, however, have a sports car platform and factory combination that could possibly accept more volume: The Vette/Bowling Green combination. While I'm not an engineer, I've always wondered how much cost you could take out of the Corvette without losing too much of the sporty nature of the car. Is there enough that you could have a "Y-Plus" chassis for the Corvette, and a "Y-Minus" chassis that would underpin a mid-$20k two-seater (call it Monza)? This would give not only the lower-priced model that everyone wants, it would save the name and the history of the actual Corvette. It would also have the side benefit of making sure that Bowling Green would have more volume for the factory.

To continue rambling, I could see a Monza as a V6-only car, with about 300ish HP. Keep the option packages simple; this should be a low-frills car. Make it a traditional body (steel, aluminum) rather than fiberglass. Offer it in fixed-roof and true soft-top, or maybe just soft-top only. At the most, give it some minor Vette cues here and there; just enough to sell the "little brother" look. Make sure you put a new Corvette in the ads with the Monza, saying "Hey, you can't afford the big one, but this is just as much bang for the buck, but less bucks!" This is GM's solution to the non-existent problem.

But this may just be me.

[SAmadei]

Gone are the days when a younger person could save up his money working over the summer and buy himself the Corvette that he's been dreaming of since he started approaching driving age. It won't ever be that way again, and doesn't have to, but I think making the Corvette relevant

Not true. Youngsters just need the right job... something involving some chemistry and Pseudoephedrine... actually, now that I think of it, probably your best time to "save up" for a Corvette that way would be before it stays on your adult record...

Heh-heh...a legal way kiddies can make decent coin involves using Ruby on Rails, Groovy, or Clojure, or the old standby 3 Ps-- PHP, Perl and Python...

That ain't paying that good. Perhaps a few fall into good situations, but thats the exception, not the rule.

[regfootball]

current problems with the corvette.

price. yes you can buy a base base corvette under 50 maybe, but they make like 4 of them. yet we have them making 70k vettes. Hard to pitch a 70k vette, no matter how good, when you are blowing loss leader aveos out of the same showroom.

absolutely the corvette needs to drop down the age range with some of its buyers. vette is getting a fogey stigma. Nissan GT-R has cache with those that will be rich in the future. How many trust fund babies buy Vettes still? As with anything over time if you want it to renew you have to bring the younger group into the fold. Ford has somehow managed to cultivate younger buyers into Mustangs.

Dimensionally the Corvette is not huge or heavy but in person it looks extremely wide and large. It may be nimble but it looks bloated. Too much exaggeration of body shapes. Too much breeder hips. Corvette is too physically imposing for some buyer groups with this interest and amount of money. GT-R seems to have a following as does Porsche with less exaggeration in their shapes. Perhaps the Vette just needs a visual slimdown to appear more up to date and athletic. More techno like the GT-R. More purposeful like the 911. Maybe then the few late 20somethings and 30 somethings who are buying BMW's for fashion sake might take a look at a Vette. The last thing GM needs is for the Vette to become a retirees dream. The car HAS to appeal to teens and 20 somethings, and 30 somethings, even if they can't buy it. Not that they can anyways......you can be 25 these days and still living at home, buried in debt and have an 8 dollar job. Society is set up now so fewer people can buy cars like corvettes.

the interior is atrocious. there is NO EXCUSE or reason anyone can come up with now for why after all these years the corvette still has horse$h! seats. I've seen some here try to make some weak argument that chevy can't afford to fix the seats in the car.

BULL$h!. fix the f@#king seats so the buff books and racers stop bitching about them and so the interior comes off less cheesy than it already does. END OF ARGUMENT. THERE IS NO ARGUMENT. FIX THE f@#kING SEATS. there is a seat vendor out there that is more than willing to design you a new one.

otherwise the dash, steering wheel, plastics, ALL NEED TO BE REDONE. Provide a little more upright seating, some more headroom, more general GT comfort.

powertrain......some folks will dispute this, but its time to bring the vette into the 21st century and put all wheel drive on the option sheet. 911 can have it. R8 can have it. lamborghini. Nissan GT-R. More and more AWD is seen as a performance item. Can chevy make the car more stable and tractable with all wheel drive? YES. many of the young folks today have grown up thinking of cars like the WRX, Nissan GT-R, its time for Corvette to bring that to the table.

Transmissions........chevy needs to show some innovation here.....dual clutch, 8 speeds maybe, something. 6 speed auto is passe.

Chevy needs a base model to be in that 46-50k price range. And, they need to sell enough of those to get it out that the Corvette is within reach of more buyers, and those who fall into that now obsolete class of buyers who inherited money, or have always had it.

Personalization options need to increase and special editions....like the Mustang.

Engine........it's probably time to add a 6 cylinder into the mix. Also we need to get a DOHC engine in the Vette mix. While I see value in a good base v8......it may be time for corvette to branch out.....while its most recent past is as a v8.....all things must sort of evolve over time and if a high tech v6 say with twin turbo can create market buzz that the v8 is failing on, you gotta look at it. GT-R doesn't have 8 cyl....neither does 911, just sayin.......

base vette could go fixed roof i think in future but it would be nice to have more airiness inside then. Visibility needs to be addressed.

All the gray haired middle America white guys will need to live with the definition of corvette changing some. They're all gonna be buying rent at the nursing home pretty soon, not a new vette anyways. Vette needs to get younger, needs to bring import intenders into the fold, needs to reach out to more than just white guys. Hipsters these days like BMW's, Audis, and Minis.

Funny thing is it really doesn't matter how knockout the performance on the new vette is.......chevy will need to produce a lux car interior in terms of quality and sell it at a chevy price in order to change minds. Powertrain and performance just need to exceed expectation vs. price, and have to meet or beat competition.

it may also as smk suggested be time to move away from fiberglass panels outside.