MC&T Staff 
While dealer mark-ups are not a new invention, they seem to have gotten a lot more exposure over the last few years. The process has always been popular with limited-run models of expensive sports cars, but now dealers have applied these methods to even modestly priced vehicles as well. Just a few weeks ago, Jerry’s Toyota in Maryland listed a new Launch Edition Toyota Supra on their dealership website for the ridiculous price of $100,00, despite its MSRP sitting at $55,250. The Jeep Gladiator is also seeing markups as high as $20,000 above sticker. What could be next target for dealer greed? Likely the 2020 C8 Corvette Stingray.
Amid rumors that these tactics will be applied to the new C8 Corvette, fans and potential buyers alike have teamed up to curtail the issue.
When the C8 Corvette Stingray was unveiled, its $59,995 base price blew up the internet. A massive price hike for the American icon was what fans of the brand feared most during the transition to a mid-engined platform, and Chevrolet obliged by keeping the price in line with previous generations. While $60,000 is by no means cheap, it is not out of the realm of attainable either. Even though the C8 is set to have its base price increased next year, it should remain similar to what it is today. When rumors began to spread that dealerships were planning to mark the mid-engine Corvette up by $30,000 and move the cars out of many peoples reach, the folks over at Corvette Forum started to fight the good fight.
In order to help potential customers avoid the looming dealer price adjustments, a thread was started on the forum site to keep track of dealers who will sell the C8 Corvette Stingray at sticker price, and those who are asking for the bigger bucks. By connecting customers with these more reasonable dealerships, members hope to remove the temptation of others to mark the cars up like mad. According to the forum, the more Corvettes a dealership currently sells, the more likely they are to be offering the C8 at sticker price.
While this trend of dealer mark-ups is sure to continue, we love this community based approach of fighting back. If you are in the market for the mid-engine Corvette, we highly recommend taking a peak at the forum to find a dealership near you that isn’t gouging customers for the car.
