Tag Archives: Buying&Selling

Rick Hendrick, Call Your Office…

December 22, 2021 admin

Photo Credit: Chevrolet

When Rick Hendrick purchased the very first C8 Corvette for $3 million in January 2020, he famously quipped that he’ll never drive it.

Now his dealership in Atlanta, the Number 8 Corvette dealership in the country, is ensuring that some of their customers will never drive the new 2023 Corvette Z06 when it goes on sale in the summer of 2022.

Check out this email from the Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Duluth dealership to a customer on the Corvette Forum who was assured in writing in October 2020 that his only dealer markup fee on the 2023 Corvette Z06 would be a “$749 dealer administration charge.”

Instead, just 13 months later, he is being offered the mandatory option to take an “accessory package” that costs $13,000.

Are we going to watch a great Corvette enthusiast and friend to the Corvette team spend millions of dollars to own the very first 2023 Corvette Z06 at Barrett-Jackson in January, knowing that his dealership in Atlanta is gouging customers who were promised MSRP pricing over a year ago?

It really leaves a bad impression in our opinion…

Is City Chevrolet marking up Z06s? How about any of the other Hendrick Chevy dealerships?

Here is the email from the CorvetteForum.com:

From: Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Duluth
Sent: Friday, December 17, 2021, 9:00 AM
To: raduziub
Subject: RE:Re: Re: RE: C8 Z06 dealer tours news & do you still take deposits for the C8 Z06?

Our dealership will be requiring an accessory package with each of our Corvette orders, will include items such as paint protection film, ceramic coating, window tint and a few other items

Total cost for it will likely be ~$13,000

Best,
Justin Cochran
___________________

From: Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Duluth
Sent: Tuesday, October 27, 2020 3:23 PM
To: raduziub
Subject: RE:RE: RE: RE: Corvette

No worries! We have a dealer administration charge of $749.
Best,

Justin Cochran
Rick Hendrick Chevrolet Duluth
3277 Satellite Blvd
Duluth, GA 30096

Demand for the new Corvette Z06 is such that shitty dealership practices like this will go unpunished because these cars will be going for $20K over the purchase price on the secondary market anyway. But you can at least hit the dealer in the end with a 1-star rating on their dealership surveys that follow the sale, especially if they promised you MSRP IN WRITING.

We might expect these games from a Joe Schmoe dealership, but a Hendrick dealership pulling this crap? Seriously, screw these dealers…

UPDATE
Check out this great response from the Hendrick customer who is now saying the dealership’s management has reached out to him and will be making everything right:

WOW, Keith and dear fellow members, thank you for all of your posts and actions!
I’ve just got off the phone with the General Manager from Rick Hendrick in Duluth, GA where I made my deposit in 2020, and I was informed that there was a little mistake and miscommunication from their end.
Because I made my deposit so long in advance, I was grandfathered in for no extra charges, so no, the $13K will not apply to my allocation.
Not sure if that $13K package fee will apply to anybody else that made a deposit recently, or if it is something that is going to be implemented and communicated to all new deposits from a certain date, but I wanted to share right away what I’ve just learned.
Thank you again awesome Corvette Forum Community and best wishes to all!
Happy Holidays!

Source:
CorvetteForum.com

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Kansas Highway Patrol Seizes 1959 Corvette from ‘Innocent Owner’ and Now Wants to Destroy It

August 29, 2021 admin

When Richard Martinez bought a 1959 Corvette for $50,000 from an Indiana dealer in 2016, the Kansas man didn’t realize he still wouldn’t have possession of the vehicle five years later.

After buying the car, Martinez took it to a Kansas Highway Patrol station for a mandated inspection, but the KHP seized his classic Corvette because of vehicle identification number issues, including an issue with a VIN plate located in a non-public, “secret” location visible to the KHP only by looking under the car with a mirror.

The government concedes Martinez did nothing wrong, that he “was not aware of the [VIN] issues and defects,” and that there is “no question” he is “an innocent owner.” Instead of returning the car, though, the government has spent years trying to destroy it.

That’s where the Kansas Justice Institute, a non-profit, public-interest litigation firm committed to defending against government overreach and abuse, stepped in.

A trial in the case Kansas Highway Patrol v. 1959 Chevrolet Corvette started before a court instead of a jury on July 21, and KHI subsequently filed an amicus brief on Aug. 18 in the District Court of Johnson County, urging the court to protect the private property rights of a vehicle owner, someone recognized by the KHP as innocent.

“Asset forfeiture is when the government takes a person’s property without a criminal conviction. In some cases, the person is never even charged with a crime, as was the case with Mr. Martinez,” KJI Litigation Director Sam MacRoberts said.

MacRoberts says asset forfeiture is bad enough, “but it’s especially bad in this case because the government admits Mr. Martinez did nothing wrong.”

Even though the KHP acknowledges Martinez’s innocence, they still argue that the Corvette must be taken from him as “contraband,” based on Kansas laws.

“When the government knows someone is innocent, they shouldn’t use their power and resources to take their property. Kansas’ forfeiture laws are to blame. The United States and Kansas Constitutions do not permit the government to acknowledge a person’s innocence, on the one hand, and then with the other, declare the innocent person’s property ‘contraband’ and take it,” MacRoberts said.

The Kansas laws to which he refers say that every motor vehicle with a VIN that has been destroyed, removed, abused, or defaced is automatically deemed contraband and subject to forfeiture.

“The government should not get to destroy an innocent person’s car,” MacRoberts said.

In the brief, the KJI pointed out a warning to Congress from former U.S. Representative Henry Hyde that “our civil asset-forfeiture laws are being used in terribly unjust ways,” that Representative Deborah Pryce of Ohio “recognized that civil asset forfeiture laws, at their core, deny basic due process, and the American people have reason to be offended and concerned by the abuse,” and that in recent decades civil forfeiture has “become widespread and highly profitable,” with the practice becoming “a veritable addiction for federal, state, and local officials across the country.”

Source:
Kansas Justice Institute via WIBW.com

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Corvette Delivery Dispatch with National Corvette Seller Mike Furman for May 16th

May 16, 2021 admin

Criswell Chevrolet’s Mike Furman delivers new Corvettes to his customers who come from all across the country to work with the nation’s top individual Corvette seller.

It was another busy week for the Chevrolet sales profession who delivered new Corvettes to his customers. Mike receives gifts from a long-distance customer and also gets a shoutout from Mr. October for his upcoming 5000th Corvette delivery. As always, another great collection of throwback and vintage photos also await, so let Mike know which is your favorite when you finally reach the end of the page.

Visit Mike’s facebook page for even more photos and videos of his new Corvette deliveries: CorvetteFurman.

~Customers come from all over the globe for the right Corvette and experience…case in point…Alex T. of Kailua Kona, Hawaii shipped me a nice care pkg. Alex is excited about his Corvette order! Sometime in September, Alex will fly the 4,780 miles from his home in Hawaii to Criswell Chevrolet of Gaithersburg, MD and take delivery of his new 2021 Corvette…and then drive it cross country before shipping it from California to Hawaii. No better way to see the USA then in a new Chevrolet! Thank you Alex for the gift box!

~The story behind the pictures…back in 1985 there was a salesman at Malcolm Konner Auto that was talking trash that I couldn’t beat him in Wrestling. Well all the other employee’s egged him on and as it got closer to match day I said I would pin him in under 30 seconds…and then the night of the match I said I would pin him in under 8 seconds…the match lasted 3 seconds as I flipped him and he broke a rib. All the Konner employees showed up (even Gary Konner) at the local gym and a good laugh was had by all. The General Sales Mgr took the pictures but the match was so quick he only had one in action photo. I gave Steve Powers props for even showing up. The following Spring we had a Tennis match and no one got hurt but his ego. I thank Gary Konner all the time for my years working for his family at Malcolm Konner Auto. I still smile about that evening. ~This week Reggie Jackson of the Baseball HOF gave me a shout out on video that I posted on my Instagram Corvette.furman and facebook page Corvette Furman. ~So the Corvette does get named to be the Pace Car!! The 2021 mid-engine Chevrolet Corvette Stingray hardtop convertible will serve as the Official Pace Car for the 105th running of the For the 18th time, the Chevrolet Corvette was selected to be the Official Pace Car for the 105th running of the Indianapolis 500. C8 deliveries all over the United States.

~ Garrett R. of Oxon Hill, Maryland is one of 20 of my Customers in the next 30 days taking delivery at the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, KY. Garrett’s 2021 Corvette color choice is Sebring Orange tintcoat with Sky Cool Gray interior and this is one Stingray that pops! Equipment list: 2LT pkg, front lift, CF Painted wheels, Z51 pkg and Orange seatbelts! Stunning inside and out!

~Craig K. of Cumberland, Maryland factory ordered a dynamite color combo with the help from some of my guidance. Zeus Bronze metallic with Natural dipped interior was his color choice for his 2021 Corvette convertible. Craig could not have been more thrilled with his new Corvette and quickly said he may not be driving his other Corvette again. Equipment list:3LT pkg, CF Wheels, magnetic select ride, edge red calipers, performance exhaust, and much more. Give Craig a big Corvette wave, he will be the one with the Perma grin. ~Doug G. of Lake Zurich, Illinois factory ordered his Shadow Gray 2021 CorvetteZ51 Coupe to be drop-shipped for courtesy delivery at his Local to him Chevrolet dealer in Lake Bluff, Illinois. In his own words “Mike, This car is sick! Having owned a number of cars from Deutschland this vehicle exceeds any of them with street presence and sheer value. What a machine! Many thanks for your help and looking forward to seeing you at Spring Mountain. “ Cheers…Doug Equipment list:2LT pkg, Z51, Sterling silver wheels, cf Mirrors/spoiler, 2 tone red/black interior, chrome badges, magnetic ride, and much more.

~Rick and Kathy J. of Chattanooga, Tennessee and I have been talking Corvettes for several years now so he was smiling ear to ear this past week when they picked up their new Sebring Orange 2021 Convt at the National Corvette Museum. His TN home is a neighboring state of the museum in Bowling Green, KY so it was an easy trip for him. Equipment list: 3LT pkg, Black/sky cool gray 2 tone interior, CF Dual racing stripes, CF Nacelles and body-color roof, front lift, magnetic ride, performance exhaust, CF wheels, and Orange seat belts. Congrats!!

~Mike R. of Stuart, Florida factory ordered this Shadow Gray 2021 Corvette Z51 Convt for pick up at Criswell so he could drive it the 970 miles to his home in Florida. We Fed Ex’d the paperwork to Texas where he was on business this week and it’s a good thing I had the corvette prepared two days early as he showed up a day early for his delivery appt on my day off. “Chance favors the prepared mind!”Jason the GSM took care of the delivery and Mike was on the road in no time. Equipment list: 3LT pkg, two tone red/black interior, front lift, magnetic ride, edge red calipers, cf wheels, Z51 pkg and red stitching.

~Andrew M. of Greencastle, PA last ordered from me a 2015 Laguna Blue Z06 and yesterday he traded it in on his factory ordered Black 2021 Corvette Z51 coupe, his 3rd Corvette that he has owned. Smiling ear to ear as he pulled out and I don’t blame him!! Criswell service installed the High wing spoiler and the CF visible ground effects pkg. Equipment list:3LT pkg, Visible CF roof panel, front lift, mag ride, yellow calipers, yellow stitching, yellow seat belts, engine appearance pkg and much more. ~Robb H. of Laurel, Maryland factory ordered his 2021 Zeus Bronze with Natural interior Corvette coupe and yesterday was the big delivery day. Equipment list: 2LT pkg, front lift, yellow calipers and battery protection pkg. Incredibly pleased with his C8 choices! ~Chris S. of Columbia, Maryland factory ordered this Shadow gray metallic 2021 Corvette coupe as his daily driver and its his very first Corvette. His son and Father joined him for the experience…and his Fathers allocation should come up in 3 mos. Then they will both schedule a trip out to Spring Mountain Racetrack for the two day Corvette owners driving school.Equipment list: 2LT pkg, GT2 buckets, front lift, magnetic ride, performance exhaust and CF wheels. Perma-grin guaranteed. Chris took it home as it came off the truck…minus the car hauling cover. The Frank Class Corvette barn find and throwback section. Post up your favorite. Drive safely.

Mike Furman
Criswell Chevrolet
Gaithersburg, MD
301-212-4420 desk direct
Off Fridays and Sundays
“I sell and ship Nationwide and have done so for 43+ years!
[email protected]
CorvetteFurman.com

Click on the link below for Cigar Aficionado magazine article that just came out:
Cigar Aficionado: The Legend of Mr. Corvette

Each day I post up Corvettes stories and delivery videos…follow on Instagram: corvette.furman and Facebook: CorvetteFurman

Mike can deliver new Corvettes at Criswell Chevrolet in Gaithersburg, MD or through the National Corvette Museum’s R8C delivery program. He can also deliver new Corvettes via covered transport direct to your door or a courtesy delivery to the Chevrolet dealer near you.

The National Corvette Museum Increases C8 Corvette Museum Deliveries to 55 per Week

March 24, 2021 admin

One of the great perks for Corvette buyers is the ability to take delivery of their new Corvettes at the National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green. We think the extra attention from the museum’s well-trained staff is worth the $995 cost in itself of the R8C Museum Delivery and that’s on top of everything else that’s included for your special day.

A recent memo from Chevrolet dealers had a bit of good news regarding the R8C Museum Delivery Program. Starting this month, the NCM is now delivering 55 new Corvettes per week which is an increase of 10 more cars vs the 45 deliveries the Museum was able to do per week back in January.

This news couldn’t come at a better time as demand for the program appears to be at an all-time high. We are hearing that R8C deliveries are taking place on average about two weeks after the car was produced and the NCM is utilizing additional storage space at the NCM Motorsports Park to park those cars still awaiting customer delivery.

While we still don’t have assembly plant buyers tour because of the coronavirus, there’s plenty of good reasons why to pick up your Corvette in Bowling Green vs your dealership. For those customers doing the R8C Delivery Program, your list of perks includes:

Red carpet delivery experience
1-year Membership at the National Corvette Museum
Personalized R8C Plaque for the car
Drive The NCM’s 2020 Corvettes on NCM Motorsports’ race track
Guided tour of the National Corvette Museum
Assembly Plant Tours are also coming soon.
R8C Special 25th Anniversary door jam sticker
Lapel Pin
Customized Display Plaque
Signage from the Corvette Boulevard display
Photos of you taking delivery
All the fanfare and excitement that comes when picking up your new Corvette.

Source:
Chevrolet

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Quick Shifts Appendix: Automobile’s Million Dollar Challenge

August 29, 2020 admin

Welcome to our Quick Shifts Appendix, a stand-alone supplement to today’s QUICK SHIFTS post, where you will find a gear that, like the tach on the rumored 2022 Z06, revved out too far to fit into our classic Corvette gearbox.

To recap, Alex (I) has (have) been following a series of posts over at Automobilemag.com for the past six Mondays. In the “Million Dollar Challenge” that I’ve accepted below, Automobile staff puts together their ideal car collection with, you guessed it, one million dollars!

When participating in this exercise, there are several schools of thought on how best to use the money. Most of Automobile Mag’s players have gone the route of a traditional bridal with something old, something new, something practical, and a big-ticket item to prod with their right shoe (good call on the SLS Black, Mr. Ireson!). While I am very tempted to do the same by starting off with a 458 Speciale (white like Don Johnson’s!) or commissioning my very own 911 Reimagined by Singer (there’s one for sale but the 50ish% discount and ability to go wild with my own customizations on a new one makes the year+ wait completely worth it!) but my OCD doesn’t like all of the disorder associated with this method. What system of display even makes sense for their hodgepodge of international, multi-generational metal? You can’t park a Boss 429 between a 300ZX and a Kaiser; it just isn’t cricket! My technique is much more focused. I will be using my million to curate a sensational assemblage of modern American shock and awe.

Never in the history of mankind has so much performance been available for so few dollars. We aren’t talking about the straight-line simpletons of old either; in 2020, real driving aficionados don’t have to look any further than our shores to find the most involving and enjoyable cars in the world. The attainability of the majority of these cars allows me to build a larger collection than would be possible had I included a Lexus LFA. And, perhaps, best of all, the blue-collar badges affixed to each of my chosen vehicles would save me from 1. the apprehension of having my Aventador SVJ anywhere other than safe in my climate controlled garage and 2. the public disdain that such an extravagant show of wealth would open me up to. In place of these worries would be 1. the ability to comfortably street-park and 2. friendly conversation and hat-tips of respect from passers-by. So, without further explanation or gilding of the lily, I give you my million-dollar car collection:

2019 Corvette ZR1 – $149,900

As I am making a list of American performance cars (on a Corvette-focused website, no less), I had to start with the king of all star-spangled road-course warriors. My ZR1 is Corvette Racing Yellow with matching calipers and interior stitching. It also features the all-important ZTK “big-wing” package and seven-speed manual transmission. In all honesty, I could stop here and be completely content in owning R&T’s 2019 Performance Car of the Year, but just leaving $850,100 just lying around seems wasteful.

2011 Corvette Z06 Carbon Edition – $69,989

The other (current) member of my dream garage’s “Corvette Corner” is one of the 85 Inferno Orange Z06 Carbons produced in 2011. Like a lot of desirable cars on the inventory-starved market right now, this car is priced a bit steep but, with a million-dollars backing me, I’d gladly still pay MSRP for one of these, making 70 grand look like a deal!

2020 Camaro ZL1 1LE – $74,590

The previous parking space nearly went 2014’s Best Driver’s Car, but I have a rule about not repeating engines, and the Carbon just edges out its LS7 sibling. The Camaro strikes back and takes the next slot, though with a Crush ZL1 1LE that brings state-of-the-art DSSV dampers, LT4 grunt, and one of the best shifters in the business to the party. It is a 10Best winner, for good reason!

2006 Ford GT – $289,073.13

After slightly overpaying for the three bow-ties in my assemblage, I used my old importing from Canada trick to save money on the most expensive car on the list. There were only four options on the 2005-06 GTs, and my Mark IV Red example has the full quartette to go with its irresistible combination of a clutch pedal and mid-mounted V8.

2014 SRT Viper TA – $105,000

The “Time Attack” Viper takes everything that I love about the Z06 Carbon (rarity, extra focus on aero and handling, and orange-ness) and wraps it in a less historically-significant, but bite-the back of your hand gorgeous, outer shell. It brings 8.4 liters of Euro-shaming, hand-built V10, street-cred to the table.

With “just” $311,447.87 remaining, it is time to make some difficult decisions. I am feeling the need to buy a daily driver and after considering taking a great deal on a new, Blackwing V8-powered CT6-V and a big, cushy 797 HP Challenger Hellcat Redeye Widebody in the only acceptable color, Plum Crazy, I decided upon two similar, but better options:

2012 Cadillac CTS-V Wagon – $70,003

I can’t think of a better way to haul the kids around than in a Black Diamond Vagon with the six-speed! Did you know that, in the greatest deal in the aftermarket world, our friends at Lingenfelter Performance Engineering can get near-C6 ZR1 levels of power out of one of these for just $2,695? I don’t think I’d be able to resist that so, let’s say a total of $72,698 for this one.

2021 Ram 1500 TRX – $84,535

After mentioning the TRX in so many of the gears of this week’s edition of QS, I had to have one for when rear-wheel drive isn’t ideal. My TRX build ended up at just under 85 grand. I went with tow-tone Flame Red and Diamond Black with no graphics and the stock wheels. Inside, I selected the red-trimmed leather seats, the premium, Harman-Kardon sound system, and the panoramic sunroof. Other necessities were the towing group and the Safety & Security package that netted me head-up display and a surround-view camera.

I had my eye on a pair of snake-branded S550 Mustangs as well but, even with all of this money at my disposal, I have a hard time justifying the premium over MSRP that I’d have to shell out for a new Carbon Fiber Track Pack GT500. Then the GT350R’s 5.2 liter, flat-plane crank “Voodoo” engine made me realize that my best path forward is to get on our sponsoring dealerships’ flat-plane crank C8 Z06 waiting lists and send the necessary percentage of my $154,214.87 surplus to the first one that can get me an R8C Museum Delivery. Provided it doesn’t get the axe for 2022, I’ll take mine in Rapid Blue over Tension and Twilight Blue with a Z07 package to match my C6! Once that is securely in my position, perhaps I’ll revisit ‘Stang prices because the garage does seem to need one!

Your turn! Take the Automobile $1,000,000 Challenge for yourself and leave a comment with the list what cars you would procure if your bank account suddenly featured a one with six zeros after it, all budgeted for automotive fantasies in a wonderful, make-believe world without taxes!

Source:
Automobile’s Million Dollar Challenge

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