Plentiful supply, the arrival of hotter models and a car market that has recovered its sanity has helped make used C8s more affordable
by Chris Chilton
46 seconds ago
- The once large gap between used prices for C8 and C7 Corvettes has shrunk, Hagerty reports.
- C8 Stingray prices have been pushed down by greater availability and the arrival of hotter models like the Z06 and E-Ray.
- Though the mid-engined C8 has been showered with praise, the C7 was the last Corvette available with a manual transmission.
A few years back the C8 Corvette was at the forefront of the pandemic price-gouging movement and people were paying crazy money to get behind the wheel of the first-ever, mid-engined Chevy sports car. But in 2024 the dust has settled, and it’s the less exotic C7 that has done a better job of staving off depreciation.
Data from Hagerty shows that three years ago the average price of a C8, the supercar-shaped Corvette introduced in 2020, was 83 percent higher than the price of an average C7, the last of the front-engined Corvettes built from 2014-19. As of today that gap has dropped to just 48 percent.
Related: GM Reimbursing C7 Corvette Owners For Broken Wheels – But There’s A Catch
The arrival of any new Corvette is a big deal for American sports car fans, but the C8 was a special case. It was the first Vette to have its V8 placed behind the seats, which meant it looked and drove unlike any previous model. Naturally, demand was high, and the outgoing C7 suddenly looked boring and old-fashioned. C8s, meanwhile sold for over MSRP and some new owners flipped theirs for profit, helping push values up.
This would have happened anyway, but the situation was supercharged by the pandemic, which brought production delays that further skewed the demand-to-supply ratio, pushing prices even higher. Three years ago C8 Stingrays – which had an enticing base sticker price of $60k – were selling on the used market for an average of over $115k, Hagerty says.
Today the average stands at $72k, that drop the result of more cars being available on the used market, a market that has cooled from its pandemic-era high, and the launch of newer, faster C8s like the Z06 and E-Ray.
But Hagerty’s pricing intel says C7s are currently trading at $49k, the same dollar figure they were achieving this month four years ago. Like other used cars, they appreciated during 2021 and 2022, in part due to the shortage of new C8s, but prices have since fallen back.
Both are great cars, though the C8 feels the more exotic, both in the way it drives and even just the control layout. But the C7 has one major advantage: it’s the last Corvette to be available with a manual transmission. For some sports car buyers that’s a real deal breaker. Would you pay the premium to take a used C8 over a used C7?
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