help me understand the ordering process.
 

Hello,

From talking with the various dealers out here in the pnw and looking at the build your car section on the Chevy website I thought I could just go to any dealer check off the options I want on an order form, negotiate over the price, pay the deposit and I'd get an expected delivery date. However having started reading on here I see you guys are talking a lot about restrictions on z51 and what dealers have an allotment which makes it sound like a dealer can't order the car you want just the cars they have an allotment for.

How does that work exactly and if I can't just walk into any dealer order a z51 then what other options are restricted? I was planning to order a torch red 2lt z51 coupe with red interior red brakes, mag shocks, black mirrors/spoiler, black rims and the glass top.

This is an often asked question but here goes:

Near the beginning of every model year Chevy tells their dealers about how many of each vehicle line it expects them to order over the course of the year and that is the guide number which is intended to help the dealer plan inventory.

Every two weeks Chevy tells the dealers how many of each vehicle line it will be allowed to order over the following two weeks. This number is allocation(s) allowed and this is the beginning of the several day consensus process. Constrained items are announced during this consensus for that consensus altho frequently continue from one consensus to another.

The guide number is based on previous model year sales.

When a dealer receives an allocation, he will either use it or that allocation will be given to another dealer which is why a dealer may process an order with no constraints for stock even though a customer wants to order but will not give up the item constrained.

For the Corvette there are less than a hundred dealers who sell half the production AND there are a few hundred (maybe several hundred) dealers who have never sold a Corvette or have not sold one in the most recent few years. There are about 3100 Chevrolet dealerships, so 100 out of 3100 sell half and say 700 out of 3100 have or will not sell a single Corvette for the most recent or the next model year.

That is a lot to digest but a daresay pretty much answers your question.

The Z51 package may continue on partial constraint for the 2015 model year; we will not know until another consensus or two cycles are completed. For other constraints your dealer is your best source.

Laborsmith

Thanks for the info!

Were any other options other than z51 consistently restricted in 14?

performance exhaust and carbon fiber internal trim

Not performance exhaust but CF trim options and all versions of the roof except the transparent roof, and you post your roof option of choice is the transparent one, so that should not be a problem. And the comp seats.

An historical note: for the first year of C6 production the Z51 was on limited constraint (usually 50& of production) for the whole of the 2005 model year due to CAFE needs to keep that option from over riding fuel mileage requirements.

Laborsmith

Make sure you have a clear understanding of the roof you're going to order. If you order the transparent glass roof (blue tinted) that will be the only roof that you get. If you want a glass top and a regular body colored roof than you will have to order c2q to get both. c2q is a constraint item and it held up my order from March 6th to tpw of 7/14.

I love Sun roofs so I have no issue with the glass roof only. At 35lbs I can easily remove or install it alone so I'm not concerned about getting the lighter cf or painted roofs. It rains here 300 days a year so the glass roof will be the only way I get sun in the car must of the year since the roof will usually be on lol.

It looked black in pictures, blue is disappointing since I'm going with a red/black theme throughout :(

I admit I should not comment on the color of the transparent roof, or the color of anything whatsoever, but I am not sure the roof is blue and if it is blue it is a shade of blue that blends well with everything around it. Indeed, it is so dark that if I had to identify a color I would say pale black. Is there such a color?

Any accusation of my being color blind will be accepted in that it is true, I am.

Laborsmith

Has anyone heard about 2015 colors ?

Not having my car yet I can't say 100% that it's blue tinted but I did look at one back in January and as I recall it looked like it was. It was on a dealers lot and I was so ga ga over the whole car I didn't give it a lot of thought. Take a look at youtube . Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Z51 then go to road test Car and Driver it's 9.21 long for a good look go to 7.00 and take a look. Does anyone out there have a glass top and what tint do you think it is?

Blue is the general consensus.

I should not have interjected but to me from the outside it is dark enough to be considered black.

But regarding the color of anything I am a least reliable reporter.

Laborsmith

The only thing I would say about getting just the glass roof is resale......if you don't get it painted at the same time and you try to sell it you are really limiting who would buy it....I wouldn't buy a vette without a factory painted roof.....just my 2 cents- I ordered both roofs

Why do you guys want a painted roof? Cars with Sun roofs dont come with a color matched panel and that doesn't hurt resale, in fact having a sunroof increases resale. I'm actually surprised to learn that it's not more common to get the glass top than the painted roof. It's no more difficult to take on or off and it makes the car feel more open and spacious when you can't go topless.