Absolutely.

If you don't believe me look at carmax website.

They have several 06-07 in the mid $40s. They are a dealership. Wholesale prices are even lower.

They even have an 08 listed for $54K.

www.carmax.com

Some of those cars have been for sale several months now at those prices. (I've been watching).

There is a beatiful black one at LAX for $46K. I may look at that one next weekend.

 

I'm a little late to the party. The NPP exhaust may not be advertised on a lot of cars (dealers are notoriously dumb.) But I believe more than 1/2 of all the Corvettes made for 2008 had it. I have it, and I do really like it. There are aftermarket alternatives though if you don't get it with the car.

Chrome wheels are an EASY fix. Explain to the dealer how undesireable they are to you, and use that as a negotiating tactic to get them to lower the price. I bought a set of the 05-07 5 spoke wheels for $300 (no shipping as they were local) with about 3,000mi on them (they are PRISTINE) and a set of the '08+ wheels for $380 (also local, they had some MINOR maring on them, but I was planning to have them refinished anyway, even if they had been pristine.) There are a LOT of people that DO like the chrome wheels so they will sell easily, and for a decent price too.

I did pony up for the 3LT. I like all the bells and whistles. I like (don't LOVE, but like) the seats (they are the same as the 2LT seats.) They are MUCH more supportive than the C5 seats especially in the side bolsters. The seat (lower) bolsters are still pretty weak. While you might not like all the 3LT stuff, it does help resale so you wouldn't really be losing money on it, just spending a little more now. The Heads-Up display is, IMNSHO, worth the price of admission alone. Also, heated seats, with the A/C on can help keep your back relaxed on long drives.

The "iPod interface" is on all radio's for 08+ EXCEPT the navigation. But it is only a 1/8" headphone jack input on the front of the radio. Nothing to "integrate" the iPod. There is nothing from GM to adapt an iPod to the navigation system. (Lame-o) but there are aftermarket solutions.

As far as undersireable options in general. It's ALL personal preference. I would start by deciding what suspension I wanted. Z51/F55/Base. The base suspension is the least expensive, and it works fine. For most people, it's all they need. If you don't plan to track the car, then you might want to go for the F55 which is the magnetic selective ride control. This is the system in the Ferarri 599 and in the ZR-1. It adjusts the dampening relative to the conditions on the road. It's a VERY nice setup, with a sport and touring mode. Get on the highway, put it in touring and it's VERY soft cruising. Get to the back roads, flip it to sport and it does a good job holding the road. The Z51 is the sport suspension package. It comes with a LOT more than just the suspension tweaks though. It is the firmest suspension (of a non-Z06) available. It is much firmer than sport mode in an F55 car. It also comes with an engine oil cooler, power steering cooler, trans cooler (manual trans cars) and a tighter gearing ratio in the transmission (manual trans cars.) Both the Z51 and F55 now come with the bigger, cross-drilled rotors.

From there, trim level: 1LT, 2LT, 3LT, 4LT. If you want the fancy leather interior, you go for 4LT. It's about $2500 more than 3LT, which is no where NEAR worth it to me. 3LT includes telecoping steering wheel (not much range though) heated seats, auto dimming mirror, heated outside mirrors, memory system, Heads up display and the 6-disc in-dash changer. If you want Navi, you MUST go with at least 3LT. 2LT only adds the better seats (with side airbags) the cargo net and the trunk shade. I actually like both of those items a LOT more than I thought I would. However, if you don't get them, they are cheap to get.

Then, stand alone options: Wheels, exhaust and roof. The transparent roof is nice, but you can get a used one, or a new one from a dealership at any time. They are interchangeable from ALL C6s. The painted roof is not sold as an assembly, to get it from a dealership you'd have to order the parts individually, get the top painted, then assemble the whole thing. I got mine with the painted roof for that reason, and have been keeping my eyes out for a deal on a transparent roof.

Even without the 4LT interior, I think the two-tone interior looks FANTASTIC:

 

What are the packages like for the Z06 (specifically 06-07). Do they follow the 1LT, 2LT etc trend? Also isn't the NPP standard on the Z06? Is the only option just Navi?

I've seen too many 06 Z06's in the high 30, low 40 range and the 505hp is starting to go to my head a little.

 

[QUOTE=CosmosMpower,Feb 20 2009, 10:46 AM] What are the packages like for the Z06 (specifically 06-07).

 

Thanks! I'm in NC. After watching the bit on the ZR1 on Top Gear, I am really thinking that I'd like to get a Corvette (the Z51 LS3 is at least 8/10s as good a car as the ZR1 in the hands of someone like me). But, after watching the stock market race towards the 6,000s this week, I am thinking I should wait a little longer. My lease isn't up to July (I thought I'd just double them up in the mean time), and I have a feeling that 0%, perhaps for 72 mo., could be just around the corner on the '09s.

 

I think the C6 will be my next sports car in the next few years

 

wont see 0% on 2009 units until the 2010 model hits dealers. If the economy turns around you may not see it at all. plus, you will miss all the time you could be enjoying the car now.

 

The standard exhaust is a 2" exhaust with no cut-outs. The NPP exhaust is optional on the coupe/convertable. It is a 2 1/2" exhaust with the butterfly valves in the mufflers.

The Z06 comes with a 3" exhaust with the butterfly's. It's not the NPP, it's actually better and it's stock on even the 1LZ. (All Z06s come with the Heads up display too.)

 

I believe the standard coupe exhaust it 2.5" IIRC. But no butterfly valves for straight through loudness. The butterflies are standard on the Z06 and it has either a 3" or 3.5" exhaust tips although it necks down to 2.5" just before the muffler cans.

 

Economy turning around? You're much more optimisitc than I am. I don't think we will see that for quite some time (at least some time into 2010 in my completely uninformed and guessing opinion). What I am really missing, though, is all the dough gone from our investment account that could have been used to purchase a Corvette, and a trip to the Greek islands in the spring (still doing that, though), and a trip to France or Italy in the fall (we'll see, I guess), and etc., etc. Putting any money invested in the stock market down on a car now is just nuts (we should have had more in a money market, but hindsight is 20/20), so I think the only way to go is with low financing, preferably 0%, or leasing. I doubt I'll regret waiting. Deals will only be getting better, IMHO.