Internet Backlash Forces Dealer to Sell Corvette Z06 at MSRP After Planned $90K Markup
The store’s general manager even sent an apology to customers.
A dealership in Texas is walking back on its decision to charge a $90,000 markup on the 2023 Chevy Corvette Z06 after heated internet backlash.
On Sunday, a photo of a purchase agreement between Mac Haik Chevrolet and a customer was posted online. The document outlined the terms that at least one customer had agreed to in order to secure their spot in line for a brand new Z06: a non-refundable $6,000 deposit and a $90,000 markup over the already spicy six-figure price tag.
The photo circulated around Facebook over the weekend, making its way to various Corvette groups before quickly hitting all the major car pages. The internet was pissed—posters began tagging General Motors to get the automaker's attention, and many shared their disdain for a dealership that would charge an incredible 85 percent markup on what's considered America's somewhat-affordable supercar.
It didn't take long for all of that negative light to make it back to the dealership. By Sunday evening, the dealership's general manager chimed in on social media to announce that they'd be lowering the price of all Z06s—including ones already ordered by its customers—to MSRP.
"I understand and agree with how everyone feels. We didn't intend to cause a problem," Potts wrote in a Facebook message. "We will contact all customers that have ordered the Z06 and lower it to MSRP."
The Drive reached out to the store's GM to confirm the pricing debacle, but our messages and calls were not returned at the time of writing. Another salesperson at Mac Haik Chevrolet confirmed that the dealership was indeed selling the Z06 at MSRP, but could not guarantee that it would receive an allocation for all interested customers, as it already had 110 people on its waiting list. However, someone in the original Facebook comment thread reported that a sales manager at the dealership told them that they would still be marked up by $50,000.
This isn't the first time a dealership has marked up the new Corvette Z06, and it certainly won't be the last. We came across a dealer seeking a $100,000 markup back in May, and Corvette Blogger recently found another dealership looking for the exact same amount. It doesn't help that the market is conflicted. On one hand, people are tired of paying MSRP and above for any vehicle in today's car market, let alone hero vehicles like the C8 Z06. On the other, people with enough money want their car and want it ASAP, no matter the price.
It's reasons like this why another Houston-area dealership was able to put its first and only allocation spot up for auction. It nabbed $71,000 for charity over the weekend, and a customer committed to paying an additional undisclosed amount of dealer markup.
So does internet bullying work on dealers? Maybe, but it shouldn't come to that. Even General Motors has tried discouraging people from flipping its vehicles—including the Z06, specifically—and shaming its dealers that have charged exuberant prices. GM North America President Steve Carlisle wrote a memo to stores earlier this year slamming "unethical" business practices and threatening to redirect allocation if a dealership was found to be in breach of its agreement.
