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Douglas Barton·
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Classic Corvette Stingrays Collide With C8 Z06s & The Modern Stingray At The Wholesale Auction

Vintage muscle meets modern supercar performance in our Top 7 spotlight, while 42 Corvettes in Dallas expose the true pulse of today’s wholesale market

The C8 Z06s are flying across the auction block! Photo Credit: Manheim

Since February 2024, CorvSport has been pulling readers inside a place most enthusiasts never get to see: the dealer-only wholesale auction lanes where real Corvette values are set long before a car ever lands on a retail showroom floor. Now, in our 48th installment, the contrast couldn’t be sharper—or more fun. This week, three classic C3 Corvette Stingrays collide head-on with three C8 Z06s and a C8 Stingray, creating one of the most generationally diverse Top 7 lineups we’ve ever tracked. Guiding us through it all is CorvSport’s resident pro—a retired used-car dealership owner with 17 years of real-world buying and selling experience—offering dealer-level insight after each spotlighted Corvette. These aren’t armchair opinions; they’re lessons from a veteran who’s lived the wholesale market. Add in our expanded Dallas deep dive tracking 42 total Corvettes, and this installment becomes required reading. The full market analysis—and our expert takeaway—wait just below today’s Top 7.

A Rare Collision Across Five Decades

Seeing a single classic Corvette at a dealer-only wholesale auction is uncommon. Seeing muliple C3 Stingrays cross the block in the same week is almost unheard of. That rarity makes this installment special, especially when those classics are lined up against Chevrolet’s modern performance kings: three C8 Z06s and a C8 Stingray. This is the wholesale market at its most revealing, where nostalgia, horsepower, and modern Vettes all collide. And with GiveMeTheVin (GMTV) supplying six of our seven spotlighted Corvettes, we get a rare look at how one of the industry’s biggest supersellers approaches everything from vintage risk to modern inventory velocity.

Inside The Mind of a Veteran Dealer

What separates this series—and why enthusiasts keep coming back—is perspective. Our in-house CorvSport dealer doesn’t just report results; he explains why these cars show up, how dealers evaluate them, and what matters when real money is on the line. After each of the Top 7 Corvettes, you’ll hear how a seasoned dealer views condition, desirability, wholesale appetite, and resale potential. Whether it’s a late-’60s Stingray or a fire-breathing C8 Z06, the same hard truths apply—and those truths are gold if you’re buying, selling, or simply trying to understand the market beneath the surface.

The Bigger Dallas Picture Is Shifting

Beyond our Top 7 spotlight, this installment zooms out to the 42 Corvettes offered in Dallas, giving us one of the clearest snapshots yet of where the wholesale market stands heading deeper into winter. The data tells an evolving story. On 11/20/2025, Dallas was red hot, moving 24 of 29 Corvettes for an 82.8% success rate. Two weeks later, on 12/04/2025, activity cooled sharply, with just 15 of 32 selling—46.9%. That contrast sets the stage for today’s question: does Dallas stabilize, rebound, or continue to cool? As always, we track which generations are driving momentum, with the C8 currently leading overall sales (31) and the C7 close behind (30)—a reflection of how newer Corvettes dominate the wholesale lanes, but not without pressure.

Why Watching The Wholesale Lanes Still Matters

This is where enthusiasts gain an edge. Wholesale results often forecast what’s coming next at retail—sometimes weeks, sometimes months ahead. They expose real dealer margins, show which cars dealers are chasing (and which they’re avoiding), and surface trends before they become headlines. From the ongoing evolution of C8 values to the surprising appearance of classic C3s in a dealer-only environment, the lanes are full of early signals. And with 46 prior installments and today’s expanded Dallas coverage available just below, CorvSport continues to build the most transparent, enthusiast-focused wholesale Corvette archive anywhere. Now that the stage is set, it’s time to dive in—and have some serious market fun.

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[12/19/2025 Edition]

Top 7 Spotlight: Wholesale Dealer-Only Auction Activity Report

#7 — 1969 C3 Stingray Coupe

30,098 Miles

Condition Report: 4.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report:  Not Available

Announcements:

MMR: Not Available (due to limited transactions)

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: Not available
  • 6 Months Ago: Not available
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: Not Available

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $34,000

(Insights: GMTV hammers its first classic, which should come as no surprise, given it’s a numbers-matching example with the L46 350ci V8 matched with the M21 4-speed manual transmission.)

#6 — 1969 C3 Stingray Coupe

64,610 Miles

Condition Report: 3.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report:  Not Available

Announcements:

MMR: Not Available (due to limited transactions)

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: Not available
  • 6 Months Ago: Not available
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: Not Available

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $27,500

(Insights: There is good value in GMTV’s second sale, with this nearly all-original big-block beauty hammering significantly less than the L46.)

#5 — 1971 C3 Stingray Coupe

82,251 Miles

Condition Report: 3.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report:  Not Available

Announcements:

MMR: Not Available (due to limited transactions)

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: Not available
  • 6 Months Ago: Not available
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: Not Available

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $29,000

(Insights: GMTV came ready to sell its classics today! We’ll have more insights on the last classic sale where GMTV hammered all its antique Corvettes in our takeaway below.)

#4 — 2023 C8 Stingray Convertible 2LT

10,992 Miles

Condition Report: 4.8/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

Announcements:

MMR: $64,900

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $64,200 (18,536 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $68,400 (16,167 mi)
  • Last Year: $66,900 (12,729 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $70,900

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $66,000

(Insights: Despite what you may hear around social media, C8 Stingray values continue to remain strong. Note not only the premium above MMR for this example, but also the historical averages.)

#3 — 2024 C8 Z06 Coupe 3LZ

2,385 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements:

MMR: $109,000

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $111,000 (3,106 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $117,000 (1,627 mi)
  • Last Year: $118,000 (4,823 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $116,000

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $112,500

(Insights: This was a nicely equipped C8 Z06, with all the carbon bits enthusiasts love, and the price above MMR reflects the desirability. It’s safe to say the fallout from the refueling fire risk, and former recall and stop sale, is behind us.)

#2 — 2025 C8 Z06 Coupe 3LZ

4,701 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 0 owners, 0 accidents

Announcements: Clean Carfax

MMR: $111,000

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $107,000 (3,901 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $125,000 (1,658 mi)
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: $126,000

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $105,000

(Insights: This C8 Z06 sale illustrates how the desirable add-ons affect the market, both at the wholesale and retail levels. At $6,000 under MMR, this was the deal of the day, but GMTV was fearless in hammering her.)

#1 — 2025 C8 Z06 Convertible 3LZ

1,135 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements: Leather, Navigation

MMR: $121,000

(MMR=estimated wholesale value, based on vehicle, miles, condition, and recent auction sales)

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $120,000 (2,446 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $127,000 (1,323 mi)
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: $131,000

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: NO SALE

(Insights: Our first no-sale for the day, and it’s likely due to the dealer’s reserve being too high, as our previous results show that the Vette buyers, especially for the C8 Z06, showed up today. This was the first offering from a dealer other than our superseller, and it showed.)

The CorvSport Takeaway:

This installment delivered a decisive answer to nearly every question we posed in the opening—and then some. The headline number says it all: 6 of our 7 spotlight Corvettes sold, good for a red-hot 86% sales ratio, once again proving that a well-curated lineup beats the broader market. Superseller GiveMeTheVin (GMTV) was flawless, hammering all six of its Corvettes, while our lone no-sale came from a rare appearance by Music City Autoplex with a 2025 C8 Z06 Convertible 3LZ, where an aggressive reserve likely stalled the deal. Zooming out, Dallas showed a more measured pace, with 25 of 42 Corvettes selling (59.5%)—a meaningful improvement from the 46.9% we saw on 12/04, but still well below the 82.8% heater from 11/20. In short: the market is selective, not soft—and our Top 7 once again outperformed the field.

Classic Stingrays And Modern Z06s Tell The Same Story

One of the most compelling takeaways came from the unlikely heroes of the day: the classics. Seeing C3 Stingrays at a dealer-only wholesale auction is rare enough; watching them all sell underscores just how dialed-in GMTV remains. The numbers-matching 1969 L46 four-speed led the charge at $34,000, followed by a big-block ’69 at $27,500 and a 1971 coupe at $29,000—each finding a buyer despite condition differences. That result echoes a familiar pattern our resident dealer pro has seen before, most notably on 12/19/2024, when GMTV successfully hammered every classic Corvette we spotlighted in a single sale. We’ve linked that installment here, because the parallel is impossible to ignore: when the right classics show up with the right seller, the wholesale market responds.

The C8 Z06 Narrative Shifts–And The Data Proves It

Equally important, this week delivered a clear rebuttal to the online chatter claiming the C8 Z06 market is crashing. Two of our three Z06s sold for strong, confidence-building money, including a 2024 Z06 Coupe 3LZ at above MMR and a 2025 Z06 Coupe 3LZ at $105,000, despite landing $6,000 under MMR and earning “deal of the day” honors. The contrast between those sales and the lone Z06 no-sale reinforces what our 17-year dealer veteran has emphasized throughout this series: buyers are here, but pricing discipline matters.

Just as telling, the lingering noise from the C8 Z06 refueling fire risk, recall, and stop-sale period has clearly faded, with buyers once again bidding on spec, condition, and desirability—not fear. Add in a strong C8 Stingray convertible sale at $66,000, and this installment closes with clarity: the wholesale Corvette market is cooling in spots, confident in others, and still offering early signals to those paying attention. And as always, the archives—and our new expanded coverage—are waiting just below.

The Bigger Picture, NEW Expanded Dallas Data:

Date Corvettes Offered Corvettes Sold Successful Sales Ratio
10/23/2025 28 20 71.4%
11/06/2025 27 16 59.3%
11/20/2025 29 24 82.8%
12/04/2025 32 15 46.9%
12/19/2025 42 25 59.5%
Total 158 100 63.3%

Total Dallas Sales By Generation (Since 10/23/2025):

  • C8: 40
  • C7: 38
  • C6: 15
  • C5: 1
  • C4: 1
  • C3: 5
  • C2: 0
  • C1: 0

See All Our Exclusive Dealer-To-Dealer Wholesale Transactions

Sales Ratio Tracker (click date for report archives):

Thanks for coming along with us on today’s Corvette journey. We’ll be back in two weeks! We invite you to become a part of the CorvSport movement!

*All images and information are credited to Manheim Auctions

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