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Douglas Barton·
Auctions
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E-Ray In The Wild: A Rare Wholesale Sighting Headlines The C8 Corvette & Dallas Dealer-Only Lanes

Episode 58 delivers a fascinating mix—3 Z06s, a 42k-mile E-Ray, and a 70k-mile Stingray—paired with full Dallas coverage and dealer-only insights

The stage is set! Will this 42k mileage E-Ray sell?!? Photo Credit: Manheim

Our in-house retired dealer—17 years deep in the trenches—has been circling this one on the calendar, and for good reason. Episode 58 of our flagship series rolls out a proper eighth-generation heat check, and this lineup doesn’t ease into anything. We’re talking seven C8s with real personality: three Z06s, one E-Ray, and three Stingrays, headlined by a 2022 Coupe showing a staggering 70,634 miles—a mileage high-water mark for our Curated Top 7. That’s not just a stat, that’s a statement about how these cars are actually being used, and today, we get to watch how the lanes respond.

A Clean Set With A Wild Mileage Split

Let’s start with the fundamentals—because they matter. All seven Corvettes cross the block accident-free, a clean sweep that immediately raises the floor on confidence and bidding behavior. But then comes the contrast that defines today’s story: a one-owner E-Ray with over 42,000 miles, clearly enjoyed the way it was engineered to be. Contrast that to our brand-new E-Ray market piece, where the total mileage from three bargain hybrids did not even surpass 1000 miles. That gap between garage queens and road warriors? It’s no longer theoretical—it’s playing out in real time.

Why This Matters More Than You Think

If you’re wondering why this report deserves your time, here’s the edge: wholesale is tomorrow’s retail. When dealers step up and raise their hands, it tightens the entire ecosystem—retail pricing firms up, negotiation windows shrink, and margins get exposed. Watching hammer prices stack up against real-world asking numbers gives you something rare: clarity. This is the layer beneath the listings, the data most buyers never see and many salespeople can’t access. In short, this is how you get ahead of the market instead of reacting to it.

Dallas Is On A Heater—And The Numbers Back It Up

Before we even hit the first gavel, we’ve got to talk Texas. Dallas has been on an absolute tear. Since early March, sell-through rates haven’t dipped below 80%, culminating in a blistering 96.7% success rate in our last report—a new benchmark. Zoom out further, and since launching our expanded Dallas coverage on 10/23/2025, the market has delivered a strong 75.8% sell-through rate. That’s consistency with spikes of dominance, and it sets the tone for what we’re about to see today.

Perfection In The Top 7—But Can It Continue?

And then there’s our Curated Top 7—quietly building its own legacy. Since 2/20/2026, we’ve logged four perfect 100% sell-through performances, a run that’s as impressive as it is telling. The question now becomes unavoidable: do these seven C8s keep the streak alive, or does the market finally blink? Pair that with a red-hot Dallas lane, and the stakes feel just a little higher. Let’s roll the cars across the block, track every bid, and tap into our resident dealer’s behind-the-curtain insights after every hammer—or miss.

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[Episode 58: 5/29/2026]

Top 7 Spotlight: Wholesale Dealer-Only Auction Activity Report

#7 — 2022 C8 Stingray Coupe 2LT

70,634 Miles

Condition Report: 4.5/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

Announcements: Silver Certified

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $53,400

(Dealer Insights: Well, we are off with a bang, with our highest mileage C8 ever hammering off to a new dealer. GM Financial came ready to sell and did well at $3,300 over MMR! And look at that mileage hit on the MMR. I hope this dealer has a plan, because he’s over the estimated retail.)

#6 — 2024 C8 E-Ray Coupe 3LZ

42,124 Miles

Condition Report: 4.3/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements: Green Light

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $79,700

(Dealer Insights: GM Financial hammers its second C8, and they must be happy with the bidding war that led to a $9,100 premium over MMR. An $18,870 hit for miles has to be one of the largest I’ve seen, but a handful of dealers wanted this E-Ray so badly they said screw what the book value says!)

#5 — 2024 C8 Z06 Coupe 1LZ

5,266 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements:

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $98,000

(Dealer Insights: Our Curated Top 7 is on a roll, with superseller Texas Auto Value–TAV–selling our first Z06. And finally, we have a unit that hammers close to MMR–those high mileage sales were bizarre.)

#4 — 2025 C8 Z06 Coupe 2LZ

3,626 Miles

Condition Report: 4.6/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements: None

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $108,000

(Dealer Insights: The Texas lanes are still blazing, with our second Z06 pulling $2,000 over MMR. On this one, let’s look at those historical averages, which show that 2025 Z06 Coupe 2LZs have lost $15,000 over the last year. Does this surprise you?!?)

#3 — 2025 C8 Stingray Coupe 3LT

3,297 Miles

Condition Report: 4.7/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements: Leather, 6.2L

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: NO SALE

(Dealer Insights: A non-superseller, Music City Autoplex, just had to ruin our streak! These wholesale lanes have been smoking with dealers ready to buy, so it’s likely this dealer’s reserve was simply too high.)

#2 — 2025 C8 Z06 Coupe 1LZ

1,918 Miles

Condition Report: 4.6/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

Announcements:

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $100,500

(Dealer Insights: Our last Z06 hammers “right on the money,” giving the new dealer some decent margins to work with and some negotiating room. This is another sale from superseller TAV.)

#1 — 2026 C8 Stingray Coupe 1LT

1,557 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

Announcements:

MMR Data:

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

Historical Wholesale Averages & Estimated Retail Value:

Auction Results: Sold for $65,750

(Dealer Insights: Our first deal of the day, at $2,750 under MMR! This completes the hat trick for TAV, but leaves me wondering–why didn’t the first owner put some miles on this 2026, and more importantly, why did they dump it so quickly?!?)

The Final Word

Seven cars, one story—and the lanes told it loud. Six of our Curated Top 7 found new homes, with all three C8 Z06s selling alongside the high-mileage E-Ray and that headline-grabbing 70,634-mile Stingray. If there was any doubt about whether dealers would lean in on usage versus preservation, it vanished the moment the bidding opened. This wasn’t cautious buying—this was conviction.

Mileage Madness Meets Dealer Confidence

We opened with a jolt, and it never really let up. That 2022 Stingray 2LT with 70,634 miles didn’t just sell—it hammered at $53,400, a full $3,300 over MMR, despite a condition report of 4.5 and two owners. As our dealer put it, “I hope this dealer has a plan, because he’s over the estimated retail.” And then came the E-Ray—42,124 miles, a massive $18,870 mileage hit baked into MMR—and still, a bidding war drove it to $79,700, or $9,100 over. That’s not rational on paper… but it’s very real in the lanes. Dealers didn’t just accept the mileage—they attacked it, signaling that demand for desirable specs is starting to override traditional depreciation logic.

Z06 Strength Anchors The Market

Once we pivoted into Z06 territory, the story tightened—but the strength held. The 2024 Z06 1LZ finally brought some normalcy, hammering right near MMR at $98,000, a welcome reset after the earlier fireworks. But Dallas wasn’t done. The 2025 Z06 2LZ pushed $108,000—$2,000 over MMR—even as historical data shows these cars have shed roughly $15,000 over the past year. That tension between past depreciation and present demand is where the real insight lives. And then the final Z06? A clean $100,500, “right on the money,” giving its new dealer room to breathe. Three Z06s, three sales, and a clear message: this cornerstone of the C8 lineup is still commanding respect when it hits the block.

The One That Broke The Streak

It wouldn’t be the lanes without at least one twist. Our lone miss—a 2025 Stingray 3LT with just 3,297 miles—stood out precisely because everything else was flying. The verdict? Not the car, not the market—the reserve. As our dealer bluntly framed it, “these wholesale lanes have been smoking… it’s likely this dealer’s reserve was simply too high.” Translation: In a 93% sell-through environment, if you don’t sell, you probably chose not to. Meanwhile, Texas Auto Value quietly put on a clinic, moving multiple units—including that $65,750 2026 Stingray that slipped $2,750 under MMR—leaving just enough margin for the next dealer to play the retail game.

Dallas Turns Up The Heat—Again

And then there’s Dallas. Forty sold out of forty-three offered—93%—another scorching performance that doesn’t just continue the streak; it elevates it. Zooming out, this single event nudges the overall Dallas average up nearly a full 1.5 points, reinforcing what we’ve been tracking for months: when this market gets hot, it stays hot. Strong wholesale results like this don’t live in isolation; they ripple forward, tightening retail pricing and shrinking negotiation windows across the board. So as we close the book on Episode 58, the takeaway is clear: the C8 market isn’t cooling; it’s recalibrating. And if you’re watching closely, you’re already one step ahead of where it’s heading next.

The Bigger Picture: 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%
1/09/2026 39 28 71.8%
1/22/2026 28 21 75.0%
2/05/2026 39 33 84.6%
2/20/2026 32 22 68.8%
3/06/2026 35 32 91.4%
3/19/2026 34 28 82.35%
4/03/2026 38 32 84.2%
4/17/2026 34 29 85.29%
5/12/2026 30 29 96.7%
5/29/2026 43 40 93.0%
Total 510 394 77.3%

 ♦ The 394 Breakdown

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

  • C8: 206
  • C7: 116
  • C6: 37
  • C5: 6
  • C4: 11
  • C3: 15
  • C2: 2
  • C1: 1

See All Our Exclusive Dealer-To-Dealer Wholesale Transactions

♦ Successful Sales Tracker (click date for report archives):

The authors and contributors at CorvSport get the privilege to write about Corvettes nearly every day–thanks for being with us today on this Corvette journey. Now, it’s time to join the CorvSport movement!

*All images and information are credited to Manheim Auctions

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