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Douglas Barton·
Auctions
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Exclusive: Check Out The Wholesale Corvette Market That Drives The Retail Prices

CorvSport.com is your one-stop shop for the Corvette market, including our exclusive dealer-to-dealer wholesale market reports!

Did our top pick, this beautiful C8 Z06, sell? Photo Credit: Manheim

Sometimes, the position that wholesale market pricing drives the retail market can cause a stir from those who proclaim that only what an enthusiast is willing to pay for that next shiny Corvette drives the market. And yes, that position isn’t completely out of line. But, as a used-car dealer for 17 years, when my fellow dealers were out at the dealer-only wholesale auctions buying frantically and paying “whatever it takes”, that was driven by the retail activity. And that hyper retail activity will cause wholesale prices to increase. [Author’s Note: This market report is FREE and not behind a paywall. Yes, FREE! If/when any pop-ups appear, please click to dismiss them and continue enjoying the article. One may require two steps–first, the arrow on the left, then the x on the top right.]

I can surely attest that if things were slow on my lot, I wasn’t out buying them up at the dealer-to-dealer auctions. And, I certainly wasn’t paying wholesale at the auction to sell it for under wholesale on my retail lot. Years ago, I got into a back-and-forth with an acquaintance on the Corvette Forum when he said what I paid at the auction was irrelevant. He claimed the retail market was independent of the wholesale market, and they weren’t tied together. In simple terms, he was wrong. He said take the loss on that nice truck; what you paid at the auction doesn’t matter. Sure, the retail market could fall (or crash) after a dealer makes that wholesale purchase, but that would be rare in the 30-50 days it takes a dealer to sell a unit.

If you are new today, I developed these exclusive wholesale market reports 66 weeks ago to give enthusiasts and shoppers insights into the market. If you want to check out interesting wholesale trends, especially as we moved from the Florida to the Texas market, we have our full archives below today’s results. In this week’s report, we have a battle between two of the top wholesale dealers, Texas Auto Value and GiveMeTheVin, so sit back and enjoy because these dealers like to hammer their wholesale Corvettes!

A Quick Review Of The Process:

In preparation for each installment, I start a list of Corvettes from that week’s runlist that catch my eye. As a retired owner/operator of a used car dealership, I’ll use my 17 years of experience (and industry access) to give you insights into the market. My search is focused on the nation’s largest dealer-only wholesale auction, and all the Corvettes featured are from the Texas market. Corvettes end up at a dealer-only wholesale auction for many reasons, but most are trade-ins that the dealer decided not to retail on their lot. Some may also be repossessions or coming off leases. It’s also common for dealers to dump problem (or slow-selling) units at an auction.

For Fun (and Insights):

Compare the MMR (estimated wholesale value) to the actual hammer price (if sold). It’s also interesting to compare the wholesale purchase price (if it sells) to the Cox Automotive estimated retail value, as this will give you an idea of the margins used-car dealerships are working with.

[6/05/2025 Edition]

Top 7: Wholesale Dealer-Only Auction Activity Report

#7

2016 C7 Stingray Coupe 1LT

14,959 Miles

Condition Report: 4.9/5.0

Announcements: 1LT package, Clean Carfax

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

MMR: $40,300

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $33,300 (47,443 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $25,600 (87,722 mi)
  • Last Year: $29,300 (71,272 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $45,500

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $40,000

(Insights: Wow, it’s hard to believe 1LT C7s are still bringing $40,000+ at the wholesale auction! I think we can say that “resell red” strikes again.)

#6

2017 C7 Grand Sport Coupe 1LT

9,333 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 5 owners, 0 accidents

MMR: $52,000

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $42,200 (34,229 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $44,200 (28,767 mi)
  • Last Year: $55,500 (6,364 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $58,800

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: NO SALE

(Insights: I suspect the wheels (and perhaps other mods we can’t see) turned off bidders for this otherwise very sharp-looking C7 Grand Sport. The first no-sale belongs to GiveMeTheVin.)

#5

2020 C8 Stingray Coupe 3LT

22,954 Miles

Condition Report: 4.8/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 4 owners, 0 accidents

MMR: $62,800

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $64,100 (18,895 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $60,600 (19,187 mi)
  • Last Year: $65,400 (15,007 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $64,800

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $64,750

(Insights: This one is a head-stratcher–this is big money and well over MMR for a first-year C8.)

#4

2023 C8 Stingray Convertible 3LT

1,661 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

MMR: $83,300

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $78,800 (8,535 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $73,700 (7,292 mi)
  • Last Year: $84,100 (4,953 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $85,100

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $84,250

(Insights: The Texas wholesale auction is hot today! Another beautiful C8 that brought all the money.)

#3

2023 C8 Stingray Convertible 3LT

1,072 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

MMR: $83,700

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $78,800 (8,535 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $73,700 (7,292 mi)
  • Last Year: $84,100 (4,953 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $85,500

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $84,000

(Insights: Another sharp-looking Torch Red C8 hammers–and some say the Corvette market is cooling off!)

#2

2024 C8 Stingray Coupe 3LT

3,785 Miles

Condition Report: 5.0/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 2 owners, 0 accidents

MMR: $77,200

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $76,400 (4,509 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $71,500 (5,109 mi)
  • Last Year: $84,000 (112 mi)

Estimated Retail Value: $80,400

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $78,500

(Insights: Well, this wholesale acquisition is at least a bit closer to the MMR, which is what I used to use as my maximum bid. Of course, it’s easy to have a max until you get in a heated battle with other bidders, then egos and shiny Corvettes can mess up the best-laid plans.)

#1

2024 8 Z06 Convertible 2LZ

2,387 Miles

Condition Report: 4.8/5.0

Announcements:

Autocheck History Report: 1 owner, 0 accidents

MMR: $124,000

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

Historical Wholesale Averages

  • Past 30 Days: $120,000 (3,096 average miles)
  • 6 Months Ago: $128,000 (569 mi)
  • Last Year: Not available

Estimated Retail Value: $126,000

(Based on Cox Automotive retail transactions)

Auction Results: Sold for $120,500

(Insights: You know the wholesale Corvette market is hot when the Z06s are hammering off to new dealers! And this is the first C8 sale for the day that was purchased well under MMR.)

Summary: Well, I teased we were in for a battle between the two top-dogs, and Texas Auto Value and GiveMeTheVin did not disappoint! Our 86% successful sales ratio speaks for itself–the used Corvette market is hot, at least in Texas! Texas Auto Value sold all four of the Corvettes we featured, with GiveMeTheVin hitting two out of three! Let’s see how the market is as we continue into summer! Thanks for joining CorvSport today, and we’ll see you in two weeks!

Sales Ratio Tracker (click date for report archives):

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*All images and information are credited to Manheim Auction

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