I was actually cross shopping the Camaro until I went to the local Chevy dealer. It went something like this:
Me: "So do you have any new Camaros on the lot?"
Chevy Salesperson: "Just the one we sold and is being picked up later tonight by the owner. It's an SS. You can look at it from the outside, but that's it."
Me: After looking at the car. "Cool. Are you getting anymore in anytime soon?"
CS: "Not that we know of for the next couple of months. If you want one, you gotta special order one."
Me: "So how does an interested buyer, like myself, get a chance to test drive one?"
CS: "Well, after you order it, financing is approved, and you sign the papers, you could take it out for a spin. Also, these are selling at three-thousand or so above MSRP, and are on an order only basis."
Me: "Ok, well I am not going to buy a vehicle without a test drive, you have any sales brochures?"
CS: "Nope, all out."
Me: "Ok thanks for your time, goodbye."
IMHO, Chevy's got a good thing going with these cars, but they are messing up the endgame in completing the sale with a lot of potential buyers. Sure the car looks great, but I would not buy one on looks alone. The car is pretty big too, so does it feel like a land yacht or a vintage or modern muscle car? I'll never know without a test drive.
Now, the die-hard Chevy and Camaro fans will probably eat these up and pay the premiums, as well as the-gotta-have-it people, but I'm betting that's a small fraction of the potential market for this car. I've already made my mind up that the 370Z is the car to beat in my mind and that door is closing quickly, as I will likely be buying one soon.
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