Some thoughts from friends.

[Plasboy]

Talked with my best friends son last week about a McLaren and a Maserati he drove back from New Orleans for a client of his. He works as an airport firefighter and details cars on the side.
I asked him how the two cars drove and he said the Maser was a very nice car but the McLaren was on a whole different level. He said the 650 McLaren was just impeccable.
I was telling some Corvette club members this over the weekend and we got to discussing the ME. I said I hoped they had less problems than the C7 seems to have and one of the guys said he used to buy GM everything. Said the quality got to the point he switched. Said he now has a Genesis with 147,000 miles on it and it has had zero problems and has no squeaks or rattles.
The club guys I was talking to all said they hoped the C8 was a better built car and would need to be if it really wanted to compete with other mid engines even though the price may be considerably lower.

Just a little ramble on what at least I hope for besides the styling and performance.

[John]

We complained and complained, appropriately about the Corvettes paint for many decades. Now $435,000,000 later, and the paint is very good. However, the issue of fit-n-finish, including squeaks and rattles, while consistently improving, was during the C7 gneration, still a comparative negative to many cars — even some costing much less.

All of us are rooting GM on, that such issues of squeaks and rattles, panel-to-panel fit, and similar, one that we had more than we wanted in the C7 and earlier, are instead ”issues of the past” with the C8 — or at least greatly diminished.

[Shadow]

Porsche is another brand with very high fit-n-finish, but for me, I will put up with a few occasional, not-positive sounds from my C7, and accept with my rear fascia to rear fender panel ft being less than perfect, for the roughly $30K I saved and the extra 40% more in horsepower and torque that I gained by buying a Corvette instead of a Porsche.

[Frenzy36]

I would hope for a $200K Plus McLaren the quality and performance would be there. Lets be realistic and compare similar priced vehicles.

[Plasboy]

Yes I agree that the Corvette is a great bang for the buck and upgrades have been made on some fronts but at least with mine there have been too many issues. Really want something I don’t keep having to try and get fixed.

[Frenzy36]

Yes I agree that the Corvette is a great bang for the buck and upgrades have been made on some fronts but at least with mine there have been too many issues. Really want something I don’t keep having to try and get fixed.

Plasboy , Don't leave us in the dark. What problems and issues?

[Plasboy]

Plasboy , Don't leave us in the dark. What problems and issues?

Differential replaced, A/C system that doesn’t work properly, paint popping off inside of hatch, transmission shudder and hard shift and stress cracked windshield.

[John]

Sorry Plasboy, for you have had 5X more than your share of significant issues. Mine has has very isolated, easily managed issues — as have all of my friends, in fact with not one issue. At the same time your experiences were not unique — but very sorrowful.

I do know that re one of your problems, the paint coming off the hatch (mine too and tons of others also), there is a complete new procedure for hatch painting that was implemented when the new paint shop came on line.

[JB]

Purchased new 3different corvettes and this latest has 124k trouble free miles. The europeans create a wonderful perception of quality but from a durability standpoint on units produced nobody beats gm and the corvette. Imo

im a huge fan because of the durability and ease of repairs not to mention the low cost of upkeep.

ask any mclaren 12c owner how many thousands it cost when their battery went dead.

my corvette cost me 150 dollars to replace the battery every three years.

If the mclaren 12c battery goes dead your out 2 grand to replace..

for my peace of mind i prefer owning and using my corvette...

its running costs are similiar to an impala...

a few repairs here or there and the cost is minimal.

cant say the same for a mclaren..

most 12c owners pay the four grand a year extended warranty because they know if they dont they can get hit with a 37 thousand dollar repair bill..

my gmepp warranty was 400a year for 4 years and 48k miles with a hundred dollar deductible..

just a perspective to consider and i love the new 570..

thinking about one but why bother...

the c7 grand sport equals it and the c7 z06smoles it on the track.

i fully expect the c8 even the standard model to equal the 570 on the track...the z06 version will slaughter it...amd re,e,ber i love the 570..

buy a few parts out of warranty on a ,claren and let me know how you make out..

[Racer X]

Agree with above. Strip all the chrome and letters after the model, and the C7 is still a GM "working mans" sportscar. It's affordable off the lot, its affordable to maintain. If you get a lemon, that is an outliar and can happen with any brand. I can't afford a $200K+ sportscar, nor is it even a fair comparison. The fact that the C7 is even MENTIONED in the same conversation is a testament to GM and the car itself.

[Plasboy]

Purchased new 3different corvettes and this latest has 124k trouble free miles. The europeans create a wonderful perception of quality but from a durability standpoint on units produced nobody beats gm and the corvette. Imo

im a huge fan because of the durability and ease of repairs not to mention the low cost of upkeep.

ask any mclaren 12c owner how many thousands it cost when their battery went dead.

my corvette cost me 150 dollars to replace the battery every three years.

If the mclaren 12c battery goes dead your out 2 grand to replace..

for my peace of mind i prefer owning and using my corvette...

its running costs are similiar to an impala...

a few repairs here or there and the cost is minimal.

cant say the same for a mclaren..

most 12c owners pay the four grand a year extended warranty because they know if they dont they can get hit with a 37 thousand dollar repair bill..

my gmepp warranty was 400a year for 4 years and 48k miles with a hundred dollar deductible..

just a perspective to consider and i love the new 570..

thinking about one but why bother...

the c7 grand sport equals it and the c7 z06smoles it on the track.

i fully expect the c8 even the standard model to equal the 570 on the track...the z06 version will slaughter it...amd re,e,ber i love the 570..

buy a few parts out of warranty on a ,claren and let me know how you make out..

I don’t basically disagree with what you said, I would be ok with my car if they had a fix for everything and it wasn’t such a battle to get things fixed. Apparently no fix for the A/C issue or so they say and I’ve spoken with Peter Ho who is head engineer HVAC Corvette and Jeff Strausser Brand Quality Manager and they both say it is a known problem and some cars are worse than others but they don’t know why. Problem is basically that it blows cold air out dash vents when in auto mode but also blows hot air-105 degrees -onto your feet. Have to run in bilevel most of the time to stay mostly comfortable.

[Fasttoys]

I owned so many cars I can’t keep up, but I am very OCD and have a tendency to fix the issues myself. My 15 Z06 headliner foam was loose after 36 days of ownership the adhesive gave up. Went to a leather shop and had them cut the leather to match the foam headliner (125 dollars and I did the install work ).

Driven many 650 Mclaren’s and I agree you can’t compare as it’s a hand built car costing 250k+ verses a 55k to 110k Corvette. Hand built doesn’t make it. better just means the worker has more time with the car as it’s a slower build process. I can list many issues with Ferrari,Mclaren,Porsche and others that would make your heads explode. My Audi R8 had two known issues that affects all R8 over time. AC compressor goes out and the mag ride shocks start to leaks after a few years and need to be replaced. All these happened to my R8 before the car hit 22k miles. AC fix takes removing the motor 6.5k job for a 700 dollar part. Dampers are 5,200 for all corners if I do the work or to have Audi do it all is 9k.

In the end it’s how the manufacturers and your local SA handle the situation to resolves the problems and make you happy ?. I can promise you if it’s mechanical/electrical and you keep it long enough eventually it will let you down.

[John]

I have learned that the HVAC on the ME will be far better, for as you have noted, HVAC was a negative for many C7’s. Even our C7’s HVAC, which never broke, still has to be fairly often fiddled with to get it back to “okay.” (And I have tried all of the supposed fixes, workarounds, etc.)

[Fasttoys]

I have learned that the HVAC on the ME will be far better, for as you have noted, HVAC was a negative for many C7’s. Even our C7’s HVAC, which never broke, still has to be fairly often fiddled with to get it back to “okay.” (And I have tried all of the supposed fixes, workarounds, etc.)

Wow never knew the AC was an issue with the C7, mine worked fine for the short time I owned them.

[Plasboy]

I’m sure not all owners have had problems much less the several we have had but this car has been our most problematic.
Have had two C5’s and a C6 and this C7 is by far the worst. Don’t expect any to be necessarily perfect but better would be nice.