Effects of engine replacements on resale value of Corvette C7 Stingray

Frequent engine replacements are a sure footed reality for the newest Corvette.   The real puzzling part is that at least for now, these replacements are mainly a result of incompetent and negligent service technicians botching the torque tube R&R procedure.  Chances are very good that AFM related oiling problems will contribute to future engine replacements and rebuilds but this is another story altogether...

For now, however, there is a question regarding fiscal effects of these engine replacements, specifically regarding the diminished resale value of the cars affected by these unfortunate events.

Do engine replacements on barely used cars affect their resale v.  alue?  The answer is YES, very much so.  This consequence applies to any brand of cars but it is even more important with regards to cars considered high performance vehicles.

So what is the problem here?  Most of all, it is the PERCEPTION.  Just like with repaints of new cars, potential buyers are suspicious of such activities happening to very new cars commanding premium prices.    Has the owner abused the car causing the engine to fail prematurely, regardless of the repairs being covered under warranty?  Or perhaps there is a problem with the mechanical components causing all of these cars eventually to require engine replacement?

If anyone is in doubt how this works, there is no need to look any further than Corvette C6 Z06 and its famous valvetrain problems and subsequent engine replacements.  The value of these cars plummeted exponentially as the news of the engine failures spread.

Here is another problem with Stingray engine replacements: even though the replacement engine is a factory engine, the labor required for replacement is not, leaving people wondering about the quality of the work done, especially if the negligence of the dealership mechanics was the reason for the engine replacement in the first place.  Have these incompetents messed up anything else during the engine replacement making the car a ticking time bomb?  Even if this is not the case, the perception is there and this perception does indeed affect the amount of money anyone is willing to pay for their next used car, especially if there is a lot of money involved.

How do entities like Car Fax treat engine replacements when presenting vehicle repair history?  Are these replacements even listed?

Yes, these replacements are listed on the fact sheets, these agencies certainly have the access to the dealership vehicle service records and these replacements are included along with other warranty work done on the car.  What is really interesting  is the fact that places like Car Fax treat these replacements as a negative occurrence, including the CATASTROPHIC FAILURE under engine replacement heading.  Certainly, anything catastrophic cannot give a buyer a warm fuzzy feeling when coughing up lots of money. 

Additionally, major repairs are reflected in the projected car resale value that Car Fax assigns to the car when a service history record is generated.

So is there an impact on resale value of Stingrays affected by these engine replacements?  Not only these cars are affected but the cars not subject to the replacement as well, just because there is a possibility any car can go through this step.

Certainly, this is not a good thing for anyone considering selling or trading in their car in the future and this applies to the potential buyers as well. 

Ironically, the Stingray buyers like to propagate the belief that the value of the cars is not affected.  As the time goes by and market becomes saturated with the latest Corvette (and it always does), there will be the time to learn the hard way how the resale values work, including the dealers who cause their cars engines failures right now and assuring the owners that this is not the case at all.  The same dealers will change their story as soon as the owner comes to trade in their car, it always happens this way.

As a side note, the recent Porsche 911 GT3 engine replacements have the same effect on the resale value of those cars, with Porsche acknowledging this consequence, unlike GM.  In fact, the majority of current lawsuits revolve around unequal treatment of GT3 owners in different countries regarding the resale value loss.  Certainly, something to keep in mind when purchasing the newest Corvette.