Man's C8 Corvette Lottery Prize Proving Hard To Claim Without Paying A Big Mark-Up
Dennis Kahler was having a great day when his $5 Georgia Lottery scratch card revealed he’d won $250,000 and a C8 Chevrolet Corvette. Getting hold of the latter part of the prize is proving easier said than done, though.
The T&Cs of the scratch card allotted $107,000 to the Corvette part of the prize, allowing the winner to go to town on the spec. Kahler, according to Corvette Forum, wanted a the mid-level 2LT trim on a Rapid Blue C8 with the Z51 pack for a total of $80,465, allowing him to pocket the $26,535 change. However, it seems the Georgia Lottery failed to appreciate the sky-high demand of the mid-engine Corvette, which combined with various Coronavirus-forced production shutdowns has made C8 slots hot property.
The car is sold out for the foreseeable, and the Lottery hadn’t secured any examples for the four winners before the cards went on sale. Five Star Chevrolet in Warner Robins was picked to be the supplying dealer for Kahler’s car, but it wanted to charge a $10,000 mark-up. A previous contestant reportedly paid this, but Kahler wasn’t so keen.
Speaking to CorvetteForum, Kahler said, “I used to be a general sales manager for a dealership, so I know the way things operate…I’m not giving up the money on my purchase by using them.”
When contacted by Fox Autos, Five Star said this was actually a reduction from the going-rate, a premium of $25,000. The dealer also confirmed it wasn’t contacted by Georgia Lottery until after the cards had been printed. A Chevrolet spokesperson said the manufacturer had no involvement, and the Lottery did not return the news outlet’s request for comment.
The lottery did find some dealers willing to sell at the MSRP, but each came with a long wait for delivery. Kahler’s best bet seems to Master Chevrolet in Aiken, South Carolina, although he’d still be hanging on until Autumn before getting his car. He’s now said to be weighing up his options.
Although the lottery seems to have dropped the ball, Kahler’s problem sounds like a nice one to have.
Growing up on a diet of World Rally Championship highlights and lengthy Gran Turismo 2 sessions, a life in cars was as good as inevitable for Matt.
Comments
Didn’t read it all, sorry, but nice Corvette pictures, those angles are cool. Nice article too.
“The Georgia Lottery promised to give away several Chevrolet Corvettes”
As an aside; One can find solace in acquiring a “free’ car from a Lottery. But why must it be from GM?
GM rubbished Holden and that’s all any proper petrolhead should be concerned with