CENTRAL KANSAS CORVETTE ASSOCIATION
• CORVETTE OF THE MONTH: AUGUST 2026 •
Chuck & Tammy Zimmerman – 2026 Z06 Corvette Coupe
• CORVETTE OF THE MONTH: AUGUST 2026 •
Chuck & Tammy Zimmerman – 2026 Z06 Corvette Coupe
"Delivery of our new Corvette at the
National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky"
National Corvette Museum in Bowling Green, Kentucky"
Introduction
I have a few pictures that I will pass around as I tell you about our experience in choosing a museum delivery when we purchased our Corvette, in case some of you have not been to the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green recently.
Corvette Build and Order
Rather than buying a Corvette off a dealer's lot, I went on the GM build website online and chose the options I wanted on the Corvette and then sent a printout to the dealer.
On 11-21-2025, I sent the dealer my first Corvette build. On 11-25-2025, my dealer sent to GM my final build after working through the GM constraints at that time. Our dealer was notified by GM late November or early December that the order was approved.
My dealer then informed me of that approval and that I would be receiving communication from Shane Webb, one of the Museum Delivery coordinators that he works with.
Production and Delivery
Within a few days of GM's approval, I received a phone call from Shane. He then communicated with me and my dealer that, due to the assembly plant going on holiday break from Thanksgiving to 12-31-2025, he would get back to me with an approximate date that our car would go into production as well as its completion date.
That determined when we could pick up the car depending on option items chosen that would have normally been completed by the dealer.
On December 15, 2025, Shane informed me that our car would come off the production line and be completed on January 20, 2026.
Once the car was actually completed, we had 30 days to take delivery of the car from the museum, as that was a fairly strict condition GM placed on the museum. So we needed to get to the museum no later than February 20 to take possession.
I learned from the dealer and Shane that, since the car is not going to be delivered to the dealer, GM contracted with a company in Bowling Green who would do all the dealer prep.
I was put into contact with that company (Auto Armor), informed them of the anticipated completion date, and they began communicating with me, Shane, and my dealer as to when they could pick up the car once it is delivered to the museum, so they could complete what they needed to do and deliver it back to the museum within that 30 day period so we could take delivery.
Auto Armor
Once at Auto Armor, they washed it and inspected the paint job for any flaws.
IF in their determination it did not meet GM specs, they had the authority to send it back to production for a redo with NO questions asked by GM.
IF all was OK, they waxed the car, and completed my other options that included an upgrade to the floor mats, lift pads, front and side radiator guards, intake guards, rock guards, paint protection on the whole front, rocker panels, rear splash.
Once Auto Armor was done they took it back to the museum for us to see and take possession.
Delivery Date
In a couple of phone calls with Shane, we were informed that the assembly plant was open the weeks of 02/09, 02/16, and 02/23 for tours, so he could schedule tours for us if we chose one of those weeks (and days) for delivery.
We chose a February 19, 2026 delivery date.
Museum Delivery and Plant Tour
On January 25 we received a congratulatory letter from the Senior Delivery Manager Rod Keller, with an itinerary of the R8C Museum Delivery, and plant tour.
We arrived at the museum at 8:15 on February 19, and were met with a museum volunteer who was with us through the entire delivery process until we boarded a shuttle that took us to the assembly plant for a tour.
We first completed paperwork, purchased a few items only available to museum delivery recipients, got a "hands on" orientation by our assigned volunteer with me in the car, had the volunteer (with me in the car) drive the car out of the museum, down the exit hall, and out to the staging area where a professional photographer completed his picture taking.
That took about 3 hours, then boarded the shuttle for a plant tour that took about 90 minutes, then back to the museum for lunch at the "Stingray Grill", (complimentary reservation NOT a complimentary lunch) and at around 2:00 p.m. we were on our own to tour the museum or do whatever.
Transporting Our Corvette
I then drove the car for the first time back to Auto Armor, for them to house the car until the trucking company recommended and used by our dealer (called Plycar) came to pick up the car.
They picked it up in an 80' covered semi along with 1 other Corvette, 1 Hennessey Spyder, 1 Ferrari and a few other cars on February 26, 2026.
– Chuck & Tammy Zimmerman, as presented at the August 10, 2026 CKCA General Membership Meeting
I have a few pictures that I will pass around as I tell you about our experience in choosing a museum delivery when we purchased our Corvette, in case some of you have not been to the Corvette Museum in Bowling Green recently.
Corvette Build and Order
Rather than buying a Corvette off a dealer's lot, I went on the GM build website online and chose the options I wanted on the Corvette and then sent a printout to the dealer.
On 11-21-2025, I sent the dealer my first Corvette build. On 11-25-2025, my dealer sent to GM my final build after working through the GM constraints at that time. Our dealer was notified by GM late November or early December that the order was approved.
My dealer then informed me of that approval and that I would be receiving communication from Shane Webb, one of the Museum Delivery coordinators that he works with.
Production and Delivery
Within a few days of GM's approval, I received a phone call from Shane. He then communicated with me and my dealer that, due to the assembly plant going on holiday break from Thanksgiving to 12-31-2025, he would get back to me with an approximate date that our car would go into production as well as its completion date.
That determined when we could pick up the car depending on option items chosen that would have normally been completed by the dealer.
On December 15, 2025, Shane informed me that our car would come off the production line and be completed on January 20, 2026.
Once the car was actually completed, we had 30 days to take delivery of the car from the museum, as that was a fairly strict condition GM placed on the museum. So we needed to get to the museum no later than February 20 to take possession.
I learned from the dealer and Shane that, since the car is not going to be delivered to the dealer, GM contracted with a company in Bowling Green who would do all the dealer prep.
I was put into contact with that company (Auto Armor), informed them of the anticipated completion date, and they began communicating with me, Shane, and my dealer as to when they could pick up the car once it is delivered to the museum, so they could complete what they needed to do and deliver it back to the museum within that 30 day period so we could take delivery.
Auto Armor
Once at Auto Armor, they washed it and inspected the paint job for any flaws.
IF in their determination it did not meet GM specs, they had the authority to send it back to production for a redo with NO questions asked by GM.
IF all was OK, they waxed the car, and completed my other options that included an upgrade to the floor mats, lift pads, front and side radiator guards, intake guards, rock guards, paint protection on the whole front, rocker panels, rear splash.
Once Auto Armor was done they took it back to the museum for us to see and take possession.
Delivery Date
In a couple of phone calls with Shane, we were informed that the assembly plant was open the weeks of 02/09, 02/16, and 02/23 for tours, so he could schedule tours for us if we chose one of those weeks (and days) for delivery.
We chose a February 19, 2026 delivery date.
Museum Delivery and Plant Tour
On January 25 we received a congratulatory letter from the Senior Delivery Manager Rod Keller, with an itinerary of the R8C Museum Delivery, and plant tour.
We arrived at the museum at 8:15 on February 19, and were met with a museum volunteer who was with us through the entire delivery process until we boarded a shuttle that took us to the assembly plant for a tour.
We first completed paperwork, purchased a few items only available to museum delivery recipients, got a "hands on" orientation by our assigned volunteer with me in the car, had the volunteer (with me in the car) drive the car out of the museum, down the exit hall, and out to the staging area where a professional photographer completed his picture taking.
That took about 3 hours, then boarded the shuttle for a plant tour that took about 90 minutes, then back to the museum for lunch at the "Stingray Grill", (complimentary reservation NOT a complimentary lunch) and at around 2:00 p.m. we were on our own to tour the museum or do whatever.
Transporting Our Corvette
I then drove the car for the first time back to Auto Armor, for them to house the car until the trucking company recommended and used by our dealer (called Plycar) came to pick up the car.
They picked it up in an 80' covered semi along with 1 other Corvette, 1 Hennessey Spyder, 1 Ferrari and a few other cars on February 26, 2026.
– Chuck & Tammy Zimmerman, as presented at the August 10, 2026 CKCA General Membership Meeting
– Photos (5) courtesy of Chuck & Tammy Zimmerman
Congrats Chuck & Tammy, and thank you!!!
Page last updated: 08/16/2026
© Central Kansas Corvette Association
Hutchinson, KS
© Central Kansas Corvette Association
Hutchinson, KS
