2026 allocation

[Finally-a-V]

......And another thing, GM is a little confusing itself. They release allocations kind of willy nilly too. When I was dealing with my dealer, they didn't really know if or when they would get an allocation. I'm going back to 2022-2023, so things might be a little different now.

When I ordered mine, the sales guy was pretty good, but immediately got the sales manager involved, and that's pretty much who I kept in contact with. The Sales manager took over the order and we stayed in touch.

 

[1Evil55]

Heritage in Lombard has come through for many folks here including myself. What I think the OP doesn't have a complete handle of is how GM has handled this since the beginning. A model that only has a couple thousand built for each year isn't going to be in abundance at each dealer. The extreme majority have waited months and months, with some in the year category. The best chance you would have at getting an allocation would be to walk in to a high volume dealer that you know has sold many BW's already and give a $1000 refundable deposit with your order and hope you get it. I waited almost 9 months for my first one. Patience grasshopper.

 

[all-good]

Mild counterpoint: Not all dealerships are as bad as the horror stories I've read here.

I didn't know much about this whole process when I started down the road to buy my 5BW. I must have lucked out and dealt with a salesman who at least was aware of what he didn't know. After a little bit of conversation he fairly quickly and professionally said, hey, let me introduce you to our general manager because he'd have a better idea about whether we expect to get any of those. The GM did know about allocations, and said I'd be in a good position to get one given their allocation expectations and my place in line there (and it worked out that way).

I think more salesmen should take this approach, realizing when they are in over their head with a certain type of customer looking for a particular car. FWIW, this dealer family also has a Chevy franchise next door, so they were used to Corvette allocations at the time (when I initially said there was only one car I was looking at, they first assumed I was asking about a Corvette!). And that family of dealers has a Porsche dealership next door to that, same story.

Advice: If the salesman at the dealership does not know about allocations, ordering, etc. then the customer should directly and politely ask to speak to someone who does. If nobody knows how to answer those questions, then go to another dealership.

In another bit of luck, I happened to be in the dealership in August 2021. For those who don't remember, that was *after* the initial batch of reservations had already long been spoken for, with people like @Tall Steve ordering something like 7 Blackwings, leaving none for the rest of us. But this was before we (or at least I) had any idea when the order banks would open again. Turns out, I walked in not too long after the order banks had re-opened, so I was in the right place at the right time. Welcome to the goat rodeo. Car was built in January 2022, aged in the snow for 5.5 months, then finally shipped to me in July.

One thing I forgot to add: When I did order the car, they put me with a different salesman, familiar with the Blackwing, and we went through all the options and I ordered what I wanted. He knew what he was doing, was familiar with the process. This dealership put me with the right people at the right time, didn't try to push what I didn't want.

Curious why did the car sit in the holding pen for 5 months

 

[rubberduck]

......And another thing, GM is a little confusing itself. They release allocations kind of willy nilly too. When I was dealing with my dealer, they didn't really know if or when they would get an allocation. I'm going back to 2022-2023, so things might be a little different now.

When I ordered mine, the sales guy was pretty good, but immediately got the sales manager involved, and that's pretty much who I kept in contact with. The Sales manager took over the order and we stayed in touch.

I

Most salespeople have zero idea of how allocation and ordering works. They don't order cars, they sell them. If dealerships were smart they would have at least one sales person that is knowledgeable of the process and has access to the GM dealer portals to look up information but alas. For most dealers custom ordering cars is pretty rare and custom ordering production constrained cars is even more rare. The corvette guys have been at this game many times so that's why that community has more resources and information around it.

I don't think customers should have to play these games. You're spending six figures on a vehicle. They should want your business. But I think they'd rather not deal with annoying customers constantly wanting to know allocation and order status and would rather just sell stuff off their lot. GM really should support customers directly better but the dealer lobby wants to be the only interaction with customers so here we are.

I think dealers often see allocation information as proprietary so they're reluctant to hand it out. I'm going through this myself and trying to figure out how to see if the dealer I've got an order in with can give me their allocation forecast but it's been difficult. Right now they're giving me no real idea of when to expect allocation. Could be this week or 6 months. Frustrating.

There was some info posted here a long time ago about how the allocation process works. It’s based on some form of past sales metrics for some combination of different cars. But this is GM’s process and they can do whatever they want in the end. So don’t blame the dealer if they are vague about allocations. You may be asking the wrong questions.

A reasonable metric of how successful a person will be is based on how many allocations they received last year for a specific car. However, throw constraints into the mix, and you guessed it, it’s now the first hurdle in the rodeo.

I got my car from a seemingly random show car that was offered to the dealership I had an order in with. I had developed a relationship with them over a period of many months with regular in person visits to the dealership. I didn’t act like a prima donna and instead spent most of my time at these encounters getting to know people personally. The sales manager knew me when he saw me. As I said, I would not hound him about my car because he knew I had an order in. It was all about showing an interest in getting to know him as a person. A good negotiator knows this practice well.

 

[shbox]

Curious why did the car sit in the holding pen for 5 months

Because in 2022 cars were hard to get and goats ruled the world. 5 months was not nearly a record during that time.

 

[ajamils]

So does anybody have an actual date on when the orders for MY26 are starting ? My dealer still doesn't have any info.

 

[rubberduck]

Curious why did the car sit in the holding pen for 5 months

Back in those days there were parts shortages and after manufacture they would be parked in what was known as ice mountain. Some cars were blocked in even after the parts were available. In some cases when it was time to move the car some genius thought it a good idea to use a broom to clear the snow and ice off the car and fucked up the paint. Then with all the backlog shipping became an issue. That’s a brief summary and there were other issues, but you get the point. That’s where the real goat cowboys earned their metal. Many of the new cowboys these days aren’t the real deal.

 

[bloominguez]

Curious why did the car sit in the holding pen for 5 months

GM gonna GM.

 

[ZoomieZoom55]

GM gonna GM.

 

[BlackDiamondCT5VBW]

In my experience you have to pack your patience and expect to be treated like shit. Nobody cares that you are trying to buy a 100k car. Most salesman would rather sell 2X $50k Lyrics than one BW. Unless you NEED a new BW with exactly the spec desired, I would recommend going the slightly used route.

 

[AdamUCF]

So does anybody have an actual date on when the orders for MY26 are starting ? My dealer still doesn't have any info.

You mean when dealers will start getting 2026 allocations? @ZoomieZoom55 and @DBordello suggested that they already were in another thread but I dunno.

D

Post in thread 'Blackwing Constraints Tracker'

May 21, 2025

Is this for 2026 or 2025 MY?

2026

• DBordello

• 

 

[DZnutz]

People still dont understand, it doesnt matter when 2026 orders "may" be taken, all that matters is when and how your dealer will receive an allocation, whether theyll actually be aware of timelines and whether they will actually offer you, specifically, the opportunity to fill that allocation. That is all, work with a Dealer that cares and recognizes you or dont bother.

 

[DZnutz]

Lets keep in mind that theres some turmoil in the GM system right now, some production is being shuttered. Wouldnt surprise me if the Blackwing allocations were drastically reduced or stopped entirely for 26 and even 27.

 

[AdamUCF]

People still dont understand, it doesnt matter when 2026 orders "may" be taken, all that matters is when and how your dealer will receive an allocation, whether theyll actually be aware of timelines and whether they will actually offer you, specifically, the opportunity to fill that allocation. That is all, work with a Dealer that cares and recognizes you or dont bother.

It does matter in that if no dealers are getting allocations then it's impossible for your dealer, no matter the volume, to get one. Sure if high volume dealers are getting them it doesn't mean low volume ones will as well but that's a different question.

Lets keep in mind that theres some turmoil in the GM system right now, some production is being shuttered. Wouldnt surprise me if the Blackwing allocations were drastically reduced or stopped entirely for 26 and even 27.

I mean anything is possibly but it would be pretty absurd and unlikely for GM to add the 2026 model to the order guide and consumer site as well as open ordering for dealers then not actually make any. And this makes the question of dealers getting allocation or not even more important because if they are then it would be that much more absurd for them to just cancel the accepted orders and not make them.

 

[DZnutz]

Youre trying to rationalize this, you really cant. Just the same way that the Canadian website wont even show the 2026 order guide or build sheet until we're 3/4 through the order year. That doesnt make sense either but it was done in 25 and 23. Looking at the website in Jan 25 you wouldnt even know that a 2025 model even existed, while the US had it in April or may 24.

 

[AdamUCF]

Youre trying to rationalize this, you really cant. Just the same way that the Canadian website wont even show the 2026 order guide or build sheet until we're 3/4 through the order year. That doesnt make sense either but it was done in 25 and 23. Looking at the website in Jan 25 you wouldnt even know that a 2025 model even existed, while the US had it in April or may 24.

Lol what does that have to do with anything? Besides, the 2026 model is even on the Cadillac Canada site. Site Maintenance

Could they change their minds and scrap 2026? Sure. But every step they make towards putting a 2026 model -- order guide, consumer sites, ordering availablility, order acceptance(?) -- makes that less and less likely. Buyers trying to find out if there's been allocation and order acceptance of 2026 MY is absolutely pertinent information.

And the order guide I was referring to isn't the consumer facing website but the order guide meant for dealers. It was posted before the consumer marketing site was updated. Vehicle Order Guide

 

[ZoomieZoom55]

This is why I came back. Well, this and a 2026 5BW that has already shipped to me for free from Dustin!