Is the Classic Corvette Market Doomed as Owners Get Older?

Many are worried that the classic Corvette market is fizzling out as younger folks gravitate toward newer cars, but is that really the case?

In recent years, we’ve seen a bit of a changing of the guard of sorts in the collector car world in general, with a younger crowd thankfully getting interested in these types of vehicles in general, but not exactly the way one might expect. Rather than snagging the torch and showing an interest in the same type of classic Corvette that many of us adore – such as the first three generations, specifically – these folks are going for newer vehicles, many of them from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, the same cars they grew up riding around in and adoring. Thus, this raised a pretty interesting question in the CorvetteForum recently – is the classic Corvette market doomed?

“I have been playing in the C2-C3 world for 36 years and have completed three frame off restorations and more wrench turning than I can count,” said member Mr D. “Long gone are the days of running down to the local auto parts store for that needed part, the radiator shop that re-cored your leaking radiator, the alignment shop that kept you running true, or the local paint shop that didn’t rape you on a paint job. Throw in the hand full of one off people like Gary that would restore that component be it a rear end, transmission, engine, instrument cluster, carburetor, etc. that have aged out of the business and no one to pick up the torch. Once upon a time, getting a bumper re-chromed was no big deal, but now we have to drive many miles just to find a place that does that. Throw in the absolute junk that vendors push off on us and call it a ‘GM’ reproduction part. I could go on and on with examples, but you get the point.”

“So, who owns these cars? I’m a Boomer (59-77) as are most C1, C2, & C3 owners, I’m guessing several Gen-X (43-58) are C3 owners and maybe a hand full of Millennials (27-42) but beyond that pretty much nothing. As we Boomers move right into the aging out group I don’t see Gen-X or Millennials having much interest in overpriced C1, C2, & C3 Corvettes. Say 15 years from now that Gen-X or Millennial said wow I would sure like to own that pretty Vette they couldn’t buy parts or find anyone to work on it. Even in today’s world we see people on this forum struggling to find quality parts, someone to work on their car ,or – god forbid – someone to paint your car. How far to the right does that $25k car today become a car that has little to no value? I’m guessing around 2030ish, am I wrong?”

It’s an interesting question, and as one might imagine, it stirs up some pretty interesting responses from other members. Most have had the same problem finding parts, specifically, though some feel like this transition is precisely what we saw happen with at least once in the past. “There will be a ton of cars passed along, sold, etc, in the next decade or so,” said Mooser. “I know a lot of older guys with Chevelles, Vettes, etc and their kids have slight interest in them, the grand kids have even less. To them, it’s like a Model A to us. Even if/when they get it, it’s not what they want to cruise in. We grew up with these cars around us, that’s what the cool kids drove and the TV stars, etc. The next generation grew up with Hondas and Nissans and Subarus. Now they are looking for Audi, Mercedes, BMW, that’s what they look to as the must have cars.”

There’s certainly a lot to unpack in this thread, which has stirred up a lot of thoughts on this particular topic. Some liken the collector car and classic Corvette world to what’s happening with Harley-Davidson, a 100+ year-old company that’s having a difficult time attracting younger buyers, but that isn’t necessarily the case with the C8, which is doing precisely that. Some suggest that we need to take the time to teach people how to turn wrenches or at least appreciate older cars when they’re very young, as was the case with many of us. Either way, this thread is a fascinating read, and we’re curious to hear what you think – so head over here and help keep this productive conversation going!

Photos: CorvetteForum

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