Classic Corvette Market Is Shrinking, and Customers Will Dictate EV Viability: Rick Hendrick

The NASCAR team owner has a pessimistic outlook on both the classic Corvette market and the future of EVs on the road and track.

For many years now – decades, in fact – the classic Corvette market has continued to enjoy tremendous success, with values rising by a significant margin. However, times – as they always do – are changing, and the younger generation seems more interested in the vehicles that they grew up riding around in – models from the 1980s through the 2000s, rather than the classics that we and our predecessors were interested in. Recently, NASCAR owner and all-around car guy Rick Hendrick admitted that he can see the classic Corvette market shrinking, and also offered up some interesting insights into the topic of electrification in a fascinating interview with Robb Report.

When it comes to the vintage car world in general – not just the classic Corvette market – Hendrick admits that things have taken a considerable turn for the worse in recent years, for starters. “I think so, I really do,” he said of this transition to a niche hobby. “A lot of the guys that have vintage cars tinker on them themselves, and they put them in a trailer and take them to a show. I don’t see people wanting to do that anymore. 20 years ago, there were a lot of cars that had been rebuilt or restored. I don’t see that much anymore. There are not a lot of places to take your ‘57 Chevrolet or your ‘60 Corvette.”

While he admits that he enjoys a bone stock Corvette as much as a restomodded one – after all, Hendrick has quite the collection of both – he’s also quite aware that future generations won’t likely share our enthusiasm for the automotive hobby in general. “I don’t think so. I feel like the kids today like exotics, they like the very top end, and then they like the little Hondas and they’ll soup up the little Toyotas . . . and then they like trucks,” he said. “I’ve got three grandkids and they’re all over the place. I’ve got one that likes Range Rovers, a grandson that likes all exotic cars, and another one that doesn’t care. When I was growing up, everybody was into muscle cars, [but] then the guys my age are kind of fading away.”

Interestingly, when it comes to electrification, Hendrick admits that he’s a proponent of hybrids, but he also doesn’t see EVs as being viable – either in the marketplace or on the race track – at least not yet. “I don’t see as much pressure on EVs because that’s just almost impossible to run in a [NASCAR] race unless you have a hybrid to charge it,” he noted. “The customer is going to dictate what you build. I’ve been in the automobile business for almost 50 years, and you can’t force customers to buy what they don’t want. We were too aggressive with the EV market . . . I think the EV market will be there one day, but we’re not ready for it.”

As the owner of several automotive dealerships spanning multiple brands, Hendrick points out that while he currently has a waiting list for select hybrids – such as those made by Lexus – the same can’t be said of EVs, which are currently being discounted heavily. It’s an interesting take, for certain, but also one rooted in reality.

After all, multiple automakers have scaled back their EV ambitions as of late – with many instead focusing on hybrids, due to swelling customer demand – all while early adopters have exited the all-electric market and demand for pure EVs has tapered off. As for the classic Corvette market, well, that’s another challenge facing a completely different group of people – us – as we’ll be the ones tasked with getting the younger generations interested in this beloved hobby of ours, at least, if we intend for it to survive.

Photos: Barrett-Jackson

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