Are we getting old or what?

[Larry P.]

I just drove my 60 up to the quick shop for some soda (for my bourbon) and the young man behind the counter says "What kind of car is that?" I didn't know there was a guy alive that didn't know that a Red 60 with white coves and teeth wasn't a Corvette!
350 miles and I could already write a book with the comments and questions.
I enjoy it and for you guys that are still working to get it on the street,
trust me, everything your going thru will be worth it. It's a blast to drive a car that you built yourself!
LP

[Eugene B.]

Re: An omen perhaps?

Larry,
I wonder if there will be a day when the Corvette will go by the way of the Pierce Arrow and the Packard, etc?

Around the Columbus, OH area, many young "kids" run around in "rice rockets" with obnoxious exhausts and spoilers. This seems to be the car choice of the younger generation.

The price is also a factor. Even if they want a Corvette, they can't afford one (new or classic).

Are we becoming old dinosaur dudes riding around in plastic cars hoping that the price of gasoline doesn't keep our beauties in the garage?

Best regards to all,
Gene

[G B.]

Yes, we are.

The next few generations view old Corvettes as a pleasing body style with good hot rod potential. They see our restored cars much the same way we view stock '32 Fords.

We're not the first group to stick with what we liked from our youth. I'm sure there were elderly Conestoga wagon collectors who thought the new-fangled horseless carriages would have no impact on their hobby.

[Christopher R.]

Re: Yes, we are.

Couple of months ago I'm in an Asian neighborhood (Quincy, Massachusetts)running an erand in my '62. In the parking lot of a strip mall visible from the main street, an Asian kid comes roaring in in a typical ricer. I mean it's a cliche ricer with every tacky accoutrement you can imagine. Kid himself is late teens/early 20s. Can barely speak English. Right off thde boat. Has spiked hair and lots of piercings. He comes roaring into the lot. Parks next to me and jumps out.

Wants to know what kind of car that is. Takes me a while to understand what he's saying. He's very excited. He thinks my '62 is the coolest thing he's ever seen. He'd never seen one before.

[Bill E.]

Re: Yes, we are and the end of the World is near

Last month I contacted the tech department of a major tire manufacturer to get the load limits at various tire pressures for a new set of tires I purchased for my '74. I told the very pleasant young-sounding lady that I had a '74 Corvette and gave her the info on the tires. She asked if Corvette was the manufacturer or if it was a model made by someone else. I wonder if she was really that dense or if the call was being answered in some third-world outback where Corvettes are unknown. In any event, her question didn't give much faith in the tech info she provided.

[Dennis A.]

Receiving "Thumb's up" is reward enough... *NM*

[Jim T.]

Re: Receiving "Thumb's up" is reward enough...

My father mentioned his first car sometimes, a Whippet. Heard from a cousin recently that remembers my father giving him rides to school in it when he was in the first grade. I was not born yet. Manufactured by Willys-Overland, I have never seen one. I have seen Model T's and even rode in a classmates Model A when in highschool that he still has. Last night driving down I-40 in my original owner and 35 year old 1970 I wondered how old that Whippet was that my father owned and what happened to it.

[Gene B.]

Re: Receiving "Thumb's up" is reward enough...

I had my fully restored 58 charcoal and with silver coves parked in my driveway, next to my 1971 driver, a red with white convertible top. These kids 18-25 year olds were drving down the street. They stopped and all four got out of the car and asked if they could look at the cars. Thinking they wanted to see the 58, I opened the hood. They never even gave it a second look. They wanted to see the 71 and wanted to know if it was for sale and/or how much was it worth. Didn't care one bit about the 58. Go figure

[Brian Monticello]

Re: Receiving "Thumb's up" is reward enough...

They're out there (interested younger generation)... Two weeks ago, at a stop light some guy (early 20s I guess) came up to me and said "is that a '66"? I said "close - a '65". He recognized the side grill shape.

When I got married, I used my '65 coupe and had it vale parked at the hotel up in St. Paul, MN. When I pulled in, one guy boxed out the other guy and ran up to the car. He was probably in his late teens. He knew it was a '65. I saw the same guy when I left - not only had he created a "new" spot right next to the booth, he told me he stared at it the whole shift and personally vouched for its safety. I had visions of a red car flying over a hill a la Ferris Buheler in my head!

To some of you, I am the younger generation. Got my car three years ago at 27. Have been obsessed for much longer. When all you old fogies out there kick the bucket, there will be plenty of us out there to take care of your rides! The dream will stay alive. Proteam cannot buy them all..............

Brian

[Reba Whittington]

Re: Are we getting old or what?

About fifteen years ago, we took the L88 to the school where I taught for homecoming festivites. Several students came running down from the stands and asked if this really was an L88. I asked how they knew what an L88 was. They had read about them and recognized the difference in the hood. Of course, these kids are now in their thirties: I bet ones today wouldn't have a clue.

[Clem Z.]

and it is not going to get better

with people with all kinds of money bidding corvettes up into the $100,000+ range. these cars will never be seen on the street,just closed trailered from show to show. cars are sought out by people who wanted one when they could not afford them and now they can afford them but older corvettes are not known to the younger crowd so they will not be wanting to buy one. i do not go to many NCRS meets but the ones i go to i see very few people i would call young and this is going to be the problem.

[Larry P.]

there are younger guys invoved

I have seen quite a few younger guys into vettes. When I was 21 I had a 27 ford.
It was about 40 years old so our cars are about the same to them. I get a lot of interest from younger kids. Even if they have never seen one, they recognize and appreciate the unique styling. The youngster that saw my 60 last night didn't know what it was, but he liked it.
LP

[Roy B.]

Re: and it is not going to get better

Who said most of use are old geezers. I'm a young 65 and drive our 55 every where, you high rollers that drive those newer C1's of the late 50's and 60's think no one knows what you have , how about me us in a old 55 ?
My favorite thing to say when a C 2 and newer guys pull up to me ,(is to ask them what kind of car is that) Man you should see their face as they replie CORVTTE ,I say OH!! really , that's what that is . The best part is that vary few know what I'm driving and ask me what mine is! My wife always get a giggle out of that when it happens.

[Jon #40768]

Re: I saw a 55 in a movie

I was watching an old black and white Mike Hammer movie, probably from about 1955, and the lead drove a 55 vette all through the movie. I had never seen a 55 in a movie before. I think the movie was called Kiss me Dearly. My wife can, within reason, id fairly closely most vettes from 56 to 70, but she was shocked at the 55. Of course they dubbed the sound to make it more sporty.

I bought a 60 vette in high school in 1972, and my friends said, "thats a corvette?" Go figure. They figured it out in short order. I watched route 66 when i was about 4, before kindergarden. I craved one even then, and of course always loved solid axels.

Jon

[Joseph T.]

Re: and it is not going to get better

Clem

My son made the same observation at Bloomington this year. His comment was..dad..these are the same guys coming to the same show telling the same stories..and asked who is going to replace them?

My son is a good example. He appreciates the cars but has other interests..not the same as the baby boomer generation.

And..Clem you a have a good point about the price issue. High dollar cars will for the most part be garaged and hidden from view. Roy Braatz and few others are the exception.

Personally...I think marketing has a lot to do with it. Dodge is making a lasting impact with the resurrection of their Hemi advertising. It sells new cars and brings back memories of yesteryear.

Just imagine what GM could do!