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One factor that has only been lightly touched on is that younger guys tend to prefer different cars....not only Camaros but also imports that do little buy make me laugh ( I am 67. ) This has been a marketing challenge ..... getting younger buyers to think American muscle instead of some very very very high strung Subaru with a silly hood scope ( and, yes, I know some are very fast but who cares they are ridiculous too ).
I finally bought my first vette. Paid cash. It's a 1LT Stingray. it is exactly what I wanted. It has clean crisp lines and no excess in the body panels to add weight. It's black and I love it. I could have bought a loaded Z06. I didn't. I prefer the Stingray styling. I greatly respect the Z06 but have no use for all that power. 460 is plenty for me!
My vette is a manual. Probably due to my age I love that more than any automatic. I get into my Stingray and feel like I'm 19. I know I'm not. Today I felt fine....no hangover and rode my stationary bike for an hour. My pulse was within 5% of max predicted for my age. I felt great.
I admit I'm getting old. The vette keeps me young. It is respected by old and young alike. It is admired. I get the kind of respect I like from owning and driving it.....the kind of people whose opinion I value really like the car and respect me for owning it.
I would not want to be seen in a Mercedes, BMW, or Porsche. ( engineer, several master's degrees, high IQ , have traveled a good part of the world ... and I don't have to have one of those cars to prove anything to anybody ). The people who are impressed by the likes of a BMW most likely isn't someone I would bother with.
That's all. I wave at all vette owners. I am ecstatically happy to drive mine. I get tears in my eyes sometimes driving it or just sitting in it I am so happy. And.....it's a stripper.....bottom level no options....like I said.....clean, crisp, purposefull.......
The day will come I hope not too soon when I am not able to operate the clutch or perhaps forget what the steering wheel does.....in the meantime I don't have to impress anyone ( and most importantly I don't care what any woman on the face of the Earth cares about me as I drive the car or do anything else in life, younger guys take note....someday if you live long enough you will be FREE )
Happy New Year all vette owners. I am so proud and happy to be one of you. It's very special. Very special.
St. Jude Donor '05-'06-'07-'08-'09, '14-'15-'16-'17-'18
Originally Posted by Friendly guy
My vette is a manual. Probably due to my age I love that more than any automatic. I get into my Stingray and feel like I'm 19. I know I'm not. Today I felt fine....no hangover and rode my stationary bike for an hour. My pulse was within 5% of max predicted for my age. I felt great.
I admit I'm getting old. The vette keeps me young. It is respected by old and young alike. It is admired. I get the kind of respect I like from owning and driving it.....the kind of people whose opinion I value really like the car and respect me for owning it.
Great post....
Last edited by ExRedRacer; 01-02-2017 at 02:18 AM.
I am just curious since it is not that expensive to buy .. you get alot bang for your buck with this gorgeous vehicle why arnt many younger males driving it ??
Yup I remember when I was 20 I always saw "old guys driving a Vette-what a waste of car" Now I'm that "older guy". We only look older but we are still 20yrs old! LOL
Hey Chuck don't you wish you still had the '59? Or do you?
My first Corvette was a tick behind yours, It was a 1960 VIN# 00062 purchased when I was 18 in May 1974 for $1,800. I have it listed on the C1 Corvette Registry in hopes of finding it some day. I'd like to buy it back. After several years of searching I can't find it anywhere.
I had a lot of fun during the 2 years I owned it. I sold it to an elderly couple in 1976 for twice what I paid for it. My dad flipped when I bought it, and because I doubled my money he thought I was a genius when I sold it. Except now it's worth 20 times what I sold it for.
This is the only picture I have of it. Too bad the quality of the picture is poor.
Hey Randy, good stuff! Keep looking! Love these old Vette pics! I'd love to own another C1. There's nothing like driving one, grabbing that huge wheel, right hand on the ivory Hurst ball atop that beautiful, tight, short-throw Hurst shifter, listening to the solid lifters tick in unison as they are bumped by a 30-30 Duntov, that ragged idle, AWESOME! There's not a finer profile than a C1 hardtop Vette!
Here's a pic of one of my dad's Vettes, early seventies. This pic reminds me of your first one. This one was a full-house, scratch built LT-1, 1120 crank, pink rods, E-series AFB on a Torker, headers, Vertex mag, all the goodies. Sad thing is, except for the visceral experience of that '62, my '16 base will outrun it AND get 30 MPG!
Well I can't speak for everyone else but I have an incredibly small ***** that I have to compensate for.
In all seriousness now I believe it's the same reason young people don't ride Harley's, they simply can't afford them. Beyond that I think the Gen Xers are still raising families and some have just never learned what cool really is.
could it be Harleys are non performers? lot's of money for the oldest technology.
I am just curious since it is not that expensive to buy .. you get alot bang for your buck with this gorgeous vehicle why arnt many younger males driving it ??
Basically it's a person's financial situation. A lot of folks buy a Corvette after they retire. Most young people are too caught up in living expenses to own something as unique as a sports car.
I am just curious since it is not that expensive to buy .. you get alot bang for your buck with this gorgeous vehicle why arnt many younger males driving it ??
Age 23 I graduated with a degree in mechanical engineering in 1979
Typical ME salary was around $18,500 for that occupation in MN (around $22 K in Detroit)
A new C3 Corvette cost around $14,000. My 1975 Monza V-8 was about $3,500.
Insurance was over$2,000/yr for a Corvette or any "muscle car". My insurance was less than $1,000/yr.
My first house cost $53,000 --I had to get rid of any car payment to qualify for the FHA mortgage payment at 10% interest so I sold my Fiat 124 Spider.
We were plannng on getting married and having a family. Not only was a 2-seater out of the question, we needed a car that we could drive year-round in MN. Most sports cars were only good for about seven months.
Now that we live in AZ, I can use the Corvette as a daily driver and can afford it.
Last edited by DesertDog56; 01-02-2017 at 04:46 PM.
And for the record, I do know the car-buying process....I've bought plenty of them in my time. My question was how a 20 year-old could afford the down payment for a new C7 and monthly payments on his own. Another CF member admitted that while his grandson has a Corvette, he provided half the money for the down pmnt...which is exactly the point made by another poster...that 20 year olds cannot do it by themselves...unless, of course, they started their own software company or something like that.
Anyhow, have a great New Year and keep that Vette looking good!
Again your saying there is no way for a 20 year old to afford a down payment on a C7, how do you know? Yes, someone else said that he helped their 20 year old son get a C7, but does that mean all 20 years olds get help from their parents to buy a C7? Their are more than 7 billion people living in the world and your still saying there is no way for a 20 year old to afford that type of car.... Im sure their is some 20 year old that made it big with something he/she invented and is able to afford an expensive car. I understand that yes, not many 20 year olds can afford a car at this price point, but some can. It may be hard, but you never know what can happen. It suprises me your still saying no 20 year old can afford a car like this. Just to prove you wrong check out henry107 on youtube. He bought a C7 Z06 at 20... Streetspeed 717 has a C7 Z06 and he's in his 20s. He's actually had a C7, Hellcat, and now a C7 Z. Another person in their 20s is vehiclevirgins he has a Huracan and a s550 and a m5, he used to have a Gallardo which I think he bought at 21.
Sometimes I have to wonder if those guys on YouTube are actually getting paid by the Parent company Google Inc. to make the videos. Again, I don't know them personally nor do I follow any channels (except for Chuck's), but it does make me a bit jealous they drive those nice cars at that age!!
My first car was a '67 Camaro RS/SS resuscitated from the junk yard. It had been stolen and stripped. In went a small block 400, 4spd, posi diff and on went a new paint job. That was the start of a long automotive love story. Since then, I've always owned something with more power and ability than was practical for the street. Even my '73 GMC 3/4 ton had a 454!
I've had 7 corvettes since buying a new 40th Anniversary in '92. Owned 3 at the same time for a while. Spent 3 years resto-modding my '68 vert. While fast and brutal, that vette was crude and a hand-full.
It is so much more pleasant to drive current, reliable technology than tinker with the old iron these days. I'll leave building an all forged/balanced stroker to younger racer crowds. Been there done that. Never forget that us 'older gents' were the ones building those muscle car beasts that now bring stupid excessive prices...long before they were highly sought after classics. We've been at this for years!
My point? I just sold my '68 vert and traded my '12 GS vert to get the '17 GS vert. It's now the only one I have....and all I need. My brides second (fun) car is a BMW Z4 roadster. It's attractive, expensive, fast and handles like it's on rails. But every day when I pull a set of keys off the rack, I can choose between 6 vehicles and 3 motorcycles. Unless something specifically forces my hand to another set of keys (need 4 seats, hauling something in the truck or 4WD Jeep GC) the C7 is the first choice. Even the Harleys take a 'back seat' to the Vette. This is nothing new. The '12 GS vert was an absolute pleasure to spend time with. The '17 is just that much more.
My taste in sports cars, like my taste in wine, has progressed. I don't slam Boones Farm any more. I happen to appreciate a fine '99 single vineyard cabernet for it's character and taste. I also appreciate where the Corvette engineers have taken our Vettes since '53. It's been a long journey and yes, sometimes you need the perspective of experience to appreciate the current day pinnacle that is the c7.
We're not all old mid-life crisis basket cases. We're experienced automotive aficionados....with the bank account to back it up. Cheers!
St. Jude Donor '05-'06-'07-'08-'09, '14-'15-'16-'17-'18
Originally Posted by SharkgrayVetteZ06
Again your saying there is no way for a 20 year old to afford a down payment on a C7, how do you know? Yes, someone else said that he helped their 20 year old son get a C7, but does that mean all 20 years olds get help from their parents to buy a C7? Their are more than 7 billion people living in the world and your still saying there is no way for a 20 year old to afford that type of car.... Im sure their is some 20 year old that made it big with something he/she invented and is able to afford an expensive car. I understand that yes, not many 20 year olds can afford a car at this price point, but some can. It may be hard, but you never know what can happen. It suprises me your still saying no 20 year old can afford a car like this. Just to prove you wrong check out henry107 on youtube. He bought a C7 Z06 at 20... Streetspeed 717 has a C7 Z06 and he's in his 20s. He's actually had a C7, Hellcat, and now a C7 Z. Another person in their 20s is vehiclevirgins he has a Huracan and a s550 and a m5, he used to have a Gallardo which I think he bought at 21.
You overlooked this sentence:
...unless, of course, they started their own software company or something like that.
Sure, any 20 year-old can buy a C7. The question is from where does their money come? Unless they live at home and pay no rent, or get a large part of the down payment from a parent, chances are slim that they can afford one. Perhaps they have a trust fund or are otherwise born on 3rd base into a wealthy family. Maybe they went straight from high school into a very well-paying job in the family business or something.
But I think that even you'll agree that the vast majority of 20 year-olds is not able to lay out the necessary cash that it takes to buy a C7. And that's why, as the OP posited, most Corvettes are bought by older gents and ladies that have worked and dreamed and saved for decades before being in the position to buy one.
Sometimes I have to wonder if those guys on YouTube are actually getting paid by the Parent company Google Inc. to make the videos. Again, I don't know them personally nor do I follow any channels (except for Chuck's), but it does make me a bit jealous they drive those nice cars at that age!!
They don't get paid, but the companies do loan them cars to test. Where those guys make their money on YT is through advertising. If you get enough hits, YT will put ads on your channel. Some people make a very nice living doing that.
This isn't about cars, but toys. There are folks clearing 6 figures doing this:
If you look at Matt Farah's channel, his videos are getting 100K to 1.6 mil views. He gets to drive all those cool cars and gets paid for it. People loan him their hot rods to get them on YT with wide exposure.
My first car was a '67 Camaro RS/SS resuscitated from the junk yard. It had been stolen and stripped. In went a small block 400, 4spd, posi diff and on went a new paint job. That was the start of a long automotive love story. Since then, I've always owned something with more power and ability than was practical for the street. Even my '73 GMC 3/4 ton had a 454!
I've had 7 corvettes since buying a new 40th Anniversary in '92. Owned 3 at the same time for a while. Spent 3 years resto-modding my '68 vert. While fast and brutal, that vette was crude and a hand-full.
It is so much more pleasant to drive current, reliable technology than tinker with the old iron these days. I'll leave building an all forged/balanced stroker to younger racer crowds. Been there done that. Never forget that us 'older gents' were the ones building those muscle car beasts that now bring stupid excessive prices...long before they were highly sought after classics. We've been at this for years!
My point? I just sold my '68 vert and traded my '12 GS vert to get the '17 GS vert. It's now the only one I have....and all I need. My brides second (fun) car is a BMW Z4 roadster. It's attractive, expensive, fast and handles like it's on rails. But every day when I pull a set of keys off the rack, I can choose between 6 vehicles and 3 motorcycles. Unless something specifically forces my hand to another set of keys (need 4 seats, hauling something in the truck or 4WD Jeep GC) the C7 is the first choice. Even the Harleys take a 'back seat' to the Vette. This is nothing new. The '12 GS vert was an absolute pleasure to spend time with. The '17 is just that much more.
My taste in sports cars, like my taste in wine, has progressed. I don't slam Boones Farm any more. I happen to appreciate a fine '99 single vineyard cabernet for it's character and taste. I also appreciate where the Corvette engineers have taken our Vettes since '53. It's been a long journey and yes, sometimes you need the perspective of experience to appreciate the current day pinnacle that is the c7.
We're not all old mid-life crisis basket cases. We're experienced automotive aficionados....with the bank account to back it up. Cheers!
Thanks a lot!!!! Your reply has me thinking I should go shopping for a new GS
Well, for me Corvette ownership has always been based on financial affordability and priorities. I have owned 3 one was a DD 96LT4 CE....even though we had two kids they were small and I had am 84 mile round trip commute to my own business. This was my favorite, modded everything I could think of, and it was always great fun. Since I was always alone on my commute it was perfect.
Had some good financial Times and traded it for a new 04 ZO6 that I bought new. Then added a hard to find 96LT4 CE Silver with red guts, I loved the C4
Then had some bad times, my place burned, forcing me to sell. Then the wife had Stage 3 Breast Cancer. We weathered those storms, and by that time it was time for kids to go to College. The oldest was a Junior when the second daughter started. By that time medical bills and tuition by far outweighed owning my Vettes. Sold both on the same day to the same man. Needed the money for all the bills.
Fast forward, #1 daughter finishes Grad School in May. She will be a Speech Pathologist and loves what's she does. #2 will finish this summer with a Psy degree, I don't know what she will do next, but she will find her way I am sure.
So to recap; I have a good job, my wife is well and cancer free 10 years, the kids will be finished soon and with no student debt. I also am debt free, but will consider a small car loan (no more than 20%) to get a the exact new Vette I want. Hopefully I will be able to place my order next fall. It will either be a late 17, or more likely a new 18. Just depends on when my financials settle down, and I have the cash in hand.
So here I am, mid 50's and many will see me as the old man with a Vette and mid life crisis. It may be that my hair is almost 100 % grey lol
But I really don't care what others see, when I look in the rear view mirror I will see a man who always put his family first. Who has honored his responsibilities and obligations, and who knows how lucky he is to once again be driving a Vette. But who has been far more blessed to have my wife at my side and have given my girls a debt free start.
I look forward to the day I drive my next Vette, just like all of you who are currently driving or planning on driving one, without any regard to age. I say go for it when you can at any age
They don't get paid, but the companies do loan them cars to test. Where those guys make their money on YT is through advertising. If you get enough hits, YT will put ads on your channel. Some people make a very nice living doing that.
This isn't about cars, but toys. There are folks clearing 6 figures doing this:
If you look at Matt Farah's channel, his videos are getting 100K to 1.6 mil views. He gets to drive all those cool cars and gets paid for it. People loan him their hot rods to get them on YT with wide exposure.
They get press cars, and they do get paid for their content as long as they monetize them...
My first Corvette. Bought new in Boston and drove it Cape Canaveral, FL.where I was working in 1965
My 2014 C7 is my 5th Corvette
Those of you that were working at the Cape during the 1960's on the space programs must remember the caravans of Corvettes in the morning shift and then leaving at night. Think every other engineer had a Corvette.
01-02-2017, 01:33 AM
