Originally Posted by
Bob Parmenter
I made passing reference to it in my earlier post because at that time it didn't deserve anything more than passing. We've joked for quite a few years, both here and in the real world, about how nearly all the guys you see at a car gathering have grey hair. What goes with that is those same folks that have been getting older are hitting the end of their road, either dying or going through an expensive medical battle before the end arrives. Not trying to be maudlin, just dealing from the deck of reality. The mid-50s and older cars have a fairly specific owner/ interest profile that could loosely be identified as "baby boomers". We tend to have our affinity for these vintage cars because of the calendar..........they were the cars we grew up with when our passion was born. Naturally, the same factors prevail for those born later in the continuum, they relate better to those cars that were "affordable" and desirable when their passions formed. Sure, there's some cross over in the various age groupings, and we even saw/see some very passionate admirers of "traditional" hot rods in the so called millennial crowd, but comparatively small numbers. Right now muscle cars are still holding reasonably well in the market price and activity wise as they appeal most to the youngest of the boomers and those a decade or two younger than that. But, as history repeats, that will be the next market slice to "surprise" with a sudden drop in price and participation/interest.
That doesn't mean that hot rods, particularly the older ones, but later as well, are completely dead. Sure, economics play a part. A book could, probably has already been, written talking about all the other things in our lives that suck up disposable income, or even more importantly, those life necessities that take priority over the disposable/hobby stuff. Much of it is the so called hidden cost of government or social engineering (a topic for a different venue). But as we old guys are pushed to part with our babies for all the reasons stated above and a few more, the market will have more offerings available for the dwindling number of genuinely interested potential buyers. Yep, that ol' supply and demand formula that so many speak of, but often don't recognize when they're in the middle of it. The market today is awash with older hot rods that are priced like 2006 (as an example) because ten years ago there were many more potential buyers still alive who were interested, as well as financially able. Sellers, being typical humans, want that bigger financial nut that their memory tells them their car is "worth". So they put it out there for, let's say $20k, and they are surprised when nobody responds to their treasure. What they choose not to see, or don't take the time to research, is that there are dozens more similar vehicles on the market for 25 to 50% less for the smaller number of legitimate buyers to choose from. There are still some cars that sell quickly, and for those better prices, but they have a more desirable combination of features that give them a competitive edge. All of this was/is predictable, but often that sort of message is too painful for a lot of folks to stomach........that would explain why the mythological character Cassandra was created.
