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Will millenials ruin car value

15K views 127 replies 63 participants last post by  69bossnine 
#1 · (Edited)
So guys just something that has been on my mind and with me buying and selling restores mustangs it seems the price is coming down or staying the same. So what do you guys think. Will millennials ruin classic car values? Even at the car shows no one is never standing around the classics anymore. It's like they just don't care
 
#2 ·
Will millenials ruin classic car values?
I don’t know that that’s necessarily the cause (probably one of many), but I’d be ok with it. I want another one and can’t afford it.

Even at the car shows no one is never standing around the classics anymore. It's like they just don't care
Either you’re going to the wrong shows, or you live in some awful, God-forsaken corner of the world. Few car shows around here have newer cars and at the ones that do, classics still get plenty of attention.
 
#45 · (Edited)
Either you’re going to the wrong shows, or you live in some awful, God-forsaken corner of the world. Few car shows around here have newer cars and at the ones that do, classics still get plenty of attention.
Just got back from Mustang Week / Mustang Invasion @ Pigeon Forge. Hundreds of Mustangs, and only about 5 classics. When I park my car with the rest, I do not get the attention that the new cars get. When you go through the photos that others take, there are very few of the classics. Their interests are how much HP can they get out of their car, and how loud can the get the exhaust. I will admit I get a few that are interested, tell me they like mine better than the new ones. But they are few.

I don't mind. There are a few that know what I have and that thank me for bringing it out, and driving it while others sit locked up in their owner's garages at home.
 

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#3 ·
Will millenials ruin classic car values?
I doubt it. The pendulum always swings. There's already another group coming up behind the mils. I've noticed a lot of interest from the younger kids.

Personally, when I'm showing my car, I ALWAYS offer to let kids younger than ~10 years old to sit in my car. They love it and the parents love it. As long as I'm showing, there's going to be another crop of fans of classic American autos.
 
#4 ·
Remember when you would drive and get thumbs up. Or at a light how everyone would look at your vehicle.
Well, it’s not millennials, it’s social media. Stop at a light, look at texts. It’s all ages, sexes, races, and ethnics.
True, millennials are not interested in material things. Thus not much has a future of value. Shopping on line will eliminate stores, as we know them. Basically, everything will change.
 
#7 ·
I don't think it's any different than what the post-baby-boomers did to the late brass and cars of the 20's and 30's.... values for Model T's and Model A's tanked the same way as the postwar cars did 15-20 years later and someday, soon, it will be the muscle cars that tank... the interest will wane, aftermarket manufacturers will disappear and time will progress. Just a fact of life. Fifty years from now there'll be the same interest in collecting vehicles as there is currently in collecting stagecoaches...
 
#8 · (Edited)
I'm 34 but I have been blessed with good business choices so I have been able to own multiple classic and a few supercars. I must say it is nice being able to drive in rain, snow, hot, cold, but once the newness wears off there's nothing like a classic..Just the rawness and feeling of the road. I live in Greensboro NC and I will say this when going to the big cars and coffee or other shows it's always the millennials around the imports or what we consider foreign cars. The porsches, lambos, ferraris etc...yes we always have muscle cars but people just pass by them without much attention from what I'm seeing...
 
#26 ·
I think you misunderstand what is happening in this scenario. These kids are gathering around imports and more modern cars because that is what they can actually buy....you can't(easily) finance a classic car of your choice. So these kids start with something newer...but you will see that as they age they will work their way toward older cars....or at least the ones who actually are car guys instead of it just being an accesory. Its the same reason that I completely ignore Lamborghinis and Ferraris at car shows(unless they happen to be classic versions)...why bother to look at something you will never be able to afford? People seem to want classic mustang value to go up forever....but that is not healthy for the hobby at all...pricing it out of reach of the next generation
 
#9 ·
There is a local monthly car show I like to go to. Not to show mine, just to hang out, look, and chat.
It attracts all types. New, old, custom, and weird.
The “rat rods” seem to attract the most attention because they are very different from the pretty $$$ show cars.
The kids (millennials) gather on the corner to watch the cars do burnouts when leaving the show.
(under the watchful eye of the local law enforcement of course)
 
#10 ·
Totally not whats happening here in the PNW and canadian west coast.

Most of the guys at the cruise in are younger. The older crowd is around from 430pm til about 7 and then it's all us 'kids' in our 30's and 40s. Lots of cool stuff too. One friend with a FB, one with a 408 in his falcon, another bunch with fox bodies, a couple with low riders and a handful or rat rods. All good fun.

Are we rolling around in 440 GTX's and cobra jet or shelby mustangs? Nope. but we are out there in the less expensive stuff..
 
#11 ·
I just hate it ..my favorite thing to do growing up was walking through the junk yards with my dad to buy parts for our 69 chevelle...At 16 I would cruise through the local parking lots, the chevelle was a 454 big block 4 speed and gas was only 99 cent..Everybody loved it, but now if the car doesn't have a prancing horse no one shows interest
 
#12 ·
IMO, (and speaking from experience) the car shows and cruise nights are NOT where you'll find anyone interested in your particular car... cuz everybody there has one too that they're hoping everybody else there is interested in.
If you want to find out how popular your car is, park it at a restaurant with outdoor seating... or along the side of the road at the beach. You'll find there's much more interest in your car by people of all ages. My grandchildren (2, 3, 5, 11, 11) LOVE my car because they watched me build it and frequently ask to ride in it.
I've driven through Boston and at red lights have had people get off the sidewalk and stand in the middle of the street to take photos giving the thumbs up.
And, if you're worried about battery powered cars taking over for petroleum, ask an over-the-road truck driver in the Rockies how far the tractor would get with a full load behind it... yeah, not far...
(Drill, baby, drill... and drill sideways! and I'll see you at the gas pump.)
 
#13 ·
I don't do shows but my Mustang is a hit at autocross events. Every ricer I give a ride along is impressed with the all the noise and torque!

As far as values, I don't care as I've got way to much in my car and don't have an awesome long term forecast. Boy is she going to be pissed!
 
#14 ·
I think we have a few more years before values drop due to lack of interest. There are enough folks in their late 40s and 50s that still love these cars. I also get quite a few millennials who express interest. My local car shows are increasingly modern muscle and fewer classics. My friends and I have talked about this a lot. At the C&C last week a Tesla club got there early and essentially took over a big chunk of prime real estate. Next to them was a Mini Cooper, a stock 2018 Jeep Wrangler and a work van. I really like how passionate these folks are about cars and think we should be welcoming to everyone. But when car shows just look like Interstate 95 during rush hour on Tuesday, what’s the point? What was sad was that there was a gorgeous late 60s E type Jag that had to park across the street and no one really had the opportunity to appreciate it.

So yes, times are changing. Not necessarily for the worse (I mean the new GT350 is amazing) but younger generations will gravitate to the cars of their youth. If you’re in it to make money, start buying 90s RX7s and 300Zs.
 
#15 ·
If anything they will cause prices of good ones to rise because they won't know how to fix them up themselves:)
Mustangs, even ones comparatively rare, will always lag in percentage rise just for sheer numbers available. Im still amazed though when I see some decent C3 Corvettes selling for less than common mustangs.
 
#16 ·
Will millennials ruin car value

I agree the value of the dollar will rise which will make it seem the value of the car will go up. I do feel the value of the fastback has started to slope down a little...When watching sites like bringatrailer.com I cannot believe what some of these cars are bringing now. Examples: the datsun 240z I remember when you couldn't give those cars away, or the starion conquest, demanding in the teens..Are you kidding me? ..I did speak to some of the guys at national parts depot and they even admitted that sales were declining on the classic stang parts...Its my guess as the cars continuously get more and more unaffordable people will show less interest. Remember the days when you could get a quality paint job for 2k, now you can't even buy the paint and primer for 2k. It seems that these cars will price themselves out for the average person to be able to restore.
 
#17 · (Edited)
I'm doing my part to build in the next generation of Mustangers. I'm including them on little things I do to my car, and rebuilding one with each of them. Hopefully the boys will cruise around with their old man some days. There's a local cruise-in at the Tiger Town Home Depot parking lot every 2nd Saturday of each month, weather permitting, and I take them when I can. There are LOTS of classics, some late model Mustangs, Challengers, Camaros, etc., imports and Jeeps and on and on. When I'm working I sometimes even take my Patrol vehicle over there and let people oooo and aahh over all the technology crammed in it, and I think it's good for them to see the local fuzz likes wheels, too.
 

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#20 ·
I’m 36 and have always loved classic cars. My dad worked on cars for fun when I was growing up and he is who got me into appreciating a “real car” as opposed to all the fancy newer electronic crap that both old and young people are buying nowadays.

Fortunately for me, my 8 yr old son is just as interested and appreciates older cars more than all the newer things on the market now. He loves attending car shows/meets with me and is starting to really grow fond of everything I liked growing up. Like me, he has an old soul and I’m hoping he can get a few of his buddies to appreciate “real cars” too! I’m hopeful he will be one of few kids that don’t want a Tesla...
 
#21 ·
I'm more concerned with being able to buy high quality replacement parts when the time comes to keep my classic running (instead of it turning into a rolling unreliable aftermarket piece of junk) than value itself going up or down. I'm not going to want to pay anything for an unreliable classic and I wouldn't expect other people to either.
 
#22 ·
When I go to car shows in the UK, there are always mainly classic cars there and a few modern ones mixed in.

And people are always pleased to see the old cars. And what I really like is seeing young people owning and restoring old cars that were made decades before they were born.

I am seeing no lack of interest here. When I buy fuel, it is normally an event. People making nice comments, coming over to have a quick chat. Even the person on the till in the shop asking about it.

But regarding prices, I have no idea. We had a boom here for E-Type Jaguars in the late 1980s. Prices went insane. Then things settled down again. And I think in recent years or decades, they are on the rise again. Classic cars are like buying shares ( stocks ) and they go up and down all the time.
 
#23 ·
Maybe we can just make our own new parts with our 3-D printers with a photo app on our mini tablets and home-brew our fuel until we find a suitable hydrogen fuel cell or an electric motor that also simulates the sounds of a solid-lifter V8.
 
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#24 ·
My take is that each generation has a car that hits in their childhood and they modify in their teens/early 20s. Then when that generation gets older and has extra cash, they want to relive their dream car. Each decade of cars has had their heyday and waned. I point to the venerable shoebox Chevies 55-57, 10-15 years ago, they skyrocketted but as their generation is drifts into oblivion, interest in those cars is waning and prices are dropping. Mustangs are going to eventually go the way of the venerable 57 Chevy...
 
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