The future of Cobras and hobby kit cars?

[NewYorkGuy]

Originally Posted by AL427SBF

Would that be these guys here?

Yep.

As far as website appeal, BDR/Vintage leads the pack. The car videos are crisp, good audio, excellent photography, the music fresh. I also like their youtube channel and their marketing style. Their "black" series reminds me of the Harley Davidson "Dark Custom" bikes aimed for a new buyer to the H-D lifestyle.

[G-Pete]

This isn’t a coincidence. Shelby Cobras and Cobra Replicas are a car whose sales depend disproportionately — almost exclusively, in fact — on middle-aged Caucasian males. drivers younger than 40 generally lack the time, interest or the bankroll to buy a Cobra. But by the time they get into their 60s or older, the noise and joint pain have begun to make driving lose its allure. You might still drive hard in your 60s, but you’re doing it less frequently and you probably aren’t buying a new Cobra.



The sweet spot is the mid-40s to early 50s. And with the Baby Boomers — the largest and wealthiest generation in history — now largely aged out of this key demographic bracket, Cobra MFG have a serious problem. Generation X — my generation — is not nearly large enough to pick up the slack, and Generation Y (aka “the Millennials” or “Echo Boomers”) are decades away from being in the demographic sweet spot for Cobras, and this assumes they take to driving like their dads did. The number of American men aged 40-49 is set to decline through the early 2020s and won’t reach its old 2010 peak until 2035.


Modified Forbes report, tailored for CC

[G-Pete]

To support that, here is a Club Cobra Poll....


Average Age - Take II (Poll)

[CNGreen]

My 20 year old son drives a '66 Mustang GT coupe restomod that he helped build and would take that over a tuner any day. I get youngsters, teens, 20 somethings on up who get really excited to sit in my FFR.

Factory Five is hedging their bets by making their "Roadster" able to fit all sorts of alternative drive trains, and their new 818 is built on a Subaru WRX single donor platform.

I believe the smart manufacturers will continue to evolve their offerings to accept current technology, and new offerings will draw in the tuner crowd for years and years to come.

I don't weep for the coming demise of the industry. Learning to build your own creation isn't reserved for just the old farts like us.

The hobby is on an upswing, and I am confident in the future of the industry.

IMHO,

[RodKnock]

Originally Posted by G-Pete

This isn’t a coincidence. Shelby Cobras and Cobra Replicas are a car whose sales depend disproportionately — almost exclusively, in fact — on middle-aged Caucasian males. drivers younger than 40 generally lack the time, interest or the bankroll to buy a Cobra. But by the time they get into their 60s or older, the noise and joint pain have begun to make driving lose its allure. You might still drive hard in your 60s, but you’re doing it less frequently and you probably aren’t buying a new Cobra.

The sweet spot is the mid-40s to early 50s. And with the Baby Boomers — the largest and wealthiest generation in history — now largely aged out of this key demographic bracket, Cobra MFG have a serious problem. Generation X — my generation — is not nearly large enough to pick up the slack, and Generation Y (aka “the Millennials” or “Echo Boomers”) are decades away from being in the demographic sweet spot for Cobras, and this assumes they take to driving like their dads did. The number of American men aged 40-49 is set to decline through the early 2020s and won’t reach its old 2010 peak until 2035.

You folks are thinking of "chronological age", but everyone also has a "biological age" too. Essentially, depending on factors such as exercise, diet, alcohol consumption, amount of sleep, smoking, happiness, etc., your biological age could be far more or much less than your chronological age.

If you have the time, take this simple 2-minute test to establish your "biological age."

Find out your Biological-Age

Morgan Spurlock of "Inside Man" just did a show for CNN on this topic.

[AL427SBF]

Originally Posted by NewYorkGuy

Yep.

As far as website appeal, BDR/Vintage leads the pack. The car videos are crisp, good audio, excellent photography, the music fresh. I also like their youtube channel and their marketing style. Their "black" series reminds me of the Harley Davidson "Dark Custom" bikes aimed for a new buyer to the H-D lifestyle.

Well good luck. I would expect makers/dealers will probably read your comments here and elsewhere, determine they are generally toxic in nature, credentials = electric car guy on the outside looking in, and then quickly move on to more productive things.

jmho