HAS THE SUN STARTED TO SET ON THE ’57 CHEVY?

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The 1957 Chevy has been a rock star for many decades in the car hobby.

 

‘They embody everything that was cool about the 50s-even for many people who were born after the 1950s.’

 

Recently I ran into a guy who was able to buy his ’57 Chevy 2-door hardtop for a great price by comparison to a few years ago.

 

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He has owned many of these iconic rides over the years and knows the market for them very well because he is a big fan of the ’57 Chevys.

 

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He is also well into the middle-age portion of his life so he’s the right age for the typical fan of the ’57 Chevy. The fact he was able to purchase his latest Chevy at a competitive price suggests the 1957 Chevy may well have peaked in popularity.

 

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The car hobby is largely a passing of the torch when it comes to popularity. Early production cars like the Model T still have a large following, but they have do not have their 1950s-60 popularity levels when their owners were middle-aged guys who remembered the cars from their own childhood.

 

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The same fate awaits the ’57 Chevy. The cars still enjoy a tremendous following, but their most loyal fans are older and will not be replaced by the next generation of car guys.

 

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The next-gen car guys will embrace newer rides that are closer to the car memories in their own lives. The ’57 Chevy in its stock form is not part of their world because of its age. These cars will be 60 years old next year and only represent a historical footnote in the automotive hobby to the younger car guys.

 

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Thus the ’57 Chevy has as much relevance as a stage coach to the younger car guy whose own interests likely lean toward tuner cars and newer muscle cars from Detroit. This isn’t even their fault-they have their own automotive interests and their cars tastes are a lot newer.

 

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The experience of an older car like a stock ’57 Chevy is completely lost on a car guy who is used to newer cars with modern engineering. The old Chevys are a handful for a younger driver who has no experience with four wheel drum brakes and steering/suspension systems that cannot exactly be described as nimble.

 

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We spend a lot of time around the car hobby and do not encounter young 1957 Chevy owners. The cars still command a lot of money and their high prices are still a factor for young guys.

 

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But prices have peaked for these cars and there will be no bump in the future. The prices will flatten out, then fall, and the ’57 Chevy follow the Model T into a new world of diminished popularity with the newest generation of car guys who have little attachment to them.

 

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The ‘57 Chevy will always be part of automotive folklore but they will not be a part of a millennial car guy’s collection.

 

‘Unless their grandfather willed it to them and they liked the old guy enough to keep his car as a sentimental memory of Boompa.’

 

Jim Sutherland

 

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