DonOH

I also couldn't wait to get my license the first day I could. Kids are different.

OH is learner's permit at 15 1/2 license at 16.
My older daughter didn't get her license until she was almost 21. Even then she would not have but I told her if she didn't get it the summer before her senior year of college (i.e., the last summer before she'd be working) then she wasn't going anywhere for spring break because she'd be getting it then. She prefers not to drive and is thrilled if anyone else will. She used to get ex-boyfriends to drive her around.

My younger daughter got her license at 17. She is more into it. Likes going to car shows. She wants an Audi R8 convertible. Older daughter doesn't even know what that means. (But ask her about shoes ...)
I didn't tell younger daughter I bought the Vette. When I went to pick her up from college her friend said that when my daughter first saw the Vette she said "I want to steal that car." So at least she appreciated it.

duramaxsky

My 16 YO niece is in drivers ED now. I am paying for it as my sister her mother is a looser. I am also teaching her to drive as I am a truck driver therefore somewhat skilled. I am going to help her get an inexpensive car and help her with the insurance money so she can get a job. She is a good kid and willing to work hard. I will help her fix her car and make her learn how. She is a good conservative and will never do drugs as her brother just died of an overdose. Doubt she will drink much as her mom is an alcky. My brother and other sister and I am going to do our best to help her so she has a chance to do better than her mom. She has a way to go though as she thinks my Sky is a better car that my Vette. I am working on her though.

CarBoy

Amen

DonOH

That is really nice of you to help your niece and give her a fair chance at succeeding. I'm sure she'll repay the effort by repeating it.

Don

uxojerry

You cant write off the young because they have different priorities. Interest in cars especially for boys, is innate. Toyota, Honda, Acura/Lexus created automotive appliances. They are now losing market share because people dont want transportation appliances, they want vehicles with style, flair and performance.

Smart phones, Ipads etc are more interesting for kids because they are more attainable from a cost point. Kids today drive later because the adults have made everything more difficult for their generation. More regulations, higher insurance, no more after school or summer jobs, etc. What homeowner would let a teenager mow his lawn today? If he/she got hurt, you could lose your house in a lawsuit.

We have regulated and legislated our way into a morass and our young are the first to suffer. Why should they care about cars? A kid needs about $10k and a high school diploma before he can realistically think about a car. Most of the $10k is for insurance not a used car.

Laws have been passed to reduce/eliminate drivers under the age of 18. I thought the 70s was a depressing time to be a teenager. The 70s look great compared to the mess we have created for our kids of today.

duramaxsky

She's a good kid so it's worth it. Plus it's not just me also my brother and other sister. We each have our area and mines cars and driving.

WHT

And, its getting worse. I know several Corvette owners who won't buy another one because of degrading traffic conditions and the increasing number of poor drivers on the road. Their Vettes sit in their garages while they drive Wranglers or other cars/trucks that are more fun/practical/safe to drive on congested roads and crumbling highways. Why own a car that can never be used to its potential? It is more fun to either drive a smaller, lighter car with less power that can be driven closer to its limit or a modified street cruiser.

There will always be sports cars, but there will be fewer people driving them in the future. Worse, most kids born in the 80s or 90s wouldn't drive an American car if you gave it to them and have little interest in Corvettes.

tolnep

answer is simple basically. neither good or bad.

young folks, teens and early twenties, social contact/interaction is the most important part of their lives. the only way to do that prior to the internet, was to get in a car and go some place where everyone else was or go looking for girls, guys or whatever. car was absolutely required. else you stayed home with mom and dad and maybe two tvs in the house and watched one of the 3 or four channels available where you lived. the car was the central part of this. a status symbol, something to attract others, a way of advertising yourself, of being cool.

today, social contact is provided by the internet and general high speed connections. take pictures of yourself, send em to your friends, get on facebook, tweet, get on your xbox and game with your friends and you can talk to them.

they are most interested in the products that allow this, computer, xbox, smartphones, ipads etc which are often 'elegant' in their way.

a car is no longer required. where would it take you to meet up with your buds? unless its a football or basketball game, probably nowhere. it now becomes a means of going to places you have to go to only, school, home, work, practice whatever. its viewed as a utility thats required from some things, not an enabling device.

there will always be folks interested in cars. but they are no longer necessary for what young folks do. other types of technology have replaced them.

as to 'driverless autos'. though i love cars. this cant come soon enough for me in a way. eventually you will drive your car to a 'rail up' location. i say rail because like a train, a car that could use a steel rail would be much more effecient. you hook up and train along at perhaps 100mph or more while you do the things while you do other things like hang out on the net. all managed and coordinated by computers. resulting in less traffic jams and congestion. you want to drive, you can. on side roads, surface roads, scenic mountain or oceanside drives.

Michael A

So I guess that means "cruising" now is totally dead. Not much point in it I guess.

When I grew up, mobility was paramount. I couldn't wait to get my first bicycle. Then I got into off-road motorcycles. I couldn't wait for my learners permit, and my 16th birthday, may have been the happiest day of my life. I always wanted to get out and explore.

I rarely see kids on bicycles anymore, and never see them walking to school. I do see them on skateboards, but those won't get you far. Kids are chauffered around almost 100%.

It's very weird.

Michael

jb_va2001

Before the internet, when dinosaurs roamed the earth, there were only 3 TV networks, no "home theaters," no DVDs, no Xbox, and these paper things we called books and newspapers. People entertained themselves by cruising in cars and they drove to visit friends or family. Mommy stayed home all day, cared for the house, and raised a family. Ahhh... the good old days.

Things are different now. Mommy & daddy both work and they're just damn glad to be at home. After commuting 2 hours a day, no one wants to get back in the car again and face the traffic for fun. People have tons of entertainment without leaving the house and everyone connects with friends on the smartphone that never leaves their side. Doing something interesting? Record it on your camera phone and upload it to Facebook so your friends can see.

You can't stop it, or turn back time. Complaining doesn't help either. So with a new world in mind, how do you sell more sports cars? Joint marketing with Xbox games? Smartphone Apps linked to your car? (Start your car from an App on a cold morning? An App tells you when to change the oil?) Lap times, g-force recorder? Built-in video cameras in your car's mirror that can be saved to your phone or loaded to Facebook? Someone smarter than me will need to figure this one out.

Cheers,
JB

d-rockRN

We are out there dont worry =). However, my generation wants everything handed to them, they feel entitled more so than earning it from hard work. All they care about is what is going on now, their goals, ambitions, and personality all lack character, just as their cars do lol. Im 23 years old, bought my first corvette (2006 C6 Z51) about 3 weeks ago. I have been working as a registered nurse at a level 2 trauma center OR for the past year and went to school full time for four years straight before that, busting my *** the entire way to get where I am at. I detest the previous XBOX comments when Im at home on call waiting for surgeries you can bet your asses that im racing the corvettes on forza motorsports =D.

RED99CPE

You guys are hitting on a big part of what is wrong with the last two generations. Visit a college and look at the ethinc makeup of the engineering and medical students. Then look at the ethnic makeup of physic, pre law, social work, sports students.

This is not meant to be racist, the engineering departments at our colleges are doing worndeous things. juast stating that if you have been brainwashed that getting you hands dirty is beneath you this is what you get.

Z06Electron

I agree 100% with some major parenting issues going on...

leadfoot4

Interesting perspective, but certainly one with some "street cred". My first brand new car was a 1971 Chevelle SS. I was fortunate enough to have gotten into a work/college co-op deal, so I had the money to buy the car when I was 19.

I also worked a fair amount of "OT" on Saturdays, but on the Saturdays that I didn't work, my "car buddies" and I would all gather, and break out the dwell meter and timing light, as cars had point type distributors back then, and we'd give the cars a "mini tune up", then head over to the Interstate, about a mile and a half away, for a "test pass" through the gears.

It was no big deal, back then, as the road was usually deserted on the weekend mornings. Today....that same stretch of road has been widened to 3 lanes, and is still wall-to-wall in traffic, all hours of the day and night!


And that deal about "drive by wire highways"..... Popular Mechanics and Mechanix Illustrated magazines were writing articles about that back in the late 50s-early 60s, when I was a kid. I doubt you'll ever see it, as it would be WAY too expensive.

Shaka

By physic, do you mean physics or physical therapy? Engineering is simply applied physics. Math 4 and and physics 4 is required for mech engineering but not medicine. Our engineering colleges have Asian majorities. Our biggest threat is the ever diminishing engineering and science population per capita.

allaluminum427435

I know Chevy is trying to lure a younger audience, but they have already done that with the Camaro. Most people in their late teens and twenties cant afford a $60k Corvette. The older audience will be the main Corvette drivers, which is just fine.

allaluminum427435

I totally agree. I am a younger enthusiast myself, and while foreign countries, especially Germany, have some nice offerings, I cant see myself driving anything but an American car. Also, my preferred sports cars are Vettes and Vipers. Yes, Lamborghinis and Ferraris are nice, but there is no replacement for the pride and passion of American muscle.