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