Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[consul 57]

[Phil - Nottingham]

I think the show scene has changed a lot and not for the good. We do not attend so many these days and the weather did seem a lot better then. We used to travel miles to go to many shows up to 20 a year sometimes making a weekend of it. I think such shows were the best from approx 1995 to 2005.

As regards moderns this is definitely an age thing as most prefer the cars of their youth and all but our 1938 Rover date from 1958 to 1972 (6 of). I have been attending car shows at steam fairs and marque clubs since 1972.

I restored my dad's 1960 Auto Union 1000 saloon and went to the DKW National Rallies and the old cars sections of Steam and Country Fairs in 1972 and this car was then only 12 years old although the design dated from the late 1940's like Land Rovers and Morris Minors. I had a younger Auto Union after that and my future wife had bought her 4-year-old Morris Mini Traveller in 1972 which she still has and in use all year round and has never been mothballed away or an abandoned wreck. The term classic car was not used then

Our 1st Rover P5B we bought in 1992 was only 23 years old then and the Rover P5 club was only established in 1985 although the Rover Sports Register was established in 1953 it excluded modern Rovers without running boards ie P4's onwards. Even in the 1990's at its rallies relegating them to the public car park or out of the way corners of the rally field.

So the now much fewer so call modern cars of 23 years old would 1995 and when you think how many old-style reg plated cars Y and before are left ie pre 2000 it would be wrong to exclude these from today's car rallies.

We do not like paying for entry and do not want trophies/prizes. We do pay for club events though but there are a number of entry free shows we enjoy which are steam based and you even get a useful memento not an ally plaque. Field hire, security, traffic management, health and safety + insurance all have to be paid for somehow
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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[Rootes75]

Hi Consul, if we head down there on the Sunday we will definately stop for a chat.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[misterbridger]

Was given an entry form for a local show at the Mini club last night. Unfortunately it went straight in the bin as it's their policy to keep you there until 5PM. Sorry, but I don't fancy being held hostage !

[consul 57]

[Paul fairall]

Never had any interest in shows. I just try to get out in my car whenever possible. The only meet I go to is at a village pub a few miles away during the summer when it's still light enough to see the cars and bikes that turn up.
I can't think of anything more boring than sitting around in a field all day while punters kick your tyres.
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1957 ford popular

[Phil - Nottingham]

We prefer using our classics every day and I commute in one or other of them We also enjoy both the drive to shows (say up to 70 miles) to relax and picnic the sunshine, discuss topics with other owners or those who had one of our cars once or vice-versa.

I also inspect cars like how to see how they have been restored (if at all) and looked to see how ours are meant to be.

I still like a good autojumble too (rarer now though)

In no circumstances do we go to sit in our car in a field all day
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Rover P2
Rover P4
Rover P5 & P5B
Land Rover S2 & S3
Morris Mini Traveller Mk2

[winchman]

I do sympathise with people wanting to se more old cars at shows but take my son and I we just havent the budget for something older.
Now my show rant
At the beginning of the year I Emailed The Llandudno transport festival.
I asked if my camper was too new, I was told by a very helpful gent it was old enough and to send off a SAE to get a form, weeks later I get a reply with no form telling me the class is full. No mention of room in others as I could have taken one of the bikes etc, no form and details for next year!
I emailed him back and asked why he told me to apply then they said it was full, I just get its full.
I do wonder if this people ever talk to each other?
I have spent many an hour promoting several local shows on various forums, flyers up at work etc then the time I want to go! its just made so archaic its so simple to have a web page form and what space is left, I know its a big job to organise but use the technology its so much easier.
I find it really frustrating my son had been looking forward to going since last year.
And what will really rub me up the wrong way is if I do go they will have space!
Now at the Weekend I went to Garstang Autojumble, what a difference friendly helpful staff even two tractors on standby to drag you off the field.
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It will come in handy even if you never use it.

[consul 57]

some show organisers need to be brought into the 20c, and communication is the key, it is no good having a contact who is incapable of good communication and who does not use emails ect especialy nowadays, word of mouth sells shows just as much as a poster, i am also takling of other types of show not just car shows, i too have been put off by lack of responce.
the good clubs get it right and area pleasure to deal with.

[Rootes75]

We have been to a couple of runs purely organised over Facebook, the turnouts have been poor and its simply down to the fact not everyone is on FB.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[MikeEdwards]

There are a lot of ways that things could be made easier - one show organiser that I do some with each year has been saying "on-line applications coming soon" for the last two years, but appears to have dropped it now. It frustrates me when some shows are happy to send me the entry form by email, but to apply I have to print it off, fill it in and send it by post - I can't send it back to them by email. I don't have a printer that works all that well, so to print a form is a bit of a pain, and if they can save postage costs by emailing the form, why can't I do the same?

On the other hand - and I stress for some shows only - they are popular, fill up easily, so why make it even easier and, at the same time, change the way things have been done for years that everyone is used to?

The other thing with technology is that organisers should consider those who do not have internet access, through choice. I know several people who won't entertain the hassle of buying a computer, getting to know how to use it, connecting to the web and so on. Do we want to exclude those people from shows? Of course not, so the "old" methods have to stay as well, so now there's the overhead of having two ways to apply.

I agree about comms though - how many shows (and actual businesses for that matter) show an email address or "contact us" form on their web site, but don't reply? If you phone them, then they say "oh, we're too busy to reply to emails". So don't put the email on the site, just say "phone us". It's not difficult.

[MikeEdwards]

[Rootes75]

I like many of my friends are not on FB, my wife is so she occasionally tells me when she sees things but generally I am blind to it. I prefer other ways to communicate and although not old myself (if you call early 40's not old) there are many owners who I know who are pensioners and don't even have a computer!
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[Ashley]

There’s a huge amount of classic motoring activity advertised on Facebook and the events I’ve attended have been extremely busy. If I’ve been more than once, they’ve been obviously busier still.

FB is an easy, speedy and effective way to get the word out and right across the world, so if you aren’t on it, you should be. Then the benefits will be obvious.

Any old phone does FB and FWIW FB is judged to be an old persons social network. I’m seventy one and my cousins are 87 and 89. However my uncle who died a couple of years ago aged 103 did sign on but never got the hang of it, but you could argue he was a late starter. He was fine with a PC and an iPad.

[47Jag]

Ashley,

I would second that, and add that every computer-phobe (is that a word) should get a tablet. It doesn’t have to be an iPad if expense is an issue, any Android tablet will get you into FB and the Internet in general for not a lot of money.

Art (77 & 3/4)