Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[clan chieftain]

Following on from "moderns you dont see now" are 80s cars now regarded as "classic" Personally I dont think so, but many are now turning up at classic car shows. Is it because they are much cheaper to buy and allows you to drive a car you owned 30 odd years ago. There cant be that many left now who are driving cars that they drove in the 50s. I am not saying there arent any but as time moves on they will become fewer and another generation will hopefully keep them going.
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The Clan Chieftain

[ukdave2002]

I'm not one for trying to categorise cars in to periods or classes, if they are interesting and or hold nostalgic value for people, then that's fine in my book whatever the age if we all liked the same stuff it would be boring!

Dave

[Rick]

Most aren't really my cup of tea, but as nostalgia fuels much of the interest in older cars that exists today, I guess they'll be "classics" by way of their age, soon if not already.

RJ
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[D4B]

Mine from 1981 surely is

[Rootes75]

By age I suppose you would say some are classics, I don't really think of them like though.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[52classic]

Are 80's cars Classics? Well I'm doing my bit having taken on an '85 Porsche 924S as our latest project!
IMHO cars from the 80's are just as worthy of being preserved and loved as those from earlier times. In fact they could represent the future of the hobby since they are the types that people in their 50s now remember most fondly.

Rover Tomcat, 3 series BMW, Escort XR3i, Golf Gti, Nova, Cavaliers, Carltons, Sierras and Granadas. XJ40, even the little SD3 Rover- Still affordable, practical as a daily driver and a pleasure to own and show. The list goes on and if I found a Volvo 245GLT it may be hard to resist.

When I started to show my cars it was indeed the 1980s - Most show cars were pre-war or 50's. My '74 BMW wasn't really welcome. What goes around comes around eh?

[Rdover]

No question in my mind.

You're talking about cars that are at least 25 years old, and even many cars from the 90s are classics. Folk in their 30s will remember them fondly and ANY car good or bad can be worthy of conserving.
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Richard

[MONTBREHAIN]

This is where I get mixed up because Old for me does not always equal classic (IMHO) then again... one persons Idea of a "classic" is not the same as anothers.....is it ? "MO"

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A vehicle can be restored at any time, But is original only once !

[ukdave2002]

[Rootes75]

At the end of the day I suppose it is just a personal opinion.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[Minxy]

[quote]old for me me does not always equal classic


Exactly, me neither. I don't consider my Minx to be ' classic' it's just another old car - unusual and quite rare - but not a classic.

In my opinion some cars are born classics, generally because they have innovative equipment or styling and are forerunners of their type. As examples I would say cars such as, but not exclusively, the Audi Quattro, Renault Espace, Nissan Figaro, current Fiat 500

[Ashley]

I understand classic cars are doing really well at the moment, but everyone knows their value. Brit sports cars for example are very sought after, but if you own one and can see what they're advertised for, you're going to try to get the same for yours, which makes life difficult for dealers. Therefore "undiscovered" classics can be much more profitable.

Escorts have shot up, Golfs GTIs and Peugeot 205sare doing well as are various Mercs, BMWs and other sporting cars too and if they're shooting up in price, dealers can make lots of money. It's no coincidence that Coys seem to have a hand in so many of the various classic car TV programs IMO. They're trying to drive prices up as the mags always have done.

The other issue is the age of classic car buyers is advancing as it is with their cars, so better to pitch the business at younger wealthy types who remember younger cars. And then there's the problem with older cars being dog slow and not keeping pace with the traffic. Younger people used to modern cars will struggle to adapt to a Morris Minor leave alone something prewar.

I reckon that if the classic car movement is to survive, then newer "classics" are vital because they're affordable and more appropriate to modern roads.

[Minxy]

^^^^^^WHS^^^^^^^

I agree entirely. Yesterday My wife and myself took the Minx to a local show and a Dozen or so BMW's from a club all sat together, some of the cars were essentially new (ish). I heard an awful lot of folks bemoaning them but as I said to my wife these are quite rare cars ( the big V12monsters) the owners clearly doted on them and took a lot of time and effort to present them well and it's folks like these that are the ' classic car' movement of the future. It certainly makes no odds to me if I park next to a car that's fifty years older or newer than mine and wether it's deamed a 'classic' or not.

[Ray White]

Some are born Classic, some achieve classic status and others have classic status thrust upon them...

I have a slightly different take on the question and it is that we are asking the wrong one. Rather than focus on the age of a car we should be asking ourselves "what does 'classic status' mean?" The definition of the term "classic" is vague and therefore it is impossible to use it in any meaningful way. I would go as far as to say that it is even impossible to say with any degree of consensus what we are convinced is not a classic as to what is.

[Riley Blue]

To be honest, I don't really care. There's far too much categorising goes on, not just with cars but in society at large. Live and let live, that's what I think.
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David

1963 Riley 1.5
1965 Riley 1.5