Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Rick]

This request arrived the other day - thoughts anyone??

"Hello,

I am a journalism student at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston.

Me and my group are currently producing a magazine for our third year project called 'Life Begins', and has the ethos of '40 is the new 20'.

I am in charge of writing a car review article for the magazine and I am interested in reviewing some classic cars.

I wondered if you could give me any advice as to which cars our target 40-year-old man would be interested in, and what the characteristics are that make it appealing.

Your input would be of huge benefit to our magazine, and would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time"
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[Old-Nail]

That's a very difficult question to answer.
One can only give an individual view as the choice is tempered by so many factors such as influences or fond memories from your youth, did your dad, uncle etc. have one?
Another factor would be the affordability of the vehicle, those of us brought up on Sean Connery's James Bond would perhaps like a DB Aston, not many however, get to realise that dream.
Generalisations are not the way to go, as even if we are 40 we are still each and every one an individual.

[Job-Rated]

Well, I'm 45 now & for me personally, it's all about the individuality factor & nothing says that more than a customised vehicle. Whilst I can appreciate all motor vehicles that have character & wouldn't dream of butchering a perfectly good example, placing one's unique 'stamp' on something not only speaks volumes but can be almost as tasteful in most cases.
Having grown up seeing all ages of cars on the road, nothing turns my head more now than a classy street rod.
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[Old-Nail]

I think that when you reach your 40's you tend to be slightly better off financially and may want to buy a car you couldn't afford in it's day. Perhaps the custom thing is an expression of the knowledge gained by the owner/builder since that vehicle was made, and the ability to re-engineer it to a better standard, whilst also reflecting his own personality.

[Uncle Joe]

I have a tendency to agree with you both there.

I think that the custom thing is just the fact that some people, myself included, just want a challenge. Though a lot depends on the meaning of the word custom.

Hmm, what does the word custom mean? Should be a good topic....

[Old-Nail]

I have never heard it better put than what you said in a recent forum post UJ, the thing about some cars that should never be customised, while others just have to be!
I can imagine someone of an engineering or mechanical background getting a lot of fun from designing and building a custom or rod. I've said before it's not really my thing, but to a large extent that boils down to the fact that I don't have the required skills to take that path.

If I had the choice to uprate a vehicle to make it more reliable or safer then I would, perhaps customising has it's roots in guys that had the ability to take that step a whole lot further?
I do visit other sites that do custom vehicles and am constantly amazed at the quality of work mostly on VW Beetles and so on, I'll always prefer original oldies, but it is a treat sometimes to see the amount of effort and engineering that goes into a persons own creation.

[clan chieftain]

Well I am coming up on 62 and want something easy to work on. hence the old marina. You just cant do at 62 what you could at 32.
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The Clan Chieftain

[buzzy bee]

Hi

At 22 I am interested in the oldest motor car I can get my hands on! Veteran would be great, steam even better, and just starting to apeal are the edwardian racers. Well maybe one day!! day dream he he

Cheers

Dave

[Uncle Joe]

I have an engineering background. Thats one of the reasons Mopars appeal to me. They are engineers cars, in much the same way as most pre 1960 classics. As such, they seem to demand being upgraded or improved in some way. The americans have a word for this, restification. That is, restoring a car but using modern upgrades.

[Job-Rated]

Hence the term 'Resto-Rod' - Apart from the size of wheels & tyres, the car looks more or less the same as the day it rolled off the production line, but underneath, everything is modern & therefore easier/cheaper to maintain.




_________________
Don't run your fingers over my truck & I won't run my truck over your fingers!


http://www.loosechange-band.co.uk/

[Uncle Joe]

Never thought of that....where did you take the photos?

[Old-Nail]

I think that I could be tempted into one of those to save using an original as an every day driver.
Typically (for me) I don't like the lowered appearance, or the flash wheels, but if there was a standard looking car with all the uprated stuff tastefully hidden so as to appear stock then that would be the answer to daily driving for me.

The genuine oldie could then be preserved from the damaging daily clash with modern traffic in all weathers.

[Job-Rated]

[pigtin]

I find a straight restoration and the subsequent cleaning and polishing of post-war cars soul destroying. One is usually trying to extend the life of something the original engineer expected to go for scrap after a few years and fighting built-in fallibility. I expect screams of protest from many of you but it is a purely personal view and having restored/rebuilt a Sprite I have experienced this at first hand.
My 32 Austin ten took the minimum of non-mechanical restoration and after 23 years of hard use is just beginning to show rot. The most (for me) enjoyable part of the original rebuild was discreetly improving the braking and electrical system I dread doing the bodywork repairs now needed.
To me the most enjoyable project was the Special: Starting with a chassis and a pile of bits I sketched, researched, begged and borrowed; turned, screw-cut, milled and welded. The satisfaction of driving something built with so many skills I thought lost, and some I didn’t know I had, was overwhelming.
Maybe I’m just a frustrated mechanical engineer who spent too long behind a desk, or fiddling with transistors and bits of wire, at 70 years old I may be beyond the scope of this article.

[Uncle Joe]

I think that you are spot on with your comments.

In life, the longer that a car is owned, so many more changes are made to it. Sometimes, they are unwanted changes. Such as the stain on the back seat from one of the kids being sick. Sometimes, they are wanted, such as a new radio.

If someone has the capability of say, upgrading brakes, then that should be done, if only from a safety point of view.

Consider things this way. If we bought a new car, and it had to rest us the rest of our life, would we keep it with the same old faults, or would we try to get rid of them when the possibility arose? To those who say something like ''keep the same old faults so that it remains original'', I think that I would counter with ''in that case, the next time you buy a new car that has a recall, dont take it in for the repair. Put up with it for the next 50 years or so.'' Or is that being to radical?