Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[admin]

There are a few cars sold new today that are bound to be collectable, or 'classics' in years to come. Anything with sporty or GT pretentions from the old-school manufacturers such as Jaguar, TVR (remember them?), Aston and so on are obvious candidates. But what products from mainstream manufacturers are likely to be cossetted under blankets in garages some 20 years from now?

Will anyone bother preserving the mass-produced dreary stuff from the far east, or indeed from any other mass producer? Daewoos badged as Chevys are unlikely to catch on I bet. And will a suitable support industry establish itself that can support/repair older ECUs, traction control systems etc as they begin to fail? I'm sure 30 years ago no-one thought that cars from the 70s would be preserved, but many are, so perhaps the same will happen with cars that are new now.

70s cars though still had basic mechanical setups that were familiar to mechanics of the 50s and 60s, with many engines (such as the A Series in BMC/BL cars) soldiering on for decades. But with things 'advancing' (or should that be 'getting more complicated') so quickly now, will any back street garage be able to keep up and support these high-tech cars once they get into old age???? the manufacturers themselves are really only interested in selling new cars, and their interest in supporting outdated models, even after just a few years, is pretty clear.

Rick

[alfanut]

I can just about remember when the old fogeys were going on about how modern cars with unitary construction could never be restored, but welding has moved on since then. In the same way in 20 years time I expct that modern ECUs will cause no more problems than a distributor now.
No, what will cause the disappearance of modern cars is nostalgia, or rather the lack of it for them. That old Morris Oxford or Hillman Minx was probably the family's first car, and will be remembered with affection because of this. So it was probably preserved or restored for that reason, and now it will have a period charm and simplicity that will still make it desirable. But now the everyday car is just a domestic appliance, and has no appeal.
My prediction is that everyone remembers their first car, the one that gave them that taste of freedom. In a few years time the classic shows will be full of restored Vauxhall Corsas and Fiat Puntos, today's successor to the Mini or even Morris Minor, and a 'Max Power' body kit will be as sought after as a Les Leston steering wheel is today.

[buzzy bee]

I sincearly hope your prediction doesn't come true, no offensse meant towards you!

hehe

Cheers

Dave

[buzzy bee]

Like I have said on a previous thread, all of the really poor made cars that will rot away or just be scrapped, will become the classics, and sought after ones due to few of them being around. My prediciton is probably equally as bad!

Cheers

Dave

[admin]

Yeah a show full of Vauxhall Corsas could easily lead me to drink, so bad would it be!

Yup nostalgia has a big part to play, but also I think a few years back people took more pride in their daily wheels than many do now. Look at all the hands-on DIY motoring mags that were around in the 60s and into the 70s. I can't remember the last time I saw a Car Mechanics or whatever it was called on the newsagent shelf. So many cars are leased, or just company repmobiles, that fewer people get (or need to get) to know the world beneath the bonnet. When things break, its a call to the garage or the AA.

Rick

[alfanut]

But we won't be at classic car shows, will we. I already prefer steam fairs where there are loads of classic cars, but they usually have a cut-off date, often before 1970. After all, vintage cars only cover a 12 year period, so 'anything between 1946 and just out of production' is perhaps too long a time-span.
Prediction no 2 Perhaps more modern classics will be called something else, and CLASSICS will all be before 1980, when blandness and electronics took over.

[buzzy bee]

Your second prediction sounds more acceptable!!

[Uncle Joe]

Painfull as it might sound, I just had a thought about this. Thinking back to the range of cars available in any particular year, at least one, but usually several restored examples of each remain today.

Perish the thought, but I'm guessing that it is likely that we can say the same things about todays cars in 30 or 40 years! Just think of what that means. In the future, we will be able to go to classic car shows to admire Hyundais!