I'm considering relocating from Austin Tx, to the greater Bay Area. I've looked at it a million ways to Sunday job, housing, etc and have a pretty good grip on that end of it. What I'm wondering is whats life like for a hotroder in these parts. We're not considering San Francisco at all only outlying areas. Is there decent roadster weather out there much? Cruise nights? Good events? Thanks in advance.
That's what the Bay Area is known for-it's great weather. I can drive Faye all year round, with a few exceptions. We are home to the Bay Area Roadsters and the San Jose Roadsters, hundreds of different car clubs up and down the penninsula as well as the east bay. There are 2-3 car shows each day of the weekend from March through November. I'm sure as you have already found out housing prices are lower in the South Bay area and climb up the pennisula all the way to San Francisco. I'm not as familiar with East Bay housing. California may be the Land of Fruits & Nuts but the weather more than makes up for all the shortcomings. Well come to NorCal.
Coming for look in August. Will know for sure after that, but it sounds like a neat place. I just don't have anything with a roof, so I had some weather concerns. I've got a 29 Ford roadster and the tabs that stick up to grab the pivot pins on the top were ground off and two holes were welded up. It NEVER rains here.
Great weather here and there are always events going on. Check out the link below for all the events happening in the "Bay Area"/NorCal. Check out this list of events going on year round, there are yearly events and there are weekly/monthly events: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=768802
There are a boat load of people who shouldn't have driver's licenses, they must hand them out like candy. There are traffic jams on the highways every day including weekends. The roads are in disrepair, though they are starting to pave again. Pretty much like any major metro area. It was fantastic 30 years ago because of the weather, the geography and lack of clutter. I am 35 miles north of SF but the older I get the further away I think I'd be happy. Many of my retired friends have moved further north or to the Sierra foothills. But if you have a business or need a job the dot com gravy train trickles down pretty well.
Pleasanton is a really nice town and home of the Good Guys. Lots of hot rods there and a very car friendly area. Great weather (little fog) and situated that Oakland, SF and San Jose aren't too far away. It's at a major freeway interchange. I'm on the coast and it's a little too chiily for my liking, give me Honolulu any day. And of course traffic's a bitch but it seems that's everywhere no matter where you are if you're near a metropolitan area.
How hard is it to bring an out of state hotrod and register it as an antique? Will I need to change anything pollution or safety wise. It's pretty easy here in Texas if its not a daily driver and registered as an antique
I am getting ready to do mine and what I have learned is you need a California Vin Verification for any out of state vehicle, even if you own it. http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures/howto/htvr9.htm An antique reg doesn't buy you much my understanding, about $20 a year off the usual $100+ fee. http://www.dmv.com/ca/california/custom-vehicle-registration
I retired to Lake Co. Ca. some years ago. Lots of rod things going up here. Housing is cheap by Ca. standards and just two to three hours from the bay area. Weather is good here. Compare it to Texas weather without the summer rain. Beautiful lake fishing and water skiing. Plus a great rod shop Konocti motors. Google it. Plus no semi annual smog check after initial registration.
I don't know what it is like in Austin, but I hope you like traffic. it is getting worse by the day. I'm on the east bay side of things... what a shitty mess. lots of artists here as well, they like to paint up the freeways. the wonderful city of Oakland is on the top 10 list for violent crime in the US, though as you head away from Oakland things get much better in that regard. EVERYTHING is more expensive here. the negative things about the area will only be getting worse in the future. on the positive side, the weather is great, you can't beat it. lots of swap meets and car shows within driving distance to and from the event in one day. the North Bay is like a whole different world, (North of San Francisco) much better than it is down here in all respects, but a little colder. I wouldn't recommend anyone come here to live unless they like congestion and millions of people. I should have moved away from here 20 years ago, but here I am.
I was born and raised in Livermore. Wife is related to Livermore founders. Love it here. Weather is great. Lots of rods. Cool shows. I now live 20 miles east of Livermore in Tracy. Housing is cheaper. The tri-valley has gotten uber expensive in the last 10 years. I couldn't rent an apartment for what I pay for my 1800sq ft. And a 20 minute drive. Are you retired or relocating and looking for work? You will love it. Traffic is hectic sometimes but u will get over it
I'm about an hour and a half's drive from the bay, in the agricultural county of Colusa. It's peaceful here, very little traffic, and mostly conservative. Not many events out in the country, but each small town has a festival or such during the summer. ---John
there is plenty to do, but it's pricey. i am (personally, not the shop) looking to move to the bay in August to start at SFSU and i have been selling off all of my projects because shop space is so expensive. granted, i will be in SF and not the greater Bay Area, so it's on the higher end of property prices. i have no idea what it costs to live in Austin, so i don't know how comparable it is.
I think you'll love some parts of it and hate others. That could be said about almost anything though. Traffic sucks but once you figure out the commute tides, you can miss most of it if you're a little flexible. There is something car related going on in the bay area almost every weekend from memorial day - labor day. I'd give it a shot.
...and if you like to turn left and right you're just down the road from Thunderhill raceway, where a variety of car clubs show up pretty regularly.
I wouldnt go there until I looked around There are tons of great places to live in nor-cal that are just as nice - less congested - less restrictive rules - less expensive. Personally IMO id move to LA before even considering the bay area
The Bay Area has been my home for all of my life, and for most of it I swore it was the best place on earth. Unfortunately, word spread... We used to stop right on Hwy 101 and do standing start drag racing.
I hope you have good work lined up. It ain't easy on a blue-collar wage. I came out here for tech work, when I got bounced from that, and ended up building rods again. $110,000 pay cut.
The job in question is a good one. It's just that you get a lot if house and amenities and not so much in the Bay Area. I'm just hoping that the other really cool stuff you can do out there make up for your scaled back lifestyle. I'm exited to at least go have a look.
Here is something you might want to look at: <table class="table_indexes_diff"><tbody><tr><th>Indexes Difference</th><th></th></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Consumer Prices in San Francisco, CA are 13.04% higher than in Austin, TX</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Consumer Prices Including Rent in San Francisco, CA are 41.14% higher than in Austin, TX</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Rent Prices in San Francisco, CA are 96.51% higher than in Austin, TX</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Restaurant Prices in San Francisco, CA are 24.98% higher than in Austin, TX</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Groceries Prices in San Francisco, CA are 19.32% higher than in Austin, TX</td></tr> <tr><td colspan="2" align="right">Local Purchasing Power in San Francisco, CA is 10.22% lower than in Austin, TX</td></tr></tbody></table>
Where is your new job located? That will pretty much dictate where you're gonna live. I live and work in the North Bay so my commute is only 20 minutes. If you were to live in the NB and had to commute to San Francisco you're looking at 2-1/2 hrs one way. The closer you get to SF or Oakland, the worse the traffic. Temp wise SF is downright cold.......all the time! Going either north or south it starts to warm up. Further east will get you more Austin like temps. Car shows, swaps, runs, there's something going on every weekend. This is California, man! Check it out.................... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=768802 As far as registering your rod.................. http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/brochures/howto/htvr9.htm If it's titled as a pre-75 it shouldn't require smog certification however, like I said before........this is California, man! With the myriad of smog laws and our beloved California Air Resources Board (aka smog-nazis) anything could happen! It's best to call DMV with the specifics to get the answers you need ahead of time.
There's a couple of offers out there, without getting to OT I will rarely have to go into the office (East Bay) so I can live wherever I want. I would like to be semi convenient to the beach and in the better public schools should I decide to bring out the family after a trial run if I still want to be there.
I spend a lot of time in Cal lately. Registering an old car is easy. Bring it to the DMV to have the VIN verified, and that is it. No smog, no inspection BS. You will have to take a written test to get a Cal driver's license, and you'll need seatbelts to drive on the freeway. Cal is crazy expensive though. The weather is great, and there is some kind of car event nearly every weekend. It is a trade off for quality of life vs. cost.
That's what I'm hoping for. We lived in Hawaii and it was the case as well. Expensive but worth it. I ask my cousin who lived I'm the Bay Area for a long time about all the traffic and he said, "You know where there's no traffic? Someplace nobody wants to be".
Interesting. I had always understood the law to say that pre-64 cars did not require seat belts but according to this you need seat belts for freeway, as you say. So you don't have to put seat belts in your rod but then you can't take it on the highway (legally)? A highway is pretty much any non residential through fare, no? I didn't see anything in the Ca Vehicle Code online. http://www.ehow.com/facts_7567157_do-need-seat-belts-california.html The Facts The seat-belt law in California stipulates that a car adhere only to seat-belt standards that were in place at the time the car was manufactured. Therefore, a classic or antique car built before 1964 -- the year in which seat belts became a mandatory standard in all cars -- is exempt from this law. Considerations While these older cars are not required to be fitted with newer seat belts, it is advisable to have them installed if this is a car that you drive regularly. Additionally, California law does not allow a driver or their passengers to drive on the highway without wearing functional seat belts. Warning In California, it is illegal to have a child age 6 and under ride in a vehicle without being properly secured in a car or booster seat in the backseat. If you plan to have a child in this age range ride in your vintage car, you must have seat belts to accommodate them.
I live in Napa and miss the car culture of Southern California where I grew up but the quality of life is so much better here! The weather is great.
Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin sounds like a good place for you. Hour and 20 from Santa Cruz and halfmoon bay. Great weather and car scene. You can drop hosing expenses 30-50 percent by going over the hill into Tracy or mountain house. Schools are nice. I have 3 kids in elementary school.
I am about 130 miles north of the bridge ... like 49 RatFink said, nice to visit but wouldn't want to live there. East Bay (except right on the bay) gets too dang hot, south bay and pennesula too hot.. the cops in San Jose are working double overtime this weekend to keep the gangsta murders down ... heck people in San Jose get road rage just pushing a shopping cart in Costco. When people LEAVE California for the better life they usually go to Tejas! ... think about it. But if you already have a job lined up then sounds like you are stuck to a certain area. Where is your lined up job located?
OK.....I'm chiming back in. I'm biased but I love the North Bay! We're in the heart of the wine country and it's beautiful up here! The traffic only sucks if you're commuting using Hwy. 101 in the early morning or late afternoon and even then it's nothing compared to LA traffic! Average price for a nice 3/2 home is a tick over $300K but they are climbing! The further N/NE you go prices go down, weather gets warmer and scenery gets prettier. Oh yeah....Vern Tardel lives just up the street! With that said and your office being in the East Bay, I think east of the East Bay may be more up your alley. Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin......that area. Home prices are a bit more but I believe the closer you get to Hwy. 5, even on the other side such as Tracy, home prices plummet. Not to mention, temps go up! More like Austin I suspect. And, as I said before, car culture is everywhere! Google Earth the area to get an overall shot.
Here is the exact page from the CA DMV website that tells you when you have to have seat belts. If a vehicle was equipped with them, then you must use them. Number 3(f). http://www.dmv.ca.gov/pubs/vctop/d12/vc27315.htm Living in Sacramento, which is roughly about 2 hours away from the bay, there are tons of car shows and gatherings. If you make your way to Sacramento be sure to stop by and check out the California Automobile Museum I work at in Old Sac.
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