History Where is this hobby headed?

I've run into plenty of the "that 70 year old photo(s) wrong" crowd often here

 

As time goes on we won’t be here, but the rides we built will live on and hopefully be passed on to another person who has an appreciation of the history and effort to build them.

 

How many people here are into the '08 to teens-era Model T and other wooden wheel vehicles? You could probably count the number on all your fingers and toes. Years of interest move with the times. It doesn't mean the vintage automobile hobby is dying.

Someone else pointed out that a 1990 Mustang is the equivalent to today's 20 year old (born in 2004) as a 1955 Chevy is to someone who is to someone born in 1969. Why would anyone expect a Gen Z to be interested in the same cars as a Gen X (or Boomer)?

 

Here's something I just thought about thats hurting the vintage rod hobby. How much more common revolving inventory junkyards are becoming compared to long term yards. Places like picknpull that crush cars that have been there two months vs yards where some cars have been there 40+ years. One overlooked thing I often talk about is the amount of on topic rods and customs in Midwest junkyards up till the late 90s early 2000s. Both the east and west coast had far more coverage in magazines etc so those yards tended to get picked clean. Meanwhile myself I got into old style rods by coming across many "survivor" rods in junkyards. In fact I nearly ended up buying a custom 53 Victoria when I was 13.....owner of the junkyard and the body shop it was connected to was going to all but give it to me but at thirteen I was too airheaded to figure out how to offer to work off the purchase price in place of cash. Those type of yards were also setup so you could easily Walk in and poke around yourself. So up to the early 2000s many kids did just that. And those yards had no issue selling cars whole with a usable title. Sure American graffiti and moonshine highway etc already started a lean towards vintage rods but actually sitting in a 53 Ford customized around 1960 sitting on the dirty tuck and roll and seeing the multiple Strombergs through the crack in the open hood solidified it. On top of everything as they were considered junk I was able to actually crawl all over it as opposed to coming across one at a show or on the road

 

I attended a fairly large show 400 miles away, there were a lot of younger people driving in in all types of cars. We drove ours there. Can’t say how many thumbs ups, waves, yells etc we got. Only saw one other old car on the highway in the 800 miles we drove.

 

Surprised this is still going, honestly. I regretted posting it not too long after doing so. What is different between this and the "weekly post about the death of hot rodding"? Looks like it's spurred some good conversation, so all in all I guess it's been good.

Was out again on Saturday evening filming a new video for my youtube nonsense. Zero old cars on the road beside mine. Lots of looks and thumbs-ups from all types. What I've been noticing is local guys only seem to get out to the handful of cruises (parking lot car sits) left in the area, but not much in the way of just using their cars as transportation. Then lo and behold yesterday as I put my lawn tractor away after cutting the grass, a turquoise and white 55 Bel Air Sedan rumbled down my street and stopped in front of the widow's house a few doors down.

 

Once the initial bash comments that come on any of threads are out of the way the meat and potatoes of it starts popping up and you end up with a decent conversation lol

 

Someone is on the pull.

 

More power to them, she's had 2 husbands die on her (say what you will but she is a really sweet lady) and hell at that age we should all be so lucky!

 

OLD CARS WILL ALWAYS BE AROUND. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE CAR SHOWS AND CRUISES. THE REASON IT'S FADING AWAY IS, THE YOUNGER GUYS DON'T HAVE THE SAME PASSION FOR OLD CARS AS WE DO. MANY WERE BORN WAY AFTER THE BIG INTEREST IN OLD CARS AGAIN AND THERE WERE 5-10 SHOWS EVERY WEEKEND. AND I MEAN REAL SHOWS, NOT ALL THESE CARS N COFFEE CRAP. SO MANY OF THE GREAT SHOWS, ESPECIALLY IN SO CAL, ARE GONE.
MANY WILL DISAGREE WIT ME , BUT IT'S TRUE.

 

And there is your indication of where things are heading...

 

Got so many shows/car events around here it’s almost overwhelming. Which one do ya go to?
Planning a show date is crazy.

 

The correct answer is 'The dustbin of history'. We can whine about costs, lack of interest from younger folks, an ever-diminishing parts well, etc etc... But we're forgetting the elephant in the room. Like it or not, the day when burning dead dinosaurs to propel vehicles will no longer be economically, politically or ecologically feasible is coming. The politicians can try legislating it away all they want (don't say 'climate change'), but Mother Nature will pay zero heed to them. I don't expect the expiration date to appear in my lifetime (I'm 74), my children may see it, my grandchildren will undoubtably see it. Whether it's addressed before catastrophe ensues remains to be seen.

 

^^^^ yep^^^^^
Everything we own is headed for the scrap yard.

so enjoy em now

 

Not if you don't hoard it till you die.
I have seen too many garages full of cool useable stuff gathering dust sitting on a shelf only to be scrapped or auctioned off later.
I got a great deal on my car from a gentleman who was selling it all "because they are just going to throw it all away". He and I really hit it off and he was happy to see me have the car. When I had it on the road later that year and went to look him up I found he had died. Well that was one pile that didn't get scrapped. That's why if I see someone looking for something I have sitting on a shelf I will frequently let it go cheap (or free) if they really need it for thier car.

 

Not the point.
It all eventually hits the recycler or evaporates when the sun explodes.
We can’t escape death
None of our cars will either
So enjoy em

 

Just another sign: Went to the local (large) bookstore to pick up a book to read on a recent trip. In checking out their huge magazine section I noted no hot Rod genre mags. Amazing that there used to be a pretty good number of titles there monthly.
Guess I’m getting old.

 

Good points. A few months ago I read an article about how 20 somethings are buying Model T's as a cheap way to get into the hobby. Ironically, I saw 3-4 young guys driving T's around the fields at Hershey.

One young guy drove his open top early T from Ohio to PA and filmed his travels & stops. Once at Hershey, hit the fields to find some parts that needed to be replaced or fix right there on the spot.

I know these are small examples, but there is still some interest in the old stuff.

Another factor is and has always been in cost. Not too many young guys are in a position to drop $80-100K on a killer Deuce roadster, etc. That same dude can afford $20K on a decent Fox body GT 5.0.

Personally, I do not believe the hobby is dying, it's just changing. Stock Fords are dropping in value. Conversely, a well done early hot rod-type of Ford with neat original parts still are bringing good money and changing hands.

What has definitely changed is where the action is. Instagram is full of great cars, young guys and killer craftsmen. They have migrated from the internet to social media platforms.

Attending TROG this year, I was amazed at the number of cars running (over 100) and the number of people who came. I believe Saturday had something like 20,000 people in attendance. What was also surprising was how supportive the town people were. The town's folks love the event and support it.

I would start my car in a residential neighborhood at 6:00 AM and when I came back at night, they gave me the thumbs up.

The hobby is not dying in my opinion, it's just shifted for the better.

 

In a way, guys that hoard stuff away could actually be doing the hobby a favour by preserving it for the future...

 

did you include me???

 

I think the biggest thing is to get them out there and drive them around. I drive mine to the store and to get mail and so on. It helps to show that these are fun to drive, not just something shiney to trailer around and have people look at. I do think that is a change with the younger guys. I see less of the crazy overpowered stuff that is undriveable and more of the dirt drags fun cars,

 

As a parts guy I will pick up newer stuff, and find there are buyers for the stuff. Just today I sold 1965 Falcon parts, helps me buy Model A parts.

 

I remember back in the early &late 60's guys parked their hot rods and bought shiny new muscle cars, but many of them kept that hot rod or custom car and brought them back out in the 70's & 80's, there will always be someone out there that will be driving hot rods & customs, just enjoy the ride and the car hobby will continue although it may make some twist and turns.

Stop and think about it, the hamb is still getting bigger every year, this segment of hot rods and customs is alive and well. HRP

 

That goes along with "Antiques", last time my 1912 T had legal plates was 20 years ago. I remember the events I took it on, fun times, no need to drive things forever.

 

I work with a twenty something he's into Subaru's has big money into it even races it but also have club a club member who's 19 that's into traditional rods big time and doesn't get the tuner thing of guy's his age the point is cars will always be around it's just a mindset.

 

Wow this is still going! Good to see.
Haven't been on here much lately, but I still think about this. I still feel like the hobby is shrinking, but because it's shrinking, it's driving more people to it, if that makes sense. Parts quality has declined sharply overall. Events (at least in my area, as I've mentioned) have decreased. Seeing guys and gals out in their cars is less frequent (again, at least in my area). It's less accessible than it used to be, seems like we can all agree on that.
But because of that, I feel like there's a counter movement happening with people looking for something different than today's norm, or just to "fight the power" if you will. It's no mystery that the push is to get away from fossil fueled vehicles altogether, and we've all seen the push back against it. Might explain the influx of young guys not interested in more modern cars. I also feel like there's a growing number of people who are more interested in things from the past because the present and future don't look so promising to them.
I don't know. Just my thoughts, they don't have to be correct. I'm becoming more and more of a hermit and fully admit I'm out of touch with what's going on out there.

 

There are a few 500-1,000 hp cars at local cruise nights (seems a lot more with tech advancements). I have 4 running "special" cars, they don't have 1,000 hp combined . I still have fun!

 

The Hobby Started From Meager Beginnings And If It Slowly Goes Away Then Enjoy The Ride...Period...

 

In my opinion, for what it is worth, we need to embrace the kids and mentor them. They are doing no different than we did and that includes not just my generation but EVERY generation. We got what was available, popular, and what we could afford. Kids today see tuners everywhere in school parking lots and hangouts. There is an abundance of them around, parts are available, and they can daily drive them and drive them to school. Did any of us not follow that pattern?.

I talked to a DJ at a radio station that was my favorite for many years. I told them I no longer listened to them because the music was too modern for me . I liked it when they played classic rock from Pink Floyd, Aerosmith,, Bad Company and Led Zeppelin. The DJ asked me when this was? The late 70s and the 80s.. He then asked me if those bands at the time were actively touring promoting albums that were charting at the time? I said yes, he said that they are still following the pattern playing active music of bands touring and promoting music on the charts, That I stayed behind not them. Is this not what each of us has done? be it the 50s 60s 70s 80s or 90s? We still get those warm and fuzzy feelings when we hear one of the songs from our early years. Eminem or Vanilla Ice are no different than Elvis. Rebellious white kids playing black music speaking for their generation albeit quite a bit more vulgar but wasn't Elvis considered vulgar with his gyrating hips? do you see where this is as relevant as our cars are an our "hobby"?

A new 1940 Ford cost was $900 .In 1963 a new corvette costed between $4k-$6k today a new one costs between $70k-$90K depending on options. A new 1966 Fastback Mustang costed between $2600-$3200k today a Mustang GT base model is $43k A 1977 Z28 Camaro brand new was $5100 today a new one is $65k. Today a base Honda Civic is $25k. All of us went to school and saw these cars brand new in the parking lot. A kid could afford to work at a gas station and make the payment and buy extras for it. All of these cars this could be done this way. I personally know a guy that bought a 64 Vette fully loaded with the biggest engine at 16, he still has that car to this day. Today in that list the only reachable car in that list is the civic.

Leave these kids alone and let them learn about cars and the mechanics of them. be there for them, help them find their first classic car. It will probably be super cheap and a basket case and not a model that many of us would choose but hey, they have to start somewhere. I once was a high ranking world wide car club of a "traditional" car club that would NEVER go beyond a certain year. Turned out that the founder in Modesto California was out to make a dime in any way he could. he talked out of the side of his mouth or ass which were one and the same. we weren't founded in 1948 as he claimed but around 2016. All of a sudden rumblings started popping up about the club going to die off with the older members that we needed to move up the years of eligible cars. first it went to 1977 then 1988 to 25 years old. I refused to allow anybody newer into my chapter. my members didn't want a Honda Civic tuner in the center of our hot rod pictures. As they started adding Late Model. Foreign, Air Cooled and tuner divisions we packed up our 50 members and dropped the club name and drag plates and do our own thing we wouldn't let all of that garbage in. We would still mentor them nut they needed an eligible car to join. It gave them something to strive for. I was never into the everybody gets a trophy, everybody plays mentality. If I want to see a new tuner, Mustang Challenger or Camaro, I will go to the dealership, They don't belong at car shoes we have become too inclusive as a society. I like many types of music but I like to be able to turn the knob to find that tpe of music that I am in the mood for. I don't want it all on the same station