History WHAT'S SO GOOD about Hot Rodding???????

It fosters, promotes and encourages international goodwill, brotherhood, commerce and community.

 

Car people spend money. All the goodness of a stimulus plan without the annoying taxes.

 

One of the positive things about the Hot Rod Community is that we give back.

eg> alot of show n' shines help raise money, food or some kind donations for local charities. The show vehicles bring the public to these events and with raffles, corporate sponsors, they raise thousands of dollars for all kinds of people & groups in need of help.

 

Keep me criminally sane. If it weren't for hot rods I'd be a mass murderer striping walls in jail instead of cars. Of course being born into it made me one for life. US Constitution gives me rights to be a hot rodder. That's my Life, Liberty and Pursuit of happyness.

Mikey did it
www.mikeyspinstriping.com
"life strange"

 

I meet cool friends, learn new skills, get to teach others and recycle. I'm all good.

Metalshapes asked about recycling: Its a known fact the total carbon footprint of a HUMMER is less than a PRIUS after factoring mining, manufacturing, labor and fuel.

 

Another thing, I've never seen a terrorist act at a car show. Although sometimes the law wants you to think we are the terror. Hot rodders are the best on earth. Two of them bought my lunch today at Jalisco's on hwy 71. Thanks Ray (What a nice shop shop) and Norm (hemi boy).

Mikey

 

In 1964 I was livind in Hayward California. A at 15 a friends older brother
took him and me on a friday night cruise to the local hot spots in his 59 348 four speed impala, complete with a few short 2 gear stoplight duels.
It was an absolute epifhany (spelling?) that remains with me always.
When you are at a car show, cruisenight or similar venue you may walk
by many realy nice rides and just give them a glance. All that changes at the first stop light you roll up to with your lowered, raised, loud, mellow,
primed,painted, chopped or not, hand made, hotrod, custom, racer, or similar such beasts. The kids in the next car over that I can't even tell the
model of, will climb all over each other with jaws dropped "yelling look at that Dad" Other guys girls and or wives will give a quick glance or a sly smile, much to thier mans ire. Then there are the ones who whole
hartedly hate the whole concept of the total freedom this kind of behavior
suggests. These are the ones you do really nasty burnouts or clear a really hot motors throat for... Hotrodding not just good but great!

 

the average non car person enjoys a little americana/nostalgia in their life....even if its only a few minutes at a gas station or parking lot..... i always get someone , who will stop me in a parking lot and ask questions and tell stories of their past , that involved a car or a friends car. the other good thing about hot rodding......no matter how bad the day has been , i can get in my coupe and i'm as giddy as a school girl....

 

As much as I dislike humans, I do like to see people light up at the sight of an old car at the gas station or in the grocery store parking lot.

 

It gives me a creative outlet that not only makes me happy, but allows me to help other people pursue their individual happiness.

Even though I don't have a rod of my on on the road right now (still a mountain of parts), it still makes me happy to work on them for others, or to just show up and help out a brother-in-cars get a job done.

 

it is at the core of the american spirit. when someone says it cant be done, we find a way to do it. it promotes innovation, creation, and brotherhood.

 

I'll probably get panned for this but here goes, It's GREEN, it's the ultimate in car recycling. The real energy cost of a car is in it's manufacture and in the production of it's raw materials such as steel and aluminium, this is many, many times the energy a car will use for propulsion during it's lifetime, so extending a car's lifetime by hot rodding makes green sense.( This is not a post intended for next Thursday check out the date)

 

The time I got to spend with my oldest son, before he grew up and joined the Army.

 

The main reason It's great fun!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

parts needed to be shipped, .....Parts are being shipped for new junks, right now. I worked in the new car industry. Ford won't fix the common problems of their cars, because car sales only pay for R&D, while parts is the profit maker. Parts trucks from the manufactures, vendors & dealerships. I have been on both sides.

the act of driving to a swap meet looking for parts, .... but it's ok to drive a new car to a flee market? c'mon!

the electricity needed to run welders, .... Electricity for the manufactures,vendors, dealerships & auto repair shops. Have you seen a manufacturing plant? They're sweating from the heat of the energy, throughout the cars manufaturing process. Here's the kicker, how long does that new junk last.

All the chemicals needed to strip/paint a car,... The manufactures buy credits with the agencies, to pollute. Not because they're so green in all their efforts. Again, for a car that only lasts for 10 years. Then they start all over again, EVERYDAY!

We're not taking care of ourselves. We didn't take care of us, then. So with all the money sent outside the U.S, used for their R&D..was the beginning of our down fall. That was taken out of the pockets of the U.S automakers, and right into the predicament we're in now. I've been driving my avatar everyday, for 13 yrs. So I'm 3 years ahead right now.. and counting!

 

I'm sayin'.

~Jason

 

If you want to discuss further let's PM, but their clean air advocacy stuff is all over both of their websites.

Since starting to deal with legislators on this subject I have been given insight on who is paying lobbyists to support certain bills. If it's about air quality, it's pretty much supported by the Sierra Club and the American Lung Association. I'm in no way saying that they shouldn't push for clean air, they should just not include us as polluters. Industry is by far the biggest air quality problem and they do focus on them, unfortunately they do lump us in there too. No, it's not a direct focus of theirs, but we suffer because of it. They calculate the smog output of our cars as if we drive them every day. This is the basis for crushing "clunkers".

When they say they want lower emission vehicles produced, you can't really think that they want to let the ones that exist continue to pollute. They want them off the road.

From the ALA website:

Fighting for Healthy Air
Six out of ten Americans live in areas where air pollution reaches unhealthy levels. The American Lung Association leads the fight for healthy air every day. We fight for stronger clean air standards, lower power plant emissions, and cleaner diesel fuels and vehicles.

Federal
Strict national clean air standards and enforcement of laws like the Clean Air Act can dramatically improve air quality. Learn more about the federal government's role in making our air healthy. >> Learn more

State and Community
States and communities work to ensure that polluters clean up their acts. Find out how your community compares to others around the United States. Learn what can be done to achieve healthy air in your area. >> Learn more

Take Action
Join the American Lung Association's fight to help everyone breathe easier. Support national, state and local efforts to clean up sources of air pollution. Your life and the life of someone you love may depend on it. >> Learn more


Again, C.A.R.B. is the worst. They want the strictest limitations and for financial not "green" reasons.



Let's keep this to positive things about hot rodding.

 

i cant begin to add anything really that hasnt already been said but it's all right!! i've spent the last 10 years building cars for people like us and everything i touch they help with,.. we spend hours under the hood on the weekends playing the music that someone pays to play on the radio we drink beer that someone bottles and feeds there family on that income when there running we go to shows at dinners that some of us might not even know was there ,.. supporting the little guy we put tires on the ground and smiles in our souls and the on looker like the kids that point at my car from the back seats of theres i could go on and on and before im finished hear i want to applaud you for posting this im from Ca. and the road laws are the toughest hear we dont have enough poeple that would take a stand about this fantastic hobbie so I hope you do take this as far as you can ... Congradulations and thanks for post such a thought pervocing subject....

 

i'll throw one more thing into this .....when people see you walking along the side of the expressway with a gas can , leaving your old car ....they are more likely to help as well.......

 

Couldn't say it better:

-We're the ultimate recyclers.

 

I'd gladly do a smog check and have it compared to that of any new "Green Vehicle"

 

Here ya go. From our most earnest representative regarding who was in the room with him and Goodguys' lawyer at the capitol during the last two reviews and votes....

"Today it was the Bay Area Air Quality Management District, (BAAQMD). Last time it was the American Lung Assn. and the California Pollution Control Officers Assn. (?)

I'm starting to think these groups are just paid lobbyists, we could probably buy them over to our side, for the right price. I also think the commitee member know that as well. Didn't do the opposition a bit of good today. Our strength is in numbers. And we got 'em."

 

It gets votes for politicians who support the hobby.

 

"Music is the only religion that delivers the goods," said Zappa.
Pretty sure he'd be in league with us.

 

I love that response!!!

 

It's all about FREEDOM !! Hot-Rodding gives us the chance to hand sculpt a car to our own taste !! Build a Hot-Rod and if it catches on it's a trend and if it doesn't it's still a personalized statement !!! >>>>.

 

Here's my short list... I missed this thread and haven't read anything but the first few posts. Here goes...

What’s GREAT about hot rodding:
Personally-
1- I&#8217;ve learned more about US and World history through this hobby than I did in high school (and I graduated 3<SUP>rd</SUP> in my class).
2- It&#8217;s fostered an ability to be self-reliant as well as bolstered my problem solving skills&#8230; both critical and creative thinking.
3- The technology incorporated into engines, wiring, or turning a wrench on any other part of my cars relates well to my technical background (actually it&#8217;s at the root of my technical background).
4- I&#8217;ve created friendships throughout the country and thanks to the internet, the world because of sourcing parts, comradery, etc.
5- It has kept me close with my father and my brother, although it has annoyed my mother many times and made my wife smirk.
Social Benefit-
1- Like Metalshapes said, using old parts (recycling) wastes less present resources. I feel like left-over parts are actually a resource wasted once time and energy are spent recycling them for other uses, such as melting them down to become paperclips.
2- Using old parts keeps money into local and small business economies. Often I need small items rebuilt or modified and use small businesses for those needs. For example, getting an old generator or a vintage switches rebuilt or main leafs built are things that I farm out. Without me using old parts that business goes somewhere else.
3- I&#8217;ve estimated that my last project got about 22 miles per gallon highway, although it was without creature comforts of comparable mileage vehicles, I did it with used parts, rebuilding and maintenance. Knowing what I know now, I could have gotten more mileage by tuning it and running a better gear ratio. Still, 22mpg beats the pants off a lot of vehicles out there. I&#8217;ll admit, it&#8217;s better than my daily driven 2002 Dodge Pickup.
Fringe Benefits-
1- Stress relieving &#8211; I enjoy all phases of hot rodding from reading a book to searching for parts, to creating something and eventually driving it. As well, there are venues to share that passion and anything like that is refreshing to me.
2- Productivity &#8211; It&#8217;s nice to spend time actually doing something productive on my own. I can work all day and make money for the boss. But this, I am the boss and it&#8217;s nice to have something I can create.
3- Plain-ol&#8217; fun. It&#8217;s very gratifying to have a passion that does nothing but feed all parts of your soul.
4- I&#8217;ve done it with spare cash and trades and barters and at the end of the day I don&#8217;t owe a penny on it.
5- It&#8217;s rolling art. I do believe that hot rods completely add to the culture of America. As many parts of the historic US are steam-rolled into condos and strip malls it&#8217;s the old cars that reflect a period of time we should respect, relish, and reflect on.
6- I could go on and on&#8230; and I may&#8230; but for now, this is just a small list of what&#8217;s good&#8230; err great about hot rodding.

 

very very good Brent..................im with ya.........

 

Just the stuff I was looking for Brent. Thanks!!