Back to the Future – 1957

I’ll be curious to see the condition of the car even if they had taken steps to minimize deterioration. Could make for a collectors dream restore.

That’s pretty cool. I like the comment about “lasting appeal”, and it kinda makes me wonder how many American cars will have lasting appeal 50 years from now? (Actually, that’s rhetorical ’cause I’m pretty sure there will be no American cars manufactured today that have lasting appeal ten years from now, let alone fifty. That’s just me, though. I’m a left-leaning, gas-guzzling hating snob.)

I agree – there is a big aftermarket for select “classic” cars, but there are still many parts that are difficult to impossible to come by. Non – classics. Good luck. People aren’t keeping cars for very long, and salvage yards are pulling engines, occasionally come collision repair panels, and scrapping them at a quicker pace. I think the electronics are going to be the challenge with so many ECM / PCM’s etc. Plastic plugs become brittle and it’s hard to get the right harness ends.

It may also be, that since all the automakers are all trying to have a product in every market space, that there are fewer really stand out vehicles. I agree that the retro movement holds some potential, and I’ve seen sketches of chevy doing a retro Camaro styled after the 67-69 models.

Around here you don’t see many cars older than 10 years on the road except for some rare exceptions. The exceptions are the notable classics – still a few 65-68 mustangs rolling around, a few old chryslers, corvettes, and classic Benz’s. The other exception is older trucks – I see a number of ’68-72′ chevys. But pretty much the rest of the 70’s is gone, as are the 80’s and a lot of the generics of the 90’s. It’s interesting to see the “hand me down” process for one time high line cars. Growing up, my Grandparants always had big classic Lincolns – Mark IV, Mark V and hated the newer models and refused to buy them until after 2000 when they finally gave up trying to get the dealer to work on keeping a 1977 model car in showroom condition. While they kept theirs up, I would see many similar models far the worse for wear on their 4th, 5th, or 10th owner – beaten up, added on with gaudy accessories, etc – the $500 car. Now I see beat down Infinity Q45’s, old Lexus 300’s and 420 / 560 MB’s rolling around with hanging headliners, dented, dirty, and unkempt.

Perhaps it’s all the 0% and drastic mark downs that the domestic automakers have been undertaking for last 10 years to keep people buying and things moving out.

I’m wondering …what kind of tranquilizers? Oh come on…I’m kidding!!

I should have thought of Ed myself…

Ahaan… I will follow.