Sometimes we can be a bit foolish. We get caught up in hype
and trade simplicity for overly complicated. We look at image instead
of function, and become too concerned about our “status” in life. We are all
guilty of this at one time or another and the world of hot rodding is going
through this snootiness as I write.
The years of car culture and hot rodding reach far behind my
knowledge of automobiles, after all I’m only 25 years old. I have, however,
spent almost a decade working with cars and the majority of cars I’ve owned
have been carbureted. Although I’m too young to have watched the culture grow
and evolve firsthand, I am bright enough to understand the principles and
history of it. A few years ago I cancelled my subscription to Hot Rod magazine
because I felt they lost sight of the meaning and passion of the culture. I
started seeing fewer write-ups on the Bonneville Salt Flats and more product
placement with expensive new parts. What they seem to have forgotten is that this
whole culture started when some bored young adults took unwanted hand-me-down
cars out to the desert to race. Prohibition era moonshine drivers also helped fuel the fire and hot rod culture took off like a whiskey
filled rocket. This was all from a grassroots movement, not a corporation’s
marketing plan. The original hot rodders chose cars that were cheap and unwanted,
they used engine parts from other cars (sometimes even making engine parts
themselves) to go as fast as possible. Although some models were more popular than
others, there was no wrong way to build a hot rod. It was a trial and error
time and a lot of good things including the SCTA, NHRA, and Hemi heads came
from it. I believe it helped push to create one the greatest car eras in our
history.
Fast forward to today and albeit rare, it is not terribly
uncommon to see hot rods driving along side of us on the highway. They are
usually the popular models and most are bright Jelly Bean colors with chrome
shined to perfection. White collar workers looking for that weekend escape have
found it in these flashy pieces of metal. This is the same attention that has
popularized Harley-Davidson in the last couple of decades and their target
audience is clear by their marketing execution. I have no problem with this at
all by the way. I think it is great people are getting into the culture and
let’s face it; participation is the only way these old cars can survive. It is
great seeing a father and son going for lunch in an old GTO, or a couple out on
a date in their shiny Chevelle. The fact is, hot rodding is and always has been
about hanging out with friends and family over a shared passion, flashy or not.
There is, however, one tiny downside…have you seen the price
to play lately? Now people who don’t normally work on cars or love turning
wrenches have taken a liking to hot rods. Some are early Generation Xers and
have saved for years to finally buy the car they remember dreaming of as a kid.
Then there is a group of midlife wealthy to-doers who saw the car in a magazine
and had to it have it. This is a new group that obviously has a high salary and
will pay good money for their toys, and then drive them twice a year. Once you
factor in that these cars are getting harder to find and were limited supply to
begin with you have price inflation. This price increase has made it hard for
the average Joe to pick up a shoebox Bel Air or an early model Camaro, restored
or not. Mopar with a Hemi? Don’t even think about it unless you have six
figures to shell out. For conventional hot rodders that sucks. That means to
sit in one of those gorgeous show car deuce-coupes you either have to own a company
or go with fiberglass. The latter isn’t a horrible option once you consider price,
weight, and living Tetanus free but I think I’ve found a better solution. Maybe
it’s time to be an oddball, to be different, and slightly more original. On
lazy Sundays I usually browse the internet for good car finds. I set my usual
price and keep my eyes peeled for anything that looks like a good deal. I’ve
noticed that it’s hard to find affordable popular models so now I’ve begun to
look at the undesirables. All the models around them were sold off and restored
while they sat there sheepishly waiting, like being picked last for a
playground basketball game. People have overlooked these cars simply because
they don’t recognize them from the magazines. There’s no restoration guide at
Barnes and Nobles for one and no one can point at them going down the road and
say “Hey kids look! It’s a 19(fill-in-the-blank)!” As for me that might be part
of their appeal. See that means no one at the car shows will have one. While
10,000 people get judged on their 1967 Mustang, you’ll be in your own class of peculiar
misfits. Another good quality is that these cars share all the same parts and motor
mounts as their more popular brothers and sisters. In turn this means you can
have the power of a Detroit small (or big) block while also being able to get
parts at a local parts store. And these cars still look really cool. Take for
instance a 1961 Cadillac Fleetwood I found for less than $2000. This car has
true potential and tail fins that will one day stab you in the eye when you go
to change a brake light bulb. The list gets better: ’59 Edsel Ranger, ’59
Plymouth Belvedere, ’51 Plymouth Cranbrook, ’40 Pontiac Torpedo. These cars are
cool. Unpopular and unrecognizable yes, but still really cool. They offer you
cheap thrills and a totally different driving experience. More importantly,
they still offer you a chance to drive the coastline with your sweetheart, go
to the bar with some friends, or grab lunch with your dad. After all isn’t that
what hot rodding’s all about; cheap speed, loud pipes, and a good time? The
other benefits like it appreciating in value (unlike your flat screen TV) or it
not being a candy-painted dream machine so the door dings won’t drive you
crazy; are just extras. It gives you a chance to own something special, help
keep hot rodding going, and something to tinker with until you can afford
that nice Mustang fastback. It’s worth the look at least, who knows, maybe it will help you remember what’s more important…image or having a good time?
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