All right I'll way in...
It's not the cars, it's the people. I've met many Porsche lovers (mostly
older 911's) that are really car people. In my experience it's whether
they're into show or go (show can apply to vintage racers too). I was at
Sprite Rush in 98 at Carlisle. I learned at their concours that you don't
stand within earshot of a judge talking to an owner about a car! Another
owner I was talking to parked as far away from the show crowd as he could
because they frowned upon his Shelby Cobra Blue and White paint. What a
group of flaming assholes! These were Bugeye Sprites for Christ's sake -
not a one of them would have sold for more than $15K if that. Not exactly
precious. Where I come from the idea is to make the cars right which
requires sharing information and experience. Thankfully, across the parking
lot another guy had the bonnet up and was leaning over the engine explaining
to another couple of owners about the Weber carb he had installed. As I
walked a little closer I could hear that they were talking about jetting and
such.
While it's true that some marques attract more of the wrong kind than
others, it's not the cars - it's the people.
FWIW - When your old Datsun kicks some much more exotic/expensive
machinery's ass, change the above to "It's not the car - it's the driver!"
They may react even more poorly to that quip but at least you'll leave with
a smile.
Brian
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