Historic cars
Christopher Albers (Christopher.Albers(at)bubbs.biola.edu)
Wed, 10 Jun 1998 12:16:57 -0700
Let me start out by saying that I believe owners have the right to
modify their cars any way they want. But I know that what I'm about to
say will ruffle the feathers of some of you. Let me apologize ahead of
time if this be the case.
I am troubled by the trend of significant modification to classic
cars. Mods for safety don't bother me as much (i.e., seatbelts,
brakes, suspension) but replacement of engines and transmissions,
things that alter significantly how the car came from the factory,
bother me. Mods that are easliy returned to original aren't a big deal
to me. Of course, I'd like to see our cars on the road as close to
original as possible. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a "totally stock"
guy. I just like 'em to look stock, with maybe some mods that are
"period" correct.
I got into this hobby partly because I wanted to preserve the history
of these cars. Don't get me wrong, I have modified my car a little. I
lowered it 1", increased engine performance, and I have polished out
the valve cover, but everything else is stock. I have tried to make
any major mod not outwardly visible (i.e., cam, valves, pistons).
I realize that many of you alter your cars in order to make them more
reliable daily drivers. I can understand that. But these cars were
designed to be daily drivers when they first came out. There aren't
many of our cars around and I think it's a shame when the few that are
left are modified in such a way that they cannot easily be restored to
original condition.
Anyway, with all the talk about conversions I just wanted to get this
off my chest. Maybe some will view me as a bit hypocritical because of
my own mods, I don't know. You all have the right to do whatever you
want to your cars and I would not interfere with that right. Again, I
apologize if I offended anybody.
Christopher