VCCA Home Forums GENERAL DISCUSSION General Discussions Are we a dying breed?

Those of us who go the extra expense, who research endlessly,who ask questions and observe similar models to restore to correct factory standards? Agreed we are outnumbered by resto-mods,hot rods and the like.Auctions are a notorious place for these vehicles. Seems like virtually every car that crosses the block is modified,and sometimes very rare models.I won't even mention the plethora of stupid TV car shows. I have more then once "talked" to the TV and gave my opinion as they cut,chop and other wise destroy a car.
We are losing our "car history" everyday and I don't seeing it stopping. I know it's their car and they can do what they want but we need to think down the road,will our grand kids even know what grandads car started out as?
When I go our local cruise with my un-restored 1960 Corvair I take pride in representing the car as original just the way it came off the factory assembly line. I think people relate to that more then a '55 Chevy with a blower poking up through the hood.
Anxious to hear other comments. CorvairEd VCCA#47508 Dade City,Fla

While my cars aren't "original" because I've added accessory brake lights and 6v alternators to both I do favor stock over modified. We're a dying breed.

YEP !

"When I go our local cruise with my un-restored 1960 Corvair I take pride in representing the car as original just the way it came off the factory assembly line. I think people relate to that more then a '55 Chevy with a blower poking up through the hood."

Corvaired.

It has been my experience that almost no one is interested in my stock 41 when there are modified cars present. Those younger than than in than in their sixties will pass right by and not even take time to look at what the original car looked like or its engineering. They flock around the muscle cars and drool whilst marveling at the modifyer's talent and ingenuity. The more radical modification the more attention it gets. See some of them squating down and/or raising a rear quarter section like a dog relieving itself. Now that right there says a lot about the direction the old car hobby is headed. Does too!

Are we a dying breed? For some time to come there will be a place for preservation and restoration but that promise will wan over time and our number will steady dwindle. There will be no turning back. So, yes we are a dying breed. As for me, I think that a shame. But there is nothing for it. You know.

Thanks for posting the thought provoking question. Even VCCA has seen the handwriting on the wall and has placed less and less attention on "preservation and restoration" in order to be more inclusive, non-threatening to modifyers, et al, and stay fiscally viable. Just follow the buck. More sadness.

If there was a Chevrolet club that embraced the notion of preservation and restoration with "hoops of steel", then I would gladly join it. Trouble is there would not be enough of us to keep the costs down in order for such a club to be viably sustained for any reasonable time.

Just my two cents on the subject.

Thanks for your post.

Best,

Charlie

Tiny. Why in the world did you convert to 12 volts? Did you opt for an ear busting stereo system and/AC? That confession cost you a few points in my esteem for you. Did too!

I've actually experienced something very strange up here where I live.

First, my stock 1946 3/4 ton stake bed (my avatar) is parked just off the side walk, and where I can see people walking by while I sit in my favorite chair.
A lot of people turn their heads to look, and many stop for a better look. Not many younger than about 30 bother, but those who do are a pretty even mix of ages from 30 up.

When I'm there tinkering with it, people stop to ask questions, and I really wouldn't be able to predict beforehand who will stop. Sometimes it's someone 70 or 80 years old who had one like it, but often it's someone much younger. Could be they see it through the lens of modification potential, but they never say so.

The strangest thing though, is who it is that stops, smiles, and waves when I'm out driving around town.
It is almost invariably young women in their 20's!
I wish I'd had this thing 40 years ago.

What makes you think I converted to 12 volts? Are you back to drinking too much again Charlie?

As someone who has modified about every vehicle I owned I might be going to keep them somewhat original from now on,I have a mid 50s car that I changed everything in the drivetrain and have been driving it for about 15 years but was never happy with it so I picked up another original engine and next winter its going back. The highway gears and newer brakes are going to stay but its going to have a original engine and a better trans that looks original and now I can get rid of that non original gas pedal that has been driving me nuts all this time,I picked up a mid 60s car last year and I am not going to change anything except for halogen headlights and I am going to keep the single master cylinder and points ignition system.

I agree that we are dying breed. I just hope that things will change and my grand kids' will be interested in my stock cars. I doubt it but I can only hope that some day all the money that I have spent on restoring my cars to factory condition will be appreciated. If not they are the ones that suffer the financial loss. God bless the VCCA for letting us live our dreams.

Tiny,

Been gone all day and just got back home.

It seems I misread your post. Sorry, I guess the "alternator" word threw me off. You know.

Sorry. My faith in you has been restored if full.

Best,

Charlie

BTW: If I don't soon get the 41 cabriolet's turn signal problem straightened out then the bottle is a distinct possibility.

I do think we are a dying breed...that being said I am only 30 and I know a small number of guys my age interested in authentically restored vehicles.

My question to the group is why don't we have tons of 3rd and 4th generation members picking up the mantle from our older and very knowledgeable members?

I enjoys researching and restoring because that is what my grandparents and parents taught me.

It breaks my heart everytime I show up to a car show and see very few grandkids or great grandkids.

Also, rodding is easier, less time consuming and usually cheaper.

The younger generations thinks horsepower, exhaust sound, speed and personalization. Our old preserved and restored Chevrolets offer none of those thing.

Simple as that.

Best,

Charlie

BTW: As proof of what the younger generation thinks, offer to drive them to school in your old preserved/restored ...say 37/38. They'll accept but but you will never pull up where other kids will see them exit the car. Instead of right in front of the school they'll ask (beg/plead) you to drop them off a block away. Will too. Been there. Done that.

We get a lot of thumbs up when we make a block in the survivor 28. Of course waiting on new engine for its cross country trek. Have not hit the public with Hillbilly unit but think it will be a hit as well. So we have a little of both, stock & modified. Stephen

I'll throw out some thoughts for you to kick around. We love these old cars because we grew up with them - they were a part of our lives. Back in the day, if a person could even afford to buy a new car, it was carefully maintained (babied?) because the owner planned to keep it for a good number of years. Today, with our throw-away cars, who plans to keep one for very long? We also appreciated these cars because we knew there would be new designs coming along every two or three years. As an example, put a '26 beside a '30, a '37 beside a '41, a '48 beside a '49, or a '53 beside a '55 - note any differences in styling? Now put cars from any years between 2000 and 2021 side by side. Note many differences? Personal opinion now - they are cookie-cutter cars with few individual styling differences. Can you spell boring?
Also, we bemoan the fact that today's youth for the most part are simply not interested in vehicles that were commonplace 70+ years ago. But when you were in your youth in the '50's for example, were you interested in buckboards, stagecoaches and one-horse shays that were commonplace 70+ years before?

I have noticed that young people of today are not very interested in any cars, old, new, modified, or what ever. When we were young we could identify almost any car on the road, now they all look about the same. I am sure there will be a very few people still interested in preserving motor car history but I fear they will be few and there may be more vintage cars than there are collectors! It makes me sad.

This discussion reminds me of the same exact discussion that was being held by the older vehicle owners when I joined them some 50 years ago. At that time my family was the youngest in all of the car clubs of which we were members. The vast majority of new owners were in their 50s and 60s and not 20s. At that time most younger people were interested in higher performance cars that were new or only a few years old. They were the chick magnets of the time and gave bragging points. Almost none were interested in what their grandfather or uncle owned or had owned.

My conclusion is little has changed from the situation 50 years ago. Yes, Chicken Little, the sky is still falling.

It is up to us to spark the enthusiasm of the younger folks because the general public enjoys unique vehicles and we certainly have those.

I regularly take my 1920's trucks for a day of show-and-tell to the local high school auto shop. The kids are always excited to see, touch, and climb into a piece of rolling history. More than a few have commented that they would love to drive one to the prom!

I also encourage folks to climb in when I am at car shows. The spectators are blown away because they are so used to car owners telling them not to touch the cars unless they are naked. ;-)

Here's another glimmer of hope for the hobby: McPherson Automotive Restoration Program

Cheers, Dean

McPherson has a great program. We toured it on a SFT a few years back. I've heard Jay Leno has hired one or two of the grads. As for whether the young folks are going to carry the hobby on, unless someone has Mr. Peabody's way-back machine it's all speculation. I'm like Dean at shows. Unless they have muddy feet I let any kid crawl in the car and sit behind the wheel that wants to. It usually makes quite the impression.

Hmmm, we can't expect todays youth to drive, restore or be interested in "OUR" old cars/trucks. Heck, unless they see "OUR" cars/trucks they are not likely to ever see one, let alone drive and own one! There is just not many of OUR vehicles left........to introduce them to older stuff we have to let them see OURS .....I guess you can see where I am coming from or headed!!

I drive my old truck/cars to events like grocery store, pharmacy and other places off the beaten path....have driven it to old folks home (think us) to orphan homes to take the kids for a ride and also give them my copies of VCCA and Old Cars Weekly......... and although I have put wheelbarrows of money into restorations i let folks know right quick that I have no trailer queens. I drive'em.

My children, and now my grand children, 5-49 years old, love papa's old trucks and cars and love hanging out in the garage and getting dirty with grease, paint and sawdust.
Unfortunately "most" of todays kids get off the school bus at the apartment complexes, or housing developments with houses 10ft apart while wondering what they're going to do until tomorrow. After retirement I rode a bus as a bus monitor (put me on the "bad buses") and seen first hand what kids are doing today. I always tried to get them to start a hobby of some kind.(some success)

Yes we are a "dying breed" but before we die, drive the wheels off of them!!!
If your scared of tearing something up and can't find the parts......well, that may even be another reason no one is interested in "OUR" cars. After over 25 years of restorations I'd hate think of even trying to get some parts today for ones I did 25 years ago! Taint out there, thus "resto-mod enters the picture. I've did them myself when folks, who may have had a part, but wanted me to pay prices so they could send their kid to college!. Sorry folks, I'll keep them as original as I can but there are some things my conscious just want allow me.....
but Alas, after 25 years I finally found one that isn't a basket case that I can keep very close to original, with folks like ya'll willing to help.

...and one more thing, resto-mods (not rat rods) done right will at least look like the real thing. I've did two or three that damned well should have been crushed but but at least I saved them and they do at least look like they're suppose to!! Nuff said...... I love them all :)

EDIT/update: for those who know me... I'm still waiting on the 35/36 ORIGINAL coupe that has been promised to me and is still in a basement after many many years. Promised to me but seems the couple may out live me. Still, there is hope.

I have an 87 Monte Carlo all original except the vinyl top that wore out (change the color to one I liked better) and the rims. Changed the rind to Cragars as they are period correct and that makes the car how I would have wanted it when they where new. It is easy enough to change the wheels back. Nothing done is not reversible. This was the car I started the hobby with as it was what I grew up with and was the type of car I wanted back then. One disappointment I had with this car was running into groups that would only allow 73 and older vehicles to participate. How did they expect the next generation to get started if they where using the next generation's cars?

Now I am working on a 41 with my kids. We are restoring it to a '10 foot' car. The cost and our skills prevent us from original quality. All work is being done by ourselves (lots of You Tube watching and advice from this forum. Many thanks to all members.) I have the original drive line etc. It will handle and perform with the personality of the original. My sons and I are having a great time doing it. Our goal is to get it to behave like the original. This said the interior is gone. My kids are looking forward to making that our own. They will learn skills they would not have otherwise by designing and making all of the parts. My oldest would rather plan and my youngest wants to build. This keeps them interested.

My dream would be to take a 40s Chevy (or combine a few) that was not in restorable condition (I have a problem taking car that have potential to go back to original and hacking them up.) and turning it into a 50 / 60s era hot rod (not rat rod). Only use parts that where available at that time. Ideally put a 4 on the floor with Fenton headers and dual carbs. Dress up the engine and remove the front fenders. While this would not be today's resto mod would it not have been one in the 50 / 60s? The cars I would use to do this would have never seen the road again otherwise so its no loss to the collectors.

I have been to car meets and keep an open mind that while I may not agree with the taste of others there they did work hard to make that vehicle theirs. They are in the hobby. We are just a segment of it. If my kids want to do an original like my Monty Carlo is I will support it. A mix like the 41 is, go for it. A modified like I want to do one day great. Either way they are enjoying the hobby. They are interested and that will keep the hobby going. I would rather have the hobby as a whole stay strong than loose a generation of participants. Never discourage participation, only encourage.

I have a 261 and a late 50s 3 speed o/d trans that I would love to put in a 46 to 48 coupe along with a 55 to 57 rear end and have no parts newer then 1960,I am not going to get a rough one but not going to take a low mile car and ruin it but would like one that I would not have to spend 10 years doing the body work.

I understand where you all are coming from but I believe that each car is the expression of it's owner and since the beginning of the car industry we have always been modifying them to make them "ours". If we all liked the exact same thing, it would really be boring. I have a 52 Styleline Deluxe 4d that is all stock with 88k verified original miles. It is that way because I chose to keep it that way but I am sure it will not stay that way and that's ok too. We should all welcome everyone into the hobby! The purist and those with an imagination equally otherwise you aren't a car person, your just a my way or the highway person

I am a 50 year plus member of VCCA. All indications say we are a dying breed. I have read the posts on this topic and most agree with me. I have had a lot of "old" Chevrolets '30's to '70's plus other automobiles and trucks. I have "worked" on many of them and sold them. My high school car was a 1940 Chevrolet Sedan. When I retired I intended to restore a 1940 Chevrolet like my high school car. I found a 1941 5 pass. coupe (almost like a 1940 only better) . Charlie will agree with this. I have restored the 1941 to original (as close as possible). I have a lot of trophies from car shows and parades.
I get a lot of comments from people at shows but the true interest is not there. Even my kids, grandkids nor great grandkids are not interested in Grandpa's old car..
I love working on old cars My 1941 is my last one to restore because I can't get down to get under the car and if I do I can't get up. I'll play with and show my car till I can't go any more. Long live VCCA. Lots of good people in the Club. They have been a big help to me over the years. JIM

I am doing my 38 to close to original because that is the way I want it. My 2nd so claims it as his when I relinquish control but it wont be staying original, I am undecided wether to let it go that way or to arrange something else.
Tony

Great discussion with lots of interesting inputs.

Let's go back to the original subject and post. "Are we a dying breed?"

It depends on how broadly or narrowly you define "breed"? If "breed" is the group of enthusiasts focused on original pre-1955 Chevy's, then I do have to consider that as a declining group. That decline is simply a function of time and as much as we hate to admit it, age.

My view is that each generation has groups that focus on those things which changed the way they lived. My father and one of his brothers focused on single cylinder stationary engines. Those changed the way they did work when they were younger. Today there a very few collectors who restore and show those engines. Attendance at those events continues to decline. I am amused when I go to one of those shows because the "antique" engines are Briggs and Stratton engines from the 60's and 70's.

Those of us active on VCCA Chat have found each other because we identify with the pre-1955 Chevy's. Each of us has stories abut how those vehicles changed our lives.

I also have observed that each generation of people and vehicles goes through a life cycle with respect to originality. Think of it this way. In 1962 how many enthusiasts wanted to own an original 1955 Chevy? In 1972 how many enthusiasts wanted an original late 60's Camaro?

Another observation is that while there are not as many younger people who are enthused about cars, there is still quite a large number. The major difference I have noticed is that while there is a lot of common interest in cars, this generation has minimal interest in "joining" any formal organization. There is strong interest and participation in ad hoc or open events like shows, cruise-in's, and "Cars & Coffee". They also are very willing to communicate electronically. For example, the Miata.net forum is always very active.

My expectation is that the VCCA will continue to face challenges due to the nature of its focus. Unfortunately I cannot offer any miracle cure to immediately change that. On the other hand I will continue to enjoy the next generation of enthusiasts at their open gatherings. In fact I am working with a local team to plan a 3 day "Cruise the Quad Cities" event later this summer. Our goal is to promote our great community and engage car enthusiasts of all types.

Thanks for letting me share my thoughts.