CarFreak

Just like taxes, insurance and other items, license plate and vehicle registration laws (plus rules about titles, transfer) vary from state to state. http://www.michigan.gov/sos/0,1607,7-127-1585_1595_52364-205712--,00.html Michigan indicates Authentic License plates registered to a Historic Vehicle "must display the correct colors for year of issuance". But no where does it indicate the plates cannot be repainted.

Not sideways but this was how a truck was delivered to me. Driver called the night before he was to arrive and said something about needing an outdoor loading dock. Found a nearby landscape supply that let us use their dock and compressor to add air back into the tires. And I will note, to the driver's credit and those who helped load it, there was no damage. Kudos!

Excellent post Buffalowed Bill, you hit the response dead on target. YES there are younger people who are interested in cars just as there are people in their 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s and 80s who have absolutely no interest in them. Generally I work with people obsessed with sports teams or do nothings who don't have a hobby other than cleaning, working & hanging around their home. There will always be people who appreciate vehicles of all types, young and old. Sort of along that mindset, I could Insert a face slap emoticon here, from attending a club meeting last week. The unnamed club's Board still refuses to recognize the ability to save printing & postage costs plus have a means to reach out and connect with younger, more techy potential club members. They adamantly refuse to do any form of electonic newsletter and stand by their mailed paper copy. Noted that their paid membership dropped from 375 to 250 in the past several years.

Always sad to hear stories like this. And the cause, vandalism, makes it all the more upsetting. Scroll up to the top of the page - this link is taking you to the comments section. http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2015/11/18/fire-destroys-cars-at-americas-packard-museum-secondary-facility/?refer=news#comments-block http://www.whio.com/news/news/local/crews-on-scene-of-fire-in-harrison-twp/npP4R/

Clark Rockefeller fancied himself a car collector before he was arrested. A Baaawston friend ended up with several of them.

Cars can be stolen anywhere, even in 'good neighborhoods but there sure is more to the story than what is being reported. According to the news article, the address where the truck & trailer were stolen was 960 E. Woodbridge but neglects to indicate that is DOWNTOWN DETROIT. That is just at least a dozen miles from the southernmost limit of the Dream Cruise. Google map the address & then select Satellite View to see the 'hood: https://www.google.com/maps/place/960+Woodbridge+St,+Detroit,+MI+48207/@42.3312009,-83.0382464,18z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x883b2cd7ce4f2907:0xed5a92d5ed066124 The Ren Cen is nearby and also a couple lesser motels but why if it was such a valuable and replaceable car (sic) was it parked here in a dark, desolate, deserted area? Because its not the real car; the one he sold to save his dad's pizza parlor. Its one of two replicas that tour the country while the real car is secure in Louisville. I too immediately suspected 'publicity stunt' when heard about the incident. Cheap hit @ Detroit. The other cars that were stolen? Yeah, it happens everywhere. Especially like someone said, with 40,000 vintage, classics, hot rods, specialty, etc. vehicles who's going to notice another red Vette and another black Chevelle?

Several years ago, added a Brakelighter to my prewar car for better visibility. http://jandlenterprise.com/products/brakelighter.htm I've been very happy with it; ez installation and with the suction cups I can remove it at any time. Just ordered a pair on Amazon and will give it a try. Thanks for the suggestion; can't ever be too safe.

Barry Still amazed that you and your wife were not badly injured. As another person mentioned, a higher power must have been responsible for protecting you and the truck driver. So you are aware, my son mentioned he saw where someone is stating in a news article comment section they saw you use an Authorized Vehicle Only turn around and that caused the accident. I find that statement very suspect since I am familiar with M-14 and realize the closest AVO turn around is at least a half mile back.

If you haven't done so already, you should consider to post to the Cadillac & LaSalle Club Forum. There are also several CLC Regions in the NY/Northeast area that the information could be shared with them to BOLO. http://www.cadillaclasalleclub.org/local-clubs/#Northwestern

FWIW, Michigan changed the Minimum Speed Limit for vehicles on freeways a few years ago from 45 mph to 55 mph. Yes, agreed there is a problem with other drivers in modern vehicles cutting off vintage vehicles who are traveling at a slower rate. We have as much of a right to be on the roads as they do. Its unfortunate that being right and being safe doesn't always align. This is why often we put our 40s vintage car on a trailer until we get on the other side of town. I-696 aka The Michigan Autobah, its inherently unsafe for vintage vehicles. Less so on weekends but still populated mostly by clueless, careless & unsafe drivers.

Correct, Farmington Hills is not very far from Salem Township where the accident happened.

Prayers for all involved especially if it was Barry. Don't know him personally but mostly from seeing his cars @ local shows & his postings here.

Are you sure about that? Just mention to your vintage insurance company that you want to use your car in a wedding and likely their response won't be positive. Many years ago, was just finishing a car and explained to Hagerty about wanting to get it insured ASAP to use for my sister in law's wedding. Un unh!!! And I can guarantee, no money was changing hands.

Someone said it looks to be a 42 Zephyr? http://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2015/08/3_injured_in_fiery_m-14_semi_t.html#incart_river Recently deceased John Price from Plymouth had a beautiful Zephyr but I think it was a 1941 and dark blue not burgundy. Do we know who's car this is? Heard the car driver & passenger, husband/wife, and truck driver were all injured but alive. This woman stopped to help pull them out of the burning car: http://www.fox2detroit.com/news/5862446-video

We've lost probably the oldest and most amazing woman in the car collecting hobby, Margaret Dunning. She would have been 105 years old next month but passed away Sunday May 17 in Santa Barbara California from injuries sustained by a fall. Margaret was on a tour (CCCA?) which started in the southern part of the state (near San Diego?) going north stopping at private collections and museums. I believe her beloved 1930 Packard (acquired in 1949) was with her and a family friend on the tour. A member of the Cadillac & LaSalle Club since 1959; she was a cousin of Ansel Sackett one of the founding members and also a long time member of CCCA. Many articles and interviews have been done the past ten years about Margaret and her cars. She still cruised Woodward during the Dream Cruise every year and lately traveled the country to many Concours events. She was the belle of Pebble Beach a couple years ago where she first met Jay Leno (visited him again this past weekend) and a Maharaji. Margaret even had an amazing history (and some great stories) since her parents were friends and almost investors in one of Henry Ford's automobile companies. HF loved Margaret's mother's strawberry rhubarb pie. She took the interurban from Plymouth, a quiet town into downtown Detroit in 1929 to withdraw her mother's money from a bank before it failed. Later she was an ambulance driver during WWII, owned a dress shop, was on the board of local community foundations, credit union, helped start the library, fund the local historical museum, donated vehicles to the CCCA Museum @ Gilmore and so much more. There's even an award named in honor of her with the Australian Cadillac & LaSalle Club. What an amazing and truly wonderful person. http://www.hometownlife.com/story/news/local/plymouth/2015/05/18/plymouths-margaret-dunning-dies-california-visit/27540637/ http://forums.aaca.org/topic/173308-81-year-old-packard/?hl=%2Bmargaret+%2Bdunning#entry852255 http://www.autoblog.com/2012/09/18/102-year-old-woman-still-drives-her-82-year-old-car/ https://www.facebook.com/AmericanExperience/posts/10152856538329122 http://driving.ca/cadillac/auto-news/news/ontarios-cobble-beach-show-stuns-with-classic-cars-of-all-stripes http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/22/margaret-dunning-queen-for-a-weekend-at-pebble-beach/?_r=0

I don't share everyone's opinion about the Aztec. While I can't say its pretty by any means, IMO its certainly is not GM's ugliest. There are several others which far surpass. Which ones? Most every of the early 1980s X cars for five. Mom & dad each had Omega sedans (ugh!). Dad's business used several more Omegas, one Skylark and an anemic Phoenix fastback. No Citations or Cimmarons. Whew! Speaking of ugly fastbacks, what about the 1979 Cutlass Salon. Eeew!!! The interesting thing about Aztecs, if you were to put them alongside several of the current models crossovers, foreign and domestic, they share a lot of the similar styling features.

Prefer not to drive at night in a pre-war car but when it happens I stick a couple pieces of conspicuity tape on the rear bumper for extra visibility. Keep them in the trunk stuck to a piece of flat plastic and have re-used them for several years. 3M Automotive Painter Tape works great; no residue and reusable a couple times. My 42 Cad Flathead keeps up with traffic very well but often it'll get trailered across town to avoid dangerous Autobahn-wanna be drivers on the freeway.

Ooops, almost forgot. Hagerty is my company too - no complaints here either, only accolades.

Yes and no.

I see Hemmings.com has an article about the stolen 1958: http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/category/stolen-vehicles/ Any Northeasterner into AMCs must have seen Bob Majeski’s 1958 Rambler Ambassador over the last 14 years: In the time that he’s owned it, Bob has put 34,000 miles on it driving it to pretty much every major AMC show in the region. Now Bob is counting on that familiarity to bring his car back to him after thieves took it in broad daylight over the weekend. “I used to joke, ‘Why would anybody ever steal it?’” Bob said. “It’s pretty much the only one around, and nobody needs any parts from it. And yeah, it’s a beautiful car, but it’s a 1958 Rambler, so who’d want it?” Nevertheless, after he came back from a drive with some friends, mapping out the weekend’s dust-off run for the Connecticut regions of the American Motors Owners Association and AMC Rambler Club, he found his Ambassador missing from where he left it earlier that afternoon in the parking lot of the All Seasons Inn and Suites in Smithfield, Rhode Island. “I’m floored,” he said. “I can’t believe anybody would want to steal this car with AMXs and Javelins around it. All I can figure is that somebody thought they were stealing a ’57 Chevy and somebody opening a container in South America will be surprised when they see my car.” Ordered as a dealer demonstration car, the Ambassador Custom Country Club four-door hardtop (chassis number V38666, one of about 1,300 built) came loaded with just about every option available except for power steering. That means it has the four-barrel 270hp 327-cu.in. V-8, Flash-O-Matic automatic transmission, Twin-Grip limited-slip differential, Weather-Eye, reclining seats, power steering, power brakes, and wide whitewall tires. Thirty years after selling it to make room for the 1959 models, the original dealer bought it back and then held on to it until his death. Bob, a co-founder of the Nash Car Club of America and a certified AMC nut who’s owned 13 Nashes and five or six AMCs, then bought the Ambassador from the dealer’s widow several years later. At the time, it showed 51,000 miles, and all Bob’s really had to do to it in the years since is replace a few pieces of chrome trim, recondition almost the entire drivetrain, and put more miles on it. “It’s been a great road car,” he said. “In 2002, I took it to Kenosha, and the farthest I drove it was to the AMO national meet in Georgia (in 2005).” Anybody with information on the whereabouts of Bob’s Ambassador should call Bob himself at 203-758-5758 or the Smithfield Police Department at 401-231-2500.

FWIW, more vintage & classics are being stolen these days - many targeted from their locked garages but theft from hotels & events is not uncommon. Chevrolet seem to be the primary targets with other makes Cadillac, Porsche, Olds, Ford also taken. Less common are the orphans but you can't say never. http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2011/08/08/stolen-car-alert-1955-studebaker-president/ http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2009/01/23/stolen-car-alert-1969-amc-amx/ http://www.keepmecurrent.com/news/stolen-vintage-car-recovered-in-auburn/article_a98f5860-0b5a-542c-ac76-c61e54742567.html?mode=image&photo=0 http://www.thebarrieexaminer.com/2010/03/05/stolen-studebaker-could-be-in-barrie-area http://www.wsati.org/stolenclassics.html

Not specified above but the post is talking about The Museum Bronze, an amazing place which was created by an amazing person, Glenn Reid who passed away last year. I've been there a couple times and its well worth the visit if you haven't had an opportunity to see it previously.

NOT MY CAR - From AMC Rambler Club Facebook page: Like horse thieves, car thieves should be hanged. :mad:

Are you a member of AACA or other clubs? If yes, my suggestion would be to contact representatives of a local region of that club and try to find someone that way. Many clubs provide members with Directory of members which can be searched geographically, too. If not, does dad have any friends through church or other organizations? Good luck.

Reading posts by the high school students today reminded me to share a suggestion. Many of us belong to several clubs, subscribe to many magazines, etc. Hemmings is almost an inch thick every month. All that paper adds up quickly which brings up the question - what to do with them? Some I save for future reference but others are great to share: * Donate to your local high school auto shop class - encourage kids who could become prospective members sometime in the future * Donate to a local VA Hospital - give something back to our vets and their families spending time in the hospital or even the waiting rooms Thanks for listening!