John_S_in_Penna

I haven't heard of them myself. I looked on the internet, and I didn't see any reviews written about them. Their website says they are a restoration company. Their list of cars includes some expensive Classics.

Agreed. That documentary was outstanding. I would have given it two "likes" if I could. Henry Kaiser was evidently a man who thought big and succeeded hugely at most of his endeavors.

Also, please don't think that well-to-do people will spend profligately. Unlike on TV shows, they earned their money and saved it by investing carefully and wisely. One billionaire I know of has his own trailer with lifts inside, able to transport 4 cars to national meets. Another man, whose annual income has been at least $30,000,000, I told of a car for sale; and his very first question was, "What's he asking for it?" The truly wealthy I have encountered are as modest and friendly, and even thrifty, as anyone else. But I don't think they frequent our forum!

Tommy, often the public thinks antique cars are very valuable. They get a distorted picture from television, or see exorbitant asking prices, sometimes double the actual value, from dealers and other optimistic sellers. Perhaps you have that impression. However, most antique cars are in the $5000 to $25,000 range, which is about the value of a used Ford Taurus. The expensive cars, say in the $100,000 to $300,000 range, are a tiny sector of what's otherwise an affordable hobby.

Maybe for cars at the highest end of the market; but people with those specific cars would have to answer for themselves. In those cases, the driver would have to have impeccably clean and new equipment, and be courteous and educated, knowing well the vehicles he is transporting. I don't think you could get a greasy used rig and hire a guy out of high school. In my case, no, because of the high cost: $3 per mile would mean $9000 to cross the country, or $3000-$4000 from the Northeast to Florida. The average car hobbyist needing such single-car transportation could not justify those prices, and he probably has his own trailer and tow vehicle, or goes with a friend when those infrequent needs arise.

Some other threads are talking about auction companies' mark-ups, a magazine article on investing in cars, and so forth. Members see the vanity of chasing money. Your topic, Victoria Lynn, shows the best of the hobby-- the real and lasting part of the hobby that's built on good people-- and demonstrates how so many great people are on our forum. Wow, it's great to see offers to help you-- even when people aren't close!

I agree with Bill that there's a conscious or unconscious element of greed. Bill, please realize, though, that that thought is in European auctions as well. According to Wikipedia, the buyer's premium in Europe is even subject to their Value Added Tax. Because of high buyer's premiums, in some realms of collectibles, the seller actually gets MORE than the hammer price of the item. Fees are negotiable. In a way, it's all a charade. Once again, people need to look beyond money. Hobbies are fun if people can get possession, prestige, and profit out of their primary focus.

If this authoress has written so unenlightenedly about the car hobby, in which she isn't involved, doesn't that imply that other authors' articles-- on a wide variety of subjects--may be similarly shallow, distorted, and wrong? Thank goodness that true automotive magazines are written by people who know their subjects!

Doug, I think one excellent function of a club website is to show how much fun the hobby can be--and induce people to join! Pictures of some past activities, plenty of car pictures identified by make and model but not by owner's name, show how active your club is. Showing this activity not only will attract newcomers, but it can show inactive members all the club's benefits which they can participate in.

Sorry to be critical of the article, but I think it's a shallow, valueless piece written by a newswoman who knows nothing about cars, and who just had an assignment to fulfill. And the whole tone of the piece sees cars as commodities, missing the whole point of ownership. If Miss or Mrs. Verhage, the author, could spend a day with a long-term hobbyist, take a scenic ride in an old car, meet the family that has owned the car for 20 years, go to a club event where she would see the camaraderie the hobby offers, she would get a far more realistic picture. She would then stop thinking of cars as statistics. Maybe then she'd even want to get an old car for her family. There's far more to antique cars than tracking money.

I very much need a directory, and phone numbers along with the names and cities. I use my 2012 Membership Album and roster--the book with members' car photos--all the time, talking to AACA members in various parts of the country.

I see no reason at all for buyers' premiums. If a car is worth $10,000, and the premium is 10%, I would bid no higher than $9000. I'm not fooled! And as we know, cars are not only for the well-to-do. If that were the case, our hobby wouldn't be as widespread as it is. The affordability of the hobby makes it enjoyable for people at various income levels. A $5000 Buick is as much fun as a $50,000 Buick.

Mr. Flagship, I think people would like to know where you are, especially as some of those parts they might pick up, rather than have them delivered. All the best to you on your sale!

I guess, because Bugatti makes so few cars, they can use just one favored supplier. Mountain cows! Just picture them on the mountaintops, rocky, treeless and snow-drifted, jumping from crag to crag. Living like mountain goats, I suppose---

This is just an aside, but it might bring a bit of hope to all our California friends: With so many antique cars and noted collections in California, why don't people get these fees simplified and reduced? It has been successful in other states. After all, old cars are simply a hobby or a collection. You don't pay every year to register your old pottery or old clocks. Picture yourselves paying a "permanent registration": a modest one-time fee that you never pay again as long as you own the car.

Joe, the advertiser has made only 2 postings, and he hasn't visited the forum since the day he made those two postings. I would try to e-mail him. Advertisers, especially new ones: This is why contact information is vital to making our forum useful. Your ad may bear fruit months after you first placed it!

For those like me who have never heard of it, can someone tell more about Corvair Ultra Vans? It looks like a camper. Was it an aftermarket product, not from the days when General Motors made their own campers?

Way to go! Stepping out of our areas of comfort allows us to experience things we otherwise wouldn't. I know a Corvette fan who recently got a '62 Oldsmobile Dynamic 88; I bought a World War I era car a few years ago when my oldest had been a 1957. There's a lot to our hobby that is worth trying!

And for a bit of explanation for our overseas friends! Tim "the tool man" Taylor was the fictional character in the long-ago situation comedy "Home Improvement." The show was popular 20 or more years ago, and Tim was always trying to build things to be bigger and more powerful--and he would always get into jams. Actor Tim Allen was the main character. Sorry to bore the American TV fans who already knew this! I haven't seen it lately, but it was a very good show, and was rebroadcast after its 1991-1999 run.

Bill, are you aware of the Lincoln Owners' Club? http://www.lincolnownersclub.com/ They specialize in the pre-war Lincolns and should be just the club you need for your new old car. The Lincoln and Continental Owners' Club is an entirely different organization, and while they theoretically address all Lincolns, they are really focused on the Lincolns of the 1960's and 1970's. Thankfully, there's a specialty group for almost all interests.

Bill, with the front seat likely being fixed in place in a limousine, how is the legroom? You mention that you're 6'-2" tall. Were they still using wood to construct the bodies? For some reason that I can't see, Lincolns are underappreciated in the hobby, so I hope you enjoy yours and take it out where people can see it!

I notice there is no phone number in the Craig's List ad. That by itself doesn't mean a scam, but it adds to the suspicions noted above. Scammers like to remain behind an anonymous e-mail address, so you certainly can't visit and check out the car.

Maybe the ad rate should be based on the size of the car: Oldsmobile Limiteds $50, Corvairs $5, Messerschmidts 29 cents.

Easy solution for the non-member who owns a Corvette: Step 1: Join AACA. It will expand his horizons and he'll get a fine magazine. It will be more than worth his $40. Step 2: Now that he's a member, advertise his car in The Antique Automobile. Since the number of ads is limited, plenty of people will see his ad. Step 3: After selling his Corvette, look at other cars for sale to refill his garage!

I've heard that gas must be different out West, so maybe other urban areas have similarly bad compositions that contribute to the problem--more than just ethanol. A friend in Washington state, said his gas would go bad in only 6 weeks. Another person, from California, agreed. He told us in a newsletter interview in 2013, "Modern gas, especially in California, is so bad, that in some of my steam cars, if I don't go out or the car hasn't been moved in a month or so, I've got to drain the gas out because it literally won't fire. You put a match to it and it will burn like oil." He said he was using a Sta-bil product, filling the tank right to the top, and typing to get the best-sealing gas-cap possible to try to keep the fuel from going bad. I assume he solved the problem more or less, because he had had one steam car up to 75 m.p.h. on the open road. So car fans in Kansas or Pennsylvania or other states might not have all the answers needed--but let's hope poster Wilbur has his Chandler's fuel problems solved now!