LINC400

Several thoughts. I am interested in antique furniture and household items as well as antique cars. And the market is down for those items as well. However, I have never seen a TV show make people think that valuable things are not worth anything like the original post claims. Actually, it makes most people think their junk is worth a fortune, whether a car in junkyard condition or water damaged, broken, lousy condition common household stuff. Most young people have no knowledge or interest in history. I do not know how history is currently being taught in schools, but when I was in school, it was all just memorizing dates and names of Revolutionary war and other battles. Extremely boring in my opinion. 20th Century history, which did seem more interesting, they only spent 3 weeks on out of semesters of boring stuff. I did not have any interest in history until after I got out of school and found TV shows, books, movies or visiting sites that actually make it interesting, and no one is giving tests on memorizing dates. But most young people will not have any interest in history after being bored with it in school. While some 20-30 year olds may be struggling financially, the ones where I work are not. They are not loaded, but they have plenty of disposable income for hobbies. But they do not have hobbies. They spend their money on designer clothes and accessories, cell phones and electronics, and vacations. They also cannot make decisions on their own. If they are thinking of buying something, whether clothing, a house, or dog toy, they must show it to everyone on their phone and get everyone's approval first. They can only buy what is "in", and if anyone says what they are thinking about getting isn't, they don't buy it. And antiques, whether cars or household, are definitely not the "in" thing. They are seen as boring things that old people have. You can post examples of young people with Model A's or interests in other antique cars, but they are the exception, not the norm. Young people now are taught that cars are bad. They are terrible for the environment, especially old ones. When I was in high school, I could not wait to get my driver's license and first car. Now they would rather have mom or dad drop them off, or if they are older, take Uber. They do not want the expense and responsibility of owning a newer car, much less an antique. For household antiques, on Ebay, stuff sells for the current going prices. Rare valuable stuff still brings a good price, but on more common items, the prices are down. Yet if you go to an antique mall, they are still charging the higher prices, and are less willing than ever before to negotiate on price. A lot of antique malls have gone out of business in my area. But that only makes the ones that remain think they have the market cornered, and less willing to deal. I see the same with antique cars being sold. Stuff gets repeatedly relisted because they are asking too much. Plus you used to be able to have an antique car repaired or restored at a more reasonable price. Now an average restoration is $100,000. Doesn't make much sense to spend that on a $20,000 car. And if you don't want to work on it yourself, which most young people don't, it is not only expensive, but hard to find a place to actually work on it. Most places don't know how to work on it if they can't plug it into a computer. For now the antique car hobby is fine, but when the 20-30 year olds are in their 50's and 60's, I think it will be a different story. The old timers with an interest in antique cars will be gone, and there won't be as many people to take their place as has happened in previous decades. Sitting in the back of a minivan watching a DVD player or paying for an Uber ride is not going to give them the same warm memories of cars as driving down Route 66 counting how many Studebakers you can spot did for their grandparents.

I wanted to have my great-grandmother's couch reupholstered. However, no one had any fabric even remotely close to it. SMS agreed to custom match it, and even make it a few shades lighter than the original. I sent them a sample of the fabric, and another sample just for the color. It took them almost a year and a half, and it was quite frustrating at times. But they finally delivered. It was a flawless perfect match in exactly the color I wanted. I don't think anyone else could have done any better.

I don't think model names have anything to do with the definition of a coupe. Many manufacturers used a name for one high end or specialty model that later was used for an entire range of cars, or moved the name downmarket until it became the bottom of the line model.

It might be able to be argued differently for prewar cars, but for postwar, I would say any 2 door hardtop or business coupe would qualify as a coupe. As well as frameless door cars such as new Mustangs, Camaros, and 1970's Lincoln Town Coupes. I would use 2 door sedan to describe a regular 2 door post car, but would not have too much of a problem if it were called a coupe. However calling a new 4 door sedan or SUV a coupe, especially when done by the manufacturer, is just stupid.

The club recognizes Limousines that were factory built, such as Cadillac Fleetwood 75 etc. Coachbuilt limousines such as Henney, Hess & Eisenhardt, Maloney, Lehmann Peterson, Ghia, etc. I cannot find anything that specifically prohibits the superstretch, hot tub in trunk, partybus, current type limos. But I really have not seen these at shows. The newer ones I have seen have generally been 6 door funeral-type limousines.

No, it is what the general public wants. They walk right past the Packard dual cowl phaetons and Cadillac V-16's to look at Mustangs and modifieds. I even heard a few people comment that the new Challenger was the best car there.

Yes, limousines are included. It is not celebrating death, disease and injury. In fact it is quite the opposite unlike the countless other hearse clubs where the cars usually are in bad condition, and are treated as just one more prop to be shown with the pile of Walmart Halloween decorations. It is celebrating a unique part of automotive history that most people don't think about, know about, or make nasty comments about. It is not my primary interest, but something I can appreciate. Take a look at some of the carved side hearses shown above. You won't find anything that unique from any regular coachbuilt car. Yet they were used as plumbing vans, chicken coops, and stripped for parts for much more common coupes and sedans. Even the ones that were restored were shunned from cars shows and clubs, including AACA. That is why the club was formed. The last picture of the LaSalle ambulance looks like it was taken at the Milwaukee meet in 2013, which I helped co-host. My friend jumped through a lot of hoops to have the 80+ cars shown as part of the Milwaukee Masterpiece Concours. We later heard from several people and businesses with unique vehicles that we invited that regretted not coming after it was shown in local papers. The Milwaukee Masterpiece has invited us back every year since. Unfortunately we have to keep explaining that 2013 was an international meet, and we cannot provide that kind of attendance again. A huge positive change from being banned from the showfield of most car clubs.

Yes, went to the annual Father's Day show at Oakbrook Mall in IL. It was a little disappointing this year. Seemed to be fewer cars this year, It is put on by the CCCA, but there were a few modified cars, which were not there before, and some newer ones, 2002 T-bird, 2010 Dodge Challenger, etc. And not one Duesenberg or Cord, and only one Rolls Royce. Still a nice show, but I hope it isn't headed towards more new and modified, and fewer classics. But I guess that is what the general public wants.

It is just a general fact. Your 1957 Chevy was about 20 years old in the 1970's. It is now 40 years after the 1970's, double the amount of years it was old then. A lot can happen in 40 years. Of my old cars, 3 definitely ended up in the junkyard. The other 3 probably did as well, but I have no info on them. Even the one that I had no desire to get rid of ended up being hit by an idiot and totaled beyond repair, and after being stripped of parts, it was junked. And that was when it was a cherished collectible. So it is only common sense to figure that most cars will not survive. Otherwise the road would be still loaded with all the cars from the 1900's until present, and it is not. How many cars that were brand new in the 1970's are still around today? The vast majority of them are not. As for the 99.95% figure, it could be 99.5% or something similar. It has been quite a while since I have been there. Besides, it isn't the exact percentage number that is important, it is the fact that the vast majority of cars end up not being someone's collectible. Of course some cars will have a better survival rate than others.

The Kenosha History Center has a small display of AMC products and is worth seeing. One AMC club member usually has some more unusual and concept cars on display there, but not sure if those are taken out for summer for shows and driving, but they will still have some cars there. Not sure if there would be any left, but we donated leftover Christmas ornaments from the Professional Car Society Milwaukee meet to the gift shop. They were a brass ornament featuring a 1969 (maybe '70) AMC Ambassador limousine. Somewhere close to there is also the trolley. It is a 1950's era trolley car that makes a small loop around the area with stops where you can get off and on. It doesn't stop anywhere exciting, but it is cool to just ride it around a few loops for something like $1.

I used to drive my antique Lincoln to work on Fridays to give it a little exercise. I could see it from my window, and it was not a crowded parking lot. There are enough car shows in the area that I can always claim I was going to one. One night, on the way home from work, it was rear ended and totaled. I simply said that it had some work done on it, (which was true), and I was driving it to check it out. They paid the claim with no problem. But my office moved and I cannot see the car from the new office windows. So the replacement Lincoln has never been driven to work. However, another guy I know has to have documents showing the car show he is going to in the car or the police will stop him and ticket him because of the antique/collector plates. However, he lived in a low rent/not nice area where apparently people bought 25 year old beater used cars to try and get away with the cheaper antique plates. I never had an issue, but then I never drove in that area.

There is a 1959 Cadillac crushed into a cube at a car museum (NATMUS?) with a sign in front of it that states "99.95% of cars do not end up being someone's cherished collectible." So it amazes me the number of people that still expect their cars to be around decades after they got rid of it.

I have seen a release of Liability before, but never a Photo release.

Am I missing something? Do they destroy it? I don't see any video link, and couldn't find it on Youtube. Although it seems possible they might since it is Hee Haw in 1977.

Not true. Most repair places only know how to plug the car into a computer, and replace the part it tells them to. For a 1953 Skylark you will need someone familiar with older cars that knows how to diagnose without a computer. Checking for recommendations with a local Buick club would be a good start. Otherwise look for shops that have antique cars in nice condition being worked on there. Talk to them about bringing your car in, and see how they respond. If they say, "sure, we can work on anything" be a little bit leery. See if they have any knowledge about the car at all first. Ones that are willing to work on it if you can provide them with parts or info are usually better than ones that claim they know and can do everything. Start with simple things like oil changes and lube jobs, if they do that well, then you can try them on a little bit bigger jobs.

How about trying the main design cues, the grille and Continental hump?

I placed an order with them one year ago, and I am still waiting. However, this was not a normal order. When my grandmother passed away, I decided to have her couch reupholstered. No fabric place had fabric that looked even remotely close to it. I checked with SMS, and the most similar material is from a 1961 Imperial, they sent an extremely tiny sample (1 inch by 2 inch). However, it did not come in white. They agreed to not only make it in white, but duplicate the fabric on the couch instead of using the Imperial fabric. They requested larger and larger samples (2 feet by 2 feet) from me that I had to keep cutting off of the couch. And wanted half of the money down. I sent that. So now I am still waiting a year later. I ask for updates about once a month, and they do reply promptly with different excuses as to why it is not done yet. I have heard others say it takes them a very long time. But I am getting tired of the wait and excuses. I did check with my credit card company, and they said that as long as I have a trail of correspondence, they will still refund me after all this time if I end up getting screwed. But I am still hoping they will eventually come through. That reminds me, it is about time to send a monthly email.....

You do realize that you are showing pictures of a Chevrolet Celebrity and calling it a Cavalier.

I drove the 2012 Camaro convertible to Rockford, IL on Friday (1 1/2 hours each way). I couldn't get in to get the snow tires put on before we left. I was hoping it would not snow until we got home. That did not work out. Fortunately I had all season tires put on it in September. It did remarkably well on the drive home. No issues at all. Yesterday morning it went in to have the snow tires put on.......before we drove to Wisconsin. I think I am remembering why we usually don't go on driving trips this late in the year. However, all the vehicles in ditches both days were either SUV's or FWD. I'm so glad I have one of those RWD cars that are so terrible in the snow so that I was not able to drive into a ditch with them.

I went out for it once. I had to prove the pinstriping on my car, and some other things were original and correct. Then one of the judges said "Well who knows what they did with all these weird edition Lincolns." They nitpicked a few other things, but I got my plaque. Then they told me to replace the few parts on it that I agreed were not factory (battery, hose clamps, wheels that were put on it when it was new). I said, you want me to take the old parts off of it, and put new ones on so that it is more historically preserved? They didn't find that amusing. I did. I might enter it again if it was convenient. But no big need to get another chip. The guy next to me had a car from the 1980's that he had original tires on, and had to pump up every 45 minutes or so at the show because they would not hold air. Not my thing, my car was driven several hundred miles to get there. The other one was trailered. We got the same plaque. I had more fun.

While I would also want current pictures of a car I was buying, it sounds like you might be overreacting before you see the actual car. For a daily driver, 6 year old pictures would make a huge difference. For a collector vehicle that sits in the garage without much use, it could look the same now as it did then. I have pics of my car from '09, and it does not look any different now than it did then.

I don't see how that changes the meaning of the terms.

I think both would be correct. I can see using the term restyle for a more extensive facelift on a body, but I think it would be an unnecessary complication. Redesign is kind of vague as a car with an all new body does not necessarily have all new everything, It might carry over the drivetrain or some interior components. Any respectable publications that I have read discussing changes over the years on a particular model simply stick to all new (for new body and drivetrain as in 1954 to 1955 Chevy), facelifted (1956-57 Chevy), and new body (1958 Chevy).

On another car forum I belong to, it clearly states: No swearing, no name calling, no personal attacks, no abusive comments based on race, sexual preference, religion or politics. It is a fairly large forum, and most people respect those rules. However, the moderator's best buddy violates several of those rules in almost every post he makes. And he is quite active on the forum. Has he ever been banned or even reprimanded? Not even once. In fact the moderator himself even violates those rules when he feels like it. However, if anyone else does anything remotely close to that while disagreeing with the moderator or best buddy, they are immediately threatened with being banned. However, if you are violating the rules while agreeing with them, that is probably ok. So am I surprised the same thing happens on other forums? Hardly.

Hershey might be the place for Model T and A parts, but not for 1970's Lincolns. I went once a few years ago and went through the entire swap meet. The only items I found were a grille and a taillight, both junkyard parts, for about 2 - 3 times what you would pay for them on Ebay. Fortunately I didn't need them.