Most frequently asked question about your "old car"?

[D Yaros]

1. What year is it?

I am sure this is the #1 question most of us get? What I do not "get" is why, when my license plate reads Saved 62​?

[Earl B.]

A guy came over one day and we went in the garage...When he saw the Packard, first words out of his mouth... "Is that a Ford?" No, says I... It's a Packard... Who made Packard...Packard...Oh. Then he proceded to prop his foot on my freshly painted chasis and pulled out a ciggy.... NOOOOO you can't smoke in here.... He looked absolutely shocked!!!! and unhappy when I told him he couldn't use the current foot rest... He dragged the foot off, and of course, scratched the paint.. He looked at it directly and said nothing... Don't you just love 'em?????????????????

One day I was out driving the Studebaker before dismantling. I saw a Ford pickup keep following me...Ah, a car lover, I thought, so I headed back home. Sure enough, he followed me. When he got out of his truck...What kind of car is that? Studebaker.. Oohh... was that made when Ford owned them? Ford never owned Studebaker... (Genius that he was...) Oh yes they did!!! I'm sure of that.. I just told him to go check on the internet for the Studebaker history...Why argue with a geeneeus?????? B

[oldcarfudd]

I've had all the above questions. I like to ask a couple of my own, appropriate to my brass-era toys:

1. (When I walk back to my parked car and find adults examining it) - "Do you think it will replace the horse?" That generally starts a conversation, and it can lead in many directions, all educational.

2. (When a child comes up to my car with his parents) - "Would you like to hear my duck?" Then I blow the bulb horn. Then I let THEM blow the bulb horn. Little kids need both hands. Littler kids need help from Daddy. Then the kids are allowed behind the wheel, and the cell phones come out. Once in a while, if circumstances permit, I'll take the kids around the parking lot. Serious grins all around.

Gil Fitzhugh, Morristown, NJ

[Guest Texas Old Car Guy]

Gil:

Sharing your old car with the public, particularly young kids just might start them on the road to becoming a car collector someday - at least you help create some fond memories!

Getting them out and driving them frequently is what is important rather than hiding them away in a dark, dusty garage! Like fellow AACA forum member Paul Dobbin has in the signature section of his postings: "If you don't drive them, might as well collect clocks."

Regards,

Fred

Edited January 5, 2013 by Texas Old Car Guy (see edit history)

[ply33]

...Not taking anything away from Fords. But why do people who don't collect cars always think that every antique or classic car is a Ford???

I get this when I drive my 1920's Chevy as well.

Don't you know that all cars built before WW2 were Fords? And all cars built in the 1950s were Chevrolets.

I've been asked a number of times what year Model T my car is. Funny as I don't think a '33 Plymouth looks anything like a Model T.

I am sure this is the #1 question most of us get? What I do not "get" is why, when my license plate reads Saved 62​?

I've got YOM plates that clearly show the year. And both the tail light and spare tire hub cap spell out the brand of the car. Makes it puzzling to me why people will walk up to the rear while I'm filling the tank, look over the car and then ask what year and make it is. Sometimes I just point to the license plate and the tail light immediately below it.

One question I get a lot from people who know a little about older cars is how hard is it to adjust the mechanical brakes to get them all equalized. I tell them its pretty easy as every Plymouth ever built had hydraulic brakes.

[RPrice]

Regarding my '59 Studebaker Lark, people ask "who made it?", do you drive it?, who made the motor. That's interesting because, when I answer, Studebaker, I get a strange look. Then they ask, "really, who make the engine, Ford?". They can't believe that Studebaker made their own engines. Actually, many folks don't even know the Studebaker name.

Rog

[Guest Skyking]

I am sure this is the #1 question most of us get? What I do not "get" is why, when my license plate reads Saved 62​?

Yes, I get the same question whether they are in front or in back of the car....

[Steve Braverman]

When driving a Franklin, "car guys" will ask if it overheats on hot days. I usually respond, "Does your lawnmower overheat on a hot day?"

[Paul Dobbin]

Other than the stupid question of "What's if worth"?, which I can answer with "How much do you have?"

The next question is, "Did you restore it?" Which I usually answer with "partially or yes", depending on the car.

The next question is, "Do you drive it much?" which I say if there is an AACA or VMCCA Tour, we're there.

We would not want to own cars we couldn't enjoy in the road. Another bowling trophy with an old car on top

is not en enticement to us.

[john2dameron]

I don't own collector cars but I enjoy going to car shows and taking pictures and talking to the owners and picking up little bits of information. I have been collecting automobile books and literature since about 1947 that I constantly have my nose in so I don't exactly consider myself an idiot when it comes to auto history. There is another side to the topic; owners that don't know much about their cars. Usually it must be because they found the car restored and for sale and bought it without learning much about it. Some things I have heard through the years have stuck with me; especialoly these two. A guy was showing his 1931 Pontiac coupe. He had the door open and I spotted a Seaman Body Co. plate on the door sill and I asked him why the car had a Seaman body. His answer was that when his car was built, General Motors did not own Pontiac yet. I probably rolled my eyes and as I walked away. About 20 years ago I had the pleasure of taking a 17-year old boy to a car show where someone was showing a nice 1929 Chevrolet sedan. I remarked to the kid that '29 was the first year Chevrolet had a 6-cylinder engine. The owner spoke up and said something to the effect; Yeah, they were going to start using them in 1930 but Billy Durant said, "Let's go ahead and do it." Then he tried to convince me that Billy Durant was running General Motors in 1929. Again I shut my mouth and walked away. What else can you do?

[Guest Oldengineer]

Gil:

Sharing your old car with the public, particularly young kids just might start them on the road to becoming a car collector someday - at least you help create some fond memories!

Getting them out and driving them frequently is what is important rather than hiding them away in a dark, dusty garage! Like fellow AACA forum member Paul Dobbin has in the signature section of his postings: "If you don't drive them, might as well collect clocks."

Regards,

Fred

I must be unusual - I both drive my 48 Chevy, and, collect antique clocks. I guess its fair to say I collected a 48 Chevy dash clock with the rest of the car still attached to it.:cool: Anyway - probably the most frequent question I get asked when I'm showing my Town Sedan is: "Can I sit in it". I guess its because her seats look like two couches.

Regards:

Oldengineer

[Dave Mellor NJ]

I had a car pull up next to me in my 30 A pickup at a light this past summer. The teenager was looking with admiring eyes. He asked,"Is that real?" I replied,"No,I'm a figment of your imagination."

[oldcarfudd]

Incidentally, if you REALLY want off-the-wall comments and questions, show up in a steam car. I took mine to a semi-annual lunch of former Prudential actuaries (yeah, I are one). A very bright guy, once my boss's boss, thought it was a brilliant idea that ought to be resurrected because of fuel shortages. Imagine a car that ran on water! I said, yes, but you have to boil the water. He looked rather crestfallen. On another occasion I was at a steam car meet and managed to get a good roaring fire going in the parking lot. I shut off all the fuel sources and stood waiting for the beast to burn itself out. A couple of young ditzes wandered by. One of them asked: "Is it supposed to do that?" I said no, but it would stop soon. Then she floored me by asking: "Is that an OLD car?" Well, not all that old. It was built in 1911, and I have a couple that are older. Sheesh!

Gil Fitzhugh, Morristown, NJ

[Peter J.Heizmann]

Having read the posts so far and the humor attached plus some sarcastic responses in some we are failing miserably when the age old question comes up: "How do we get the youger generations interested in the old car hobby?"

I have been around the block quite a few times and in most circumstances noted in the posts just like you I have been asked similar questions. What I do is smile, chuckle if appropriate, THEN, ask if they have a minute for me to explain the vehicle, the history, etc.

As a depressing reminder with our years going by quickly, what appears to be a jerk water question from the ignorant of the hobby is in reality "your vehicle is an unknown to them and a little time to explain just may garner a future custodian of our vehicles".

Peter J.

Edited January 7, 2013 by Peter J.Heizmann (see edit history)

[Paul Dobbin]

Great American Race in 1987 we got lucky enough to get a pit space next to the Stanley Steamer Team when we arrived in Corpus Christi TX. That far into a 4400 mile race, sometimes the sense of humor is gone. The Steamer guys had the heat source for the boiler out on the ground to work on it, and as I walked by, I said "I'll take mine well done". You would have thought I was Clyde Barrow as they just glared back at me without even a grin. (I was driving the 34 Ford, the one without the bullet holes. The real Bonnie and Clyde car was parked a little farther away) Sure looked like a grill to me.

[JV Puleo]

I don't think I've ever been other than polite and as informative as I can be if the initial question was the slightest bit appropriate, no matter how much ignorance it betrayed. My gripe is with the "What's it worth" question which (1) I really can't answer and (2) I consider to be highly inappropriate. I would never dream of walking up to a perfect stranger and asking what they paid for anything and don't feel that I owe someone who asks such a question an answer any less rude than their question. I might say "whatever someone might pay" or, "we'll have to wait until I'm dead and my executor has it auctioned"... In fact, I'd be thinking "its none of your d--n business".

Now, if someone politely inquires as to what it might cost to get involved in the hobby... I'd gladly spend all afternoon talking money. I've had that conversation many times. I've bird-dogged cars for new collectors, pointing out what I thought might be a good deal and steering them away from what I feared were potential disasters. To my mind, thats about the best thing we can do to encourage the hobby. I'm even giving a talk at the local historical society later this month that will almost certainly involve all these questions...

[Amphicar BUYER]

... The worst?? The experts that know more about your car than you do and let you know they do!! ...

Oh yes, my favorite folks. First they don't know what it is, then they somehow (they think they) know everything about it! I've been told that I didn't know about my own car as he KNEW it was all fiberglass and built out of a Sunbeam. You see he knew this because his dad bought one brand new in 1958! (3 years before Amphicars were produced)

I do love the dads who try to explain it to the young kiddos and even with a valiant effort, gets it all wrong. I never correct these guys in front of the kids. I have business cards with the top 25 questions about Amphicars on the back. I go over and hand him and one with a smile.

Edited January 7, 2013 by Amphicar BUYER (see edit history)

[oldcarfudd]

A Stanley burner looks like a grill to me, too. Depending on the year, it has a zillion holes or a zillion slots. When the main fire is on, it forms a disc of flame under the boiler. How hot? Here's how my engineer son explained it to me:

Imagine you're going to boil up a mess of spaghetti. You've lit your stove and it's hot. You pour a gallon of room-temperature water into a pot, and put it on the stove. Just then the phone rings. It's in another room, so you leave the kitchen to answer it. It's your old college roommate; you have spoken in 20 years. You talk and talk, reminiscing about old times, and suddenly you wake up and say: "Holy cow! I have water boiling on the stove!" You rush back into the kitchen in time to see the last three bubbles of water disappear from your now empty pot.

How long would that take? Half an hour? Remember, we're not talking about a gallon of water boiling; we're talking about a gallon of water GONE. A 20-horse non-condensing Stanley uses a gallon of water a mile. At 40 miles an hour, it pumps a gallon of ambient-temperature water from the tank under your seat and makes it disappear in a minute and a half. That, guys, is a helluva fire. It takes a helluva lotta fuel. And it's EXTERNAL combustion - the fire is up front, and the engine is in back. When some of that fuel gets out where you don't want it, and something ignites it, things get interesting. And so do the conversations with spectators.

Gil Fitzhugh, Morristown, NJ

[Steve Braverman]

Years ago I had my '32 Plymouth at a local show. A grumpy old man told me I had the wrong radiator cap as all old Plymouths had a ship as a mascot. I assured him that the goddess was the correct mascot, and that the Mayflower mascot came a few years later. His response: "How would you know, you weren't there."

[dalef62]

I do love the dads who try to explain it to the young kiddos and even with a valiant effort, gets it all wrong. I never correct these guys in front of the kids. I have business cards with the top 25 questions about Amphicars on the back. I go over and hand him and one with a smile.

That is a really good idea!

[Guest Skyking]

I do love the dads who try to explain it to the young kiddos and even with a valiant effort, gets it all wrong. I never correct these guys in front of the kids. I have business cards with the top 25 questions about Amphicars on the back. I go over and hand him and one with a smile.

That is a really good idea!

I agree............. there are many answers I can come up with on a Metropolitan............I may need a larger business card!

[avgwarhawk]

I had to laugh one day. It was not a question but what a person looking at my brothers 1960 Imperial Southhampton did. The guys asked some questions and some general chit chat. He was utterly enamered with the Chrysler. He opens the door and climbs in. Did not ask my brother but he was not overly concerned. The guy was touching the wheel like it as a piece of expensive China. He slowly moved his hands around the dash looking at the gauges and switches. He was in awe of this Chrylser like it was speaking to him. My brother look into the window and says to the guy, "Do you two want a moment of alone?" It was hysterical. Anyway, no harm. My brother was pleased he could share his car with someone who enjoys such cars as these.

[dan at larescorp]

I have only been asked this once, but it made me laugh. I was sitting outside of my L.A.P.S. changing the battery on my firebird when a younger kid (driving a civic) pulled up next to me. When he got out he looked under the hood, took another step forward, stopped and looked again. He sat for a second and waited for me to finish what I was doing. He then asked " What is that saucer looking thing?" Not sure what he was talking about I made him point. He said "That thing that looks like a U.F.O." as he pointed to the top of my engine. All I could do for a second is look at him dumbfounded. I then replied " That would be my air cleaner. It holds my air filter." I held back from laughing untill he was out of ear shot, but it was at that moment I almost lost faith in humanity

[Guest edde808]

"Is that a Ford?" No, says I... It's a Packard... Who made Packard...Packard...Oh.B

In the week that I have owned my Packard, it hasn't left the garage and I have had that conversation twice.

[Lawteachr]

Most asked questions is "What is it". Most people think it is either a AMC Gremlin or a Volvo 1800ES. It is a 1978 Reliant

Scimitar GTE. Most of the shows I attend are in the NorthEast Region of the USA.

[aussiecowboy]

"What is it?" is the most common question for me.

"How fast is it?"

"Bet you have to be careful where you drive with those wooden wheels".

And on my unrestored 1929 Pontiac, "It'll be lovely when you've finished". "It's lovely now" I always reply.

I love it when kids admire my cars, I use them as daily drivers so it's fairly frequent. If the kids get really excited I'll always take them (and parent/s) for a ride around the block. The way I see it, we don't really own these cars, we're just caretakers until the next generation takes over.

[Restorer32]

Took a 1915 Milburn Electric to a local cruise-in. The majority of young people there thought electric cars were a new invention so most of the questions were "Did you convert this to electric?" or similar.

[paulrhd29nz]

When i have my 29 out.........For me it's " when are you going to re- paint it?" This always erks me. I love the patina and condition it's in, but few people get that. I always say the same thing.... Well, to get a paint job that would do justice to the car would be around 5-7000$. Now look at all the chrome, now were looking at another 4-5000$. Do you want me to spend 10 to 12 grand just so "you" like my car better, oh.. And by the way, if I did spend all of that, plus do all the work that it would take, do you really think I would let you sit in my car while your friend takes your picture!!!

[huptoy]

These questions were only asked once but I trully enjoyed them. In 2008, I had a 1953 Willys Aero. I was getting in the car at a Sams Club to leave when it happened. Two guys about 20 years old suddenly stopped their Honda Accord, lowered with the spoiler, etc., and the passenger got out and came over to see the car. What kind of foreign car is it, What year is it, where was it made, can you get parts?

[oldcarfudd]

Yes, I forgot about "Is it a foreign car?" Most brass-era cars, including all of mine except my Model T Ford, were right-hand drive, so I get that question a lot. A more interesting variant is: "Why is the wheel on the right?" And a rare, but still more interesting variant, is: "Did we used to drive on the left?" (If I lived in Canada, I've been told the answer might be yes, depending on which province.) Again, these questions generate opportunities for education.

Gil Fitzhugh, Morristown, NJ

[rocketraider]

Back before work consumed so much of my life that I no longer have time to take the cars out (or even maintain them properly), one question I got a lot from high school kids was "Take me for a ride in it?". There have been some that eventually became good helpers and got their own old cars. Two of them eventually got the privilege of driving mine.