End of Car Culture? - Washington Post

[bill pritchett]

A friend of mine sent me a link to the article.  It is very interesting, and Steve Moskowitz and the AACA Museum director are quoted.  If someone else has posted this, I apologize.

 

http://www.washingtonpost.com/rweb/biz/americas-fading-car-culture/2015/09/04/834ab7b6b2f99fc195c2c9416f2ccdc4_story.html?tid=kindle-app

 

[Mark Shaw]

IMO, this article is basically correct with regard to most big city dwellers.  And more people live in cities today than ever before.  But there are still many car enthusiasts living in small towns and on farms who cannot get around without cars & trucks.  I think the "car collector bug" will still become prevalent in young people who do not live in big cities. Their cars may start out being an ATV, a truck, or a tractor; & many will eventually become collectors of vehicles that relate to whatever they grew up with.

Edited September 8, 2015 by Mark Shaw (see edit history)

[benjamin j]

I refuse to lower my IQ by reading anything written in the Washington post.

[auburnseeker]

I refuse to lower my IQ by reading anything written in the Washington post.

I have noticed they as well as many other so called news sources seem to be a wee bit one sided.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Basically the same article makes the rounds a couple times a year. Attended the lime rock historics this past weekend. Thousands of younger people in attendance. Much to do about nothing.

[Ed Luddy]

Yes I think so called social pundits have been predicting the demise of the automobile and it's Cult of worshippers (ie; us) since about....1905.

  If these dorks think that a smartphone replaces a car for meeting friends and a mode of transportation they truly are delusional.

Or they just spew this crap out to see if anybody reads it and takes them seriously.

   If I recall we were supposed to out of all the world's oil by 1999, coastal regions wiped out by Global warming, and TelePorting around.

[John_S_in_Penna]

It's a very long article, and its author tries to

be thorough.  But the end of the article says

of the writer, "Marc Fisher, a senior editor,

writes about most anything."  So he's not an expert.

I'll take everything he writes with a grain of salt.

 

Besides, he doesn't offer any insights

that Forum members haven't already thought of,

nor can a newsman predict the future.

 

So don't take gloomy conclusions at face value,

and keep up your hope and your enthusiasm! 

Edited September 9, 2015 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[Guest]

Yes I think so called social pundits have been predicting the demise of the automobile and it's Cult of worshippers (ie; us) since about....1905.

  If these dorks think that a smartphone replaces a car for meeting friends and a mode of transportation they truly are delusional.

Or they just spew this crap out to see if anybody reads it and takes them seriously.

   If I recall we were supposed to out of all the world's oil by 1999, coastal regions wiped out by Global warming, and TelePorting around.

They just got to be dorks, I mean Jan & Dean sang Little old Lady from Pasadena not the Beach Boys.

[trimacar]

It's a point of view thing, to me.

If you go to a show of muscle cars, anyone interviewed will say that no one is interested in brass era cars.

Go to a show with rat rods, anyone interviewed will say no one wants original cars.

It's human nature to like a specific type of car, and then say that any other type of car isn't worth collecting or having. This is true in many areas of collecting. Find a fellow who loves old Lionel toy trains, and ask him what he thinks of old American Flyer trains....

The antique car hobby, in all it's iterations, is strong, and no one can say with any accuracy that any segment of the hobby is dead or dying.

[C Carl]

They just got to be dorks, I mean Jan & Dean sang Little old Lady from Pasadena not the Beach Boys.

Now , seems to me , Jan Berry's dad , Bill , was an engineer for Howard Hughes. He was aboard the 'Goose when it flew on ground effect over the Long Beach , Cal. harbor. Powered by eight (8) 28 cyl R4360s. Man , that's a bunch of cyls and cubes. Talk about reciprocating obsolescence ! - Carl

Edited September 9, 2015 by C Carl (see edit history)

[1937hd45]

Grandson got his first powered vehicle on his 3rd birthday, this year will be his fourth Hershey, and he knows how to use tools. He'll be just fine. Bob 

[60FlatTop]

I recognized Marc Fisher's name right away.  That reminded me of telling my children the most important motivator of a news story is the writer's need for a bag of groceries. And that was immediate thought as a scrolled down through too much baloney.

 

Remember the days when "a good manager can manage anything" and "a good writer can write about anything". Maybe old Marc could write an article on that myth, as well.

 

Living things undergo change and evolution. Change is how we recognize life; no change, it must be dead. Since I officially entered the hobby in the summer of 1959 I have seen and participated in how adaptable the hobby is.

 

Over dramatization, as in the article's pictures, discredits the writer with the knowledgeable, but brings in the grocery bags from the ignorant the same way clouds of water vapor in the morning sun symbolize gross pollution to another group of sensationalists. (Maybe that is where I saw his writing).

 

Well, he got his grocery check from the Post and a moment of fame on the AACA Forum. And I wasn't born cynical and opinionated. It was years of paying attention and professional writers that trained me.

Bernie

[39BuickEight]

Things are certainly different now.  The biggest difference is the way most people consider their cars now.  They are also so reliable that the diy aspect of maintaining and thus attaching to a vehicle is too often lost.

[smithbrother]

Like Henry said, "IF I ASKED THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANTED, THEY WOULD SAY FASTER HORSES". 

 

Today, people WANT/DEMAND cars/trucks they don't have to WORK ON, and of course it's a ton harder to WORK ON them now, than THEN,

 

Dale in Indy

[60FlatTop]

Henry's Grandson asked what people wanted and they described an Edsel.

 

Shortly after the Edsel died the people begged for, without being asked, a sports car. Lee Iacocca dolled up a Falcon and told them it was a sports car. Don't ask, tell them. It works better.

Bernie

[padgett]

Not harder just more complex. I've been using scan tools since the '80s and my cell phone now has the gauges that are not on my dash (have also converted all my cars to hands-free). OTOH my first car was a DOHC-6 with 4 wheel disks and front and rear sway bars and so is my latest. Major difference is 3.4 vs 3.6 liters (and FI and a few other things).

Friend has a GMC motorhome we just drove 1200 miles with no AC, no alternator, and an 11 gallon gas tank. It got 9 mpg. I tow a 27 foot camping trailer with nore space inside and get 17-18 mpg. I do have AC in all my cars now.

Also was really impressed by the number of homes in northern Arkansas that have multiple garages so it is somewhat locational (in Orlando my home is unusual in having the same amount of garage space as living area - have five cars under roof and an empty stall).

So times are changing but the hobby is still strong, just depends on where you are.

[plymouthcranbrook]

Important to remember that people who write articles as like people who do commentary do it for a living. It is in their interest to do what they can to get people to read and /or listen to them.  Many do do the best they can to be honest and accurate. Other do not. They only want ratings or readers and will say or do what they need to do.  I take all commentary and opinion articles(in fact almost everything) with a pound of salt.

[Bleach]

Important to remember that people who write articles as like people who do commentary do it for a living. It is in their interest to do what they can to get people to read and /or listen to them.  Many do do the best they can to be honest and accurate. Other do not. They only want ratings or readers and will say or do what they need to do.  I take all commentary and opinion articles(in fact almost everything) with a pound of salt.

Didn't you mean to say "a grain of salt"?

We all really need to be careful with our salt intake.

[MCHinson]

In general terms, there may be a decline in the interest in cars and driving among young people in large metropolitan areas. Despite this, the announcement of impending doom and gloom of the antique car hobby is overstated. The hobby is still alive.

 

As an example of another view, My parents never owned an antique car. They often drove old cars but they were just cheap available transportation. I currently own three collector cars, including my daily driver. I have a 26 year old son and a 17 year old daughter. Both of my kids are AACA members and judges. There are still young people who share our interest in the hobby. As my children get older, they will reach a time when they can afford to collect antique cars. My son is already planning for the day when he can afford to purchase his own home with a garage and take possession of one of my antique cars. My daughter is a high school senior and still lives at home so it will be quite a few years before she is in a financial position to buy her own antique car but she certainly making plans.

 

This is not the first time a writer has suggested the impending death of the hobby. I have faith that the hobby will still be around for many years to come... 

[Guest AlCapone]

Grandson got his first powered vehicle on his 3rd birthday, this year will be his fourth Hershey, and he knows how to use tools. He'll be just fine. Bob

Obviously significant influence by his grandpa. Way to go grandpa, we need more like you ! Wayne

[plymouthcranbrook]

Didn't you mean to say "a grain of salt"?

We all really need to be careful with our salt intake.

In some of these cases, a pound is not enough.

[padgett]

It is very simple: apres moi le deluge.

[jeff_a]

I read the story. I used to live in McLean, on the same street as Tuthill's Texaco where Chuck in paragraph 2 used to work. I prefer an article in the Post that came out when I was in high school in McLean about the new Pinto and how it was inspired by the Model "A". The writer said: "Forget the Pinto, give me the Model 'A'!" The writer in the "End of Car Culture" article writes about just about anything, though, meaning either editor or hack writer. Maybe next week he can hook some glittering generalities together with some leaping assumptions and we can learn that since the number of hot rods in the Tyson's Corner parking lot on September 8th was zero and the visitor count in the mall was 17,630, the Hot Rod fad has died, too. Statistics prove it!

[avgwarhawk]

The car culture has not changed.  Only the types of cars has.   

[ScarredKnightfan]

Seems this idea that the "car culture" is ending (or has ended?) comes up every so often.  In a way, I understand it ... simply because TODAY's cars have become so appliance-like.  YET, just go to a cruise night or a car show ... & you'll see that old cars are VERY much alive & well.

 

 

But there are still many car enthusiasts living in small towns and on farms who cannot get around without cars & trucks.

 

This is why I love driving through small towns!  Invariably, you will see a BUNCH of older cars & trucks roaming the streets, in driveways, in parking lots &/or being worked on.  It's very refreshing & cool.

 

 

Cort www.oldcarsstronghearts.com

pigValve, paceMaker, cowValve | 1979 Caprice Classic (awaiting new owner)

"It's coming down to nothing more than apathy" __ The Fray __ 'Over My Head'