HOW OLD IS TOO OLD TO BUY ANOTHER OLD CAR?

[Dynaflash8]

I think 80 is about too old to add to your old car collection if you are a retired or mid-level earner of any type.  What do you think?  I think you shouldn't saddle your wife or family with more old cars to get rid of when your gond.  I am 81 and just reduced from 4 to 3 old cars.  Yet I find myself antsy to keep looking at old cars when I've already promised myself if I make it to 85 I'm going to sell off one more of the 3 I still have.

[Matt Harwood]

Don't buy any more old cars. They're all crap and do nothing but cause heartache and consume your money. Look at this expensive piece of crap sitting in the middle of my parking lot, permanently immobilized by a broken transmission linkage, all despite a shockingly expensive restoration. And this is just but one example out of hundreds. They're all sh*t.

I hate old cars. Get out while you can.

[Guest]

I'll be happy to tow it away before you send it to the crusher.

[erichill]

If you can afford it buy what you want. What's one or two more cars to unload in the scheme of things.  Happy hunting!

 

[John_S_in_Penna]

One of our local AACA region members had a 

good-sized collection.  As he was getting older,

he had a big sale and got rid of almost all of his

cars.  It turned out that he lived to be 100, and his

wife also.  They celebrated their 80th wedding

anniversary together.  I think he regretting selling off

his cars, because he tried to buy back at least one

of them.

 

Another man I know is 99.  He and his wife still live

in a very large house on many acres;  he still has an

office and a secretary and drives to work every

morning, working half days.

 

Life is eternal.  You can certainly plan prudently in

your will, with helpful instructions to those after you.

But organize your life for continuous living!

[Walt G]

John S  stated it the best in his last paragraph. If you sell one Earl, then yes, do not feel GUILTY for wanting to try to own another one. But make sure it is one that you do not have to restore or if it needs work one of your faithful and loyal time proven friends who can do the work will be willing to take it on and get the job done reasonably fast. The sense of joy that you get when you view, sit in and ride in the car that you own does not have a price. Even if it gets to the point you do not have the ability to drive, then you can go for a ride with some one else at the wheel.

Several decades ago I was in a hospital not knowing if I would be coming out vertical , all I could think of besides seeing family and friends was " I want just one more ride in an old car".

[Billy Kingsley]

If you are healthy than you could easily live to triple digits. Imagine thinking back to age 81 and having it be three decades ago? 

 

For me, I'm not all that healthy and almost died once already before I hit 30. If I hit 81 it will be a miracle (35 now)

[JamesR]

My rule of thumb is: don't get to the point where the things you own...in fact, own you. Maintenance, restoration, storage, time spent on repairs all factor into this.

 

I don't own show cars because I can't afford them and don't have the talent to build them, but also because I want old cars...not a lifestyle that revolves around old cars.  I'm really glad there are people out there who like to restore cars to a high level. I love seeing them on display at shows and love talking to the owners, who've almost always been very nice people.

 

I sold my third old car a few years ago and was really felt like a burden was lifted off of my shoulders when it was gone, even though I liked it. Then late last year I bought another old car. Oh well.

[CHuDWah]

I'm too old and fat to get down and crawl under a car.  Getting down is no problem - it's the getting back up that's a bitch!  😂

 

Seriously, as long as you can afford a hobby, the time to get rid of it is when it no longer brings you joy.  If it still does, hang on to it - although if you're no longer able to work on cars, get one that doesn't require much or find a trustworthy mechanic.  And you have a point of not saddling your heirs with them - if you don't dispose of them before you pass, at least have a will with specific instructions as to their disposal.

[TerryB]

Your getting older when the words “lifetime warranty” don’t quite seem like the deal it once did 😀.  If you got the funds, the interest and want then it does not seem to be a hard decision.  Just be sure your wishes are known for its transfer of ownership when the time arises.  

[padgett]

"HOW OLD IS TOO OLD TO BUY ANOTHER OLD CAR?" That's easy, It's when you have to ask.

[1937hd45]

"HOW OLD IS TOO OLD TO BUY ANOTHER OLD CAR?" When it no longer makes you happy. Bob 

[intimeold]

“He who dies with the most toys wins.”  has been attributed to Malcolm Forbes,

 

 

intimeold

[3macboys]

My father says that you can't be taken if you still have a project, and considering the number of projects that we have, both of us and my 3 boys should be good for a long time so I say if you want it and can afford it go for it!  I will say that I know quite a number of guys that were never car guys before but when their father passed they suddenly took an interest and kept their father's car, mostly as a tangible reminder of their father, so don't consider it a burden, it may actually be therapy, who knows?  And along the same lines of TerryB, have a plan in place if you wish or at least let your family know that you would understand if they don't want to keep the cars, and who knows maybe they will, but really in the simplest of ways it's no more trouble to auction one car or 20.  

[plymouthcranbrook]

2 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

Don't buy any more old cars. They're all crap and do nothing but cause heartache and consume your money. Look at this expensive piece of crap sitting in the middle of my parking lot, permanently immobilized by a broken transmission linkage, all despite a shockingly expensive restoration. And this is just but one example out of hundreds. They're all sh*t.

I hate old cars. Get out while you can.

And that sadly, are their best features.

[Joe in Canada]

It is not the old cars (3)  that bother my two sons. It is all the machinery that fills my hobby shop to work on the old cars.

[oldcarfudd]

I'm 83.  Last March, as a mere stripling of 82, I bought a Curved Dash Oldsmobile.  This summer I drove it on the New London to New Brighton in Minnesota, in pouring rain.  Next year, as a creaky old geezer of 84, I'm going to ship it to England and do the REAL London to Brighton, probably in COLD pouring rain.  My child bride of 80 did a week-long horseback trip in Argentina this year, followed by one in Ecuador, followed by a trip to Central America with her 51-year-old son where they hiked to Mayan ruins and appealed into caves.  We figure we're going to be dead a long time, and there things we want to do before we get there.  Don't wait!

[oldcarfudd]

DAMN autocorrect.  That was supposed to be rapelled!

[Guest]

DEAD is the only time one should stop buying cars.

[Digger914]

5 hours ago, Matt Harwood said:

Don't buy any more old cars. They're all crap and do nothing but cause heartache and consume your money. Look at this expensive piece of crap sitting in the middle of my parking lot, permanently immobilized by a broken transmission linkage, all despite a shockingly expensive restoration. And this is just but one example out of hundreds. They're all sh*t.

I hate old cars. Get out while you can.

 

I hate new cars and even new cars break. The difference between this broken car and a brand new car is that I can make a new tranny linkage for this car, I don't have the tools to make a new micro circuit tranny computer.

[nick8086]

When the garage is full..

 

I just had an 85 year  AACA member drop by last month.. 

 

He just built a 60 by 100 foot new building to buy more cars?????

[hidden_hunter]

30 if you ask my wife

[35cz8]

Great topic to talk about here. I have come to the point in my life that I can no longer do much to the cars myself so I picked one I own, that can maintain highway speeds and my wife and I can enjoy, and am having it restored by someone that knows what I have and took on the job to restore it for me.  It is getting everything done except the body off the frame but it will be a real joy to drive and enjoy it for the rest of our lives.  I still have several cars in my garage that need restoration but I will never be able to see them done.  I still enjoy the search for parts and when I find a part that I have been searching for many years to get - the joy is wonderful - so continue the search for what few parts I need and get my enjoyment from that.  Old cars have a way of grabbing you and holding on and almost unable to part with them - but, I sometimes think it may be best to see them go to the right person and know they are in good hands and not going to be destroyed.

[mercer09]

He who dies with the most toys wins.”  has been attributed to Malcolm Forbes,

 

HIS KIDS SURE SOLD OFF THEIR INHERITANCE QUICKLY...................!

[edinmass]

In January of this year a gentleman I know bought another collector car...........a 1952 Bentley. The car was 67 years old. He was 38 years old when it was built.............do the math............figure it out yet? Yes, he was THAT old.......and he drove it away from the dealer. He’s still driving it this month. He’s owned more antique cars than just about anyone I know............he just finished building a new home four years ago. It’s just a number if you have your health. He was attending a book signing for his book at the Springfield Mass museums recently, this photo is from the article. At 105 years old, he’s doing quite well. He recognized me when I saw him.........couldn’t come up with my name, but he knew my father seventy years ago, and has known me for fifty. He did manage to point a finger at me and say..........the Pierce Arrow Kid..............

Edited November 26, 2019 by edinmass (see edit history)

[Dynaflash8]

Well, all interesting.  I have no sons or son-in-laws and live in a town with no clubs and no shows.  It is 80-200 miles to get to a decent club or show.  I just like pre-1950s cars, although we have a 5,000-mile original 1991 Buick Park Avenue, and my pre-war restored cars have about a 300 miles radius.  My mechanic is good, but very busy.  Frankly, living here has ruined much of my interest in old cars.  I'm not poor, but I want to have money enough for an old age home if my wife or I ever have to have one.  My friend next door used to restore my cars.  He is two years older than me, and during the past year had to be placed in a nursing home with sudden onset Alzheimers. When I decided to sell my most valuable old car in January 2019, it took 9 months and I didn't ever get what I thought it was worth.  I thought of selling the house and moving, but I don't feel I can afford to have two houses now while I sell one and moving all my stuff just 200 miles was quoted to me at $14,000 if I couldn't help.  This  year I had heart surgery and my wife had extensive surgery.  Both of us are doing pretty well now though.  I like having as much money as as I want when I want to spend it, without having to pay some mechanic or restoration guy a monthly payment.  Maybe time will talk me into getting another old car, but right now the sensible plan is to just sit back and enjoy what life is left.  In July, after the AACA Sentimental Tour, I plan to sell my trailer to my mechanic and sell the Suburban.  That last could change.  We have two widowed daughters, no grandchildren, sons or son-in-laws, no brothers or brother-in-laws, nobody who could inherit and enjoy my cars even if they were interested.  My stuff is starting to weigh on my shoulders.  You or you family don't have to try and sell a house, furniture or cars if you first turned it all into cash as my parents did.  Sometimes it pays to simply use common sense.

[Olsarge]

I don't know that age is the real factor. There are several members in my AACA region well into their 80s and still buying old cars. I see it more a health and financial issue. The 60 year old secretary of our club was just diagnosed with brain cancer (the same one John McCain had). He sold his prized '86 Rolls which his aunt bought new. He now spends every minute just trying to live. I say buy 'em as long as you can enjoy 'em. I'm 70 with 8 classic cars and looking for a '64 Malibu SS like my brother taught me to drive a 4-speed on. Anybody know where I can find one? 

[60FlatTop]

I think GEICO said it best "It's what you do". After impulsively buying old cars since I was in the 7th grade of school, a change in character would be grounds for a visit to the doctor.

[TTR]

I tend to believe one should seriously consider themselves too old to buy (and perhaps even own) cars/vehicles of any age, new or old, when they no longer have ability and/or desire to drive/use said cars/vehicles in the capacity or manner they were originally intended to be driven/used.

 

No car, truck or snowmobile was intended to sit and decay in a backyard, driveway, field, garage or museum for years/decades on end with only periodical (enclosed ?) transportation to some beauty contest or Main Street parade, well , except maybe actual  “Concept/Show Cars” or “Parade Cars” designed for those purposes.

 

For couple of years about 30 years ago I owned nearly 30 vintage cars, but soon came to realize I don’t have enough time or money to properly store, maintain and exercise all of the or even most, so I sold all but couple of choice keepers, which I still have. Most of the ones I sold ended up in to hands of others (friends) who were not only appreciative of getting them, but many are still owned, restored and used by same individuals I sold them to.

Edited November 26, 2019 by TTR (see edit history)

[1937hd45]

Just walking past my cars makes me happy, never got into that drive the wheels off them mentality. Bob 

[Lahti35]

15 hours ago, Dynaflash8 said:

I think you shouldn't saddle your wife or family with more old cars to get rid of when your gond.

 

My wife knows exactly what to do, we've discussed it and are prepared. She's keeps what she wants and doesn't touch the rest, auction company comes in and does all the work. The stuff goes away and she gets $$$. We're not worried about getting top dollar for everything, its just a hobby. The way auctions go around here she'll get top dollar for it anyway, lol.

[padgett]

Well am already nearly a decade past the life expectancy when I was born. Will admit I do not jerk engine blocks any longer but a lot of that  is thanks to modern medicine. 

 

"I don't have the tools to make a new micro circuit tranny computer." Would be surprised what  you can do with a Raspberry Pi or an Arduino but then I grew up with computers (though is amazing how modern providers can screw even basic things (like SMTP) up, just had to do some really ugly things to get my mail to stop being bounced. In the last century things were simpler.

 

Modern times do have new problems like the bottom-freezer refrig my family wanted when the hose was built in 1984. Being unnatural I keep having to clean out the airways and lube the fans. Top freezers just use gravity. Unfortunately style moved the coils off the top where they belong. (Have had a couple of gas refrigerators, now that is hard to warp your brane around...)

 

So from many standpoints "these are the good old daze". OTOH it never took me a week, much disassembly, many extensions, and a swivel to change a thermostat before.

 

OTOH in 1973 I bought a 25" SOA Admiral TV for $500. Now I have to decide whether to replace my 55" with a 70". decisions, decisions.

 

ps all of my cars are "drivers" - why each has its own garage door. 

[West Peterson]

My dad was almost 90 when he bought his last two cars. One was a 1910 Maxwell and the other was a 1947 Chrysler Town and Country. He then drove the Town and Country on the CCCA Caravan from St. Louis to New Orleans, and then back home to Atlanta. I think it's a matter of how old you feel, vs the number.

[Dynaflash8]

2 hours ago, Lahti35 said:

 

My wife knows exactly what to do, we've discussed it and are prepared. She's keeps what she wants and doesn't touch the rest, auction company comes in and does all the work. The stuff goes away and she gets $$$. We're not worried about getting top dollar for everything, its just a hobby. The way auctions go around here she'll get top dollar for it anyway, lol.

Most auction companies have no idea what they are doing and are not available in this desolate area for Florida.   The least fun I've ever had was trying to sell one of my show cars in 2019.  And then, I missed losing the car by days when the police shut the dealer down. But for the grace of God it could be locked up in a warehouse forever now.  That said, like flattop, I've been buying old cars since I was 16 and the longing doesn't go away, even when common sense is still in control.  Two things are big in this town.....golf and fishing.  I never could play golf so I guess I'll have to go back to fishing unless I have to buy a boat (a hole in the water in which to pour money). 😀

 

Edited November 26, 2019 by Dynaflash8 (see edit history)

[Uncle_Buck]

I’ll share two of my fathers sayings on age:  ‘You’re as old as you feel’ & ‘age is just a number’.  He played decent golf daily well into his 90’s.  
 

Now as age creeps up on me, I find myself saying the same things my father said ...

🥴

[Dynaflash8]

37 minutes ago, Uncle_Buck said:

I’ll share two of my fathers sayings on age:  ‘You’re as old as you feel’ & ‘age is just a number’.  He played decent golf daily well into his 90’s.  
 

Now as age creeps up on me, I find myself saying the same things my father said ...

🥴

Uncle Buck, I agree with you until it comes to investing large sums of money or taking on loans with monthly payments.  My Mom and Dad ended up spending seven years in assisted car and because of his frugality they had most of their money left at the end.  It's up to me to do the same for my daughters.  If I lived in a place where there was a club, we had old car friends, and something to do with the cars, I might not be as frugal.  I never have been in the past.  I'd rather travel now and spend what I can afford and not have to sell something to get it back in an emergency.  Selling a house or a car is mighty hard to do when you are in a jam.  Just my opinion.  Repeating:

Two things are big in this town.....golf and fishing.  I never could play golf so I guess I'll have to go back to fishing unless I have to buy a boat (a hole in the water in which to pour money). 😀

 

Edited November 26, 2019 by Dynaflash8 (see edit history)

[JamesR]

I'm enjoying this thread. I'm 61, so the end of the road for my old car journey isn't as far off as it used to be. One of the things I think about is: what kind of old car will best suit me as an elderly person with some diminished physical abilities?

 

I can tell that getting in and out of cars will become a bigger issue as time goes on. My '54 Ranch Wagon is much easier to get in and out of than my '61 4 door Monterey because it sits higher (I'm tall), but it doesn't have power steering, so that could be an issue as I get older. My T-Bird sits low, but it has a swing away wheel that makes getting in and out of much easier than it would otherwise, but it's currently not in quite the condition that the other two cars are. If I could combine all the best qualities of my current old cars into one, I'd have the ideal vehicle. 😉

[John Kelso]

Toby Keith wrote a son for Clint Easwood's movie the Mule titled Don't Let The Old Man In.

In it he asks "How old would you be if you didn't know when you were born"  Some days I get awake and feel 16 again

others I feel my age. I work in my shop accordingly.

[Steve Moskowitz]

Earl, I think you have already talked yourself into how you personally want to view this subject.  There is no right or wrong answer to your question as it is all a matter of personal circumstances.  The one thing I have come to realize, while I face my own mortality, is that divesting of your hobby, especially if you are retired,  leads to unhappiness and an earlier end of life.  Most of the "characters" I knew who prematurely sold off their possessions went downhill fast.  I think this hobby keeps you "alIve" and I hope that someone who has given so much to the hobby (you) will find a way to always have a collector car and enjoy it as much as possible. 

[padgett]

"what kind of old car will best suit me as an elderly person with some diminished physical abilities?" I've always thought of the Smart Car as a high speed wheelchair.