What makes a car interesting to you?

[alsancle]

I was thinking about this after the thread I posted on the Kaiser with the factory blower.   The blower was good for maybe 25HP but to me it made an otherwise semi interesting car much more interesting to me.

 

What are some of the things that make  you take notice?   For me any of the following.   Sometimes a single car covers multiple things in my list at once and then I really pay attention.

 

1.    One offs, or factory custom built cars.

 

2.   Factory performance options,   blowers, turbos, multi carburation, exhaust cut out (Pontiac VOE), tachometers, 2 speed rear ends, etc.

 

3.  Obscure never seen or hardly seen.   A Randell Gremlin as an example.   Kaiser Manhattan four door convertible.

 

4.   Untouched, clean, original cars that have not been screwed up over the years.

 

5.   Off beat power systems,   Owen Magento, Wood Dual Power, Steam, Electric.

 

6.   Anything that I wish I got my hands on when I was 16.  This is usually a musclecar that in my imagination is beat enough that my 800 dollars in 1980 could have payed for it if I had a time machine.

 

7.   Any American car built with a 4 speed between 1973 and 1983.   This was when the stick was going away or gone.

Edited November 18, 2021 by alsancle (see edit history)

[Ed Luddy]

Always liked full size 60's & 70's cars with a big engine and 4 speed stick. Especially if it had A/C. That was a rare sight up here in Canada back then.

 Was also fond of original paint unrusted California cars as most of ours were rusty and repaints.

Studebaker GT Hawk and Avanti's too!

[edinmass]

Owning and driving something most car collectors have never seen or heard of. Unusual power plant examples. Anything "BIG" for its era. I grew up in the late 60's and 70's when "bigger is always better". Any pre war car that is an exceptional performer on modern roads. 

[car crazy]

Cars that bring back particular memories that are pretty much totally original , whatever they may be..

Edited November 18, 2021 by car crazy (see edit history)

[John_S_in_Penna]

For me, two criteria make a car interesting:

(1)  Good styling;

(2)  Something that is a bit out of the ordinary. 

 

I don't admire something unusual just for its oddity,

such as an AMC Gremlin.  Put those two criteria together--

good styling and unusual--and a car is especially interesting.

 

Sometimes only the colors may make a car stand out. 

For example, my 1969 Cadillac Eldorado in "wisteria"

paint, a factory color.  I'd rather look at, for instance,

a 1952 Nash at a show than a 1957 Chevrolet, or a

1964 Buick Electra than a 1965 Ford Mustang.

 

Edited November 18, 2021 by John_S_in_Penna (see edit history)

[alsancle]

6 minutes ago, edinmass said:

Owning and driving something most car collectors have never seen or heard of. Unusual power plant examples. Anything "BIG" for its era. I grew up in the late 60's and 70's when "bigger is always better". Any pre war car that is an exceptional performer on modern roads. 

like this?

[edinmass]

That's a perfect example of a cool car, that every other collector in the country was afraid to own. I have thoroughly enjoyed working on that chunk of American automotive history. Drove it yesterday. 

[kuhner]

For me I think it is easier to say what I’m not interested in, or find interesting. But if I have to say early cars and some of their engineering

[SC38dls]

Easy your 1-6 and it runs! Plus 60’s muscle cars 
60’s muscle cars were just going strong as I was started  driving in 62. Bought my first car from Mr. Norm’s Grand Spaulding Dodge (anyone that was a teenager in the 60’s knew that dealership or Nicky Chevrolet) the muscle car king in the Chicago area. Mine was a 57 DeSoto small block hemi on the back back back row of cars for $200 including a new set of tires!  
dave s 

Edited November 18, 2021 by SC38dls (see edit history)

[TAKerry]

In a general sense of all things cars, the first thing that grabs my attention is the styling. Then maybe the engineering. Honestly could care less that a car can hit 100mph, HP means nothing to me.  I do like to look at the very old cars and watch a motor with open valves running. Rarity and value doesnt make much difference. 

 

[Dosmo]

This is something that has started to change as I’ve gotten older, especially in a visual sense.  The top-of-the-line series automobiles from the late ‘40s to the mid ‘60s intrigued me for many years.  The higher the level of trim and options, the more interesting the car was for me.

 

Not so much now.  I find that lower-trim levels of just about any manufacturer catch my eye quicker than anything else.  A ’49 Chevrolet business coupe, practically devoid of fender moldings and a spartan interior with the radio delete option?  Yes.  A ’53 Willys 4 door sedan equipped in about the same fashion?  Bingo.  Dog dish hubcaps.  Inline six engine.  A ’51 Buick Special with as few options as possible?  This is something you don’t see every day or at every car show.

 

Pickup trucks from the 40s-60s seem to be so popular as street rods today.  I see so many of these, and they catch my eye from a good distance away.  Occasionally, I’ll see one that has a somewhat subdued paint job with the dog dish hubcaps that so many wore in the era they were built.  I love seeing those, but the majority of the time the vehicle is wearing some sort of totally inappropriate type of shiny spoked rim that I find appalling, and the paint job is a gaudy red or yellow that is painful to look at.

 

But, that’s just me.

[63RedBrier]

I'm in my mid-50's and my tastes lie in the late 50's to late 60's vehicles.  Styling and design are top on my list, with color a close second!  John's Eldorado above checks a lot of boxes!  It is spectacular!  (Let me know if you want to sell it John!)  I love Mark II's, '63-4 Buick Rivieras, Corvairs, and Forward Control Willys!  Sea Foam green is my favorite all time color on any car.  When I'm quickly scrolling thru BAT, I will always stop to look at any light green car.  Odd however is that I'm not really a fan of baby blue cars, although most of my dress shirts would be described as that!  The first Corvair (a '65 Monza coupe) I painted was originally Cameo beige, but was repainted in another factory color for that year, Cypress (dark) green.  Another oddity about my current fleet (10 vehicles today, but that could change at any time!) of daily drivers and collector cars is that every single one is either white or some shade of red!  My son has a World Rally Blue WRX STi and my daughter drives a dark green Jeep Cherokee, and although both still live at home, I don't count them.  I like to drive my collector cars long distances just for the sport of it!  Get them out in the public's eye, it's the best thing for our hobby!      

[caddyshack]

Personally I have always been drawn to the very early autos. One of my first autos was a 1904 Cadillac, then a '12 Brush, then Model T and A Fords. The research and documentation was almost as much fun as finding them. Wood bodies, lightweight channel frames, wood axels, wooden frames, one cylinder motors, chain driven, it was all fascinating.

Along with this early hobby I started with muscle car daily drivers. Vettes and Chevelles primarily. I guess when you get locked in on a specific manufacturer you kind of develop a passion as they evolve over the years. In my 70's I still enjoy the same same stuff I did 50 years ago. Just a habit I guess.

[BearsFan315]

Simple and Eye Catcher for me, pre war cars, like a 4 door open top car, open racing style car, something about them that grabs my attention !!

 

nothing fancy or extravagant for me

[8E45E]

1, 2, & 3 sums it up for me.  

 

Craig

[Walt G]

1,3,& 4. Original cars are great but so are older ( ie done in the 1960s or earlier) well done restorations that have aged a bit. Back in the early 1960s a close friend found a 1935 Packard std 8 conv coupe and bought it. Beautiful original BUT at the time to win an award at a CCCA event the car had to be perfect, so he scuffed the paint and repainted it. It only really made the car look shinier. Well he got his award. Then rarely drove the car.

I like cars that are not "over lamped" not cobbled up with every possible fog, spot, etc accessory lamp that then make it look like a fire dept. search light truck. ( I know that just made several of you cringe that I had enough nerve to state that) Body style is also an attraction - I like cars that have full back seats , most with 4 doors, - although I love conv. victorias. I have owned a rumble seat car , in fact a national AACA 1st place Chrysler ( the 1933 CT that was restored by Stan Marcum) ; but a rumble seat is good for someone agile enough to get in and out of one. I like people along when I go for a drive, so 7 passenger cars are just fine with me .

Post war I am only really now starting to appreciate more . About 30 years ago I restored a 1969 Cadillac conv , used it to to Hershey and back. Sold it because although I loved the look I never put the top down. I enjoy full size station wagons of any era, and post war 4 door full size sedans too, with a lot of toys.

Brass era cars are great but I have no room for a truck and trailer to haul one around to participate on tours, and living on long island driving a car like that across bridges etc any time of the day isn't an enjoyable experience.

[J.H.Boland]

I've always been attracted to cars that are a little different. Even my daily drivers have usually been oddballs, like front wheel drive Austins and Renaults, and my '78 GMC Caballero, which was my first American made driver. Old car wise I gravitate toward prewar coupes and victorias. They exhibit more style IMHO. Open cars are nice (I have a '21 Chevy roadster-pickup) but their use here in the great white north is limited. To each their own.

[1912Staver]

I  like later Brass cars, about 1908 - 1912 , generally middle class and better although I also like model T's and Buicks from this era as well. New enough that they have decent usability, old enough that they are still quite early on the automobile evolutionary scale.

 Then I like some of the better later teens - mid 20's , non mainstream , sporting character cars.  Ron's Gold Bug's would head the list , but similar cars from Stutz, Marmon etc would also be just as desirable .

 Then I like early 1950's to mid 1960's British sports cars and limited road use / mostly racing cars from a large number of specialist makers. Lotus , Elva, Lola, Buckler, Marcos, Mallock and several others. 

 The main requirement is that they have to be comparatively inexpensive on todays market. No point in lusting after Aston Martins like I did in the 1970's when they were still affordable.  These days I rapidly loose interest in any car priced above about $150,000.00 . Might as well look at mega yacht's, both have the same degree of impossibility of ever being a real part of my life. 

 The reason I pick that price level is I figure that is the absolute highest price I could actually afford for that 1 in 10,000,000 car that I would liquidate absolutely everything hobby related, plus contribute 100% of my future hobby spending toward. 

 Not going to happen , just the liquidation phase would probably take a decade unless I was to defeat the whole point and fire sale everything.  In all reality any future cars have to be in the $25,000 - $35,000.00 range. And at that level I sure don't see much that I am even remotely interested in.

 What draws me towards many of these newer cars is that they were built more or less by hand in small workshops.  The mechanical parts are generally adapted production items. No small constructor can afford to re invent the wheel and build their own engines , gearboxes, rear axles etc. 

 But things like the frames and bodies are built one at a time by people, not massive production equipment. A chassis jig , round and square tube stock, basic metal working and joining tools and skills. The end result is wonderfull in its drivability but all at a human scale. No hundreds of millions of $ in heavy plant to build them.

 

Edited November 18, 2021 by 1912Staver (see edit history)

[Steve_Mack_CT]

Interesting post that will require more time to read through the responses later.

 

Personally, I like a lot of cars.  I appreciate and have interest in CCCA cars and postwar sports and GT cars, as well as prewar cars of all types most but I have other pockets of interest as well, traditional hot rods, some 50s, 60s stuff, light trucks, postwar American luxury cars all come to mind.

 

While I appreciate the big boy stuff, the same elements that draw me can be found in common garden (to us, but less so the general public) stuff I usually own.

 

Design, it has to be attractive to me.  Like a 34 Packard V-12 Victoria, or a 30 Model A roadster.  See my point?

 

Original condition, long term ownership, interesting (non celebrity) owner, history are all factors as well that add interest.

 

I am not immune to some cars of your youth interest either, but not one who would necesarilly seek a numbers matching muscle car.  A period correct, lightly modified tri five or '68, '69 Chevelle would do just fine, or more likely an early C3 vette.  Had gone through all of those by say 24.  But then I think of a fenderless early Ford as a more likely mate for the stock A.  Not a car of my youth but a car of youth so to speak...

 

 

[Paul Dobbin]

I too like a lot of antique cars,  especially Pre WWII vehicles.   To me the high water mark was mostly cars built 1932 thru 1934 before they got rounded.

In 1973 the Glidden Tour came to St. Pete Beach FL while our club was having our Gulf Beach Antique Show close to the DonCesar Hotel where the Glidden Tour was staying overnight.   The 1934 Model cars were only 39 years old, but I was only 28.  Many of the cars came to pur show.  They looked pretty special to me as a 1934 Ford owner in the local AACA Show.   About 100 cars and 41 National tours later, including 12 Gliddens, the 32-34 styling of all makes is still a favorite.

Edited November 18, 2021 by Paul Dobbin (see edit history)

[1937hd45]

If I understand the OP question it is what I like to look at, not able to buy, or dream of owning. Stance, how the car just garbs your attention at first glance, then I'll look at finer details, Pre WWII, some stuff post war, Ferrari or any two passenger coupe from overseas. I like to see them drive by, no desire to be behind the wheel when they brake. 

 

Bob 

Edited November 18, 2021 by 1937hd45 (see edit history)

[TTR]

While there are umpteen million different details, features or things that make different cars “interesting”, but if attempting to narrow them down to something I’d like to have in my cars or in cars I’d like to own, practical usability for its originally intended purpose would probably top that list.

And this applies only to owner driven road cars (my daily driver appliance notwithstanding) 

I’ve never had interest owning race (only), chauffeur or employee driven “professional” carriers (i.e. ambulance/hearse/limousine/town car/etc) type cars/vehicles.

Oh, and a car/vehicle has to be running and drivable or progressively being worked on toward that goal, otherwise it’s not a car/vehicle. 

[Guest]

Good subject alsancle.

There's no accounting for taste and different things make different cars "pop" for each individual.

While I love and appreciate well kept original cars or fully restored cars from the 1920's to the early 70's, I only occasionally buy them in that condition.  What intrigues me is the car that needs sorting.  It can be a complete car that has sat in a garage, unused for 40 years or it can be a completely disassembled project that someone else has lost interest in.  It's hard to define exactly the right criteria that draws me to these cars but there is a precise level of neglect that pulls me in, like a hobo to a bottle of Muscatel.   I have to have it.  When I find one of these my first thought is "Hey, here's one I could save.  I could put it all back together and drive it".   I tend to shy away from cars with too much wood in them or anything that has major rust.   It's difficult to explain but I think the allure for me is the actual hands-on work needed.   My wife says it's "sick puppy syndrome".  

Cheers, Greg

🍸

[Restorer32]

I too am drawn to cars that present major restoration challenges.

[keiser31]

For some reason, I am drawn to low production cars. Mostly from the 1920s and 1930s, but even some newer stuff.

[Steve_Mack_CT]

1 hour ago, Paul Dobbin said:

I too like a lot of antique cars,  especially Pre WWII vehicles.   To me the high water mark was mostly cars built 1932 thru 1934 before they got rounded.

In 1973 the Glidden Tour came to St. Pete Beach FL while our club was having our Gulf Beach Antique Show close to the DonCesar Hotel where the Glidden Tour was staying overnight.   The 1934 Model cars were only 39 years old, but I was only 28.  Many of the cars came to pur show.  They looked pretty special to me as a 1934 Ford owner in the local AACA Show.   About 100 cars and 41 National tours later, including 12 Gliddens, the 32-34 styling of all makes is still a favorite.

It would be really hard for me to disagree in general terms from the "low priced three" to the top end stuff.  You can probably go a couple years in either direction and make an argument to include them, but that is the sweet spot for styling imho as well Paul.

[Tim Crowder]

For me, over half of my interest in a particular car is it’s history and past owners. The history of the make and model are important but also just as important is who owned it, family or business photos of the car when they owned it, and the stories or memories from previous owners. I have no interest in creating my interpretation or a shop’s interpretation of how the car should look when it was new. If a car that I preserved or “restored” receives recognition in some form, that’s great however I don’t work on them for investment potential, awards or trophies. I’m more interested in sharing what information and history I have on a particular car in a museum setting. I’m not interested in showing a car where it would be judged against restoration standards that might not apply universally to all cars in the same class. The history should be just as important as whether it now has the correct new tires mounted.

[plymouthcranbrook]

2,3,4,6,and 7. Mostly Mopar but some of the Independents like Studebaker,  Kaiser, Frasier, and some furren cars as well. Not a big fan of GM but that doesn’t mean  they did not make some interesting cars and trucks.  Guess it is really a case of “I don’t want what everyone else has”

Edited November 18, 2021 by plymouthcranbrook (see edit history)

[CHuDWah]

7 hours ago, SC38dls said:

Easy your 1-6 and it runs! Plus 60’s muscle cars 
60’s muscle cars were just going strong as I was started  driving in 62. Bought my first car from Mr. Norm’s Grand Spaulding Dodge (anyone that was a teenager in the 60’s knew that dealership or Nicky Chevrolet) the muscle car king in the Chicago area. Mine was a 57 DeSoto small block hemi on the back back back row of cars for $200 including a new set of tires!  
dave s 

 

And the commercial on Chicago's WLS Musicradio, "Sunday!  Sunday!  Sunday!  At smokin' US 30 DRAAAG Raceway!!" (just across the Indiana border).  😁

[JV Puleo]

I'm drawn to high quality mechanical things. In cars, that is probably attributable to having literally started with pre-war RRs but other makes, like Locomobile & Pierce Arrow, as well as several European cars were in the same class. "Styling" is of much less significance to me and, though it will sound like heresy to most here, I don't particularly like some of the cars people get really excited about. With a few exceptions, I'm not much interested in anything later than the mid-20s. The down side to this is that I'll probably never be able to own examples - or even an example - of the things I really like.

 

Curiously, I have no interest in any of the cars of my youth...the 1940s through the 70s made no impression on me. The first car I owned and drove - purchased when I was 19 - was a 1927 Cadillac. Since that was in 1970, it was a pretty old car then. Needless to say, I've had a lot of other every day cars but that all any of them ever were.

Edited November 19, 2021 by JV Puleo (see edit history)

[Dynaflash8]

Something I remember fondly from my far younger days.

 

[Billy Kingsley]

It really just has to exist. I just love vehicles that can move under their own power. (Or could at one point). And not just cars and trucks, although clearly my favorite, I also read about ships, planes, trains, anything. 

 

I've just been addicted to everything automotive my entire life. It started at Christmas 1985 at 14 months old when I was given a 1/64 Chevette of all things. I've been addicted ever since. Always will be. I have no idea why cars resonated so much with me but I can't remember a day where I didn't think about cars. Even the time I've spent in the hospital was spent watching the cars out the window. 

 

It doesn't have to be old cars. I get just as much enjoyment walking around a dealer lot as I do a cruise in. Well, maybe not as much since there's more variety at a cruise in but I still take every opportunity I can to visit one. 

 

I've set my sights on photographing as many different brands as possible. My health doesn't allow me to drive or work on cars so I've tried to photograph as many as possible. I've shot more than 200 brands already even though I have mobility issues and for most of my life only did two shows a year (Rhinebeck for stock, Adirondack Nationals for custom) and usually can only do 45 minutes to an hour before I can't physically walk anymore.

 

My favorite era is the 50s cars. The designs are all so unique, the colors are bright and interesting, the plentiful chrome, the fins, there's not a single 1950s car I don't love from any manufacturer. I also can identify them all easily, that's the decade with the most distinctive looks. 

 

I also love the big square bodied cars of the 20s although I can't identify most of them from a distance as they all pretty much look alike, but that's no problem. 

 

I love the 70s and 80s cars because that's what I grew up with. They remind me of when I was young, when I was healthy and all my family was still alive and healthy. 

 

I don't know why I've fixated on the El Camino. It's been my favorite model since I was in junior high which was ten years after the last one was made. That's when I really took notice of it. When the 80s cars were new I didn't pay much attention, which I now regret immensely. 

 

I'm also a huge fan of Edsels and again I have no idea why. I just love to see them. 

[58L-Y8]

Let's see, primarily 1, 3,4 & 5 to the greatest degree.  To some degree #2.   

 

Regarding #6: Since I lived through the muscle car era; didn't want them new; didn't want them as cheap used cars; pay scant attention to them now.  If they're your thing, you are welcome to them, all of them.    Some of the distaste arises from who owned particular cars and the attitude they projected.  Guilt by association.

 

Into the 'Malaise Era" to the present, more interest in the overall trajectory of the industry as reflected in various makes and models, though little enthusiasm for specific cars.

[1932 plymouth pb sedan]

What makes a car interesting to me is usually the story behind it, the history and the preservation.

As far as likes, I like most of them especially pre war.

[m-mman]

Am I the only person who likes luxury and status?  

 

Upper medium priced to high priced makes from a wide span of eras with features, options and indicators that say . . . .

"I have money, I am comfortable and dont have to think about it before spending it, but I also dont have to spend it to excess to impress". 

Cars that would make Thorstein Veblen cast a knowing smile and nod. 

 

Owner driven luxury cars, that are not so exotic that they are a maintenance headache.

Good practical mechanicals. (althrought luxury cars typically had the latest technology)

 

Swoopy, sporty, too low, too small, too noisy and with too finicky mechanicals are a complete turn off.  <yuck> 

 

Then the historian in me, absolutely prefers originality over restorations. I want to see and experience things exactly as they were. 

[1935Packard]

1) Style, both from the outside and in the interior, as it's an aesthetic experience. 

2) Convertibles, as the experience includes the open air and the feeling of being part of the environment.

3) Reliability, at least relatively speaking, as I don't enjoy it if it's in the shop all the time.

[Professor]

1) Any car that makes my heart sing when I look at it.

2) Any car that makes my heart sing when I look at it.

3) Any car that makes my heart sing when I look at it.

 

As Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously said: “I’ know it when I see it.”

 

Joe

[3macboys]

Anything that I haven't seen before.  In the last week I saw a 1940 LaSalle Coupe, a 62/63 Buick Skylark along with an 80's Dodge pickup fully restored go by the front of the shop. All of them stopped the conversation midstream.  Only the Buick was on a trailer.  

[John Byrd]

This is interesting, and I have read each post.  I have never thought about what exactly it is that pegs my "want meter", but after reading and considering everything, it's just simply "The Look" of the vehicle.  Good or bad, that's it.  Hmmmm, I'm a simpler guy than I thought I was, lol....  

[Bryan G]

First, "stock", not necessarily all original, though that's a plus. Second, little things that show me that the designers/engineers cared. Lighted hood ornaments, interesting ways of activating the starter. The whistling gas filler tube on a Packard. The way a 40s Chrysler flashes the courtesy lamp to let you know the parking brake is on. Third, all manner of oddballs: almost any orphan car, plus post-55 6 cylinder Chevrolets, Fords or Plymouths.