need info on antique cars

[Guest]

my daughter has been given the assignment to find out when a car is considered antique. can anyone please tell me how old a car has to be before it is considered antique?

[1937hd45]

Well, before the revisionists took over an "Antique" car was a 1915 model year and earlier. Today, a 25 year old grocery getter is looked at by some in the same light.

[Peter J.Heizmann]

earmea...My thoughts are you should at least have the courtesy to post "who gave your daughter such an assignment, what is the assignment's purpose, what is the end goal."

There are many learned automobile enthusiasts on this website that would better serve your query with more information.

Personally, I look at cars within the hobby, no matter what club affiliation, as simply "old cars", to include mine, and that's it friend. The maintenance of said cars is where the fun enters the equation.

Regards, Peter J.

[Guest]

it was a teacher at school who gave them the assignment. you would have to ask the teacher the purpose of the assignment.

[Peter J.Heizmann]

What teacher begs the question. There are thousands of them.

If that is all the interest you have in someone assisting you, I would take 1937hd's answer and go from there.

Regards, Peter J. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

[Guest]

her 8th grade math teacher

[Bob Kinker]

As far as AACA is concerned, any vehicle 25 years old or older is considered an antique. Va. law also says 25 years, and those vehicles are able to use antique tags. Hope this will help. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

[ronbarn]

In Alabama it was 25 and now 30. If it is the math teacher, may be the question is what is the average for a bunch of states. If it was the english teacher, the question could really be loaded if the student was tasked to tackle the various terms, i.e. antique, classic, vintage. production, horseless carriage, etc. Unfortunately, the answer depends on the state one lives in, the club one belongs to and the attitude of the individual owner to achieve some specific status for their car whatever year. This topic has been discussed several times on this forum and at times that discussion has been very heated. Probably the best response is, as mentioned above, the Antique Automobile Club of America recognizes, for purposes of our National tours and meets, vehicles (not just cars) 25 years old or older.

[ex98thdrill]

The subject of what is considered an antique and a classic has been on this forum so much that it has beat the horse so bad to where there's nothing but glue. To make things easier on you, your best bet is either calling your insurance agent and/or going to you local Dept. of Motor Vehicles. For the case of your daughter's assignment, if she goes by a local interpretation of this issue, it should end any questions on the part of her school teacher.

[Guest DeSoto Frank]

Earme,

Indeed, this is one of the most contentious subjects I see dicussed on any old car forum, or at shows, diners, garages, etc.

I would go to the appropriate Motor Vehicle Administration where you live, and find out what criteria a vehicle must meet to qualify for an "antique" or "Historic" license plate.

In states where I've lived (MD & PA), vehicles have to be at least 25 years old to qualify as "Historic" or "Antique".(There arer special cases where cars less than 25 years old can wear the historic tag, but that's a different matter.)

According to the Second College Edition of the American Hertiage Dictionary, 1985 printing (Houghton-Mifflin), "Antique" is defined thus:

an-tique : adj. 1. Of or belonging to ancient times, especially of, from, or charactersitic of ancient Greece or Rome. 2. Belonging to, made in, or typical of an earlier period. 3. Old-fashioned - n. An object having special value because of its age, especially a work of art or handicraft that is more than 100 years old.

Definitions 2 & 3 seem to be the most relevant where automobiles are concerned.

It is definitely a subjective area: many hobbyists (and purists) feel that if a given vehicle was made in their lifetime, or after they were born, it "cannot possibly be an antique". In my own case, being a 1967 model myself, I have a little trouble accepting cars such as Pintos, Vegas, Mustang IIs as being "antiques", even if they now meet the 25 year-old age requirement for the antique tag. <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

By the same token, my 1964 Valiant convertible (which will be 40 years old next year) may not qualify as "antique" to someone who was born before WW II, or who has a Model "T" Ford, or horseless-carriage, or some other really old car.

When the Antique Automobile Club of America was chartered "way back in ancient times" - 1935 - if you apply the "25-year rule" to that scenario, we're talking about only those cars made before 1910!

Some of the "old-timers" feel that there should be a cut-off for the "antique" label: whether it be Pre-WW-II, Pre-1950, Pre-1930.....

Another thing that affects the "antique-ness" of something is whether or not it has become technologically obsolete: for example- Ford Motor Company manufactured it's famous Model "T" from 1908 to 1927, with relatively few changes during its 19 year production life. When it was introduced in 1908, it was fairly innovative and "modern"; but by the mid-1920s, it was a rather dated machine compared to other makes, and when it was finally discontinued in 1927, it really was a "relic", even as it came off the assembly line.

(Old Henry finally realized this and allowed a new Ford to be developed: the Model "A".)

Think of how quickly personal computers become "out-dated" or "antique"...only a matter of a few years.....

I think it's mostly a "generational perception" as far as the popular conception of an "antique" car goes....they are usually regarded as belonging to our parents' or grandparents' generation.

It might be interesting for your child to interview some older relatives, such as parents, grandparents, and aunts & uncles and ask them what they consider to be an "antique car"....betcha each generation pushes the "cut-off" year back another 20-25 years! <img src="http://www.aaca.org/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Another good thing might be to find a local antique car show (ought to be several this coming Labor Day weekend) and take your child there and look at the various vintages of cars there, so that they get some appreciation of the wide variety of cars that fall under this blanket term "antique".

Good Luck!

Frank McMullen

[Terry Bond]

A good way to sort out what the various states are doing with their def of "Antique Auto" might be to use the links to each state's legislative home page. You can get there by going to the legislation section on the AACA website. You can look at the legal def and current laws for licensing antique autos in every state. Might be fun to see it all laid out in a matrix so we can see how the states differ on the subject. Let us know the results of your project.

Terry