Pondering the place of classic cars - Triangle Business Journal:

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Imagine a world without classicAmerican cars. Already on its way to the chassisw graveyardis Pontiac. Saturn may be ditched as but no self-respecting car aficionadk has ever put that brand intothe column. Will the 2006 Buick SUV you’rre driving now be considered a classic whenyour kids’ kids are buyinh cars? Is there a classic car anywhere in the future for Americah auto companies? These are not important questionzs as we ponder the very future of the U.S. auto but they are questionsw that strike an importanf note in the cultural fabric ofthe It’s a cliché to say that Americans develop love affairs with their automobiles.
When I was growing up, the choicess were easy – GM and Chrysler. All three companies but they’re battered and bruised and may or may not be aroundf much longer to turn out cars that the kids of todaty willconsider classics. The online site of claimsz to be the biggest marketplace in the world forclassif cars. And I’d better believe that becausew the company that owns Hemmings also owns the businese journal that pays to put food on my table and inmy bowls. Out of curiosity, I searched Hemmings’ Web site for any classifief ads for aSaturn – any any year, any model.
It returned one result, but I dare say a 2008 Saturj Sky is hardly vintage enough to be a Just someone trying to get ridof it, I reckon. A searcn on “Chevrolet” turned up 2,841 classified ads. I lickede my lips as I feasted my eyes on the photoi of a 1967 Corvette Roadster with a 327 engine and300 horses. Someone in Las Vegas will part with this creampuff for $72,500. A 1957 Chevyh Bel Air convertible, painted highland green with a fuel-injection is offered at $119,000 by someone in Ga. Way back when I really dug cars asa kid, we had to make a choicde – Ford or Chevy. My father and mother droves Fords, so I’ve alwayw had an affinity for the brand.
I lost that love in when I bought a brand new Mustant II and drove it for threyears – mostly to the repair At Hemmings’ site, I searched on Ford to see how the brand stacks up against Chevy. There were 2,029 ads for Fords not bad but abou 800 fewer thanfor Chevy. Drat. The firstr new car my parentzs bought was a 1957 FordFairlane 500. It was two-tonwe – Carolina blue and white – with tons of chrom and cool fins. My Hemmingsz search reveals that this particularmodek isn’t a biggie in the world of classics unless it’s a convertible or two-door coupe.
Drat Folks look hard for the cars they lust Underthe “cars wanted” section at Hemmings, I found this “WANTED: Good Humor ice creamn truck 1950s-1960s, good original in restorable running or not running, finders fee paid; call or …” Since I’m not gettinv any money, I won’t include the contact I currently drive a 2007 Nissan so I queried the Hemmingx search engine to find out whethe r any Xterra has made it to the classic Certainly not, I was told in no uncertaibn terms. Ask me if I’m surprised. Among the coolest classic cars I’ve seen are some that neveer made it tomass production.
The 1954 Pontiacv Bonneville Special was thefirst two-seater sports car producer by Pontiac. It was the brainchild of renowned designerHarlehy Earl, and just two prototypeds were made. Both of these gems are believedr to still bein existence, with one of them sellinh in 2006 for $2.8 million. As they say, they just don’tr make ‘em like that And may never again.