There are some pretty good reasons not to love the fall season.
Sure you have some great color choices in trees, but that just means dead leaves.
Soon after dead leaves comes no leaves, and then snow-covered branches.
Summer is dead and gone, and so is the car season in most of the less tropical part of North America.
By far and way, our favorite part of the car season is life in the streets.
There is something kind of Beach Boyish about stylish old iron on the road. The Beach Boys sang about rods, mods and Detroit muscle back in their heyday. Those of us who were impressionable kids in the 60s daydreamed about the same kind of cars-and loved seeing them on the street. In fact, all of us still get some very good vibrations when we cross paths with retro-muscle during the summer months.
There is something very nostalgic and therapeutic about vintage iron in traffic. In fact, any old school ride will stand out in a traffic crowd; even a stripped down four-door sedan that would have drawn zero attention in its early years.
Because, as much as we love car shows, an old vehicle literally steals the show on the street. They are not strong in numbers like they were in a time when they served basic transportation needs for practical families.
A tall, boxy over-sized relic from the past is instant street-cool these days. And that is a far cry from its very un-cool status in the past.
So, as many car guys and girls tuck their rides in for the winter and read them a bedtime story, let us remember the heat of summer with some of our favorite stars in traffic from the past. We run (and change vehicle photos in) this feature every month and it is one of our most popular sections with our readers.
We think it’s because they look so hot in the heat of the summer. And they don’t even need a bikini to pull it off.
So goodbye Summer 2010, it was real nice having you around car world. Come back soon, and bring global warming with you.
Jim Sutherland @mystarcollectorcar.com
