There are many figurative forks in the road taken in every person’s life and car guys are no exception to this basic truth.
In fact, car guys will face many points in which they will have to make a decision about the beloved vehicles in their lives after a hot relationship begins to cool off during the passage of time.
There may even come a moment when the charm of ownership will weaken and the vintage vehicle in question will lose its luster in the eyes of a formerly smitten car guy.
Jim Sutherland
Older vehicles come from a bygone era when they were not expected to perform miracles on the road. They may have been great in a straight line, but they were a little sketchy in the turns-even when the old war ponies were young and clumsy colts.
Car guys may have been willing to ignore their retro ride’s shortcomings during the honeymoon phase of their relationship, but now they cannot ignore them, given the hornet’s nest of cost vs return in an ancient vehicle with yesterday’s engineering.
Consequently, a car guy will be forced to make a big decision about their old car or truck. They have reached one of life’s forks in the road and will have to deal with the situation.
We at MyStarCollectorCar believe there are many forks in the road that can be taken when a car guy is losing interest in his vintage vehicle and starts singing ‘The Thrill is Gone’ in his best BB King voice.
The first fork is pretty simple: dump the old warrior like you just caught a softball-sized glob of molten steel without the benefit of asbestos gloves.
You will save plenty of dough in the future when you remove your mechanical albatross and take your first real vacation in 10 years with the proceeds. Sell it before it breaks you emotionally and financially.
The second fork is also pretty basic: restore your aging ride back to its original glory.
This kind of loyalty is honorable and may be the correct tonic for reviving your relationship with your beloved old vehicle. It will still handle like a plow horse in the turns, but it will prove you are a character car guy who is in it for the long run. Plus, it will be shiny again.
The third fork in the road is a resto mod. A resto mod will make the vehicle better than the day it left the factory by adding 21st century improvements to it. It will get a ‘Six Million Dollar Man’ makeover that hopefully costs less than six million dollars.
The result is a car with a retro cool style that can cut corners like a sharp pair of scissors and melt rear tires like a blast furnace. Plus, it will have air conditioning.
The fourth fork in the road choice is a full-on custom build. These vehicles have undergone radical cosmetic surgery that corresponds with their owners’ vision of metal-clad beauty.
The result is a vehicle that can be slammed, chopped, channeled. frenched and shaped into a one-of-a-kind beauty in the eye of the beholder. The sky (and the car guy’s bank account) is the limit for a custom build, but a radical facelift may restore lost love when it comes to old iron and their owners.
The fifth and final fork in the road? Don’t do anything other than maintain the old ride’s good health.
Every year you and your vintage vehicle hit the road together is another year when most of the world is not driving an old car or truck.
You are in an elite club, and your cool old ride is the only way to become a member.
Jim Sutherland
By: Jerry Sutherland
Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post, Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.
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