MyStar places road warriors at the top of the car hobby food chain because it takes courage to run a car with its 60th birthday in its rear-view mirror.
There’s nothing wrong with what a lot of car guys call an ice cream run—if the ice cream shop is 50 miles away.
Unfortunately, there aren’t enough road warriors on the streets and highways in 2024, but if you do see one, here are five things you’ll take away from the experience.
Jerry Sutherland
You’re going to smell exhaust fumes.
Old tech is old tech, so a carbureted carb will run rich from the start until it warms up, so you’ll smell the exhaust when you’re tucked in behind a classic.
You’ll also smell exhaust when the driver punches it to change lanes because these old tech carb cars were built for speed—not smog laws. That’s why so many guys want to get around a classic car—even if the classic is doing 85 miles per hour.
Lights are the second thing to watch for when you’re behind an old car.
There are a few reasons for this. The biggest one is because many old cars may have a ground problem, so lights don’t show up like they do on a 2024 Subaru Impreza Sport. In fact, you might not see brake lights or signal lights on a badly grounded classic because…they’re badly grounded.
The other thing about lights on old cars is their location. They can be set low, high or medium because old cars were about style—not cookie-cutter government standards. This means your SUV-adapted eyes will look for lights where they are on an SUV–not an old Ford.
The third thing to look for when you’re behind an old car is the handling.
If an owner is running with bias-ply tires you may see the car wander on curves or lane changes—especially if the steering box, shocks, springs or suspension parts are a little weary. Most old cars drive better than you think, but they’re still not going to out-handle your Aunt Mabel’s Honda Accord.
The fourth thing to look for is speed.
If a car is five or more decades old, non-car people don’t think it can run at 75-80 miles per hour. If a guy is doing 75 mph in his old classic, many drivers will pass just because they don’t believe a car that old will match freeway speed.
The guy in the new car will blast by the old car even if the old car is doing 10 over because they don’t like the exhaust (see number one in this list) or the notion that the old car can run at 75-80 mph.
The last and best thing to look for is the cool factor.
The guy who owns and drives a classic in the real world on real world roads is a modern-day hero. He’s giving you a mobile classic car show and you don’t even have to leave your car to see it–plus you get to see it in action.
That’s the best reason to see old classics on the road in front of you.
Jerry 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.
- CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE NEWSLETTER
- CLICK HERE to Like us on Facebook
- CLICK HERE to Follow us on Twitter
- CLICK HERE to Follow us on Pinterest
Please re-post this if you like this article.
