Roll over to preview

Reading through Peter Simpson’s Restoration Guide feature in this week’s issue (which is excellent by the way and well worth a read, whether you’re new to this sort of spanner-spinning malarkey or not) has got me thinking. He rightly points out that simply because there are fewer and fewer drivers around who remember driving cars from the ’Fifties as new cars, does not mean the demand and appreciation for these cars will diminish. If anything the opposite holds true: Familiarity is but one reason why classic car fans choose the cars they do – ‘I remember those’ for whatever reason and in whatever context – but it’s not the only reason. The thriving pre-war classic car scene proves, as Peter rightly points out, that owning a working vehicle you may’ve first learnt of in the history books is appealing for some enthusiasts as well. In a round about sort of way, while I was considering the various ‘eras’ of vehicles (Veteran, Edwardian, Vintage, Pre-War and Post-War) I noted that each era spans no more than two decades, with one notable exception – Post-War. From the feedback we receive through our correspondences with readers (letters and emails) and through social media (our Facebook page and Twitter) we’ve noted that the term ‘modern classic’ polarises opinion. It’s an oxymoron of sorts for starters, but we’ve not managed to come up with a better means of describing cars that are either on the cusp of becoming classics or that we feel are destined for classic status in the future. What discussions over the term ‘modern classic’ highlights for me is that some enthusiasts would appreciate a bracket that separates ’Fifties machines from cars that are as recent as the ’Noughties, which at the moment are all classed as Post-War cars.