Great article on owning a muscle car

adriver said

My car(s) are daily driven and very reliable. But I built them and used Chrysler's technology. No fancy hot rodding stuff or "high performance" things to cause problems.
That being said, I think the best advice he gives to the novice is be ready to learn the "ancient technology".
I can't speak to the difficulty of finding someone to work on them. But I think it is nice to warn people.
Snip..
Many shops will not touch muscle cars (or other truly old cars) for the altogether sensible reason that their techs don’t know how to work on them. They know trouble codes and computers. They do not know the fine art of gapping points, of dwell, of epoxying leaking fuel bowls. Do you? Are you confident you can learn how? If not, you’ll need to find a competent old-school mechanic and (believe me) they are not easy to find. Most people who own muscle cars know how to keep them up — and for them, it’s part of the fun. But it kills the fun of owning a muscle car if the thing won’t start, doesn’t run well, leaves you stranded — and you have no idea how to deal with it

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I found that particular portion of the article a little bit backhanded to those of us that do know how to work on them. For the most part, the technology isn't really that ancient. They make it sound like you have a find the ancient scroll in the library to know how to do anything on an old car. Brakes are still brakes, that hasn't really changed in 40 years. Carbs are also not necessarily leaky messes that never work right. The Carter on the 318 that was in my car when I bought it was the best running carb I've ever had and took no work to keep going. You could fire it up and pull away within 30 seconds. Yes, a dilapidated one is a pain, but if you get a good one it really doesn't take anything to keep it that way if you use it regularly. A well tuned carb is just as good as any fuel injection, it's just not as adaptable to quick changing conditions. If anything it's easier to work on an old car because you can actually fix it with a tool. Sensor dies on the side of the road? Sorry buddy, better call a tow truck and pay $500 for the dealer to plug it in and tell you it's a $5 part. Old car dies? Follow the fire triangle of air, fuel, and spark and you can diagnose most problems in a few minutes. Will it be the most efficient running thing? No, getting to your destination inefficiently is better than not making it at all.