Dying breed

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mycuda said:
Yep.
Around here seems like the only young attraction to cars is buying a $400 fart can muffler
and putting it on a 2.0 ricer half assly(usually bent, un fastened) and wallahhhhhh, an annoying wanna be hotrod....LMFAO
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Well, IMO, that’s half the problem. Kids will purchase what they can;

1: Afford.
2: What is popular.
3: What they can understand better.

A Honda or Toyota is easier to get parts for. They litter the junk yards, there cheap & there modified really easy while getting reasonable mileage stock or mildly modified.

The older generation crapped on the kids heads about getting a real car when the muscle car prices skyrocketed beyond the kids means. (Thanks Barrett Jackson & every moron that suddenly thinks there rust bucket is now worth $20K!) So you can’t blame them for not giving two craps about old American muscle. They just see a bunch of old men acting like dicks.

Who the hell wants to hang around an old grouchy sell bloating, foul mouthed belittling dickhead?
 
I’m 42

I fell in love with muscle cars in high school. In The nineties I had a ton of them when they were rusty and cheap. Then they got expensive.
My other love, jeeps, were still cheap. Now even wranglers (yj and tj’s)are expensive.
My friends and I got the 69 dart I’m working on for a lemons rally. I’m actually surprised how inexpensive a bodies are compared to other makes. My buddies love cars, but just don’t know much about turning wrenches or don’t have the time.
I think the buy in is expensive compared to newer cars, and plugging In a scan tool and swapping sensors is easier for them than learning carbs and points.
 
mycuda said:
Yep.
Around here seems like the only young attraction to cars is buying a $400 fart can muffler
and putting it on a 2.0 ricer half assly(usually bent, un fastened) and wallahhhhhh, an annoying wanna be hotrod....LMFAO
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What is disturbing is that those "Fart Cans" are finding their way to the late model Challengers :eek:.
There are a couple of them running around here. :BangHead:
 
I love and respect all of your comments . I have a lot of grandchildren and not one of them is interested in the hobby . Sad ! However, they are interested in smart phones , computer games , social media and anything that doesn't take any physical effort . Not one of them has the attention span of a knat . their parents are the same . They can't imagine taking years to complete a car build , learning to weld ,paint or tune . They'd spend $150.00 a month for an I-phone but not $40.00 to change they're oil . computers have ruined it .
 
I think I grew up in the perfect era for cars, and especially hot rods.
My first performance Mopar was a 440HP 1969 Roadrunner in near perfect condition, and one of my buddies had a 70 Roadrunner 440-4speed.
Some of the other guys we hung out with had a 66 Falcon Futura with a 7 color metal flake paint job, WAY built 351C and wrinkle wall slicks that barked when he put the thing in gear, and 2 of the guys had Chevelle SS 396- 4 speed cars.
We all hung out downtown at the local drive in and raced each other most every weekend.

I paid 1,200 for the Roadrunner and drove it off the used car lot in 1976.
It had the police 440, Micky Thompson white lettered tires and 5 spoke aluminum wheels, factory root beer metallic with a tan vinyl roof, and of course a scoop.

My very first car was a Chrysler Windsor I picked up for free and swapped the transmission out by myself at 13 years old, and by the time I was 17 I had 7-8 cars and trucks.
The 45 and 46 Ford trucks both had flathead V8's.
I used he 45 to complete the 46 and had a really good running truck.

We have 4 kids and seven Grand kids that all live in the same town we do, and NONE of them give a rats *** about cars except to get where they want to go.
They don't even fix them up, and I or the Wife even have to make them check the oil or they would just drive it till it died.
 
I drive my Barracuda almost everyday lately and get a thumbs up and a compliment .
I also see muscle cars all over around here.
Very few rice burners any more... and I work for an Acura dealer.
 
ZMan67S said:
Sometimes I pull the driver's door open and tell the kid to take a seat.
Pictures are taken and memories are made.
Gotta love it!!
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The first time my '72 Satellite was running (see video-not restored yet, but drive-able) I was fueling at an ARCO station. A beautiful young blonde girl drove her SUV over to me while I was airing up the tires. She said her little brother loved my car (looked about ten-years old). So I let him sit in the driver's seat while I took advantage of the moment to gawk a little more at his pretty sister. (And wishing I was about 40 years younger)

 
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rumblefish360 said:
Well, IMO, that’s half the problem. Kids will purchase what they can;

1: Afford.
2: What is popular.
3: What they can understand better.

A Honda or Toyota is easier to get parts for. They litter the junk yards, there cheap & there modified really easy while getting reasonable mileage stock or mildly modified.

The older generation crapped on the kids heads about getting a real car when the muscle car prices skyrocketed beyond the kids means. (Thanks Barrett Jackson & every moron that suddenly thinks there rust bucket is now worth $20K!) So you can’t blame them for not giving two craps about old American muscle. They just see a bunch of old men acting like dicks.

Who the hell wants to hang around an old grouchy sell bloating, foul mouthed belittling dickhead?
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Your correct. But bothers me as an enthusiast.
First Your only as old as you act.
Second I thought this was a mopar site....
Or at least American made
 
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Let’s see...I live in a little lake community, down the road from me is a 71 Dart 340 car. Across the street from my driveway are 5 GTO’s, all 100 point restos, across the fence is an Oldsmobile boat racer, across the street from him is an old Dodge truck lover who has a hopped up Jeep Wagoneer, there’s the Vette guy down next to the park, and the guy with a 69 Charger and a 69 Polara. All within walking distance from me. All ages.

Now, my son and daughter are car lovers. Ian can’t wait to row the gears in the Roadrunner, and we all know how Nella feels about Sunfish.

Heres a pic of Ian when he was 12, showing off his first burnout results. And a pic of Nella and Ian the day they got to drive the GTX. The hobby will not die soon around here.

072E1C49-575D-4018-BEB8-CE3CEBE2DA4B.jpeg


AA19B7A0-2F64-4F67-852C-6BE5D2511BAC.jpeg
 
cosgig said:
Let’s see...I live in a little lake community, down the road from me is a 71 Dart 340 car. Across the street from my driveway are 5 GTO’s, all 100 point restos, across the fence is an Oldsmobile boat racer, across the street from him is an old Dodge truck lover who has a hopped up Jeep Wagoneer, there’s the Vette guy down next to the park, and the guy with a 69 Charger and a 69 Polara. All within walking distance from me. All ages.

Now, my son and daughter are car lovers. Ian can’t wait to row the gears in the Roadrunner, and we all know how Nella feels about Sunfish.

Heres a pic of Ian when he was 12, showing off his first burnout results. And a pic of Nella and Ian the day they got to drive the GTX. The hobby will not die soon around here.

View attachment 1715366646

View attachment 1715366648
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Awesome
 
I'm 69 and the youngest guy five houses in either direction. I think, my neighbors think I drive muscle cars to be seen. They're good people, but don't understand. I have a guy about a half mile from me that has a '69 GTX in great condition and that's it. I don't see him often as he has a business, and very little free time. My daughter has no interest in my old cars (unless it's a first gen Camaro :rolleyes:) so I guess she will sell them when I'm gone. My nephews have no interest in muscle cars or cars period.

At cruise nights I see mostly old grey beards, like me, and a few young guys. They sometimes ask some questions that we answer and try to encourage them, but for the most part I think the generation that followed the boomers, is about the end of it.
 
Grew up in the 60's surrounded by cars cruised by me and my peers usually with our girls sitting tight with us. We all had our cars and built them to the best of our budgets and abilities. Then we cruised them up and down main looking for action and a run out to the measured off 1/4 mile outlaw strip to see how they were running. I'm sure you all knew that a half/rack will fit nicely between the grille and the radiator of a tri-5 chevy. I started with a 49 chev business coupe and went to my first 55 chev 265 3 speed/OD car, my 62 impala SS 409 4 speed car, my 67 Mustang 3 speed coupe, my 57 bel air, my 66 Chevelle, My second 57 bel air. my second 55 bel air 327 4 speed car a 4 year build, my 65 Comet 5 year build my me and now my 67 Barracuda 6 year build by me. Today all my friends are car guys and most are car builders. My Barracuda generates a lot of conversation wherever I take it crossing all generations. For me the hobby is alive and thriving but my kids while liking cars like I do don't participate in the hobby. My 3 grandsons are just trying to survive in todays $15/hour economy and will never have the disposable income to participate. Looking forward it will be nerds trying to figure out how to chip up their battery powered car to get a little more time/power out of the batteries.
The only constant we can count on is that there will be change at a degree we don't recognize in our 60's/70's/80's. That is the way of the world and I am good with that.
Peace----Rat out----------------
 
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rumblefish360 said:
Kids? Excellent!

Keep the car. It’s paid for right? So it owes you nothing, costs you nothing and can be brought back to life when the kids can enjoy it with you. And then, when they leave the house, you can revive the car again and re enjoy it!

Never let it go until the day come when you can no longer see the road and drive right. Pass it on to the kids so they can enjoy it or sell it to someone how will love it.
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That is exactly my plans... thanks for the reply..
 
mycuda said:
Your correct. But bothers me as an enthusiast.
First Your only as old as you act.
Second I thought this was a mopar site....
Or at least American made
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LOL! Your the one who brought up the ricers...

My question is now (to anyone) what is out there now that is American, V8/read wheel drive and inexpensive for a kid to hot rod?
 
rumblefish360 said:
My question is now (to anyone) what is out there now that is American, V8/read wheel drive and inexpensive for a kid to hot rod?
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The 98-2005 Durango 2wd. With 5.9 or 5.7 can be found for $500 needing tranny work up to $5000.
Some came with 3.92 rear gears and a lot had 3.55s.
Modify the inside of the intake, add a little more cam, a little more stall on the converter. Eat some rice.
 
In general, the younger kids are fans of foreign stuff. Lets face it, people will gravitate toward what is out there to work with and affordable. Why are Chevys the car of choice for resto!
Kids raised on farms/ranchew and expected to work grow up with , in general, a different set of values and work ethic that the kid raised in the burbs on a couch. Country kids tend to gravitate toward old machinery, old trucks old cars unless dad will by them a new something!!!
The rural ppopulation shrinks every year, except in some areas like the fringe burb pop. actually grows a little .
 
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I have one friend (other than here) that really likes and gets the appeal of old cars. The rest of my "car" friends are are either into fox body mustang's or diesel trucks. I absolutely hate this new "performance" diesel phase. I know some of them are fast and make ridiculous amounts of power but the whole filling the entire street up with exhaust smoke to the point where you cant see is absolutely retarded. I know what people are gonna say to that, "it's no different than doing a burnout" Yes!! Yes it is its stupid and makes you look like an idiot! Lol
Every true old car person I meet seems to be in there 50s or older very very few people I meet who are muscle car guys are younger than that.
 
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