Is nostalgia worth the extra cost? | Column

I didn’t think it would go like this.

It was an assignment, just like any other. Go, get the story, say hi, come home.

In this case, the assignment was Mecum’s Orlando sale. I assigned this to myself, so in the end I guess I’m to blame.

This particular sale is a newer addition to Mecum’s calendar–the inaugural one took …

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In one respect you can't put a price on nostalgia.  On the other hand I found that my nostalgia for a VW Corrado VR6 was stronger than reality.  Now that I've bought and sold the Corrado I don't have a desire to own another one. I also discovered that having to maintain a parts horde for an old '90's VW that doesn't have good factory support turns into a much larger amount of money than expected.

One thing i have found is that you really can't go back. It never seems to live up to the memory.

However....you Can make new memories - just don't expect it to be the same as it once was. Go a different route than you did in the past. My first car was a '61 MGA that I restored to pretty good show quality. My new one is full race mechanicals and 4 different colors of primer and overspray that I autocross and track - having an absolute blast, but it won't win any beauty pagents.

Depends what it's for. Pleasure drives, car shows, track rat, or ?. On my first custom car, it had a dead stock drivetrain and a really nice shell and paint job. I dreaded taking it on track and hurting the paint. My second car had a fully-built engine with a much less stressful body and paint job. That one, I dreaded taking it on track and hurting the drivetrain - all self-imposed stress. So, ask yourself what you want the car for, how it would be used, who's going to maintain it, and whether there's time and budget for both.

I half expected the article to be about the SiR that you just bought at auction.

Enjoy it while you can, none of us are promised tomorrow, after all. I've had lots of Supras over the years. When I got my first one, they were just old-ish used cars. Now the "JDM tax" seems to have hit hard for whatever reason. Sucks, but it's not gonna keep me from driving them when I want. I don't daily them like I used to, as one is less than friendly due to the cold start tune and the snapping turtle clutch response. The other is more a Point A to Point A car since I detest people who can't be responsible and respectful around other cars, and that seems to be the norm anymore...

Either way, neither of those cars are as good as a modern car, at least in terms of NVH, comfort, efficiency, safety, audio quality, etc... but I'd still rather be behind the wheel of that 90's Japanese goodness. =)

In reply to PT_SHO :

I appreciate the feedback, but I don't see how we've devalued the magazine. This isn't a free article--only paying subscribers like you are able to read it. Everybody else only sees a few words and a request for payment.

It all has to do with age and success.  As enthusiasts get older and more financially stable, the cars they wanted in their youth are now possible to buy and just have as opposed to needing it for daily driver duties.  The 80's and 90's cars will see an increase in value while I think we'll see a decline in 60's-70's muscle.  Interestingly, I was kicking around picking up something classic/vintage next year for fun and was supervised at how cheap pre-war cars have gotten.  Which points to my theory.  Very few people alive today remember the first time they saw/rode in/drove a Model A.  So, the demand is no longer there.

-Rob

Nostalgia is not rational, but it is still one of the most powerful motivators of human behavior.  I'll take a $30k ND Miata over a $30k CRX Si, and believe that it's a superior machine in every way.  But if it doesn't pull the heartstrings, then...

In reply to David S. Wallens :

My MGTD owned since I was 14  provides me with plenty of nostalgia but that's because all those memories are already mine.  
   If I were to get another MGTD  I doubt I would have those feelings of connection.  I don't think you can re-create history.    

I've been thinking of a S10 or G-body for my next project. Clean S10s start at 4500 if you can find one. Rotten  Monte SS is 5 grand to start and we'll over 10 for a nice one.

Oddly  no one will touch my 91 Firebird because it's not a TPI car.

Everyone has that car they sold by mistake! My next planned project car is a GT40 replica that I gotta have after building & owning one for 60,000 miles in the 80's/90's.   Great memories from those.. I'd like some more of them :D

Life's too short to drive something 'normal' - daily drive something crazy!

ShinnyGroove (Forum Supporter) said:

Nostalgia is not rational, but it is still one of the most powerful motivators of human behavior.

Off to drive home in a car as close as possible as I could get to the car I had when I was 21, down to the little 13" white letter tires....  oddly enough, the year The Matrix came out...

In reply to Tom Suddard :

Thank you Tom, I did not know that.

I graduated high school in 1983. There's very few cars from that period I'd ever really want, so the nostalgia factor doesn't really, uh, factor.

I had a Fox Mustang, Charger 2.2 and Honda CRX Si.  None of them I would want back, especially the Charger. Ugh, what a pile of misery that thing was.

Nowadays I go for stuff way older (1960s, 1970s).  Didn't really grow up with them in the family or anything; I just prefer the looks and simplicity. They aren't great cars, but they are fun in their own way.  It's not nostalgia I'm going after, it's a certain kind of driving experience that is more raw and interactive.

I can't say that my corrado was a bad car, in fact it was one of the nicest, best prepped ones in the country.  It's just that in the past 20 years I've driven far better cars and my expectations have changed.

my nostalgia for a corrado didn't out weigh the actual driving experience I got from it, so I sold it.

While I owned a C3 in the mid 70’s (69 4spd T-top) and had a great time with it, however I have little desire to own another one. If I did go at it again it would be way more mod than resto. I have moved up a few decades with a car I always wanted: S13 coupe. Even  then knew the first thing I would plan for it would be to motor swap it. Why relive the old times when the new ones can be better!

Nostalgia is everything to me. When I'm riding/driving a classic from my day, it brings a comfort to me in such a way I can't explain. 

It sounds sort of weird but anytime I see adults fake acting filming TikTok videos of themselves pretending to be important.......I just want to have my classic cars and listen to classic rock and pretend things didn't advance past 1993. 

In reply to crankwalk (Forum Supporter) :

Different cars, same soundtrack!!

So last year I went to a shindig for guys who raced BMX & motocross locally. It fired up a desire to find a late 70s Redline BMX bike. What I wanted was $3000 or more. Luckily Mongoose came out with retro models so I bought one of those.........Nostalgia has a strong pull for me as well but my inate thriftyness wins out.

As for cars; from time to time I think about parting with the Datsun but then I drive it and remember how much I love it.

I'd love a CRX but only only if I could have a bone stock one and only not it were less than 10K........probably unlikely. Realistically I'm maxed out on cars but when has that ever stopped me from wanting.

Thanks to a few minutes on the floor at Mecum, though, I got the bug. Badly. Another CRX? Honda’s follow-up model, the del Sol? Another Civic? Integra? Integra Type R? Japanese-market Integra Type R?

No bad answers there.

Money no object I'd go ITR, but why does the Prelude never come up when people talk about Golden Age Hondas?

They seem undervalued right now.

It all depends on what you want and you finances.  This question is impossible to answer except on a personal level.  I seem to get my best deals on Chevrolets.  

rob_lewis said:

It all has to do with age and success.  As enthusiasts get older and more financially stable, the cars they wanted in their youth are now possible to buy and just have as opposed to needing it for daily driver duties.  The 80's and 90's cars will see an increase in value while I think we'll see a decline in 60's-70's muscle.  Interestingly, I was kicking around picking up something classic/vintage next year for fun and was supervised at how cheap pre-war cars have gotten.  Which points to my theory.  Very few people alive today remember the first time they saw/rode in/drove a Model A.  So, the demand is no longer there.

-Rob

I doubt it's as absolute as you portray.  Certain cars are just right and will always create a demand thus a strong market. 
   For example a 1932 Ford Hot Rod.  A 1948 MGTC,  A 1961 Jaguar XKE   A 1965 Ford Mustang,  A 1969 Chevy, Camaro,  A 1972 Jaguar XJC,   Well I could go on.  And on.  And on.  
     All of those have an enduring appeal that creates demand. Yes there are newer "Classics" and I only mentioned a few of those more available classics from my era.     
        Some of those earlier ones mentioned,  that generation is already  in their 80's and 90's  or dead.  Yet those values remain very strong. 

None of it is supposed to make sense. It's like being seized by "a fine madness." That's one of the joys of this. I don't have to understand (much less approve) of your crazy passion, in order to celebrate it. And, you are free to share in mine. Anyone who feels otherwise is just plain missing out.