Engine Designation

[79rustyk10]

I appreciate a quality stock resto on something special, and think there will always be a place for cars that represent how they came off the line. However, thank Fing god there's resto mods, clones, customs and race cars, because nobody would go to a show filled with 307 PG Chevelles, and 6 cylinder mustang coupes.

Dave, you got any before pics of your vette?

 

[diesel4me]

I wouldn't say that--around here at cruise nights,you see more of those types of cars,than the 70 Chevelle SS's with LS6 454's or Mustangs with 429 Cobra Jets in them...I still enjoy seeing ANY old car or truck in decent shape,it doesn't matter much to me if they aren't super rare ,in fact,I kind of like the 100% "originals" better in ways...though the ones "customized" are cool too,dont get me wrong...just not as common around here..

 

[76zimmer]

I appreciate a quality stock resto on something special, and think there will always be a place for cars that represent how they came off the line. However, thank Fing god there's resto mods, clones, customs and race cars, because nobody would go to a show filled with 307 PG Chevelles, and 6 cylinder mustang coupes.

Dave, you got any before pics of your vette?

I will be putting together some stuff in my Vette thread for its 50th birthday (April 23rd) I got pics of it when I bought it in 82 and also the teardown/rebuild of it.

 

[paratrooper307]

I appreciate a quality stock resto on something special, and think there will always be a place for cars that represent how they came off the line. However, thank Fing god there's resto mods, clones, customs and race cars, because nobody would go to a show filled with 307 PG Chevelles, and 6 cylinder mustang coupes.

Dave, you got any before pics of your vette?

Isn't that the truth! I for one love the character and look of classic cars, but to be honest, from a technology/performance standpoint, they really don't do to well compared to a modern automobile. I could care less about numbers matching or 100% correct authenticity. Anyways, numbers matching restored automobiles are too rare and expensive to actually drive and enjoy, so what's the point? Spending 6 figures on a car that you put in a garage and look at seem pointless to me when you could spend far less to have a car with all the fun and appeal, but better performance that you could actually enjoy.

 

[Chief Brody]

Isn't that the truth! I for one love the character and look of classic cars, but to be honest, from a technology/performance standpoint, they really don't do to well compared to a modern automobile. I could care less about numbers matching or 100% correct authenticity. Anyways, numbers matching restored automobiles are too rare and expensive to actually drive and enjoy, so what's the point? Spending 6 figures on a car that you put in a garage and look at seem pointless to me when you could spend far less to have a car with all the fun and appeal, but better performance that you could actually enjoy.

I agree with that, but I also have to say that if I were a rich man...I would likely have went to the nth degree to make sure my Blazer were all original....numbers matching may seem to be snobbery to some, but people enjoy cars in different ways...we don't all have the talent to do it ourselves....we don't all have the talent to customize...but everybody loves cars...and some of those rich guys may make you sick because all they do is spend money on a car, but maybe they don't have the talent or time to do it themselves...I won't hold that against them....they enjoy the beauty of the car....
Also, I gotta say, when I got into restoring my Blazer I really, really got into the history of the vehicle and the part numbers and I wanted every book and magazine I saw with the old Blazer on it. Some of us enjoy preserving stuff...and part of that is documentation...documentation is everything to some as it is a written history...I got so into it that I tried to imagine myself on the GM line in Detroit when it was made...what that must have been like...

We aren't all the same, and thank God for that...but I think we all help each other out in different ways....

I wonder who the guy was that designed the 2nd Gen Square body Blazer...it was custom to him....

If I were rich and was buying a classic old Vette or a Cobra I'd want to know for dang sure the numbers matched....else somebody could easily fool me with a kit car.....

which brings up a whole different topic...what do you custom guys think of kit cars and kits?

 

[diesel4me]

I always thought kit cars were just that--a kit car..not the original,just a fiberglass replica of an original...ones like the Bradley GT looked cool,but its still a VW Beetle in disguse..few were really "good" vehicles you'd want to go long distances in or put up against "real" cars at shows..

That was before I took a tour of a place not far from my town in Wareham MA called "Factory5 Racing"..they make several cars there including Ford Cobra clones and several others ,one of which is a neat mid engined car--the bodies are all carbon fiber,the chassis are hand fabricated and welded there on jigs in their own shop--you have the option of providing the engine and tranny you desire,and when I was there,that mid engined car which resembled a 60's vette was selling for just under 20 grand without the engine & trans..many customers prefer to finish that part of the build themselves,and the car is fabbed up to accept the desired engine before hand..

I wouldn't mind owning one of their cars...the quality is such that its not really a "kit" car--its a one off factory built one,that you can finish if desired..

 

[76zimmer]

The big drive for a high point car is value and collectibility.

A numbers matching car doesn't mean original, only that the numbers match what the car was originally produced with.
An original car is factory produced in only one configuration....those are the cars that bring big money...and to achieve that requires documentation. Its only original once.
Because the money is so high on this type of vehicle there are many fake attempts to appear that way. Bloomington certification (gold, silver or bronze) judges the cars to their originality appearance and performance. The selected few who judge have a lot of info on detecting fakes.
That is why one car can cross the block and bring 150K, and an identical appearing car might bring 80K...Documentation and judging.