Anybody see the XKE and Aston Martin DB6 (think it was the 6). Kinda shocking (but probably shouldn't be) that an Accord beat both of them in perfomance. Don't know if I'm alone in this but it kind of dampened my enthusiasm for getting a classic.

 

I have friends w/ classics and hear enough stories from them to steer me away.

 

I think a lot of people view automotive history through rose-coloured glasses. In their memories of the 60's, gas was free and even grandma's grocery-getter would turn a 12-second quarter-mile.

In reality, most of the "muscle cars" were good for about mid-15's in the quarter in stock trim, and they practically scraped their door handles if you tried to take a corner at speed.

I had a 1982 Trans Am and it had a whopping 140 horsepower and weighed about 3300 pounds. Heck, a JCW MINI has more horsepower than the 1984 Corvette, and certainly handles better.

I'm not against old cars (I have a 1972 Dodge Charger 440 and recently sold a 1972 Mercedes), but it's impossible to deny that automotive performance has come a *long* way in the last few decades.

 

I really enjoyed that segment. Of course the older cars aren't going to be as fast or handle as well. Technology has improved tremendously since those cars were new and I have no doubt that a Honda can beat them. Owning older cars isn't about having the fastest or best handling, but rather the joy of driving (and keeping it on the road). That DB 5 and E-Type were absolutely beautiful cars. The upgraded suspension on the E-Type was definitely noticeable and I'm sure the Aston would have faired a bit better if it had some modern components.

 

As an XK-E owner let me be the first to admit that my car is not that fast, compared to modern cars. The HP (and fuel mileage) they're getting out of modern cars for the displacement is very impressive, and technology in handling and braking has definitely moved forward. Still, in the context of what else was out there, these pioneers were truly great cars.......

And my black E-Type always gets stares and points when I drive it, no one hardly notices my MINI it seems, especially other MINI drivers.......

 

Same here with my old Lotus. It looks cool, sounds great, but 80 hp isn't a lot no matter how you slice it (although it only has to push 1500 lbs around). At least Chapman did a good job with the suspension. It supposedly would pull .9G on the skidpad on 155 width 1960's tires. There's quite a bit in the aftermarket for my Europa and I plan on adding some as time goes by but the performance possibilities of a classic car are just aren't what they are for a modern one.

 

as stated, you dont buy a classic to go fast or to take corners, you buy a classic (atleast i would) to drive. they are raw, loud, but simply beautiful. they arent cookie cutter cars. they have flowing lines, little details, and classic beauty. lets face it, you roll up to a five star restaurant in something like


or



or



or



people will stop and stare and you will be remembered more so than if you pulled up in, say


or

 

I'm not shocked by it at all, there has been a lot of progress over the years. In fact even a little 1.6L MCS would probably beat any 1950's or 1960's Ferrari road car on a track. When I was a kid supercars could do 0-60 in the mid 5 second range, now a days quite a few run of the mill midsize sedans can do that. I still want a classic, and when the time comes the MINI will be replaced by either a Porsche 356, Alfa GTV, or Lancia Fulvia. I know none of these cars will touch the Cooper's performance, but I'm more interested in the raw mechanical nature, and style of those old cars. Maybe I'll be able keep the MINI and have both, but probably not.