after going to a Classic Car show yesterday and seeing a winner talk briefly about his car that just won an all-out award, I've changed my mind somewhat to purists and restorations. His speech went along the lines of "its not my favourite car, but its been in my garage for 8 years and finally restored the other week. I just brought it out to get some air"
ie. has other cars in the garage and likes this one, but isnt too passionate about it.
f**k those people. Half of them spend $100k on a classic car resto and eventually sell it at auctions for (sometimes) profit. Genuine or restored/rebuilt parts are the craze and its a lot of money and time to hunt down things for a complete "package".
All these people then drag their cars down to the annual show and usually are lost in a sea of hundreds of other completed projects.
As oppose to real modified cars which are often made from used, hard to find, custom or recycled parts. The owner knows well that he/she will never see that money spent again but its what they want. Whether for power or comfort or uniqueness. I think the drift scene is an example of this: basically destroying cars, fixing things on the fly and tight budget but its all for fun.
Which car has more character: the showroom pony, the forgotten-now-restored showpiece or the modified car that pushes the limit of its design and production?