RE: The car nut lives! PH Blog
Friday 18th December 2015
Are we car nuts an endangered species? With autonomous vehicles gathering on the horizon, talk of millenials killing the motor industry and the daily evidence most drivers care more about social status than what their car is like to drive I do sometimes worry.
More on this to follow soon...Salvation can be found though, and sometimes in the least expected of places. Like the rain-lashed car park of Halfords Huddersfield last Saturday morning, for instance. I'd popped along to discuss head unit options for my newly purchased but seemingly homesick Forester, the nav still thinking it's living in downtown Yokohama. Sitting in the car with Halfords man Sebastian, rain hammering on the roof as we discussed options, the conversation drifted into the cars he'd owned himself, from a number of Golfs to the little EK4 Civic runabout (on steelies - cool!) parked round the back of the shop. Turns out my near-neighbour with the super cool and pristine Subaru Justy I spotted recently also works there. These are young lads with a passion for cars and willingness to channel all available funds into the habit - all power to them.
In a garage with a V8 Vantage and a Range RoverThe owner cheerfully referred to his Ford as his ASBO Focus, this being the 300-odd horsepower runaround/wife's car to accompany his V8 Vantage and supercharged Range Rover. We talked BMW M4s, his neighbour having owned one, not liked it and chopped it in for a Ferrari 360. It was an utterly miserable day, I was supposed to be doing the Christmas shopping and I was likely headed for a right ticking off once home. But the common bond of being a bit daft about cars was enough to distract us all for an entertaining few minutes of chat.
The car nut lives! PH Blog
Who knew hanging out in a rainy Halfords car park could be so much fun!
More on this to follow soon...
Then, as I left, I clocked an orange Focus ST shivering under a 'We Fit' gazebo woefully inadequate for a December day in West Yorkshire. The bonnet was up as one of the Halfords guys grappled with the headlight unit, the owner kindly holding a brolly over him as he did so. Clear enough from the colour coded ducting and other bits and bobs under the bonnet it wasn't standard so I popped over for a chat. And there we were, three total strangers, standing in the rain in a car park, excitedly talking boost pressure, limited-slip differentials and an obsession for obscure Japanese special editions.
In a garage with a V8 Vantage and a Range Rover
This, translated to the online world, is of course what we love about this place too. Pondering a strapline like 'PistonHeads - the internet equivalent of a rainy car park in Huddersfield' perhaps reveals why I don't work in marketing. But wherever we bump into each other it's nice to know the reported death of the car nut is an exaggeration.
See you all at Sunday Service!
Dan
Photos: Dan, Sim Mainey, Michael Ward
[Sources: Goodwood Road & Racing,Twainquotes.com]
Discussion
We are a dying breed, since the tree hugging lentil choppers seem to have infiltrated schools these days..... Where are the next gen of PH'ers? Thankfully my 11yo seems to have a bit of oil in his veins with a more than passing interest in cars. He's pressuring me to get the (his) Sprint 1.7 finished
I agree about a dying breed.
Oddly I held up a McDonald's drive through for a good 10mins chatting to the guy passing me mcflurries about my TTQS a few years back much to the distaste of those behind me
There is a small number of petrolheads coming through but they're few and far between unfort!
Oddly I held up a McDonald's drive through for a good 10mins chatting to the guy passing me mcflurries about my TTQS a few years back much to the distaste of those behind me
There is a small number of petrolheads coming through but they're few and far between unfort!
Yep, increasingly more and more of the younger generation I meet seem to have zero interest in cars. I couldn't WAIT to get my driving licence but I've met people in their late 20's who don't have one and when asked why not they reply "Because I don't need one". Technically living in London I don't NEED one either or a car for that matter and yet I've spent an inordinate amount of money on them over the years.
Motoring is not a hobby that seems to have survived contact with the 21st century unfortunately, people are far more interested in messaging their friends rather than popping out for a drive to meet up with them (in a rainy car park)
Motoring is not a hobby that seems to have survived contact with the 21st century unfortunately, people are far more interested in messaging their friends rather than popping out for a drive to meet up with them (in a rainy car park)
I drove into a drive thru McDonalds a while back and was actually a bit disappointed to NOT see a group of youths hanging around in chavved up Corsa's and the occasional flash git in a tasty bit of metal like a Subaru, talking about cars\girls etc. I know this group is often derided on PH but people forget that this is where a lot of future PH'ers used to be nurtured. That whole community seems to be a dying breed.
It is not this generation that are the problem. It is their children, to them their parents will be hipsters with a fondness for nostalgia, like petrol engines, hybrids, iphone 6s and 3D only films.
That is of course unless they master electronic engineering in which case some will be building electric cars that hit lightspeed. Now that I would like to see.
Not everything in the future is to be scorned.
How many people would really like to own a MKII Cortina? Have to use a choke, have windscreen wipers that don't wipe, washer fluid continually freezing, frequent visits from the AA, black vinyl seats and crap heaters.
The only real downside is that the engineering will not be on display like it is with mechanical and some electrical engineering.
Many of the curent classics and future classic cars will be around for a hundred years into the future. 3D printing will see to that.
That is of course unless they master electronic engineering in which case some will be building electric cars that hit lightspeed. Now that I would like to see.
Not everything in the future is to be scorned.
How many people would really like to own a MKII Cortina? Have to use a choke, have windscreen wipers that don't wipe, washer fluid continually freezing, frequent visits from the AA, black vinyl seats and crap heaters.
The only real downside is that the engineering will not be on display like it is with mechanical and some electrical engineering.
Many of the curent classics and future classic cars will be around for a hundred years into the future. 3D printing will see to that.
I was having a similar discussion last week with friends... I own a small garage in Hampshire, and I've openly entertained and offered to have work experience students, either from local college or schools...
Last week I had my first work experience lad, he was superb! Keen, interested in learning more than he had already at college, and he was polite and courteous to my customers...
When he saw my Opel Monza, and I said he could help work on it, he was beside himself! Genuinely thought it was cool, and wanted to know about it (which is nice, rather than wanting to work, then go out on roadtest, in something with 500bhp, as so many teenagers seem to want)
So, as he seemed into cars, I had him do some diagnostics on my supercharged RX8, plus a few other bits and pieces, then as a thank you for his efforts, I took him to Mercedes Benz World on Friday morning... The AMG's stood out, but the most suprising thing? He liked the 300SL the most! Good lad!
I personally wish more youngsters were not only interested in modern technology/hybrids/electric vehicles from an electronics point of view, but also the older, quirky stuff, petrol and diesel, from the mechanical aspect, but also design and construction..
Petrolheads/Pistonheads could be a dying breed, which makes me sad at the thought... so many vehicles will pass by and end up scrapped because people won't understand them, care about them, and treat vehicles like a mobile phone, and disposable..
Last week I had my first work experience lad, he was superb! Keen, interested in learning more than he had already at college, and he was polite and courteous to my customers...
When he saw my Opel Monza, and I said he could help work on it, he was beside himself! Genuinely thought it was cool, and wanted to know about it (which is nice, rather than wanting to work, then go out on roadtest, in something with 500bhp, as so many teenagers seem to want)
So, as he seemed into cars, I had him do some diagnostics on my supercharged RX8, plus a few other bits and pieces, then as a thank you for his efforts, I took him to Mercedes Benz World on Friday morning... The AMG's stood out, but the most suprising thing? He liked the 300SL the most! Good lad!
I personally wish more youngsters were not only interested in modern technology/hybrids/electric vehicles from an electronics point of view, but also the older, quirky stuff, petrol and diesel, from the mechanical aspect, but also design and construction..
Petrolheads/Pistonheads could be a dying breed, which makes me sad at the thought... so many vehicles will pass by and end up scrapped because people won't understand them, care about them, and treat vehicles like a mobile phone, and disposable..
tombstone said:
I was having a similar discussion last week with friends... I own a small garage in Hampshire, and I've openly entertained and offered to have work experience students, either from local college or schools...
Last week I had my first work experience lad, he was superb! Keen, interested in learning more than he had already at college, and he was polite and courteous to my customers...
When he saw my Opel Monza, and I said he could help work on it, he was beside himself! Genuinely thought it was cool, and wanted to know about it (which is nice, rather than wanting to work, then go out on roadtest, in something with 500bhp, as so many teenagers seem to want)
So, as he seemed into cars, I had him do some diagnostics on my supercharged RX8, plus a few other bits and pieces, then as a thank you for his efforts, I took him to Mercedes Benz World on Friday morning... The AMG's stood out, but the most suprising thing? He liked the 300SL the most! Good lad!
I personally wish more youngsters were not only interested in modern technology/hybrids/electric vehicles from an electronics point of view, but also the older, quirky stuff, petrol and diesel, from the mechanical aspect, but also design and construction..
Petrolheads/Pistonheads could be a dying breed, which makes me sad at the thought... so many vehicles will pass by and end up scrapped because people won't understand them, care about them, and treat vehicles like a mobile phone, and disposable..
encouraging to hear. over here in the arse end of N America aka the Great White North, people remain obsessed with unfeasibly large pickup trucks and 'ess you vees' (or is that eff you vees?). but at least they are interested in something with wheels and engines. there is a fantastic TV show here called Chasing Classic Cars, hosted by a classic car dealer and restorer named Wayne Perini. He gets young people involved in the classic car game by sponsoring students at a technical college where they can study car restoration. the course is heavily oversubscribed it seems and all are incredibly enthusiastic. so the breed may be able to sustain itself a while longer, even if most people eventually end up getting an app for their smartphone that will drive their google car.Last week I had my first work experience lad, he was superb! Keen, interested in learning more than he had already at college, and he was polite and courteous to my customers...
When he saw my Opel Monza, and I said he could help work on it, he was beside himself! Genuinely thought it was cool, and wanted to know about it (which is nice, rather than wanting to work, then go out on roadtest, in something with 500bhp, as so many teenagers seem to want)
So, as he seemed into cars, I had him do some diagnostics on my supercharged RX8, plus a few other bits and pieces, then as a thank you for his efforts, I took him to Mercedes Benz World on Friday morning... The AMG's stood out, but the most suprising thing? He liked the 300SL the most! Good lad!
I personally wish more youngsters were not only interested in modern technology/hybrids/electric vehicles from an electronics point of view, but also the older, quirky stuff, petrol and diesel, from the mechanical aspect, but also design and construction..
Petrolheads/Pistonheads could be a dying breed, which makes me sad at the thought... so many vehicles will pass by and end up scrapped because people won't understand them, care about them, and treat vehicles like a mobile phone, and disposable..
High insurance costs have been the death of young people driving nice cars!
When a 1.0 Corsa costs the earth to insure until your at least 23 who on earth would pay 10 times that for the VXR version?
By then most will have lost the will to drive something fast and settle for an 1.6 Merc that has an AMG badge on the side and go around telling people they drive an AMG Merc..
Me? I'm currently still in the death grips of high insurance costs so I'm still stuck to my 1.5 diesel s
tbox. I hopefully will be able to get something a little tasty when I pass into my 4th years driving and NCD in January..
When a 1.0 Corsa costs the earth to insure until your at least 23 who on earth would pay 10 times that for the VXR version?
By then most will have lost the will to drive something fast and settle for an 1.6 Merc that has an AMG badge on the side and go around telling people they drive an AMG Merc..
Me? I'm currently still in the death grips of high insurance costs so I'm still stuck to my 1.5 diesel s
tbox. I hopefully will be able to get something a little tasty when I pass into my 4th years driving and NCD in January.. dci said:
High insurance costs have been the death of young people driving nice cars!
When a 1.0 Corsa costs the earth to insure until your at least 23 who on earth would pay 10 times that for the VXR version?
By then most will have lost the will to drive something fast and settle for an 1.6 Merc that has an AMG badge on the side and go around telling people they drive an AMG Merc..
Me? I'm currently still in the death grips of high insurance costs so I'm still stuck to my 1.5 diesel stbox. I hopefully will be able to get something a little tasty when I pass into my 4th years driving and NCD in January..
Insurance for new drivers has always been expensive and I don't think that in real terms (inflation and average wage differences over the years) it is any more expensive now. Maybe even less expensive than twenty years ago.When a 1.0 Corsa costs the earth to insure until your at least 23 who on earth would pay 10 times that for the VXR version?
By then most will have lost the will to drive something fast and settle for an 1.6 Merc that has an AMG badge on the side and go around telling people they drive an AMG Merc..
Me? I'm currently still in the death grips of high insurance costs so I'm still stuck to my 1.5 diesel s
tbox. I hopefully will be able to get something a little tasty when I pass into my 4th years driving and NCD in January.. Cars themselves in real terms are cheaper than then.
I really don't buy in to the whole dying breed thing, strikes me as just something people like to complain about and an excuse to think that the world is against them. There have always been people interested and not interested in cars and there always will be.
When people see a new generation coming through, they automatically think they're all idiots and it's all going to hell in a hand cart etc. Different generations hang around in different places and do things differently.
I'm 26 and love cars. I'm doing a masters at uni at the moment and there are loads of young people I see about with tasty motors. They are out there
When people see a new generation coming through, they automatically think they're all idiots and it's all going to hell in a hand cart etc. Different generations hang around in different places and do things differently.
I'm 26 and love cars. I'm doing a masters at uni at the moment and there are loads of young people I see about with tasty motors. They are out there
Jimmy Recard said:
Insurance for new drivers has always been expensive and I don't think that in real terms (inflation and average wage differences over the years) it is any more expensive now. Maybe even less expensive than twenty years ago.
Cars themselves in real terms are cheaper than then.
Amongst my group of friends I would say the cost to insure a car is the single biggest reason that most are still driving old small engines hatch backs or have now progressed into a 1.9TDi of some sort. Cars themselves in real terms are cheaper than then.
Maybe there are other factors? Low wages, zero hour contracts maybe? The cost of fuel? Diesel was £1.45 a litre when I first past the driving test which could have put a lot of people off even learning to drive.
1 week and 3 random chats about my own Foz. Interesting cars just spark conversation even when you don't look for it.
- Ebay pickup...turns out he used to own a bugeye Sti and hearing the noise brought back memories
- Dump run...bloke didn't know what it was but figured it was a Subaru by the noise and got to hear his car history before even unloading the boot
- Caravan pickup...salesman didn't expect to be hearing the beautiful sound of unequal length headers bouncing off the 'van'!
- Ebay pickup...turns out he used to own a bugeye Sti and hearing the noise brought back memories
- Dump run...bloke didn't know what it was but figured it was a Subaru by the noise and got to hear his car history before even unloading the boot
- Caravan pickup...salesman didn't expect to be hearing the beautiful sound of unequal length headers bouncing off the 'van'!
Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff