Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs 5yr Survey

[Trade Classics]

This is a good coffee break read on classic cars and their contribution to the UK.

We'll follow up with a proper blog on this later in the week, but for now here are some key and interesting takeaways:

• "historic vehicles account for only 0.2% of all miles driven in the UK".

Conclusion: it's a bit pointless and senseless to tax old cars environmentally. It's even worse to destroy an old car by stripping out its engine and replacing it with an electric motor. Their impact is tiny.

• "The historic vehicle sector now contributes £7.3 billion annually to the UK economy".

Conclusion: we'll probably get taxed horribly at some point anyway.

• "more than 22.7 million adults regard historic vehicles as a vital part of Britain’s heritage".

Conclusion: A surprising number of people love classic cars. Is it time for a "listing" registry (like buildings enjoy) to protect this heritage?

• "Encouragingly, the under-35s now show the most significant interest in historic vehicles".

Conclusion: Classic cars have a strong future ahead, although the definition of a classic is constantly changing. We see this in auction values: it's much harder to sell pre-war cars now, as most collectors don't have an emotional attachment to them. Conversely, 80s cars fly off the books!

What are your thoughts on the report? Anything you've observed in your work/lives that resonates or clashes with the findings?

We're banned from posting links, so you'll have to copy/paste this unfortunately (it's not our link) fbhvc.co.uk/news/article/britains-love-of-historic-vehicles-powers-73-billion-boost-to-the-uk-economy

[OutInTheShed]

The 'historic vehicles' that are part of Britain's heritage according to millions of people may be different 'historic vehicles' from 40 year old foreign cars and motorbikes.

[Trade Classics]

OutInTheShed said:

The 'historic vehicles' that are part of Britain's heritage according to millions of people may be different 'historic vehicles' from 40 year old foreign cars and motorbikes.

They may well be! Just like not all old houses are protected, not all old cars would need to be protected.

[Dogwatch]

I think a “Heritage Listing” would be the death knell of many restoration projects. Why bother when some witless council official is going to scrutinise every thread count for originality regardless of practicality?

[InitialDave]

Trade Classics said:

• "historic vehicles account for only 0.2% of all miles driven in the UK".

Conclusion: it's a bit pointless and senseless to tax old cars environmentally. It's even worse to destroy an old car by stripping out its engine and replacing it with an electric motor. Their impact is tiny.

Provided the conversion is reversible, I find it hard to get upset about this. It largely isn't what appeals to me, but if it keeps people enjoying classics, fair enough.

I do sort of agree in general that as much as you own a classic car, you're also sort of a custodian of it for people in the future.

[Inbox]

Dogwatch said:

I think a Heritage Listing would be the death knell of many restoration projects. Why bother when some witless council official is going to scrutinise every thread count for originality regardless of practicality?

Agree, quickest way to wreck the enjoyment of classic cars, stick a load of ridiculous rules into the mix, the market will pay more for authenticity in classic cars is that not enough encouragement?

At the end of the day most classics survive because of the owners interest and motivation to restore and maintain them.

[Yertis]

Inbox said:

Agree, quickest way to wreck the enjoyment of classic cars, stick a load of ridiculous rules into the mix, the market will pay more for authenticity in classic cars is that not enough encouragement?

At the end of the day most classics survive because of the owners interest and motivation to restore and maintain them.

Especially when half the time you have to improvise and use non-original parts to keep the thing on the road.

[Riley Blue]

Yertis said:

Inbox said:

Agree, quickest way to wreck the enjoyment of classic cars, stick a load of ridiculous rules into the mix, the market will pay more for authenticity in classic cars is that not enough encouragement?

At the end of the day most classics survive because of the owners interest and motivation to restore and maintain them.

Especially when half the time you have to improvise and use non-original parts to keep the thing on the road.

I totally agree. Let the purists maintain their vehicles in original condition if they wish but I drive up to 4,000 miles a year in my Riley and it needs to be comfortable, reliable and safe. To achieve those aims I've had to change the factory specification in several ways using non-original components - seat belts for one.

[Peter3442]

Reading the new rules about modifications, many modifs that were accepted under the old system may cause problems. An example is swapping leaf springs for coils on a live rear axle, an excellent upgrade on MGBs, Jag Mk2s, and some others. It makes the cars more comfortable and most often safer particularly in extremis.

My Dad and I designed and installed a coil and trailing arm arrangement for our Mk2 in the late 1970s, before the big restorers came up with similar designs. It successfully improved ride and handling, but we never made a fuss about it. Since it was entirely a home made system (though by two professionally qualified engineers), there's no proof that we did it then apart from undated drawings and notes. In the years after, no one, MoT tester or others, ever commented on it. I'm now restoring the car after some years of storage and would like to replace some of the parts we made. However, if I keep the modification, especially with some new parts, I've no idea what problems I will meet with DVLA/DVSA. Will they believe it's from almost 50 years ago? It may even be easier to downgrade to leaf springs.

[hidetheelephants]

Practically your home-made suspension will never be seen by a VOSA inspector unless you're involved in a very serious accident, even if pulled in at a check point they're unlikely to start grovelling underneath unless your sills are air conditioned or it looks otherwise unroadworthy.

Trade Classics said:

It's even worse to destroy an old car by stripping out its engine and replacing it with an electric motor. Their impact is tiny.

Planning on telling people what they're allowed to do with their property? They might want the convenience, ease of use and low maintenance and with some vehicles it may make the difference between it being a garage ornament through lack of spares and a car on the road giving enjoyment. It will never make economic sense and will remain the province of a small number of rich people or an even smaller number of very keen DIYers, so fretting about converted vehicles is rather pointless.

Edited by hidetheelephants on Thursday 30th October 23:01