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Classic cars cost a lot of money to restore and keep in good running order. Maybe folks figure they'd just rather sink their bucks into something that is reliable and not in the shop so often. I had a "classic" for years, and cried tears of joy the day I finally got rid of it and bought a relatively new (2 yo) car. I bet I spent more time in the shop, under the hood and at the parts store / yard than I did anything else!
Classic cars cost a lot of money to restore and keep in good running order. Maybe folks figure they'd just rather sink their bucks into something that is reliable and not in the shop so often. I had a "classic" for years, and cried tears of joy the day I finally got rid of it and bought a relatively new (2 yo) car. I bet I spent more time in the shop, under the hood and at the parts store / yard than I did anything else!
This.
A "classic" doesn't mean savings and a newer car doesn't mean status in a majority of situations. Everyone should consider the full cost of ownership when looking at a car. A new car lease is often times the most inexpensive way to have a car... everything is warrantied, if anything goes wrong it is covered.
I think a lot of it may have to do with driving habits, too. A 30 year old car may work fine for cruising around the neighborhoods, going to the store or showing off at clubs, but vinyl seats, an AM radio and no A/C are going to lose their charm on that daily commute downtown from Alpharetta. Most folks I see in town with classic cars usually have two - one for show and one to use daily.
It may also have something to do with growing up with the blue collar mentality where you keep something until it falls apart. When I moved from Chicago to Atlanta in '97 I had an '84 Plymouth and had to stay in the right lane on my commutes up 75 because it would shake violently when going above 55. I finally had to give it up in '98 when I went to change a flat and the jack pushed right through the rusted bottom and severed the brake line. My next car was a "new" Camry that I would have kept until it was a "classic" even though the A/C died 4 summers ago but the engine finally caught fire on the By Way. I now expect my kids will learn to drive on my new Kia in 10 years.
So, did we figure out if any of the "billboard" hood cruisers are actually getting paid from the companies? I used to see this all the time down in Griffin and I can not understand it. They PAID money to advertise.
Its a NASCAR-esque style too, that's not very hood.
I would love it if somebody could explain wtf is going on with this.
It's not just the expensive cars that are leased (about 1 in 6 on the road today), it's the idiotic McMansions that are all over the place. People won't stop buying stuff so they need more and more air conditioned storage for all the crap they buy. If you have a house of 3 people, why on earth would you need a 4,000 SF house?!?
Gotta keep up with the Joneses' you know. If people realized HOW long they actually have to work for those extra bedrooms and fancy cars, they might reconsider. American consumerism at it's best!
In Atlanta I think it has more to do with status, especially because it's a car-centric place. In Chicago you also see a lot of classics. I don't know how much emissions testing plays a role. Here you do see those cars in black neighborhoods. I've also seen older white men driving certain older cars.
The other side of that I think is that there is more of a white collar work culture here and with that comes the big house and nice car. The "rust belt" cities of the Midwest are traditionally blue collar.
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Originally Posted by Atlanta_BD
Of course Chicago is Midwestern. It's in the Midwest. :-)
I don't know what the pace has to do with the topic but I'm simply pointing out that as someone not from here I noticed that there's a lot more emphasis on having a nice car when one really can't afford it.
I agree with the poster above. I actually am from Ohio and I do think that people here place more value on having a new car versus a classic car. I also agree with other posters in that many people in Atlanta buy "too much" car than what they can afford mostly because it is just a status thing here moreso than in many other areas who aren't as....I can only say materialistic about new stuff or being flashy with new cars. And I used to work for a major bank here and I had plenty of clients who had cars and homes they could not afford. Due to me working only in the financial industry in Atlanta, I cannot attest to this in other areas, but you'd be surprised at how many people cannot afford the luxury, especially foreign cars that they own.
FWIW, I have a lot of guy cousins with classic cars in Ohio. They work on the cars themselves to keep cost low. Most of them are even certified mechanics who got into the work due to their love of classic cars. My brother took body shop classes and became certified because of his love of his 70s era Buick Riviera. which was his first car. Everyone in my family has a Caprice Classic, mostly 88s. There are a lot of Monte Carlos SS lovers too, especially 1988 for that one as well. I guess 88 was a good year for cars. Most of the white guys I grew up with who are in their mid 30s now also love classic cars. They like Monte Carlos as well along with Camaros. One of my good friends from high school, white guy, is crazy into his "Cam." That commercial that has a big baby playing the part of the car reminds me of him. He loves that car like it is his child lol.
So I think it is just a different cultural mindset about appreciating old vehicles. Also, where I am from NW Ohio/Toledo area, people have families that have worked at Chrysler, Ford, GM, and various suppliers of Chevys for generations so there is a pride of ownership in regards to American cars in general. I see way more Chevys and Jeeps especially when I go back to Ohio. Jeep is made in Toledo, quite a few of my family members still work there and have for 2-3 generations. I see more Libertys and old Wranglers there than here.
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Originally Posted by goofy328
Ohio has emissions tests ...
Ohio all over does not have emissions tests. Last I knew, this may have changed since I haven't registered a car in Oho in years (wish I could since it is cheaper, I kept my OH registration for a LONG time after moving here, about 6 years lol) but only Cleveland had emission testing then due to their smog issues.
Just as an aside to Rocco, I hope you enjoy your residency in Atlanta. You actually remind me of myself in regards to complaints about Ohio before I moved here (felt it was kind of backward, not exciting, old, just blase' and nothing going on in general), but now I know that Ohio is a great place to grow up and live. I miss it terribly and hope to move back. Especially in regards to the people there as I have found that "southern hospitality" is more about deception than it is about being nice, meaning that people are nice to your face and sometimes, especially in the business and customer service realms, they have no idea what they are talking about or are flat out lying to you and it takes some getting used to - dealing with BS all the time lol.
Last edited by residinghere2007; 10-23-2013 at 11:23 AM..
I agree with the poster above. I actually am from Ohio and I do think that people here place more value on having a new car versus a classic car. I also agree with other posters in that many people in Atlanta buy "too much" car than what they can afford mostly because it is just a status thing here moreso than in many other areas who aren't as....I can only say materialistic about new stuff or being flashy with new cars. And I used to work for a major bank here and I had plenty of clients who had cars and homes they could not afford. Due to me working only in the financial industry in Atlanta, I cannot attest to this in other areas, but you'd be surprised at how many people cannot afford the luxury, especially foreign cars that they own.
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I have a friend who also worked for amajor bank here in Atlanta and she says the exact same thing you said to the letter.She told me you will be surprised at how much people can’t afford that cars andhouses here and how many people are living on credit. Like you I’m not saying it’s Atlanta-specificbut having only lived these two places and coming from a blue collar city and ablue collar background, I see more of an emphasis on newer cars and huge homeshere more so than where I came from. With the exception of certain professions,the jobs in Atlanta don’t pay very well. I was always baffled as to howeveryone here could afford these nice cars and homes given the low pay.After talking to my friend in the banking industry, it started to make sense tome.
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As I’ve mentioned before, everyone inmy blue collar Chicago family (as well as my friends--most of whom are alsoblue collar) owned homes and I grew up in a huge house on the southwest side,so everyone sweating homeownership like they do here was just bizarre to me. Coming from my blue collar background everyonefor the most part stayed within their means when it came to cars. Only friends and relatives who had moneybought newer cars. I also think it hasto do with the fact that up there, you can get around very easily without a carso there’s no pressure to buy car if you can’t afford it. You’re not going tomiss a day a work because you don’t have a car in Chicago.
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Originally Posted by residinghere2007
FWIW, I have a lot of guy cousins with classic cars in Ohio. They work on the cars themselves to keep cost low. Most of them are even certified mechanics who got into the work due to their love of classic cars. My brother took body shop classes and became certified because of his love of his 70s era Buick Riviera. which was his first car. Everyone in my family has a Caprice Classic, mostly 88s. There are a lot of Monte Carlos SS lovers too, especially 1988 for that one as well. I guess 88 was a good year for cars. Most of the white guys I grew up with who are in their mid 30s now also love classic cars. They like Monte Carlos as well along with Camaros. One of my good friends from high school, white guy, is crazy into his "Cam." That commercial that has a big baby playing the part of the car reminds me of him. He loves that car like it is his child lol.
So I think it is just a different cultural mindset about appreciating old vehicles. Also, where I am from NW Ohio/Toledo area, people have families that have worked at Chrysler, Ford, GM, and various suppliers of Chevys for generations so there is a pride of ownership in regards to American cars in general. I see way more Chevys and Jeeps especially when I go back to Ohio. Jeep is made in Toledo, quite a few of my family members still work there and have for 2-3 generations. I see more Libertys and old Wranglers there than here.
You took the words right out of my mouth (or fingers). Same thing in Chicago. Because it's a blue collar city, folks up there drive American cars. It's way more common to see people up there driving Buicks, Chevys, Olds (or GM cars in general), Fords, Jeeps and Cadillacs.
What I notice most here is people really don't know how to drive. Or get out of the left lane and let people pass. Old car, new car, doesn't matter--blatant cluelessness on the roads.
While I know this happens everywhere, for some reason, it seems like it is amplified here.
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Originally Posted by residinghere2007
Especially in regards to the people there as I have found that "southern hospitality" is more about deception than it is about being nice, meaning that people are nice to your face and sometimes, especially in the business and customer service realms, they have no idea what they are talking about or are flat out lying to you and it takes some getting used to - dealing with BS all the time lol.
As a lifelong southerner, I couldn't agree more. Real "southern hospitality", IMO, doesn't truly exist.
As I’ve mentioned before, everyone inmy blue collar Chicago family (as well as my friends--most of whom are alsoblue collar) owned homes and I grew up in a huge house on the southwest side,so everyone sweating homeownership like they do here was just bizarre to me. Coming from my blue collar background everyonefor the most part stayed within their means when it came to cars. Only friends and relatives who had moneybought newer cars. I also think it hasto do with the fact that up there, you can get around very easily without a carso there’s no pressure to buy car if you can’t afford it. You’re not going tomiss a day a work because you don’t have a car in Chicago.
You took the words right out of my mouth (or fingers). Same thing in Chicago. Because it's a blue collar city, folks up there drive American cars. It's way more common to see people up there driving Buicks, Chevys, Olds (or GM cars in general), Fords, Jeeps and Cadillacs.
Where I am from we also had high homeownership rates. It baffles me how many people rent here but I figure it is an Atlanta thing. But even my very poor relatives own their homes outright and will refuse to refinance because they don't want the hassles of a mortgage.
I have an aunt who only makes around $1000 a month, but she owns her home and has an old Chevy that is fully paid for so doesn't have any expenses except her utilities, taxes, and gas for her vehicle. So she does fine on that little bit of money. Her scenario is actually quite common in my family except most make about $1600 a month to $2000 a month.
As a lifelong southerner, I couldn't agree more. Real "southern hospitality", IMO, doesn't truly exist.
I find it incredibly sad that you have this perception. Maybe it comes from non-rural areas. The folks I grew up with in my corner of Georgia were the types that would give their shirt off their backs to complete strangers in need, would help out those that were down and out, would have complete strangers into their homes. I saw Southern Hospitality all my life and hope some of it wore off on me.
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