Hemmings Classic Car September 2022

“…to put in a full day of commercial wrenching and then set to work on things that don’t necessarily have to be done. That’s a real enthusiast.” Recently, I’ve been hearing that the old car hobby is going to fade away as today’s players “age out.” This sort of talk has been going on for years, and I’ve argued the point that the hobby is alive and well on more than one occasion. As a challenge, I’m usually asked, “Okay, so where is it hiding?” The people asking don’t necessarily want to know about the next generation of enthusiasts interested in vehicles from the ’80s and ’90s—the cars of their own youth. The real question is, usually, “What happens to the vintage hardware of earlier periods? Does it become obsolete…

Labor Day Weekend Early Ford V-8 Swap Meet THE EARLY FORD V-8 FOUNDATION MUSEUM HAS ANNOUNCED ITS SWAP MEET WILL take place during Labor Day Weekend. Several 20 x 30-foot spaces are available, with a free space available to every museum member. This will coincide with the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Festival held at the same time in the city. The Fall Swap Meet will allow the sale of automobiles, parts, tools, literature, automobilia, and more. Located in Auburn, Indiana, the Early Ford Foundation Museum’s swap meet will take place September 2-4, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the museum’s campus. Visit fordv8foundation.org for more information and a registration form. Three New Members to be Inducted into Corvette Hall of Fame THE NATIONAL CORVETTE MUSEUM ESTABLISHED THE CORVETTE HALL OF…

2-4 • Springfield Swap Meet & Car Show Springfield, Ohio • 937-376-0111 ohioswapmeet.com 4 • Sumter Swap Meet Bushnell, Florida • 727-848-7171 floridaswapmeets.com 8-10 • Triumphest 2022 San Diego, California • 619-414-7333 triumphest2022.com 8-11 • Adirondack Nationals Lake George, New York • 518-380-1874 adirondacknationals.com 15-18 • Southeast British Car Festival Dillard, Georgia • 866-279-9728 peachtreemg.com 16-17 • OOB Annual Car Show Old Orchard Beach, Maine • 207-934-2500 oldorchardbeachmaine.com 17 • Corvette Funfest Effingham, Illinois • 866-309-3973 corvettefunfest.com 17-18 • Dayton Concours d’Elegance Dayton, Ohio • 937-866-2222 daytonconcours.com 23-25 • Englishtown Swap Meet Old Bridge, New Jersey • 732-446-7800 etownracewaypark.com 23-25 • Jefferson Swap Meet Jefferson, Wisconsin • 608-244-8416 madisonclassics.com 24-25 • Midland Antique Festival Midland, Michigan • 989-687-9001 miantiquefestival.com Please note that these events are active as of press time…

Sir Vival Shuffles WHILE THE TALE OF SIR VIVAL DOESN’T EXACTLY FIT INTO THE Lost & Found narrative—we’ve known where the one-off safety vehicle has resided for decades—it’s worth mentioning here and now because it will be far more recognizable once new owner Jeff Lane, of the Lane Motor Museum, restores it. Walter C. Jerome’s disappointment at the lack of safety features in new cars of the Fifties—more precisely, at Detroit’s insistence that “safety doesn’t sell”—led him to purchase a step-down Hudson Hornet in 1958 from Bellingham Auto Sales in Bellingham, Massachusetts. He then began the process of transforming it into Sir Vival, an articulated safety car with center, turret-style steering, rollers, seat belts, perimeter bumpers, parallelogram doors, and a slew of other safety features. Jerome toured the car for…

British Consoles MOSS MOTORS • 800-667-7872 MOSSMOTORS.COM • $99.99 MG and Triumph owners know that their consoles sit a little low, making them a bit uncomfortable for longer drives. New ergonomic center consoles for the 1961-’72 MGB, Triumph TR2-4, and Midget/Sprite increase the height of your console, allowing you use it as a comfortable armrest. The new console is designed to fit between the seats and can be held in place by the seat cushions. Each comes with a stainless-steel cup holder, plus a power outlet for GPS or USB charging. Best of all, the console can be easily removed and reinstalled should you desire to keep the stock look at concours events or car shows. Consoles feature four small tabs to screw or Velcro the console in place. The…

I JUST READ TERRY MCGEAN’S COLUMN, “The Dawn of Modern Motoring” in the June issue of HCC, and with regards to performance, I couldn’t agree more. The 1950s was the decade that gave us the modern passenger car. In my view, the 1949 Ford represents a ground-breaking revolution in automotive styling. The Whiz Kids (as they were called) at Ford ushered in a new era of design by moving the engine forward, thereby evening up the front and rear portions of the car, while also incorporating the fenders into the body. It was the precursor to the modern automobile, and every car since the ’49 Ford is some iteration of this first in class. I have attached two photos, a 1948 Ford and my own 1949 Ford Custom convertible, to…