What Makes It a Classic?

"She took my breath away...I still don't know if I've recovered..."

- An anonymous car collector

It's said you don't collect classic cars with your head. You collect them with your heart. Maybe it's that classic cars were built to a standard, instead of the bottom line. Or maybe it's about owning a piece of America. Or, just maybe, it's because they are just so damn beautiful and you can turn them on and drive off with them.

Heinz, Pierce and Munschauer were initially known for iceboxes and birdcages. In 1872, Pierce, having other ideas, eliminated Heinz and Munschaurer (legally) to form the George N. Pierce Company, which made bicycles and a two-cylinder car called the Arrow. In 1909, being no fool, he changed the company name to the Pierce-Arrow Motor Car Co.

The company later merged with Studebaker and introduced the 12-cylinder car. It went to Bonneville and broke 14 international records. As the story goes, in the final hour of a 24-hour race, at 125 mph., the driver, Ab Jenkins, took out a razor and exited the car clean-shaven.

Sadly, Studebaker went belly up and Pierce-Arrow was purchased by a group of businessmen from Buffalo.  In a glorious last gasp, the newly streamlined 1934 Pierce-Arrow Salon Twelve was produced. True, there were all of 287 of them, weighing in at 5,072 pounds and selling for $3,395.            Today, that same car sells for more than $2 million. At last count, there were only four still in running order.

Before you go out and spend a bushel of money, it might be wise to know what a classic car is (or should be). The Classic Car Club of America has made it easy, publishing a list of the cars it has approved as "classics." All Cadillacs from 1925-35 make the list. So, too, do the Duesenbergs from 1921. But the one-off 1937 Oldsmobile Salon Toure, which is considered a classic car by many, didn't make the cut.

There are no cars on the Classic Car Club of America's list newer than 1948. For later models, try the Milestone Car Society, which sanctions cars made from 1945-72. If you already own a 1956 Plymouth Fury Sport Coupe, a 1968 Plymouth Road Runner or Superbird, or a 1955 Pontiac Safari, no need to check. You're in already.

With prices on the rise - a 1961 Chrysler 300G convertible recently sold for $140,800 - some are thinking of going in another direction. Buy now and wait 50 years or so. That's fine, but you might want to check out what the experts consider potential classics.

Finally, if you don't have the space or cash (or the patience), you might consider classic model cars. Just make sure it's an exact miniature. Everything else is a toy - and is frowned on by collectors. A good place to start is Model Cars magazine.

Then again, your own car may simply be enough, which is fine too. But have you ever thought of what it would be like...?

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