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| | Old-timer is a vintage, rare car.
Old Car - a hobby or capital investment?
The real men love weapons and cars. But then there are discrepancies – some prefer everything new and modern, and there are others who love the classical forms, which are out of fashion for a very long time. However, these days vintage cars are more and more coming back onto the roads, gaining popularity in Europe. Unfortunately, not all the old-timers can move on Russian roads.
Old-timers are the people, collecting the vintage cars, and also the cars which are more than thirty years old are called old-timers. At the same time, the most valued cars are not only the ones which are old, but which also have a nice history or had been produced in limited edition.
Similarly, Horch 853 Sport-Cabriolet’s are highly valued, as only 1024 cars of the model were produced from 1935 to 1940. And the owner of each car was documented by August Horch in the sale book (the record is still available), and there is a legend that the very first Horch 853 Sport-Cabriolet, manufactured in Zwickau, was owned by Reich Marshal Herman Hering.
Mercedes 190 SL is also considered to be a symbol of old-timer movement, and only 1800 cars were produced from 1955 to 1963. This two-seater model had a great demand among ladies. Its “sports victories” began in 1956, in the Grand Prix races in Macau, where it overtook Ferrari Mondial and some Jaguars and Austin-Healeys. And already in retro-rallies, this “Mercedes” maintains its position.
Real old-timer is considered to be only that car, which has retained all the original parts right from the assembly line. That is the cars whose parts have been replaced by later generations, fall sharply in price. Ideally, old-timer should be assembled only from the parts of the same year, because it is very rare to see a vintage car in excellent condition that is not for collection. By the way, restoration of car may take anywhere from one to six years, and for some rare models, whose parts are not produced since long, the restoration may take much more time. Expenses for restoration are much more than car purchasing. At the same time, the price of a good old-timer increases approximately by 100 % a year, so these days, purchase of vintage car is considered to be a very good capital investment.
So as to estimate the beauty of cars, which have got the second life, many exhibitions and rallies of old-timers are arranged. Main role is played not only by the speed of car, but also the completeness of assembly, year of manufacture and the history. Cars move not even at the limit, but only in the second gear, and they are waited at the base point of jury for upto half an hour. More often, such “races” are conducted in Europe or the USA where the well developed roads do not pose threat to the fine parts of vintage cars by jolts. For example, the rally “Mercedes classic day” or the race “Mille Miglia” (1000 miles), which was conducted for the first time in 1927 on normal roads, connecting Brescia and Rome.
Besides, absolutely any fan of the vintage can visit the exhibition of old-timers, which are regularly shown. Or you can visit a museum of vintage cars and technology where the skilled guide will tell you about the history of each car, exhibited at the stand. After all, when the car passes from one hand to other, its owners change, character of the car also changes, becoming faster or soft, obedient or capricious, which is reflected in each scratch of the vintage car. |
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