A few days ago I was watching a portion of Alex Trebec's TV Quiz Show "Jeopardy" when he asked one of the contestants to elaborate on his interest in special cars by asking, "Tell me the difference between an antique car and a classic car." It was just a question for conversation, not a part of the Jeopardy quiz. The contestant couldn't identify a difference between an antique car and a classic car. I thought at least he could have floated an idea or two on the subject, but he didn't even attempt an answer.
That prompts me to give it a try. We commonly use a number of terms which are ways of describing older cars, none of them being absolutely precise definitions of a category of cars. But they are useful in describing classes of cars we want to talk about, even if some of the words may not have universally agreed-on definitions, and even if some of them vary in meaning according to the views of the different individuals who use the words. I'm thinking of categories of cars like the Junker, the Old Wreck, the Lemon, the Clunker, the Antique Car, the Solid Old Car, the Snazzy Car, the Cool Car, the Sports Car or the Classic Car.
A junker, to me, refers to a car that is so worn out as to be beyond practical repair. It may have become entirely inoperable, or it may be in such bad shape as to be too expensive to repair. If everything is wrong about it, it is a Junker. An Old Wreck may well be a junker, being too severely damaged and impractical to restore. However, "Old Wreck" may also be an affectionate term describing a well-used old car which is dented and scratched and faded and splotched, but still is faithfully hanging in there and getting its owner around for the time being. A Lemon is a car which may be just about any age, even a new car, of whatever make or model, but which is always having some irritating thing going wrong with it. Normally we wouldn't call an old car a lemon, especially if it previously has long been a pretty good old car. A Lemon is a car which one would expect to be doing well, given its new or moderate age and supposedly good condition, but which is always leaving a disagreeable taste in your mouth because something is always going wrong with it. A Lemon "nickels and dimes" its owner to death with constant and continuing repair expenses. Whereas it should be a good, reliable car, it just isn't. It's a Lemon.
The Clunker is similar to the Old Wreck. But, whereas an Old Wreck may still have a good sound motor and transmission and drive line and steering and brakes, the Clunker is usually having problems in all these areas, while still being in fair operating condition part of the time. Clunkers usually spend significant time disabled under the shade tree or beside the house, while the do-it-yourself owner tries to get a problem fixed at least well enough to go again.
Now, here is my effort to describe the difference between an antique car and a classic car. An antique car qualifies as an antique first by its age, but also, by its condition. That is, if it is 25 years old or more, is drive-able and roadworthy, looks pretty decent, and has not been significantly modified, then it is an Antique. Or, if it qualifies for an antique license plate, it is basically an antique. Antique is a quite larger category when compared to Classic. A Classic Car is an antique, all right, but with special qualities or considerations which give it higher and more exclusive rating.
A Classic Car may have very distinctive and impressive styling. An example is the Dusenberg of the 1920s. The car was very large, very impressive in its period styling, very powerful and fast, and very expensive. A car may also become a Classic by its popularity and by its contribution to the development of the automobile industry. I think the Model T Ford and the Model A Ford are Classics in that sense. Their appearance and their technology represent their early era of the development of the automobile, and their widespread and enduring popularity contributed to making the U.S. a nation of automobiles. Other cars become Classics simply by their widespread and enduring appeal. I didn't expect the 1957 Chevy to become a classic, but it has become a classic. In a sense it also represents a special era in the automobile world, when Chevrolet made the change from being a somewhat stodgy, low-powered economy car, to being an excitingly powerful V8 automobile with striking and appealing styling. Are we still building potential Classics today? I'm not so sure we are!
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Editor's note: Jerry Nichols may be contacted by email at [email protected] or by phone at 479-621-1621.
Editorial on 05/11/2016