[Mgs] Diminishing returns

[Richard Lindsay]

Hello MG friends,
   I recently attended an 'All British Car Show' in a neighborhood called
'The Woodlands', here in South Texas. It was a fun show with MGs ranging
from a single 1934 PA through to many MGB Tourers, all dominating the
collection of British marques. Just guessing, I estimate about 30 or so
cars in total were on display.
   Two issues came to mind, one obvious from talking with the owners, and
another a worrisome trend.
   Firstly, almost all of the MG owners and restorers were gray haired old
men. Now, I won't make any gender related comments but it is obvious that
our hobby and passion lives on, mostly in old people. That's just fine
because retired people have more free time to pursue the hobby. But where
are the younger people? Will there be replacements for us as we fade away?
And what will happen to our cars? I already see too many cars
left languishing or worse, decaying in garages and storage.
   Secondly, I wonder about the whole car hobby in general. What cars are
being restored today? Sixties 'muscle cars' may always be popular but so
many of them are resto-mods, not restorations. But what newer cars can be
restored?
   I recently gave away a rough Jaguar XK8 because it had a failed CAN
buss, and therefore couldn't pass safety and emissions inspection. Most of
the repair parts for that car are still available, if at better-than-gold
prices, but how many hobbyists can diagnose, repair, and restore serial
computer networks like the Jaguar's CAN buss?! BTW, a CAN bus is a serial
computer network not terribly unlike the old strings of Christmas lights
where if one lamp goes out, they all go out! Well, except in the XK8, if
one component like the transmission reverse safety switch goes out, the
whole network goes down. Everything from the engine to the seat position
computers! And do you think Jaguar sells the diagnostic tool to find the
'burned out bulb'? Yea right.
   My point isn't to criticize Jaguar. Rather, it's to make the point that
modern cars, especially the interesting and exotic ones, just aren't really
restorable - not by hobbyists like the next generation of potential
enthusiasts (or us?!). So is ours a dying hobby? I fear so. And in the
extreme, do you want your grandson attempting to restore a 400 volt
electric car? Yikes.
   So what should we do? Well, first of all I think we should save all the
old British cars that we can. Wait! Don't we already do that?! My wife says
that, "I never met an 'old junk car' that I didn't love!" I also think we
should introduce our cars and our hobby to younger people, especially kids.
Car shows and tech sessions help with that. Not only might that exposure
help to preserve our cars, maybe, but also there's lots to learn pulling
spanners that wiggling an X-Box controller just can't teach! There is a
kind of perverse value in 'busted knuckles'.
   As we say, 'YMMV' but my grandson loves my old cars and he can handle a
Whitworth spanner quite expertly. My granddaughter likes the cars too but
'My Little Ponies' are more fun, for now.

Yes, YMMV,

Rick
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