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July 31, 2003
Nigel,
I certainly respect your desire for originality and admire the effort you are putting into the restoration of your car. The propensity over here to modify these cars, perhaps more so than the British, I am sure is influenced by the fact they are still relatively plentiful on this side of the pond. Rubber bumper cars in particular are very inexpensive here in California because many collectors dislike the rubber bumpers and see them as a bastardization of the original design to satisfy auto laws in the US and the stringent smog regulations in California. Also seeing that the cut off year for non-compliance requirements for smog is now 1974 the later model rubber bumper cars are just sitting around because they still must meet current California smog standards and it is costly to do this. The weather is not so harsh on them here and many survived longer also their small size means they were tucked away in garages and lot corners where folks would not think of storing larger land yachts and they escaped being taken off to be junked.
Personally I am just as offended to see a well designed car ruined by the addition of all the clutter such as side lamps, reverse lamps, squared off tail lamp units and rubber bumpers just to satisfy sales figures. They do not enhance the original design at all, rather detract from the auto designers original work. They all look tacked on as after thoughts, which the were, and I am sure the original designers were not pleased at all with what was done to their design art.
I do not have a problem putting a bugeye bonnet on one of my 73/74 midgets because I know it is totally reversible. I may not call it a Midget or a Sprite . . . but it would truly be a Spridget :-)
All the best,
"Don May" < may.d@... > 23978
Posted on July 31, 2003 02:55 PM
Posted to category(s) Body | Exterior | International | Miscellaneous | Restoration | US States
