I realise that variety is the spice of life, and this would be a boring old hobby if we all loved the same thing, but what is the fascination with having a rusty car? I speak as the owner of a mid eighties Talbot that would rather disintergrate due to the smallest hint of water, than stay shiny, er, or atleast not rusty! Before i go on, I understand, and even appreciate the point of the likes of these:-
Wearing their patina (both real, and probably fake) like a badge of honour. This i do believe is quite cool when it is applied to the right vehicle. In my mind any of the above vehicles could've earned that patina the hard way, from years of sitting outside in all weathers. But what i don't understand (amoungst many MANY things) is the likes of this:-
Both far too new to have earned their patina, so have had their paintwork distressed for looks (presumably) by having it sanded down through to bare steel in places, and left outside to rust, oh, and with the Mustang, it must be paint effects also, or a wrap as i can't imagine another way to get those plastic bumpers to rust! But whats the point of just buying your way into the fad? Why would you take something that was obviously in great condition, and make it look like an unloved beater? To make it something that it's clearly not, it's a fake! The funny thing is that for the money that would've been spent creating these (preumably Rat-Rod esque) fakes, you could've bought the real deal, which in my opinion would've been better. Having said all of that, what i really don't get is this:-
The concept of taking a car which is presumably fairly rust free, then sanding off all of the paint to presumably promote rust? WHY? What has prompted this little outburst of mine was the other night i was filling my car up at the petrol station when this lad rolled in in his 2005 Fiesta, not a patch of paint on his Fiestas metalwork although he had left his bumpers red, nice! So he walks past me and says nice car mate, and we exchange pleasantries, and i asked him why he had spent, presumably hours sanding off all the paint that Ford lovingly applied to the car just 11 years ago? He said that it was because it's cool mate, Rat Rods are cool! Well, ok, Rat Rods are kinda cool, but a 2005 Fiesta isn't a Rat Rod, my feeling was that apart from the rather splendid set of alloys on it, and the removal of all the paint it was basically stock. The thing was, when i asked him again why he had removed the paint, he couldn't really give me an answer other than because it's cool, everyone thinks its cool? Well no, not everyone i can assure you! Anyway, he seemed like a nice enough fella, so i advised him to put his baseball cap on the right way round, and i headed off into the night still pondering the coolness of a 2005 Fiesta without paint! I'm guessing that this is just a 'scene' thing that i'm too old to understand. I do have a couple of other questions though, firstly, how do you keep it clean once the paint has been removed, do you have to clean it with a scouring pad? And how to you prevent the rust from really taking hold of the car? So what are your thoughts on the subject? Do any of you have first hand knowledge of owning a late model car without paint? Am i just too damn old to understand? C'mon guys and girls, enlighten me.
Wearing their patina (both real, and probably fake) like a badge of honour. This i do believe is quite cool when it is applied to the right vehicle. In my mind any of the above vehicles could've earned that patina the hard way, from years of sitting outside in all weathers. But what i don't understand (amoungst many MANY things) is the likes of this:-
Both far too new to have earned their patina, so have had their paintwork distressed for looks (presumably) by having it sanded down through to bare steel in places, and left outside to rust, oh, and with the Mustang, it must be paint effects also, or a wrap as i can't imagine another way to get those plastic bumpers to rust! But whats the point of just buying your way into the fad? Why would you take something that was obviously in great condition, and make it look like an unloved beater? To make it something that it's clearly not, it's a fake! The funny thing is that for the money that would've been spent creating these (preumably Rat-Rod esque) fakes, you could've bought the real deal, which in my opinion would've been better. Having said all of that, what i really don't get is this:-
The concept of taking a car which is presumably fairly rust free, then sanding off all of the paint to presumably promote rust? WHY? What has prompted this little outburst of mine was the other night i was filling my car up at the petrol station when this lad rolled in in his 2005 Fiesta, not a patch of paint on his Fiestas metalwork although he had left his bumpers red, nice! So he walks past me and says nice car mate, and we exchange pleasantries, and i asked him why he had spent, presumably hours sanding off all the paint that Ford lovingly applied to the car just 11 years ago? He said that it was because it's cool mate, Rat Rods are cool! Well, ok, Rat Rods are kinda cool, but a 2005 Fiesta isn't a Rat Rod, my feeling was that apart from the rather splendid set of alloys on it, and the removal of all the paint it was basically stock. The thing was, when i asked him again why he had removed the paint, he couldn't really give me an answer other than because it's cool, everyone thinks its cool? Well no, not everyone i can assure you! Anyway, he seemed like a nice enough fella, so i advised him to put his baseball cap on the right way round, and i headed off into the night still pondering the coolness of a 2005 Fiesta without paint! I'm guessing that this is just a 'scene' thing that i'm too old to understand. I do have a couple of other questions though, firstly, how do you keep it clean once the paint has been removed, do you have to clean it with a scouring pad? And how to you prevent the rust from really taking hold of the car? So what are your thoughts on the subject? Do any of you have first hand knowledge of owning a late model car without paint? Am i just too damn old to understand? C'mon guys and girls, enlighten me.
