Getting the next generation involved into our Charger addiction

[6pkrtse]

It seems classic cars / racing / cruise nights & car shows are dying off. It is nothing like it used to be. I do my part to keep my kids & keep all of the neighborhood kids interested by letting them help me or by working on their cars with them.

My youngest (15) is starting to show more interest in cars & wrenching. He is taking Auto Shop & Machine Shop this semester in his High School. He has been out helping me on my red 70 Charger & my Challenger street/strip car lately. I am thinking of giving him my other 70' 500 S.E. Charger project car for his 16th Birthday for us to work on together.

The car is just a rolling shell now & will need everything so he will be needing all kinds of different parts. If anyone has anything 68-70 Charger/B Body related they would like to donate to the cause (LOL) or left over parts from your restoration that needs resto you would like to sell reasonable cheap for him please let me know. I will pay the freight for anything that needs to ship from out of state.

Guess I should have placed this in the wanted section also? since it just turned into a kind of wanted add. LOL

[69bronzeT5]

It seems classic cars / racing / cruise nights & car shows are dying off. It is nothing like it used to be. I do my part to keep my kids & keep all of the neighborhood kids interested by letting them help me or by working on their cars with them.

My youngest (15) is starting to show more interest in cars & wrenching. He is taking Auto Shop & Machine Shop this semester in his High School. He has been out helping me on my red 70 Charger & my Challenger street/strip car lately. I am thinking of giving him my other 70' 500 S.E. Charger project car for his 16th Birthday for us to work on together.

The car is just a rolling shell now & will need everything so he will be needing all kinds of different parts. If anyone has anything 68-70 Charger/B Body related they would like to donate to the cause (LOL) or left over parts from your restoration that needs resto you would like to sell reasonable cheap for him please let me know. I will pay the freight for anything that needs to ship from out of state.

Guess I should have placed this in the wanted section also? since it just turned into a kind of wanted add. LOL

I was given a lot of parts and help when I was younger on this site. I should be able to help....I have a '70 Coronet I'll be parting out. It's pretty bare but might have some stuff it could donate.

[6pkrtse]

Don't part it out. Save it.  They all can be saved these days.

[triple_green]

The one thing we having going for the hobby is the Charger is used in a lot of video games and the Fast and Furious movies, so lots of kids know/like it. The downside is most of the video games don't have the attention span to turn wrench for very  long, let alone do a restoration.

[6pkrtse]

Yeah, he could play a video game for 12 hours straight if I  let him with his buddies. Maybe some of this will rub off onto real muscle cars.

[69bronzeT5]

Don't part it out. Save it.  They all can be saved these days.

It's hooped and has no title. It's difficult to get lost titles up here in B.C. Literally needs every piece of sheet metal replaced. It's not worth it for a 318 500 model car. I got offered a 383-4bbl 500 model that's a lot nicer for next to free so I'll be taking a bunch of stuff off this one and then chopping it up to donate stuff to my '69 that aren't being reproduced.

[JR]

I have under 30 year olds stop me all the time excited about my 70, I don't think there will be any problem with the next generation taking an interest in them.

[Ryan.C]

I have under 30 year olds stop me all the time excited about my 70, I don't think there will be any problem with the next generation taking an interest in them.

Except the extreme cost of restoration   

But I agree the neighborhood (13-18 yr old) kids stop by my house frequently to check out my Charger build.

[MoparMotel]

I'm 27 and have been into Charger's since I was 8. When taking my '68 to shows there are a lot of younger people interested in the car and would like to purchase one but mentioned prices. $20,000 for a project car is pricey.

I am in the process of buying a 426 Hemi block for my car, and am shocked myself at prices for heads, valve covers, rockers, carbs ETC.

[6pkrtse]

Both my boys got there own roll-a-way tool boxes and set of their own tools for Christmas. This will hopefully get them into enjoying this hobby with me. If not, I will still always love them just as much.

[RECHRGD]

I get people of all ages that just fall in love with the car.  There's just something about a classic Charger that transcends time.

[GOTWING]

I think it's harder for the younger generation to be "into it" because they didn't live through it, i turned 16 in 1984 and although they were not new cars then there were still a lot on the roads nice and many as daily beaters.
My 16 year old son loves these cars, but he tells me he will never be able to afford one so his interest is more into Jeeps these days. The younger generation just doesn't care like we do.

[c00nhunterjoe]

I was born in '83, i was no where close to living through any cool cars growing up with the exception of the 87 grand nationals. My parents are not car people at all. I loved muscle cars as a kid, grew up on reruns of the dukes and saved every penny as a kid until i had the cash to buy a 69, which i did, on my own, 2 days after my 16th birthday in 1999. I worked hard and set a goal. That is the problem with todays youth. Its a gimme gimme gimme attitude. Noone wants to work, they want life spoonfed on a silver platter. Cars is an expensive hobby, but its far cheaper then being a drug addict or and that seems to be the norm anymore.

[PrisonHack]

I think it's harder for the younger generation to be "into it" because they didn't live through it, i turned 16 in 1984 and although they were not new cars then there were still a lot on the roads nice and many as daily beaters.
My 16 year old son loves these cars, but he tells me he will never be able to afford one so his interest is more into Jeeps these days. The younger generation just doesn't care like we do.

I'm only 4 years younger than you, I remember a few GL replicas in my area in the early 80's. I'm sure there were some other second gen chargers around back then that I just didn't recognize without orange paint. I've wanted one since I was a kid, but I can see your sons point of view of them being out of reach now. I am 40 with a good job and all my ducks in a row as much as possible but the idea of spending 20k on something that doesn't run or needs extensive metal work makes me cringe. Imagine the CJ7 you could build for 20k

[BSB67]

Why would we expect them to be into these cars?  My interest in cars from the 40s and 50s is non-existent.

I love running my car down the track.  But if I did not run my car, I would not go.  It is incredibly boring.

Cruises can be kinda cool.

Car shows are equally boring.  Same guys telling the same old stories.  The bigger events where there is racing/vendors and large car count are nice.  I go to a local show about once every three years, and I usually regret it.

Between my son, and probably 20 to 30 of his friends over the years, non showed any real interest.  I'm kinda thankful.  It is just not a practical hobby.  Of course, I'm hooked for life.

[Dino]

We all have different reasons to be Charger lovers. I grew up in Belgium where US cars could only be seen at one of the few shows or in magazines but that's it. This was in the early 90s. I fell in love with the 2nd gen Charger when a discussion at work started about the GL and what car it was. One guy knew it was a Charger and said there's one featured in this months popular US car mag so after work I picked it up. It was a dark blue 68 with a black top and black interior. I fell in love with that car immediately and could not stop looking at the pictures. From that day on I worked my tail off to buy one. I'm on my third Charger now and this one is definitely a keeper.

I didn't grow up around them, I barely remembered the dukes as I was born in 74, but all it took for me was to see one. When I finally saw in in person, the 68 I ended up buying, I was completely hooked. I still miss that car very much.

To me a car is a rolling work of art, that's why I'm not brand loyal. I don't care for any mopar besides a 2nd gen really. Some are real nice cars but there's many other makes and models that tickle my fancy a whole lot more, from the cars of the 30s up to the late 50s and then again from the late 60s onward for a bit. Most of the 60s cars don't click with me at all.

So I'd say that if some kid falls in love with one of these, he or she will put the work in and get their dream car. The ones that want one on a silver platter will regret not getting off their lazy asses later in life and that's fine with me.

I don't really care about the next generation getting into these cars either. I don't see how that changes anything. I have my car and I'm having fun with it, and I'm sure someone will want it when I'm done with it.

[c00nhunterjoe]

Why would we expect them to be into these cars?  My interest in cars from the 40s and 50s is non-existent.

I love running my car down the track.  But if I did not run my car, I would not go.  It is incredibly boring.

Cruises can be kinda cool.

Car shows are equally boring.  Same guys telling the same old stories.  The bigger events where there is racing/vendors and large car count are nice.  I go to a local show about once every three years, and I usually regret it.

Between my son, and probably 20 to 30 of his friends over the years, non showed any real interest.  I'm kinda thankful.  It is just not a practical hobby.  Of course, I'm hooked for life.

Agreed. Running down the track is the most fun. Watching from the stands can get boring unless you make it interesting. Hit the pits and check out the stockers and superstockers. Those cars never get old. And check out the .90 classes. Talk about an art....
   I really dont care for cruises or shows either. But i go to them frequently. 90% of the reason is the drive to and from. I dont stay too long. Enough to walk through and check out the cars and grab a bite to eat,  then off for a nice cruise home.

[Mark H]

I'm 26 and currently restoring my 70 Charger, I grew up around muscle cars and I have always had a passion for cars.  When I tell guys around my age they think it's cool I have a Charger but don't know much about the classic cars.

[TPR]

I don't really care about the next generation getting into these cars either. I don't see how that changes anything. I have my car and I'm having fun with it, and I'm sure someone will want it when I'm done with it.

This about sums it up for me.

But for the sake of the larger discussion, I applaud any kid who makes the commitment to bring one of these cars back to life and use it to learn some skills in the various trades.
This has become a hobby for the hard working and the fortunate. Most often you'll need a combination of both.
It's a lot of money to sink into a spare car, especially when there are bigger priorities in a young persons life.
Some kids will get the bug and become Mopar addicts, others will think they're cool but won't see the value in such a huge commitment and others are too busy getting stoned and playing Playstation to give a sh*t either way.
TPR

[1974dodgecharger]

BECAUSE: CHARGER 

[RCCDrew]

Why would we expect them to be into these cars?  My interest in cars from the 40s and 50s is non-existent.

I love running my car down the track.  But if I did not run my car, I would not go.  It is incredibly boring.

Cruises can be kinda cool.

Car shows are equally boring.  Same guys telling the same old stories.  The bigger events where there is racing/vendors and large car count are nice.  I go to a local show about once every three years, and I usually regret it.

Between my son, and probably 20 to 30 of his friends over the years, non showed any real interest.  I'm kinda thankful.  It is just not a practical hobby.  Of course, I'm hooked for life.

[Tmb84]

in august i was attending my first drag race ever with my 70`Challenger 383/496. i got two boys 9 and 7 years old, they love all kind of "cool" cars.
i had four runs and two times it was against a supra turbo with alot of flames out of the exhaust and turbo sounds all over the car!!

I had no problem to win and the kids digging it

[Laowho]

Yeah, can't explain it but the kids seem more stoked than the adults. Got stopped behind a grade school bus, boy got dropped at his driveway, picked up his trash can and got halfway up his drive, and when I looked back he'd dropped the can and was just staring. Dunno where it's coming from--how they know--but it looks real promising.

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

I have under 30 year olds stop me all the time excited about my 70, I don't think there will be any problem with the next generation taking an interest in them.

It's not the interest, it's their ability to AFFORD them. 

[Mike DC]

 

It's not the interest, it's their ability to AFFORD them.  Twocents

This.