Clones, recreations, tributes, whatever- a rant

[bull]

I'd love to have a brand-new repro Yenko Camaro or HemiCuda as much as the next guy. 

But you can't remanufacture the collectibility that a 40-year-old item has earned over time.  Not in a basball card, not in a Luke Skywalker figure, not in a Beatles LP, and not in a '69 Camaro.   

So do these new Yenko Camaros cost less than a real one? I hate to say it but if the new ones are indistinguishable from the old ones and they cost about the same as a restored Yenko there's really no difference between the two except nostalgia. Or as Mike put it above, it shouldn't stand on the historical merits of the past but as far as being the same in practical terms, it's a Yenko Camaro. Like I said before, if Chrysler can call the '06 "Charger" a Charger, and people here will get all bent out of shape defending that decision (even though they look nothing like one) I don't see what the big deal is about making a car identical to a '69 Yenko Camaro and calling it that whether it's made by Chevy or not.

[Ghoste]

I think they cost less but I'm not really familiar with Yenko values to say so with absolute certainty.

[Mike DC]

     

The "no difference between the two except nostalgia" issue has already been true for decades. 



What's the difference between a numbers-matching HemiCuda and an identically-restored HemiCuda with a 318 VIN?  Only the percieved nostalgia value of one car over the other.  In either case, you're basically purchasing a combination of 40yo Plymouth parts, Goodmark sheetmetal, Legendary vinyl, base/clear urethane paint, etc.

And yet, the matching-numbers car is worth a million bucks.   The other car is only worth the price of a 318 Barracuda + a Hemi drivetrain + the labor bill for the conversion.


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A repro of an entire '69 Camaro is like a repro of an entire 426 Hemi.  I'm very glad they both exist, but I'm just saying they're only worth what it costs to manufacture them. 

 

[dkn1997]

Thanks for the welcome!  By the way....I believe credit for the "continuation car" goes to Unique Performance and Shelby.   In working on this project for 2 1/2 years I did not expect everyone to embrace the idea.  I guess from my side and those you have ordered one is being a new body, new engine, new everything.....it is not some old six cylinder car rehab'd into a muscle car.  It has no previous life, it is new!  The only thing one could argue about the "flawlessly cloned hemi 'cuda" is that it was another car before you "cloned" it.  Just my opinion!

Ghoste, as for the body, it is a GM licensed part, welded to today's weld standard and again like it or not GM has licensed it.  One thing Ghoste, you mentioned the word "stole" as in stole their name.  The owners of Yenko legally own it, again right, wrong or indifferent they legally own it.  At least they are trying to do something with the Yenko family and give something back to Don's legacy.  I do not see anyone else out there attempting to do anything in Don's honor!

BTW Rallyemike....i liked the dodge brothers thing.........

So if these are brand new cars shouldn't they have to be manufactured to current safety and emission standards ?
And as far as the Yenko family doing something with their name , I don't think it is as noble an idea as " give something back to Don's legacy " .
What kind of euphoria are you living in ? It has all to do with supplying more old  men with too much money a cheaper toy than an orginal . Just another way to pry some money out of someone's wallet .

I got the same question about the safety thing.  I could give a flying f...about putting modern safety into an old car (I dig disc brakes and modern tires, but not airbags, traction control, etc..)  I just wonder how hyundai has to put all of this crap into thier new cars and these new yenkos don't have too.  I am absolutely in support of them not having to do it, just really wondering about the logistics or regulations that allow it.

[Mike DC]

I don't really understand how that rule gets applied, but I'm glad we don't have to mess with it. 

People are allowed to make & drive & sell their own customized vehicles for public highways.  They don't have to do anything more than pass whatever state inspection exists.  I guess these Camaro shells fall under that category.  Their safety situation is really no different than driving a vintage old one around. 

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I don't think it would be that difficult to improve the safety of these old cars if you wanted to put the work in. 

You could probably get at least half the safety improvement of the last 40 years just by doing some basic steps that don't heavily alter the car's structure.  Modern 3-point retractable lap belts, stronger seat frames, collapsible steering column, better padding in the roof areas, side-impact beams inside the doors, etc.