MODERN technology is changing the face of the automobile industry in a huge way, from the source of power to the way car functions are organised as well as the way we will drive, or not drive, our cars of the future.
Then there is the possibility of cars being shared products rather than an owned personal source of pride.
As fans of classic cars, we have to face the fact that the cars we have come to know and love will cease to exist and many of the technology that we know and understand in building these cars will also become less common.
For example, the rise of 3D-printing will completely change the way we build cars; right now these printers need three days to print a small car but that time will probably shrink to less than a day within the next decade.
As engineers understand and play more with 3D printing, we will probably see hundreds or thousands of new car brands or printing shops for cars, where they offer a combination of standardised systems and predetermined dimensions and pre-tested safety structures that we can pick and choose and then wrap in a cover of our own design.
3D printing is probably the future for us classic car fans and if you are an engineer with access to 3D printing technology, it would be great if you could assemble the blueprints of all the great classic cars of the past and figure a way of how to reproduce them via 3D prints.
Obviously these 3D prints are not going to cut the mustard with us hardcore fans who want every nut and every bolt restored from the original but for each dyed-in-the-wool classic car fan out there, there are hundreds more who may enjoy the look and feel of older cars but simply have no desire to implicate themselves with the hobby of looking after them.
There is already a few small organisations that will electrify your car and they are now doing interesting work with classic vehicles as well. This will help to preserve some of the older cars that we like but perhaps in a form that we do not understand and appreciate.
Nonetheless, this is a development that is taking place thanks to the changes in technology and the way that the young and the young at heart are perceiving cars.
If the internal combustion engine and fossil fuels are phased out within the next two decades, as envisioned by some, it would be as difficult for us to maintain a car as we know now as it is for anyone today to upkeep a steam-powered car. You would simply have to do everything yourself.
Electrifying our classic car does seem like a cheat and an insult to the car itself but it is one option for those who want to enjoy the beauty of classic lines while maintaining their ecological sensibilities.
The beauty of the electric drive is that the various components can be tailored to fit the available space of nearly any given vehicle, regardless of size.
The large and inefficient internal combustion engine requires a substantial portion of the real estate in any car and all that space is now available for battery and storage while the drive motors can be compact and located on the wheels.
Imagine getting an Alfasud, putting four powerful motors on each wheels and packing the batteries low in the car and distributing the mass to get perfect balance. I think it would improve an already great small car, the only problem is you would not get the correct soundtrack to accompany your antics.
With modern recording technology and a bit of computer programming, there is no reason why that soundtrack cannot be played in the cabin and outside, when appropriate.
From the outside, the car may be completely silent but, on the inside, we hear every crackle and burble. When we are at events we can turn on the outside loud speakers and let others in on the fun.
If we view cars as something that we experience then we can break down the various aspects of that experience and tune the car to fit our choice of experience the best.
If you are the sort of chap who likes to look at gleaming metal and listen to the engine idling, and there are many of us who are like that, then a full-on original restoration is the way to go.
Then there are those who remember driving our beloved classics hard and enjoying the sensation of speed, upgrading the car to a modern engine and keeping the bodywork original is the way to go for millions of people.
Moving on to electric motors is not a leap that is too big for them. You can count me in this category, too.
Some small sports cars, for example, are perfect for electrification because electric motors can sit in the garage for months or years and no one has to worry about internal corrosion and stuff like that. When we feel like it, charge the car overnight, go out on a nice Sunday and when we are done, put her back under the covers.
No worries of overheating or burst hoses and blown gaskets.
Obviously, if I have money I would have two versions of each classic that I love. One in original glory and the other electrified.
Stop pulling your hair out. I am just saying that this is an option for some. The rest of us can continue to enjoy the smell of engine oil on our hands.