[1965gp]

Today I drove the Firebird to pick up my daughter and take her to tumbling.

I heard some of the coaches talking while they were unloading cases of water and heard the usual 'oh man an old trans am... don't see that often' and 'back in the day that was the car to have' finally 'my buddy had one like that once'....

We've all heard these before when driving our old cars..... today I was in my 2002 Firehawk! I guess it is 15 years old and the body style is 25 years old but I just don't consider it an old car or something you wouldn't normally see.

[77 Canamman]

I consider anything from like 1991 and older to be "old". Most 90's cars look contemporary enough not to be considered old, even though they are..

[dhcarguy]

I think from 1987 and back

[linden_gto]

if it doesn't look like a generic shape developed in a wind tunnel, it's old.

[geeteeohguy]

Anything with a carburetor is old.....so about 1987 and back. When I commute every day in my 1983 Toyota 4x4 pickup, I am usually the oldest thing out there by far. When I'm driving my 1915 Ford, I'm always the oldest car on the road!

[Stuart]

Depends on who you talk to. Some people consider a 3 year old car an 'old car'. In my case, my newest car is a 1988 and I know it's the oldest car in the parking lot at work by far.

[RocktimusPryme]

When the company is dead maybe?

[Half-Inch Stud]

Itsa old if you can't find the parts in the junkyad.

[151007]

When I was in high school the 68-72 GTO's, 442's and Chevelles were new cars and 55-57 Chevy's were considered old cars, so from the coaches perspective maybe they were right!

[MUSLCAH]

If your car has wing vents and ash trays in the rear.....it's old enuff

[Judge-1969]

I think it's not so much the car is "old"....It's the age of the person commenting on it. All about perspective. In my mind anything from the late 80's back is old. Ask a younger person, and I'm sure it will be totally different! Kinda like music. I look at classic rock music as being from the late 60's thru the 70's. Now, a lot of folks think late 80's even some 90's music is classic rock and stuff from the 60's and 70's are oldies! I'm in my 40's and I have to tell ya, I'm not ready for that!!!!

[Jack Gifford]

I refer to my 'Bandit' Suburban as my 'late model'- it's an '83- newest car I own.
Three years out of high school I had worked my way up to buying a one year old '60 Falcon, thinking I'd get to a new car soon after. But instead, I kept buying older, and older. My daily driver is now a '67 and I picked up a 1917 Buick a recently.

[Hikin Mike]

When I bought my first car, a '72 Nova (6-cyl sorry) around 1980, We recently had to get another car due to somebody hit our car in a parking lot. I thought that car was still new, and it was a 2006.

[lust4speed]

If it has a hand crank starter, it's old. Anything else is just a nice classic...

[Sirrotica]

As long as one human being positively identifies with a certain vehicle it isn't yet an old car. When there is no longer a person alive that has fond memories of that car then it's old and irrelevant.

[mgarblik]

Lots of good comments here. To my 27 year old daughter, any car that doesn't have in car wi-fi, back-up camera, auto-park, usb infotainment system, TPMS, and power everything, is OLD! I have to say for me, my 62 Catalina drives like a very old car. This is in contrast to the 65-66 Pontiac full size cars I have owned that drove much newer. It's in the suspension, the brake and steering feel. The 70 TA, I had, drove like a modern car in every way. The handling, braking, power, ride and comfort, other than the seats was just as good as a much newer car. So I guess it all a matter of perspective.

[Formulajones]

It has to be at least from the 70's for me to consider it old. Even though in reality most states consider any car 25 years old or more to be a classic. Time flies, hard to believe 1992 just became a classic this year. But it still doesn't feel old driving something of that vintage.
My son has an 89 5.0 mustang that he drives. It's funny now seeing people approaching middle age commenting how they remember those cars new and how old they are now, lol. I don't see it as an old car.
For me, when cars started coming with more standard features like AC, cruise control, power windows and locks, then it's not really an old car. Especially anything that is computer controlled in the least bit isn't old to me.

[Bills Auto Works]

Originally Posted by linden_gto

if it doesn't look like a generic shape developed in a wind tunnel, it's old.

Around here we call those "jelly bean" cars! All look the same just different colors.

To me old cars have always been before 1955, not sure if it is because I can identify pretty much everything after that or if it because of the drastic style change.

Interesting question!

Bill

[sd7369]

When the repair bills become more than the car is worth. Or perhaps when the car is older than the driver?

[Formulajones]

Lol, funny you mention that. When I was growing up, got my license, my daily driver was a 56 nomad, still have it. Drove it through high school when other kids were driving new cars, drove it throughout the late 80's and early 90's when all you saw on the road were fox mustangs and Iroc Z's. Been around that car all my life so that's probably why I just don't view anything past the mid 1970's as an old car.

When it comes to these classics, whether it be the nomad, the 69 Z, the Formula, I haven't had a repair bill yet that comes close to the cars value. And that's one of the reasons why my wife and I both continue to daily drive these cars.