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NSRA to allow cars 30 years old

44K views 231 replies 54 participants last post by  vert1940 
#1 ·
Got and email this AM that NSRA is going to allow cars thirty years old or older at their events. Prior to this your car had to be 1948 or older. Is this a response to people requesting this, or is this a response to falling memberships?


Vince
 
#4 ·
Brew is probably right. This is something they've been doing for a number of years, particularly for the newer events and forums where participation during the first few years often suffers. The NSRA show here in Wisconsin (Milwaukee Mile) was one of those that allowed in later model vehicles. But even then they couldn't make it profitable enough for them so it has now been discontinued.
 
#5 ·
30 years old??? How the hell did they come up with that number?? A 79 Cordoba next to a 32 Ford? Sorry, that doesn't sit well with me.

Now, I LOVE the "All American" Goodguys event, I LOVE the "Dream Machines" event where all cars and trucks are mixed, I do, I LOVE them.

HOWEVER, I LOVE the restricted events too where ALL you have are Streetrods. Goodguys brought it up a little to what, 54? on their regular rod events. That is cool, but up to 79? What about in ten years, up to 89? Sorry, but that is blowing it in my opinion.

I remember back IN 1979 at an NSRA "Western Nationals" in Merced Ca where they allowed up to 54 with a "personal invitation" I LOVED IT. So I have thought the 48 limit had ran it's course. But 30 year old, geeeez I think that is just stupid.

One of the things I don't like about the "All American" Goodguys event, there are a hell of a lot of "not-so Goodguys" there! Yep, lots of "Donks" and low riders bring along with them HOODS. Lot's of gang bang looking sleeze balls come along with those cars. A STREET ROD event has NOTHING like that. It is much nicer.

Brian
 
#7 · (Edited)
Great info Vince, I didn't know that. Every year we have the NSRA Appreciation Day here in Chatsworth, California. Big event, and it brings out lots of nice Street rods. I never noticed a age restriction at the cars that entered the show. In fact, this show is coming up within the next few weeks I believe. I did recall that the car lot had select vehicles in it, but there was long street along side the show that everyone parked their vehicles. The street was a better showing of vehicles than the show itself. I'll check with my friend on this, he's an official inspector for the NSRA and inspects cars for safety violations. Thanks for the info.
Ed
 
#8 ·
ANRA uses 1972 for a cut-off, it works well for me. :D Like Brian says, I don't want to see a 1979 anycar next to a street rod. (ANRA=American Nostalgia Racing Association) If ANRA makes it to your neck of the woods, GO! Goodguys X10.
 
#9 ·
dinger said:
:D Like Brian says, I don't want to see a 1979 anycar next to a street rod. .

As an owner of what would be allowed now at an NSRA event, I'd be too offended to take it to an event. I feel like a car of even the near-vintage of mine has no place at an NSRA event. Besides, there's too much history/heritage for something like my car to be allowed there. True "rodders" have more respect than to offend others by dragging in anything post '72, IMHO. Sounds kinda like selling your soul to save the show to me. Real fans of real hotrods will still go just to look at what others created or restored. Pre '48 of course....


In a while, Chet.
 
#11 ·
302 Z28 said:
At some of the local shows around here we have some dorks who show up in their dumb looking SMART car...like it's something to look at....gimme a break :rolleyes: .

Vince

You know, I've never seen a SMART car. Must be the precursor of The 2012 Pelosi GTxi SS/RT Sport Edition....


In a while, Chet.
 
#12 ·
Nsra

Well, I gotta say that I view it with sorta a mixed response. My '65 1800S would get in, and I have always thot of it as a "street rod", since it has a Chevy driveline etc, and the Volvo purists sure seem to snub it at "import" shows. But somehow bringing my 76 LeMans Interceptor just seem somehow doesn't feel "right".

I really DO appreciate that my '57 Chev can get it - esp since it truly is a "street rod" with all the (mechanical only) changes. My '28 "A" coupe is pure streetrod, but I gotta say that it isn't half as much fun to cruise in as the '57, and it seems that only us greybeards can really appreciate a model A or T - the upcoming generation can't relate to them - anything pre '70 or so is just not something they can relate to at all except in a museum.

For my generation, the 60's muscle is true nostalgia and even my 57 Chev- well when I was a teen-ager, it was 10-year-old POS that I wouldn't have been seen dead in (they sold for under $500 then!)

So I guess, as time goes on, it was time for a change. As the geezers die off, there is declining interest in the 20's and 30's stuff, and the hobby will lose support unless new life can be brought in. Loss of support = loss of ability to vote down mandatory clunker laws, and then we all wind up driving a "personal transportation module".

Just not sure a rolling 30 year restriction is the right answer - maybe a rolling 40?
 
#13 ·
Well..... guess I can let my membership laps now that they'll be letting this CRAP in.



No reason to spend the money to drive back to Louisville every year when the show will be full of Pacers, Pintos, Hondas with giant wings and donk junk. Time to make a check out to Good Guys instead. At least there's logic to their cut of date.
 
#14 ·
Confirmed?

Has anyone confirmed this yet? Or is it still just rumor?

Anyway, let's look at this from another perspective. How many changes has there been to the restrictions over the years? I know of at least one that I heard really upset a lot of NSRA members ....when they started allowing fiberglass cars in was one.

How many more changes have happened over the years? I know Rat Rods started showing up in the last few years, to very few people's liking. But they qualified as part of the ANYTHING older than 1949 entry rule.

The name says "Street Rod Association" ...but how many NON Street Rods get in every year just because they meet the "ANYTHING older than 1949" rule? This doesn't make sense to me!

I'm still not sure I have seen a definition of what a "Street Rod" is that makes sense to me. Hot Rod, I think is easier to define and shouldn't be confined to a concrete definition. You know one when you see one.

Hot rodding came about by taking a family car and making is "sporty" or fast or both. Heck you can do that with almost any car. Yeah, I agree to a point about the 72 limit being more logical.

The two exceptions I can think of are that Mopar was still making stylish "factory hot rods" until 1974. The design on the 74 Charger still looks like an awesome car.

The other is the Corvette. While performance went into the toilet, the styling on these cars was at it's peak with the 1979 Corvette being my personal favorite year for Corvette body styling.

Hey, I would have loved to have bought a 30 something rod, but I couldn't find squat that was affordable. While I am sure a lot of guys had that much money into their cars with huge body shop bills and custom interiors, the prices they were selling at eliminated younger guys from being able to afford to get into the hobby. Even aftermarket body's were way up there in price. This helped drive the cost of junk up and demand fell as people moved on to cheaper projects.

Plus the age thing does come into play as well as other demographics. I didn't see many hot rods when I was growing up in central California, but I seen a LOT of REALLY cool custom 55's - 64's.

A cool car is a cool car. The success at open car shows proves this.


Steve
 
#15 ·
58Apache said:
Has anyone confirmed this yet? Or is it still just rumor
I got an email about it, but it didn't have a link and I can't find any news on the NSRA site about it. It is however all over the Jalopy Journal web site.

Man the mods on that site allow a lot of profane language :pain:

Vince
 
#16 ·
Go to the NSRA web site and you will find their definition of a street rod, which was defined years ago before rat rods. Rat rods fits their definition, but most would not meet their safety standards. While you are there, bring up their entry forms and you will notice one is for NSRA members and one is for non members. No where was I able to find a model year cut off for on the forms or in the verbage. Since NSRA was chartered in 1970, the 48 and older made sense because that would have excluded vehicles less than 22 years old! NSRA is going to have to change or die, in my opinion.

Trees
 
#18 ·
trees said:
..........NSRA is going to have to change or die, in my opinion.

Trees
The NSRA will die BECAUSE of this change.

For every argument to open shows up to 1980 I can provide a more logical valid argument for keeping it the way it is. For example....

1. The argument that members are getting older and dying off. Maybe they are but their cars aren't disappearing. They're just being sold to new owners.

2. Attendance has been dropping over the past few years. Ever since the NSRA located the Nats in Louisville attendance has dropped. All they need to do is go back to moving it around the country which is what increased attendance in the first place. Having it in Louisville unfairly penalizes those members who don't happen to live in the mid west.

3. Members want their kids to be able to attend with their wanna be muscle cars. When people pick a project to build (or buy one for that matter) what they pick depends on what they like. There is no reason the NSRA needs to change so that people who drive 57 Chevys, 69 Camaros or 80 Corvettes can feel better about themselves.

Now that they have decided to allow Donk cars and rice rockets with 4' wings and fart can mufflers in..... I believe I'll find another association to join.
 
#19 ·
Bill, you may be right about the Nationals. Oklahoma City is about the geographical center of the lower 48, but you have to choose your time there carefully with their wild swings in weather. You are probably right about some close minded people dropping out because their nose gets a bit out of joint over widening the horizons of the narrow organization. At the same time, any organization or business is going to go under if they are not willing to waiver a bit with time. Had NSRA adopted a rule in the beginning to allow a new year come on board every year since the beginning, there would not be any sort of "sticker shock" today when they make such a drastic change. Smarter money would have been to gradually expand the eligibility yer models, ie increase to 54 next year, 72 the next, let it ride for a few years and then go to 80 until say 30 years old and older and hold there. If we were to review NSRA's definition of street rod, it would be easy to eliminate Donks, but not an electronically tuned late 80s model whatever.

Trees
 
#20 ·
The right coast association also increased the years of there 2 big shows to 1980.. used to be 1972...

I have never been to an NSRA event, but I can say I wouldn't mind if it were increased to 1954.. cars like '50 Merc's are symbols of Hotrodding, just as 32 Fords or 40 fords are, while more of a 'lead sled' than a 'street rod', there still an icon of hotrodding... but next to a 1980 Chevette or somthing like that :rolleyes:
 
#21 ·
trees said:
If we were to review NSRA's definition of street rod, it would be easy to eliminate Donks, but not an electronically tuned late 80s model whatever.

Trees

I guess I'm confused by the highlighted part, trees. To me, there is absolutely NO WAY that an '80s or newer anything could (or should) be considered a street rod. Not a snowballs chance in the devil's playground. As defined by age requirements many times over, a street rod is pre '48. To allow anything else but pre '48 is just stupid in my book.


In a while, Chet.
 
#22 ·
from the NSRA website.................

One of the fastest growing groups of enthusiasts interested in the older cars are street rodders; the owners and builders of street rods. A street rod is the most practical type of old car. By definition a street rod is: An automobile of 1948 or earlier manufacture which has undergone some type of modernization, to include any of the following; engine, transmission, interior refinements, and any other modifications the builder desires. A street rod is to be driven to events under its own power and is to be used as a safe, non-racing vehicle for total family enjoyment.
 
#24 ·
FASTFORD said:
from the NSRA website.................

One of the fastest growing groups of enthusiasts interested in the older cars are street rodders; the owners and builders of street rods. A street rod is the most practical type of old car. By definition a street rod is: An automobile of 1948 or earlier manufacture which has undergone some type of modernization, to include any of the following; engine, transmission, interior refinements, and any other modifications the builder desires. A street rod is to be driven to events under its own power and is to be used as a safe, non-racing vehicle for total family enjoyment.
Well...... looks like they'll have to change the definition to something that includes Honda Civics and 78 4WD pickups doesn't it.

trees said:
.....You are probably right about some close minded people dropping out because their nose gets a bit out of joint over widening the horizons of the narrow organization.......
I'll be one of them. I joined the NSRA because it WAS a pre-49 organization. That's what I wanted to belong to. I didn't want to be bothered by stuff that I'm not necessarily interested in when I attend a show. It's simple..... when you change the organization so it no longer fits the expectations of its members..... the organization will either morph into some cheap shadow of its former self or die a slow and agonizing death. My guess is the latter.
 
#26 ·
Nsra

:spank: You got that right I got my renal and sent it back before I knew this BS was going on my brother is going to the NAT SOUTH MAY 1-3 AND I GUESS Jim will get a ear full as he is not a stranger to brother or my self.an't no way I will go to YORK or any where to look at 50-80 cars hell I don't even drive to Richmond VA and that an't but hour and half drive from home. I guess we will see if people raise hell enough to change there mind if not I guess we can all go on down to the local FORD CHEVY or what ever and see the latest STREET RODS!

enough 39 OLDROD :mad:
 
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