Hello fellow car enthusiasts!
Early November has arrived, and with
the falling of the leaves and cooler temperatures, the end of the car season is
upon us.
The rainy weather that has plagued us all year long did not let up for October. There were many shows and events that were rained out or held in less than ideal weather conditions. But the weekend of November 1st and 2nd had two glorious, sunny, and perfectly warm days that saw car owners flocking to shows and enjoying one of the best weather weekends since last spring! I attended the Long Island Cars Belmont Park Car Show and Swap Meet, a two day event, and man was it packed!
It seemed that everybody came to that show! Sunday had thousands of people and cars. The line of cars and people to get into the show was still heavy into the early afternoon! What a great turnout!
Coming the weekend of the 28th-30th will be the
big custom car show at the Nassau Veteran’s Coliseum in
Also, two weeks before that on Sunday the 16th is the Riverhead Raceway Show & Swap. We will be there as well.
If anyone has information about any other shows, meets, or gatherings, please
send them along and we will get them listed on the site. Also send information
regarding all the
(On a related car show note; check out the e-mail letter several sections below.)
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We would like to welcome aboard our new advertisers!
I have met these folks in person and can assure you that they are the utmost in professionals who care about you and your car. They all have decades of experience in the automotive industry. And they are good guys to deal with too!
Cap-A-Radiator - owned and run by Bill Carberry.
There is also a division of his business called Classic Heaters which specializes in antique and hard to find heater cores and parts. You can find them in our RESTORATION and PARTS sections respectively.
Bill is a long time patron of the classic car hobby and has tremendous experience in radiator and heater core repair and modification. His shop is professional and turns out high quality work. He also has a huge selection of parts! Call or visit him for all your repair and restoration needs!
Banner Rod & Custom - owned and operated by Dave Banner.
Dave is the guy you wish you had met years ago! Not only does he do just about everything from complete repairs to restoration, he also is the kind of fanatic who treats your car better than his own!! Dave will not let any of his guys into your car without plastic protection and they all wear rubber belt guards when they work! He performs true craftwork and is dedicated to his art. Look him up, you'll be glad you did!
All of you GM guys & gals also look in our PARTS-GM section for Dave's GM Parts. Dave has a storehouse with a multitude of parts for your vehicle from 1929 up to 1972.
Herbee Dodge - Rich Governanti - manager, Ronnie and Bob in the Parts Department. Herbee Dodge is the area's leading performance parts dealer. They are car collectors themselves and have many years in the Mopar hobby. Bob is the original owner of a sweet GTX among other cars. They have the "Direct Connection" to get you what you need! (PS-check out their parts ad for a rockin' Hemi engine!) Tell them Long Island Classic Cars.Com sent you for a 5% discount on parts! Rich is the guy who can steer you into that hot new or used Viper, RT Truck, or SRT Neon! From what I hear their sales are quite brisk! Catch 'em if you can!!
Classic Car Connection Inc. - Tom Bloom. Tom has an interesting and diverse collection of vehicles for sale. An eclectic mix that is sure to contain something for everyone's tastes. His prices are pretty nice too! He is one of the first dealers to advertise on the site and promises to give great care to all customers. In fact, many of his customers are repeat buyers! That says something for the way he operates and the quality of cars that he sells. Check him out in our gallery of cars for sale, or visit him at www.classiccarcollectioninc.com\
And remember to check out Don's East Coast Restorations in the PARTS - GM section as well as his Resto-Trim business in the RESTORATION/CUSTOMIZING section. You read about Don in our last Newsletter. Literally from start to finish he can take care of your car!
We encourage you to call upon and visit these businesses. Tell them Long Island Classic Cars sent you!
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GUEST WRITER COLUMN
In this newsletter we are pleased
to present our first guest columnist. His name is
We welcome Tom's insights and look forward to further contributions from him in the future!
Here is Tom's first column...enjoy!
MÉNAGE A TROIS
The more unique an angle you come up with the better off you will be. (AND, of course, DON'T QUIT YOUR DAY JOB. You will never be that good.) Do it for fun and (some) profit. It will not replace real estate as your number one investment in life but it does have advantages: -- Like no bank points, lawyers, closing fees and, unlike the house, if you do not like the market, drive it to another one!
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Regarding car shows;
Recently I received an e-mail question from a guy who had some concern regarding car shows, what judges are looking for, and where to find out what he needs to do to his car in order to satisfy judging criteria. I responded with the e-mail letter below.
Your thoughts and responses are welcome
and can be e-mailed to me and I will forward them to “Ted”. Some of your letters
may be chosen to be included in the December
-----Original Message-----
Sent:
To:
Subject: show rules
is there
a set of rules on what kind of catagories there are
at the shows i've been going to i'm
confused on what is considered all original i
have a 70 chevelle and i
want to make some changes on it such as i want bucket
seats (from another 70 chevelle) i
want to change the intake manifold and make it a 4 barrell
and i want headers and a few other changes please let
me know where i can get this info even if theres a charge for lets say a "rule book" thanks
again, “Ted”
-----My Response-----
“Ted”,
Figuring
out what each show judge wants to see and what their “rules” are is quite a
task.
Many
of them do not know what they are looking at let alone what is “correct” and
“original”.
Or if they are judging a modified or custom car what standards to apply to it.
There
should be a universal standard by which cars are judged, but in the “local”
shows that is usually not the case.
The
larger “National” event shows have set standards that are widely accepted by
the collector car community. These are usually based on original equipment that
the car came with, the fit and finish, detail, and correctness of options and
colors. If it is a custom car show they judge based on detail, quality, level
of craftsmanship, and sometimes innovation in customizing.
What
shows have you been going to?
Usually
each of them (unfortunately) has different criteria for judging.
A
car that might win at one show, might lose against the
same exact competition at another show. That has happened to me by a judge who
asked me if the louvers on the hood of my 1971 Charger R/T came with the car!
He didn’t know his a*s from his elbow but was judging cars at this show.
Meanwhile my Charger won a best of show the week before at the prestigious show
held every year at
Another
time my car was being judged against a Chevelle
for first place at a local show. The two judges kept going back and forth
between the two cars. At one point one of them said to me “You know, your car would have won already if it didn’t have white
paint in the engine compartment.” I asked him why he said that and he replied
that the Chevelle had the correct black but that my
engine compartment was painted in white. I told him that Mopars always have
the engine compartment painted body color! He was very surprised,
he didn’t even know that common knowledge! C’mon!!
Another
problem is that most local shows do not have the various makes and models
separated into their own classes. For example, they will have a class that is
1970-1974 Muscle Cars. All makes and models will be in that class together. And
if the show is run by a Chevy Club, good luck winning with your Ford, Chrysler,
or AMC product even if your car is superior!
You
see, they may know Chevys inside and out, but be at a
total loss as to what is correct for other makes. Even other GM makes. So they
may give first place to a car they feel secure about instead of one that they
are not sure of.
(Before Chevy Club people
send me nasty letters, this is just an example. It can happen at AMC, Mopar, Ford, or other makes Club run shows as well. And I’m
sure it has!)
Some
people judge solely based on eye appeal which is one of the worst ways to judge
cars.
Others
judge based on certain overall qualities such as fit, finish, detail level, and
quality of work. That is the most common way and a pretty good method as long
as personal feelings and likes/dislikes are left out of the equation.
In
many cases at shows you hear about displeased car owners who feel slighted when
another car is judged better than theirs while their car is obviously superior.
Sometimes
this occurs because the judge likes the GTO better than the Cutlass, or the
Packard better than the Auburn for example. Those people should not be judging car shows either.
In
an ideal world, a 1970 Slant 6 engine Plymouth Satellite 4 Door should beat out
a
Again,
most shows will judge based on quality of detail and what appears to be
original equipment if you are in a stock class. If your car has other than
stock items on it or in it, then a certain amount of points will be deducted,
or not awarded.
The
well judged local shows have a maximum number of points you can score in
various categories. Such as “Interior”, “Paint”, “Wheels”, “Chrome”, etc. You
can be awarded those points on an impartial basis. A local show here on
With
the changes you want to make such as four barrel carb,
manifold, etc. That should not hurt you or take away points at a local
show as long as the changes you make were available on your car from the
factory. If you use aftermarket equipment such as air cleaners and headers then
you might want to enter your car in the “Modified” or “Semi-modified” class if
the show has them. In those classes you are usually allowed a certain amount of
mild modifications.
Then
there are the “
I
hope all this answers your questions.
Good
luck with your car.
Pete
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Here is where you can access previous editions of
the Long Island Classic Cars Online Newsletter.
October 2003 http://www.liclassiccars.com/Newsletter/Oct03.html
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We plan on starting another column called "My Car Story" in the next issue. If you have an interesting or off-beat tale
to tell let's hear it. Photos are welcome of you and your car. Just keep it small in size and e-mail it in with your story.
That about wraps it up for this issue. We will see you again next month!
Happy Thanksgiving, and get out there to enjoy the last few weeks of cruising before the snow comes!
Pete