We Hate It When Our Friends Become Successful: Barrett-Jackson Edition
We liked the days when we would be driving down College Avenue in Berkeley and would see Jade Puget of AFI strolling down the street and pull over for a chat. We also like hearing AFI on the radio, even if our musical tastes have diverged. But the band was so worried about a Green Day/Jawbreaker-style backlash, that there were all kinds of conflicting statements when the band left indie label Nitro for DreamWorks. But AFI worked hard, played their asses off, etc. We don't begrudge them a thing. And them signing to a major didn't take away a thing from us. However, we're a bit miffed at Craig Jackson.
No doubt, Jackson and his crew have worked hard to make their auction synonymous with, well, automotive auctions. That said, we're also a bit pissed, because we feel like the event has ruined the musclecar hobby. In an interview with the Arizona Republic, Jackson notes, "I had the luxury of growing up watching the WWII generation buying and selling the great classics. Duesenbergs went from $5,000 to a million dollars. I said in the late '80s that great muscle cars are going to do the same with this generation."
And of course, he was right. But a Duesy SJ was an amazing piece of handbuilt engineering. A HemiCuda droptop was a lucky bunch of options checked on an order sheet. It's an $8,000 car, at best. But the rise of the LS6s, COPOs and what have you have elevated well-styled shitboxes into Maserati Birdcage territory, and it's due in no small part to Jackson's auction. What's more, it's driven a lot of us out of the musclecar hobby because we can't believe that our simple, serviceable cars have turned into such expensive machines.
It's time for a new paradigm. We suggest the Subaru Justy. Or find a loophole to get gray-market Daihatsu Boon X4s and Honda Beats into California. Ahnuld, help us.
Q&A: Jackson sees strong future for collector cars [Arizona Republic]
Related:
SUPER TOPPO AMUSEMENT! Mitsubishi Minica Toppo on eBay [Internal]