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THE DRIVE<br />
VIVE LE<br />
Classique!<br />
A classic car is defined by more<br />
than its age or its price tag. It’s<br />
all in <strong>the</strong> eye of <strong>the</strong> beholder.<br />
WORDS BY<br />
ASWAN YAP<br />
hen we think of classic cars, we’re more likely<br />
to picture a Jaguar E-Type than we are a Toyota<br />
Corolla. Even though <strong>the</strong>y would be of <strong>the</strong> same<br />
vintage, <strong>the</strong>re’s something more alluring about<br />
an E-Type than a mass-produced family car.<br />
We’re not knocking <strong>the</strong> humble Corolla – which has its own storied<br />
and arguably important history – but <strong>the</strong> E-Type is far more widely<br />
accepted and far more representative of a classic car.<br />
But what is it that defines a car as a classic? Is it rarity, or perhaps<br />
sex appeal? Will <strong>the</strong> cars of today be regarded as classics in a few<br />
decades? Will <strong>the</strong> cars of today even be relevant in a world that’s fast<br />
moving towards electrification and autonomous driving?<br />
As we’ve established, it is not merely <strong>the</strong> age of a car that makes it<br />
a classic. Some cars achieve classic status briefly after <strong>the</strong> end of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
production; arguably cars like <strong>the</strong> Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R qualify<br />
for <strong>the</strong> title, despite being in production up until <strong>the</strong> late 1980s.<br />
Similarly, <strong>the</strong>re are plenty of old cars, like <strong>the</strong> Ford Pinto, that don’t<br />
quite have as large of a cult following.<br />
TM | NOVEMBER/DECEMBER <strong>2017</strong><br />
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