Is California Really About to Ban Classic Cars? Car Owners Worried About The Future
A recent survey went out to owners of vintage vehicles from the 1978 year and older, and owners are worried about the meaning. People have spread rumors about potential bans and restrictions on the classic automotive beauties that bless the streets of California.
What was in the survey? Why are car owners so worried?
On August 2nd, vintage car owners checked their mailboxes and noticed that they received an alarming survey. The survey asked participants to share how their vintage cars were used and stored and what their odometer readings were.
This survey coincided with California’s recent endeavors to move to net-zero carbon emissions in transportation by 2045, and this had classic car owners assuming the worst.
Would vintage cars be the next target in this electric vehicle revolution? Car owners were worried, and some even mentioned being worried that the authorities would go as far as to confiscate and scrap their old cars.
Because of all the panic, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) had to speak up and clarify their intentions behind the survey. They said that the car usage surveys were requested to gain information in a routine effort to maintain accurate information about the cars in California, and they claim that this survey had nothing to do with banning any vintage cars.
John Swanton, Office of the Chair, Communications, said that the purpose of the survey was not to attempt to ban anything but was intended to give them a better picture of how much emission emittance is occurring in California.
While there are lots of classic cars in California, their owners are likely not using them as daily drivers. So, the CARB wanted to know exactly how much these classic cars are driven so that they could have a better idea of what is going into the air in California. This way, they could have accurate information instead of generalizing their assumptions.
Swanton went on to say that California’s commitment to zero-emission vehicles does not clash with the existence of classic cars. He acknowledged that the state is trying to reduce motor vehicle pollution while allowing consumers to drive whatever type of car they want. In fact, classic cars produced before 1968 are exempt from smog checks, which means that classic car owners can continue their rumble in peace.
So, if you’re a classic car owner in California, you can rest assured that no one is coming to take your vintage beauty. Keep on riding off into those beautiful sunsets.
Research journalist, Freelance writer, Managing Editor
- Expertise: automotive content, trending topics.
- Education: LeTourneau University, Bachelors of Science in Business Administration.
- Over 400 articles and short news pieces published across the web.
Experience: Madison Cates is a journalist located in the great state of Texas. She began writing over eight years ago. Her first major research piece was published by the Journal of Business and Economics in 2018. After growing up in a household of eight brothers and a dad who was always restoring old Camaros, she naturally pivoted her freelance career into the automotive industry. There, she found her passion.
Her experience paved the way for her to work with multiple large corporations in automotive news and trending topics. Now, she now finds her home at Wealth of Geeks where she proudly serves as Managing Editor of Autos. Madison is always down to geek out over the latest beautiful cars on the market, and she enjoys providing her readers with tips to make car ownership easier and more enjoyable.