How many times have you heard someone say something like “new cars just don’t have any soul” like they used to? You know what they mean, you may have said it yourself: There’s something about an old car that feels like a personality; as if there’s really someone in there. You know this is true, but have you ever asked yourself why this is true?

Of course, cars are machines and not living beings, but every car has a design and the craftsmanship it was given at the factory. Those factors determine whether a car is forgiving or evil-handling, prone to break down at the worst possible moment or somehow always managing to get its owner home against all odds. The character of a car is mostly born in the design studio and assembly line.

On top of the basic design and build character, each car has an individual life story. Every spilled cup of coffee, every pothole, every fender-bender, every botched repair or brilliant upgrade changes a car a little bit. The life that happens to a car transforms a mostly identical machine into a unique individual. People may think that new cars lack soul, but they simply haven’t had enough time to develop their personalities.  So give those new cars a few years and they’ll show you what they’re made of.

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