What happened to "beaters?"

[mjkacmom]

That's by design to keep the occupants safe. I assure you, that Buick skylark was likely a death trap in a collision. There is a reason cars are not manufactured like they used to be. Solid is bad. Transfers the force of the crash onto the occupants. Flexible and easily crushed is good. Absorbs the impact and protects the occupants.

When I think of a beater, it’s a vehicle that runs well but is full of dents and dings. I think today’s vehicles, while much safer, get way more banged up.

 

[Mysterian]

Tons of beaters here. One had no front or back windshield and a cardboard "tag applied for" sign taped on. Two had huge swaths of duct tape holding the front end of the body, two had stretch cables holding the trunk closed... you name it we have it.

 

[Dan Murphy]

counties in Georgia that do not require emissions testing.

Emission testing is by county in GA? Here in IL, it is the state.

I feel that the general aesthetic look of cars hasn’t changed all that much in the last 10 ish years.

I've felt that over recent years, maybe 15 or so, that one of the most important design factors when designing cars today, is the EPA mileage requirement. And sort of physically, there is really like only one perfect, best most efficient design. And since all the designers are working towards that same goal, most cars will wind up looking pretty much the same, brand to brand, year to year. A pretty basic teardrop silhouette. As for suv's, since they are basically a pickup truck with a cap and extra seats (fancied up of course, but basically that's what they are), they are going to mostly look the same also.

Obviously, there are exceptions, both in the cars and the suv's, but for the most part, almost all cars will look pretty similar, whether brand or model, almost all suv's will look similar. It's not like the 50's and 60's anymore.

 

[DeeBee3]

Think it depends on your state/where you live. When you have tons of salt on the road in the winter, you are going to see tons of "beaters" because salt just destroys the car over time. Like someone mentioned above, if your state has certain EPA/smog checks, then you are eventually "forced" to get a newer car at some point.

 

[Dan Murphy]

Think it depends on your state/where you live. When you have tons of salt on the road in the winter, you are going to see tons of "beaters" because salt just destroys the car over time. Like someone mentioned above, if your state has certain EPA/smog checks, then you are eventually "forced" to get a newer car at some point.

I looked up our usage here. For the 2019/20 winter season, Illinois, for the state roads, used 430,000 tons. For Cook County roads, an additional 28,000 tons and for Chicago itself, an additional 320,000 tons. That's 778,000 tons of salt. Add in all the other cities, towns, counties, etc., that's a LOT of salt. Sometimes I think I have a ton of it on my car by itself.

 

[Moliphino]

Think it depends on your state/where you live. When you have tons of salt on the road in the winter, you are going to see tons of "beaters" because salt just destroys the car over time. Like someone mentioned above, if your state has certain EPA/smog checks, then you are eventually "forced" to get a newer car at some point.

MA inspections also check for excessive rust. My sister had issues failing inspections on a used car because of it. She got to be good with Bondo.

 

[mom2rb]

Both of my boys drive beaters. A 2005 civic and a 2003 accord, I gift them repairs for Christmas and birthdays. When they want something nicer, they can buy it themselves.

 

[Stratman50th]

How about beater RVs?





Honestly don't know the story on this, but I really would love to! Looks to have been a roll-over. Actually a testament to how well built they are.

 

[tvguy]

They still exist where I live. But I think a lot of previous posters have listed good reasons why they are less common or less noticeable. I had another thought: A lot of cars involved in accidents now are "totaled" even while still drivable, so people replace them. Years ago, you would have repaired what you could and kept on trucking in it.

Yes, insurance companies do total cars with a lot less dollar damage than they used to. Often when the damage exceeds 70% of the value of the car. HOWEVER, rebuilding those cars is a huge industry here. They do have to have to be inspected by the state and have a salvage title, but a huge portion of the cars for sale on craigslist have salvage titles. If a $20,000 car is going to cost $14,000 to fix, there is a lot of profit to be made in rebuilding that car.

 

[kdonnel]

How about beater RVs?

View attachment 648390
View attachment 648391
View attachment 648392

Honestly don't know the story on this, but I really would love to! Looks to have been a roll-over. Actually a testament to how well built they are.

I rented a 31 foot Thor something class C RV several years ago. When I picked it up at the rental place it had less than 300 miles on the odometer.

Based on how it drove, I could turn the wheel 1/4 in either direction without changing the direction the RV was traveling, and how bad it leaked in the rain, the RV pictured above is in nearly new condition.

 

[tvguy]

As a beater family, I disagree. The first car I ever drove was a Buick skylark, 1969, it was a tank, driven first by my grandmother, then mother, then me. Sold it in 1985 looking great. DH lightly tapped some side snow in our driveway last winter trying to get my odyssey out, a piece was knocked out of the side bumper the size of a basketball. He then managed to back into a pole during a flood in an empty parking lot. Total damage was $6000. We have Hondas, love how long they run, but have duct taped all of them. My daughter totaled an odyssey by tapping a Lexus bumper, the front of the odyssey was crushed.

Well, I am into classic cars and own a 1965 Mustang. Yes, those cars were tanks, however their mechanical components were nowhere as reliable as today's cars and they needed a lot of upkeep. My mom was a Buick lover, but a 1969 required an oil change every 3 months or 3 thousand miles, a tune up every 12,000 miles, and you probably would have to replace the the water pump/alternator/power steering pump every 50,000 miles. Now oil changes are once a year of every 15,000 miles, a tune up at 100,000 miles, and you probably won't ever have to replace a water pump/alternator/power steering pump on a modern car. Their bodies were tanks, but they didn't have the federally required crumple zones in those days to protect passengers inside.

 

[tvguy]

I feel that the general aesthetic look of cars hasn’t changed all that much in the last 10 ish years. My current suv is 9 years old but at a quick glance it still looks the same as a newer model.

Comparatively: my first car is 2002 was 10 years old (a 92 Mazda Protege, lol I loved it) but I feel it looked very different than the newer cars at the time. So maybe beaters just stood out more?

I do notice quite a few older looking SUVS on the road (late 2000s Explorers, Aspens, Tahoe’s, etc). Maybe there’s more beater SUVs then cars now?

Well, I guess how you treat a car is a factor, but ONLY 9 or 10 years old is not a beater to me. Heck, our 2020 Camry Hybrid factory warranty on Hybrid components is for 10 years and 150,000 miles. But until 3 years ago my family car was a 1987 Chevy Suburban, bought it new, and not a single dent or spot of rust on it.

 

[Stratman50th]

I rented a 31 foot Thor something class C RV several years ago. When I picked it up at the rental place it had less than 300 miles on the odometer.

Based on how it drove, I could turn the wheel 1/4 in either direction without changing the direction the RV was traveling, and how bad it leaked in the rain, the RV pictured above is in nearly new condition.

Actually, the only reason I have those is because that coach is nearly identical to mine, right down to the paint stripes. I was just stunned and impressed as to how well it held up to whatever and was still driving.
This is what it's supposed to look like with all the parts properly arranged:

 

[kdonnel]

Actually, the only reason I have those is because that coach is nearly identical to mine, right down to the paint stripes. I was just stunned and impressed as to how well it held up to whatever and was still driving.
This is what it's supposed to look like with all the parts properly arranged:

View attachment 648410

Nearly identical!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

IDK I drive a beater, she's seen better days, missing a fog light tiny bit of rust by the wheels but not too too bad. It's 20 yrs old. I actually see a decent amount of my car around my area and it was last manufactured in 2003. I see pretty good amount of old vehicles in various conditions. FWIW I actually see some newer/newish cars with visible damage. I figure people either didn't have full coverage or purchased the salvage title on it without getting it fully fixed (as not all damage is the same when it comes to safety/drivability) if it was totaled. I don't know the car off the top of my head but my neighbors kid's car is damaged in the back been that way for a few months at this point.

 

[RamblingMad]

Wy do there seem to be no "beaters" on the road these days? Everyone drives nice-looking cars. No rust, no duct tape, hardly any dents or scrapes even. Back in "my day," there was a lot more variety of car conditions on the road; some looked like they were barely running. Now even my daughter's high school's student parking lot is full of cars as nice as mine.

When did this happen? Why?

No idea. People like debt more these days.

There was even a theme song for these vehicle by Adam Sandler back in the day.

 

[tvguy]

The average age of a car on the road today is 12.1 years, the highest age ever. If there are fewer beaters it may be because folks are taking better care of their cars.

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

Emission testing is by county in GA? Here in IL, it is the state.

Only certain counties require emissions testing in Illinois. My parents live in one of them that doesn't and some of my cars were registered to their house...

 

[2letterwords]

My husband commutes to NYC for work and his Yaris has well over 200,000 miles. As well as some functional duct tape.

 

[DeeBee3]

Yes, someone mentioned how people treat the car. I agree. I notice people just don't appear to take good care of their cars. As in the little dents and scratches. Now to me that is not a beater. However, as anyone can see while driving, people do not pay attention and/or do not care how they interact with other people on the road. Also, many people have WAY too many issues parking. Just no clue as to how to measure distance between cars or back out of a space. It's funny but not at the same time. Hence, lots of cars that cost many thousands of dollars get treated no better than a little kid's bike.