About

What is Affordable Classic Car Reviews  dot com and Who’s Defining Affordable?

Affordable Classic Car Reviews dot com is a blog geared towards people interested in those affordable classic and sports cars that might make good second cars, summer drivers, cars you don’t really need but would like to have for those Saturday morning coffee runs or those evening trips to the drive in. Cars you buy to actually drive for the sake of “getting there”.

My name is Dave Tobin, I live in the Minneapolis / St. Paul area of Minnesota, I create and publish the content for Affordable Classic Car Reviews dot com.

Dave Tobin

At Affordable Classic Car Reviews dot com visitors will find:

Useful information and reviews of specific makes and models with regular input from owners discussing their experiences with their cars.

Reports and articles highlighting what people are doing with their affordable classics. Shows, car club events, road trips and car related projects.

Market information regarding specific models, where to find them and what to pay. Is a car moving from the bottom to the top of our affordable scale? Is there a car out there that seems to be an exceptional deal that you should know about?

The occasional classified or incredible deal. I’d eventually like to post some classifieds from readers of AffordableClassicCarReviews.com, actual cars regular visitors to the blog might have for sale. Thinking of selling that MGBGT so you can get a roadster for the summer? Send me an email and we can post it to the blog.

Why Affordable Classic Car Reviews?

For years I’ve been a subscriber to a bunch of car magazines covering new cars as well as vintage and classic racing cars. As much as I enjoy reading about the really expensive stuff… vintage 12 cylinder Ferraris, CSX series Shelby Cobras, Porsche 550 Spyders, I get tired of dreaming of actually owning one anytime soon.

There are plenty of unique, fun cars out there that almost anyone can afford. For the sake of this blog let’s say anything up to about $20,000 is affordable. These cars may not be the blue chip collectibles that will pay for your retirement, but they are fun cars with character, many with good club and enthusiast networks to ensure that there will always be someone to share your passion with. It’s these cars that will be the subject of conversation here. Some of the cars we explore here will be well below even the $10,000 mark.

Who’s deciding what affordable really means?

I have been into cars since I was a child. Like so many “car guys” my father got me started. He has been into cars all his life and he passed his passion on to me. There were many father son outings growing up to attend different car events. Whether it was an IMSA GTP race at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course a few hours from my childhood home or the Annual Concours d’Elegance, car knowledge was always being imparted to me.

Road & Track magazines arrived each month, Autoweek showed up once a week… the occasional copy of Hemmings Motor News would show up too. There was a full collection of the fine publication, Automobile Quarterly in the house growing up. There was an original oil painting of a 1930s Alfa Romeo competing in the Mille Miglia hanging over the mantle in the living room. There seemed to always be an MG in various stages of repair in the garage. So, I have a car guy for a father, and clearly, a saint for a mother.

Working the grid at Road America, Vintage Formula 1

I have been a member of the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) since 2002, the country’s largest amateur auto racing organization. I usually work as a course worker, specializing in Grid duties for SCCA events and events the SCCA supplies course workers for (American Le Mans Series, IMSA, Trans Am, SVRA, VSCDA, etc).

At Road America with Derek Bell, 5 time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner

Splitting the Formula Continental Field at the June Sprints - Road America

I have been a member of the Mercedes-Benz Club of America since 2008 and serve on the Board of Directors of the local Twin Cities Section.

In May of 2008 I finally took my passion for all things automotive and got into the car business. I work at Feldmann Imports Mercedes-Benz in Bloomington, MN selling new Mercedes-Benz automobiles as well as pre-owned (let’s just call them used) Mercedes-Benz and anything else that might be on the lot. While I wouldn’t have guessed it was a move I’d ever make, I’m glad I made it and enjoy the job thoroughly. I have the luxury of being at a high line dealership everyday where I see all sorts of interesting cars come and go.

It’s a year and a half at my new job that really made me want to start this blog. While most of the cars I work with every day are modern cars, usually daily drivers, I see plenty of older cars as well. I talk to people coming in for parts for their older cars, and other car guys who might come in with their vintage Porsche, Alfa Romeo, Corvette, whatever. I see all sorts of things and talk to all sorts of different people about cars they might be looking for, cars they’re trying to sell, cars they’ve owned over the years. It’s always about cars.

I know that if you are patient and you keep your eyes open there are all sorts of cool, very affordable, cars to be had. If I could have bought all the cool old $3000 – $10,000 Mercedes-Benz cars I’ve seen come through Feldmann Imports in the past year I’d have an example of every coupe, sedan, wagon and roadster build in the last 30 years. You don’t have to be a millionaire to have a fun car for those beautiful Spring mornings… there are plenty of affordable classic cars out there for all of us.