I get the complaint-driven idea, but honestly, I've lived next to a guy who swore his rusted-out 'project' was gonna be road-ready "any day now"...for five years. Sometimes you gotta have clear rules, or nothing changes. Just sayin'.
Haha, been there! But here's the thing—where do we draw the line between a legit project car and just plain junk? I mean, my neighbor's got this old Mustang he's been "restoring" since before smartphones were a thing. It's practically part of the landscape now...but at least he keeps it covered. Maybe the rules should focus more on upkeep rather than deadlines?
"Maybe the rules should focus more on upkeep rather than deadlines?"
Exactly my thinking. A few thoughts:
- If it's covered and not leaking fluids everywhere, it's probably fine. A tarp-covered Mustang beats a rusted-out Chevy with weeds growing through the hood any day.
- The line between "project" and "junk" is blurry, but common sense usually works—if it's clearly being maintained, even slowly, let it be.
- My old Camaro sat for years before I finally got around to finishing it, but I kept it tidy enough that neighbors didn't complain...much.
Totally get where you're coming from. I think upkeep is the key here—deadlines seem kinda arbitrary if the car isn't an eyesore or hazard. My dad had an old Buick parked for ages, but he always made sure the tires stayed inflated, no leaks underneath, and kept it clean enough to blend in. Neighbors never said a word. If cities focused more on condition rather than timelines, it'd probably save everyone a lot of headaches...
"If cities focused more on condition rather than timelines, it'd probably save everyone a lot of headaches..."
That's a fair point, but honestly, condition can be pretty subjective too. I had a client once who kept his '68 Mustang parked out front for years. Beautiful car, cherry red paint job, looked pristine from the street. But underneath? Total mess. Rust eating away at the frame, brake lines corroded to hell—basically a rolling hazard waiting to happen. He swore up and down it was "perfectly fine," but when he finally tried to move it, the thing barely made it down the driveway before something snapped.
My point is, appearances can be deceiving. Your dad clearly took care of his Buick, and that's great. But not everyone's that responsible or honest about their car's actual condition. Cities probably set these deadlines because it's easier to enforce a clear-cut rule than to argue over what's "good enough." Still, I get how frustrating it is when you're doing everything right and still getting hassled.
Maybe there's some middle ground here—like periodic inspections or something? Not sure how practical that'd be though...would people even go for it?
