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perhaps some of us miss the best part of the hobby being caught up in the "numbers game"...
are we hesitant to even drive and enjoy our precious investment grade muscle cars??
what if we lose the original born with block because of an over-rev or missed shift?
i guess then we have to keep a non-numbers block in the car to drive and keep the born with block stored away for safe keeping...
or maybe a camaro we can flog without remorse when we feel the need and our original born with drive train car safe at home in its environmentally stable storage facility
there will be a day when we all wish we had spent a little more time with the pedal down and a little less time crawling under cars with a flash light checking numbers..
jmo
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All valid points.Everyone is entitled to enjoy their car a they see fit- it's an elective decision.For some the joy is driving the car for what it was designed for,others it's the preservation and historical significance.Some of these high end cars are iconic,so yes perhaps the days of "enjoying them" in the dynamic sense has passed due to the risk.Obviously the attrition rate for motors was very high during the first years of ownership,because just about everyone drove theirs like the stole it.You can't have that missed up(or down) shift back any more than those docs that got thrown away during the Nixon administration.Once it's gone,that element of the cars history is permanent.
So yes,it's probably a good idea if you do have a high end collectible,like to drive your car in spirited fashion,and are lucky enough to still have the "born in driveline" it's makes both financial and common sense to put that motor aside in favor of one you're categorically less likely to lose sleep over if you pop it.I think to a degree some of these cars are the baton we carry as they change from owner to owner through time,couldn't even imagine how bad the feeling would risking damaging the car after so many years of prior discilpined ownership.