Anyone else get Hemmings Sports and Exotic Car magazine?

Be careful when you judge a magazine's (any, not just ours) content by an issue or two. We just got a $500 MGB that we are turning into a vintage race car for a total budget of less than $5000 and we are getting the $1600 Mercedes ready for a rallycross in two weeks with a total budget of less than $3000. We have no aversion to low buck stuff in CMS. But, the title does not indicate that it is all low buck, even though it is the same team that brings you GRM. I also just finished a story on adding 25 horsepower to a 1500 Spitfire for $600-700. We are planning a lot of variety over the next couple of years, including the Vintage Edsel tow vehicle, the Corvair project, a Volvo P1800, an early Mini Cooper and a lot more cool stuff.

As for wlkelley3... I always wondered what it would be like to work for the CIA or be James Bond and travel all over the world.

Yeah, like Tim said, nailing the mix is never easy. It's part art, part science, part gut instinct, part lucky guess. It also causes lots of missed sleep and stomach problems. I have the color proofs for the next issue of Classic Motorsports right here on my desk--yes, we really do work a lot of nights--and here are some of of the highlights:

JG took a new Jag through Lion Country Safari: high-buck car in a wacky setting. He made friends with a giraffe.

Porsche 356 cabriolet vs. Chevy Corvair: How does a high-buck icon compare to the low-buck alternative?

Vintage photography: How one guy uses low-buck, low-tech, old-school cameras to take killer, period-correct photos of old cars.

Bill Frick Vignale: A profile on a one-of-three special built in the old hot rodder tradition of more power and less weight.

Milhous Collection: We got to check out a personal collected owned by two brothers. It's definitely not low-buck, but it was neat and we got share it. Plus I got to ride their carousel.

Shelby GT350 project: The Shelby gets a new engine so it can become a peel-out machine.

BMW 2002tii project: How does our DIY bodywork compare to the pro's work? We find out.

MGA Tech Tips: Seven experts share their tips, and many are fairly low-buck.

Aston Martin DB7 mini guide: New they were $136,000. Today they're less than $30,000. See where we're going?

Pagoda Benz buyer guide: Right now you can buy a decent one for $20k. Soon those days will be over. The cars will last forever, though.

Also, we offer fee samples of Classic Motorsports. If you want to check it out for free, just go to https://secure.ablesoftsolutions.com/pdmg/SecurePages/NewSub.aspx?pi=cms&o=cWEBFT&ref=cWEBFT.

And if you ever have questions, of course you know who to ask. We're always here. I admit that Classic Motorsports has its own mix, but it still shares a lot of DNA with GRM.

^^^^^ David and Tim,

I appreciate you giving us some insight into what you have in store for us in the future but I am saddened to see ZERO Japanese car content. It seems like CM avoids them for the most part and leans primarily toward European cars. I am a charter subscriber so I know that there has been a few stories here and there but really, there should be something (even a small tidbit) in each issue. That is the reason why I will be letting my subscription expire at renewal time.

Hey Tim. I hope I wasn't coming off as disgruntled or anything. Thus far CM hasn't impressed me but like I (bet I didn't) said, it's only been 2 or 3 issues. Seeing that it comes from you folks, I still have high hopes. And I don't envy you folks as you try to keep the monied folks happy with articles about high-dollar p-cars and the like, all while keeping us who have cars that often smell like pee when we get them.
Thanks for your efforts and keep up the stellar work guys and girls.

ooooh, I have cars that smell like pee too. You might expect it from the MGB you got for free or the Mercedes that you bought off Craigslist for $1600, but the high-end Shelby smells just as bad. Rats are not discriminating when it comes to what kind of cars they want to live in.

The fact that the freaking Publisher and one of the main Editors are contributing in a substantial fashion to this thread, seals the deal for me.

I don't read the Hemmings mag, but I do find myself liking CM more than GRM lately. I admit to liking some of the eyeball porn in the more expensive cars, love the Andy Reid auction columns (especially the "what to buy now" section- neat cars you wouldn't necessarily think about for a "reasonable" price), and the mix of shop and diy restoration and resto-mod stuff. GRM seems to be more of a racer and 201X focused mag. I don't have the time or money at this point in my life to pursue these things, so they aren't really relevant to me.

I'd do the CM forum, if it was simply linked to from the GRM site (in the forums section). If you're trying to drum up business, this would probably be the simplest (and cheapest) single thing to do.

Luke wrote: The fact that the freaking Publisher and one of the main Editors are contributing in a substantial fashion to this thread, seals the deal for me.

Take a look at the time stamps on their responses too. Late last night and early this morning.

Teh E36 M3 wrote: I'd do the CM forum, if it was simply linked to from the GRM site (in the forums section). If you're trying to drum up business, this would probably be the simplest (and cheapest) single thing to do.

There's a link to the latest CM posts in the lefthand column in the forum view. Just sayin'...

I think both CM and HS&E are great mags and subscribe to them both. If anything, I'm thinking about dropping GRM for the reasons mentioned above. I'm a vintage racer and British vintage collector/restorer, so GRM has become less relevant to me as that stuff has migrated to CM.

CM and HS&E are complimentary rather than competitive in my eyes, as I find they rarely cover the same ground. CM tends to cover cars and events I already know about, while it seems I am always learning something new from HS&E. The articles about the origins of car marques and symbols has been particularly educational.

I recently dropped Vintage Motorsport. An expensive magazine about really expensive cars that has little to do with me (my vintage racing is much more GR). I dropped Victory Lane, as well. Most of what it told me I could get out of my vintage racing club's newsletter. The "journalism" in Victory Lane has been amateur, at best, and questionable, at worst.

One of my favorites not mentioned so far is Sports Car Marketplace. While seemingly geared towards buying and selling cars at auction, it has some great, in-depth profiles on certain cars as well as some interesting insight on where the collector car hobby/industry is going. I haven't bought or sold a car in many years, yet I enjoy every issue.

I subscribe to HS&E and CM. I like them both a lot.

In my mailbox today were GRM, Automobile & Roundel. GRM is the only one I've opened yet & it wasn't because of the calendar ( I'm already using the CM calendar).

I love CM. It is one of two magazines I subscribe to (the other being GRM) and if I am honest, I read CM first. I was never really in love with HS&E. I may need to give it another try. The other magazine I really want to subscribe to is Retro Cars but $130 is a lot to pay for a subscription.

I get HS&E, CM and Vintage Motorsports. I like HS&E, especially, like Woody mentioned, they're New England, and I'm not always looking at a California Rust Virgin. When people ask me the difference between Classic Motorsports and Vintage Motorsports, I tell them it's where you place the decimal point in the vehicle purchase price.

Luke wrote: The fact that the freaking Publisher and one of the main Editors are contributing in a substantial fashion to this thread, seals the deal for me.

Yeah, late night. And since it was cold last night, we let the dogs sleep upstairs with us. Around 2:00 in the morning, the little one puked in the bed.

David S. Wallens wrote: Yeah, like Tim said, nailing the mix is never easy. It's part art, part science, part gut instinct, part lucky guess. It also causes lots of missed sleep and stomach problems. I have the color proofs for the next issue of Classic Motorsports right here on my desk--yes, we really do work a lot of nights--and here are some of of the highlights: JG took a new Jag through Lion Country Safari: high-buck car in a wacky setting. He made friends with a giraffe. Porsche 356 cabriolet vs. Chevy Corvair: How does a high-buck icon compare to the low-buck alternative? Vintage photography: How one guy uses low-buck, low-tech, old-school cameras to take killer, period-correct photos of old cars. Bill Frick Vignale: A profile on a one-of-three special built in the old hot rodder tradition of more power and less weight. Milhous Collection: We got to check out a personal collected owned by two brothers. It's definitely not low-buck, but it was neat and we got share it. Plus I got to ride their carousel. Shelby GT350 project: The Shelby gets a new engine so it can become a peel-out machine. BMW 2002tii project: How does our DIY bodywork compare to the pro's work? We find out. MGA Tech Tips: Seven experts share their tips, and many are fairly low-buck. Aston Martin DB7 mini guide: New they were $136,000. Today they're less than $30,000. See where we're going? Pagoda Benz buyer guide: Right now you can buy a decent one for $20k. Soon those days will be over. The cars will last forever, though.

You just sold a subscription with this post....now hopefully it will process in time for me to get this issue.

David S. Wallens wrote:

Luke wrote: The fact that the freaking Publisher and one of the main Editors are contributing in a substantial fashion to this thread, seals the deal for me.

Yeah, late night. And since it was cold last night, we let the dogs sleep upstairs with us. Around 2:00 in the morning, the little one puked in the bed.

Now that is in depth coverage! :)

Tim Suddard wrote: And why can't you guys take these classic threads to the Classic Motorsports board. Remember, I know where you all live. I have lots of old E36 M3ty cars to get there and bust you upside the head.

I never read CM. It's simply aimed at a different (more affluent) crowd than me. Of course, I only read about half of GRM.

I subscribed because I wanted to pay my share for the website, not because of the magazine....honestly, I think of the forums here as GRM, not the published stuff.

ArthurDent wrote:

David S. Wallens wrote:

Luke wrote: The fact that the freaking Publisher and one of the main Editors are contributing in a substantial fashion to this thread, seals the deal for me.

Yeah, late night. And since it was cold last night, we let the dogs sleep upstairs with us. Around 2:00 in the morning, the little one puked in the bed.

Now that is in depth coverage! :)

Thank you! Yes, welcome to our world. She puked again this morning, so we saw the doctor this afternoon. She says it's probably an upset tummy and gave us some special food that should help the healing. The trouble with dogs is that you can't really ask them what's wrong.

And to tie this back into cars and stuff, I used the rallycross Subaru to take the dog to the vet. It's the perfect puppy-mobile.

And thank you, Cotton. You should get that issue no problem.