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Social media is a curse we have all learned to live with in many, many aspects of our lives. In the Car Hobby it is regularly as infuriating as it is helpful, and often it seems that it tips the wrong balance, and boy will you hear me wax on that topic.
A few weeks ago I did find that social media can play good. Y’see a chum of mine in London had a sad tale. He had been seeking out a Humber from the 1950s to acquire as his very first restoration project. We had become friendly during his quest. He had looked at all kinds of prospective candidates over a period approaching a year I guess. Then he found a car which was long time stored in a garage, dad (or was it grandad) had owned the car for decades and then passed away and the car sat long time waiting for its time to come again. My buddy did a deal with the family which was very much on the “promise it will be restored, bring it back for us to see it when it is” type thing.
Then it was stolen. Who steals a non-running project car of an obscure make and model which has no particular value as a donor car or even for parts? There is no “black market” for under the counter Humber stuff. So it was either off for scrap metal or off to be prepped for banger racing really. Neighbours had spotted the car being loaded onto a recovery truck during the day but assumed it was “legit”.
So we posted it on social media.
And lo, within 24 hours, the car reappeared at his home. The truck driver citing “some mistake” in collecting the car. Which is understandable, the streets of London are probably littered with 1954 Humbers, so easy to pick the wrong one….
But in any case, the next time you are cursing that the one-make Facebook group you are in is full of keyboard warriors, or that YouTube is full of trolls posting trash or whatever, remember, all that froth managed to make one sad old Humber project car too hot to handle in the space of a few hours. So you gotta take the rough with the smooth.
Much like the Humber’s paintwork in fact.
