Pre-war vehicle
Vehicle from the era before the Second World War, usually up to the 1939 model year. The term is not officially defined; the cut-off varies by source.
A pre-war vehicle (also pre-war car or pre-war classic) is an automobile from the era before the Second World War. There is no official or uniform definition – the term comes from the general usage of the classic car scene. The most common boundary is up to the 1939 model year, i.e. up to the outbreak of war; sometimes 1945 (the end of the war) is used as well, because civilian car production largely ceased during the conflict. Some collectors even use pre-war to mean the period before the First World War.
What is undisputed is that the Second World War divides the classic car world into a pre-war and a post-war era. A clearer, internationally recognised classification is offered by FIVA's grouping by construction period: the pre-war era there covers Classes A (Ancestor, up to 1904), B (Veteran, 1905–1918), C (Vintage, 1919–1930) and D (Post Vintage, 1931–1945). Many organisers and clubs use this system for an unambiguous assignment.
Technically, pre-war vehicles are simple, robust and usually easy to repair. Electronics in today's sense do not exist; brakes were initially purely mechanical, operated by rods or cables; hydraulic brakes first appeared on the Duesenberg Model A in 1921, spread during the 1920s and 1930s and were fitted even to mass-produced cars by the 1940s. Mixture and ignition timing were often set by hand, and starting was sometimes still done with a crank. Thermosiphon cooling without a water pump was widespread, in which the water circulates solely through the temperature difference – a challenge in stop-and-go traffic. Over the course of the 1930s, the initially angular, carriage-like shape increasingly gave way to a more aerodynamic, streamlined design.
In rallying, pre-war vehicles are sought-after rarities and shape the character of many classic events. Some rallies are aimed exclusively at pre-war vehicles. Running them requires experience and preparation, and the supply of spare parts often runs almost entirely through marque clubs – especially for German manufacturers, whose archives and parts stores were in part destroyed during the war. Driving a pre-war vehicle is at the same time a journey back into the early history of the automobile.
Sources: FIVA – Vehicle Categories; Wikipedia: Oldtimer; SHVF – Vehicle Definitions; ASME – The Brakes That Got America Moving.
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Related terms
Regularity rally
Classic-car motorsport where precision counts, not speed: hold prescribed average speeds and target times as exactly as possible.
Youngtimer
A younger collectible vehicle, usually around 20 to 29 years old – younger than an Oldtimer. FIVA lists youngtimers as Class Y.
Homologation certificate
A document listing a vehicle's technical modifications compared with the standard production model. It serves to admit the vehicle to an event and is usually required at racing events.