Celebrities Think They Want Classic Cars. The Man Who Built Theirs Says They Don’t

The business of high-end car restorations is extremely competitive, and business is booming. But what started out as turning 1960s and ’70s Ford Broncos into status symbols for celebrities has evolved into a completely new concept of reverse restomods. Why? Because it turns out celebrities don’t actually want an old vehicle experience, from the smell, functionality, and reliability, they just want the look.

On the latest episode of The Drivecast, Chau Nguyen, who is the founder and CEO of Vintage Modern, sat down exclusively with The Drive and explained how, and why, it’s making new vehicles look and feel old. Turns out, safety really, really matters to wealthy buyers.

While it sounds kind of elitist, I know, wealthy celebrities have a lot to lose if they are injured, or worse, in a car crash. And frankly so does Nguyen, who would be the man responsible if something bad, or worse, were to happen to someone in one of his company’s vehicles. He feels that responsibility. He says one of the big ah-ha moments for him was delivering one of his traditional restorations to LeBron James, and then panicking about what would happen if the most famous basketball player in the world got hurt in his truck.

Nguyen has managed to spot and tap into an unmet need in an oversaturated market by going against traditional logic. It’s the only company to turn the reverse-restomod concept into a real business making FMVSS-certified vehicles that actually get crash tested.

Having experience in both traditional builds and these remasters—my word, not his—gives Nguyen unique insight into how the restoration industry has evolved over the last ten years. Also, something we hear all the time is that people want automakers to do exactly what he’s doing—make new cars that look like old cars again. But how has he actually pulled it off?

Today, Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder had Nguyen break down the future of restomods, why a simple body swap isn’t so simple, and how Vintage Modern turned viral attention into a sustainable business.

First time? The Drivecast is The Drive‘s weekly podcast that takes you behind-the-scenes on the largest controversies, stories, and characters shaping the automotive industry along with the way our roads look today. Powered by The Drive‘s inside access, original reporting, exclusives, and insights, The Drivecast aims to make everyone an insider.

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Full Transcript

Joel: So Kyle, your Blazer, which is becoming infamous on this podcast between emissions testing and all of the laws we cover. I’m curious, have you ever considered just resto modding is so we can alleviate these issues we talk about with the podcast in your car?

Kyle: It’s that consequences of my actions, here they are, kind of deal. When I first got it, I was obsessed with the idea of I want this thing to be original. I want this thing to be as perfect as it was when it rolled off the factory floor in 1988. The reality of that’s much more difficult to achieve, especially with my budget. And there have been multiple times in the last year especially after the smog disaster that I’ve though, why didn’t I just put an LS engine in this? Why didn’t I just make this a little easier to live with? But it’s the bet I made. But on that topic, we actually have a guest today who is the perfect guy to talk about this whole business of restomods, and that’s Chau Nguyen, who is the founder and CEO of Vintage Modern, which is not, I am told, a traditional restomod company.

You guys don’t even use the word restomod. Instead, your website, your materials calls what you build, “The world’s first fully modernized classic car.” So for those who haven’t heard of it before, can you explain what exactly that means?

Chau: Yeah, definitely. First of all, thanks for having me. And yeah, what it means is we’re all too spoiled today by modern day reliability, engineering and technology to go back into time. And so the journey that I went through was I bought a series of old classic trucks, old Bronco, FJ40 Land Cruiser, old Mustang, H1 Hummer, and they all had one thing in common. They all looked cool. And the other thing they all had in common was they were all very problematic. And so instead of trying to restore or build a restomod, for the person who just wants a classic looking car, but no compromise on everything else, we built the world’s finest, fully modernized, classic inspired luxury car and it gives you the best both worlds.

Joel: By the way, I love how you phrased that. I just got to say we’re all so spoiled because people all the time complain, “Oh, things were so much easier back when I had the carburetors, I can just tinker and whatever, whatever.” And I’m like, because I live in Minnesota, by the way, in the winter, your car didn’t start. Your diesel truck didn’t start. Now you can have a Super Duty with 10 billion pound feet of torque and you push the button when it’s subzero or negative 40 out and it starts in literally two seconds. That’s crazy. And so we are all very spoiled in this era compared to a different era before us.

Chau: Yeah, definitely. And I wouldn’t have known that unless I went through it myself. And so if you’ve never had a classic car before, you have this idea in your head that it’s just going to be so cool and nostalgic, and then you actually have one and the reality makes it very obvious why the market is moving towards more modern. So I’ve been through that pain and been stranded on the side of the road many, many times, and that’s why I felt like I was compelled to do something about it.

Kyle: So just to clarify for everyone listening, what we’re talking about here, restomod traditionally is you take an old truck or an old vehicle and you pack it full of new engineering, new parts, new technology, and try to bring it up to modern day or close enough to modern day livability standards and reliability, which I know is a big part of your thinking too. What you guys do is you take new trucks and make them look old with a completely new body, completely new interior. We call it reverse restomod. I don’t know how that term flies with you guys, but it is a very unique th

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