Vintage shift knobs for classic cars
100% stock? Even the shift knob
Whenever I read sales ads of 40-year-old cars and that they’re 100% stock, I have to smile. Guaranteed, there is still the first engine oil in the car, well most probably the first transmission oil, the brake fluid was never changed and of course, we don’t want to talk about new lightbulbs or even modern H4 european headlights.
As Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I may receive a small commission at no additional cost to you for purchases made through links in this post.
And even if we’re looking at so-called complete restorations all old screws and rubbers have been reused. The 40-year-old window rubbers from Arizona and Nevada cars have incorporated a softener escape barrier. Sounds crispy, right?
Patina welcome
Don’t get me wrong, I like restored cars because they are like a journey through time, back to the time when these beautiful cars shaped the street scene. A journey back to the time when cars were not only black, gray, anthracite and dark blue, but colorful, as the candy bags still today. But yeah, I like cars even more that have lived their life to the fullest, paint is not perfect anymore, traces of everyday life in traffic, chrome not so shiny and the leather greasy and worn.
Just like old steering wheels that I am always talking about, that belong in a classic car. It’s of the overall impression, the match – and because it feels good, the 40-year-old steering wheel, what it might have seen over the years, where it already was. What joy and sadness it has experienced. I like to call it the most direct connection to the driver, but there is another. Yesterday I got a small package from an even smaller town called London, England. By a talented guy, he calls himself builtbybasil and produces shift knobs from old skateboards among other things. This is the shift knob he made for me, goes into my shitty old 911 soon.
made from a pile of skateboards
easy to install
What a fantastic idea, especially for a generation that grew up with skateboards, which today is more likely be sitting in german, english or italian sports cars from that era. But with this shift knob – you get something individual, something special that makes the car your car, something unique – something personal. It does not always have to be 100% original.
Momo Heritage Shift knobs
But I found something else which is really cool. In the article “Which Momo steering wheel should I buy?” I was talking about the Momo Heritage steering wheels. Interesting story, Momo not only built steering wheels in that Heritage series but also two very nice shift knobs what I want to show. They are made of layered mahogany and beech wood and have a leather top made from vintage tobacco leather with the stacked Momo logo inside. A nice addition – whether to an old or a new steering wheel of the Momo Heritage series.